Sweden is one of the nations the guide sites skip, which is exactly why the starting position is worth reading before the first pause. This page covers what Sweden begins with, what its national spirits do to that, where the focus tree can take it, and the openings the wiki's own editors recommend.
Quick answer
| What | Answer |
|---|---|
| Starting military factories | 3 |
| Starting civilian factories | 9 (-3) |
| National spirits at the start | file=Generic spy intel, Neutral Foreign Policy, Hungersköld, Severe lack of ammunition, King Gustaf V, Folkhemmet |
| Main paths | The Swedish national focus tree can be divided into 2 branches and 15 subbranches: Defense Act Branch The industrial focus allows Sweden to balance internal social policies and foc |
| Source | Hearts of Iron 4 Wiki, patch 1.16 |
What you start with
| Industry at the 1936 start | Amount |
|---|---|
| Military Factories | 3 |
| Naval Dockyards | 3 |
| Civilian Factories | 9 (-3) |
| Building Slots | 39 |
| Resources at the 1936 start | Amount |
|---|---|
| Oil | 0 |
| Aluminum | 4 (-2) |
| Rubber | 0 |
| Tungsten | 114 (-57) |
| Steel | 249 (-124) |
| Chromium | 59 (-29) |
| Coal | 5 (-2) |
National spirits
Sweden does not start from a clean sheet — these are on before the first day passes:
| Spirit | What it does |
|---|---|
| file=Generic spy intel | Ideology drift defense: +10.0%; Justify wargoal time on us: +10.0% |
| Neutral Foreign Policy | Join faction tension limit: +100.0%; Send volunteers tension limit: +20.0%; Guarantee tension limit: +100.0%; Embargo tension limit: +250.0%; AI Modifier: Threat receptivity: +1.0%; AI Modifier: Desire to be in or expand a faction: −100 |
| Hungersköld | Sweden risks strikes or riots if Stability is under 68%; Will be removed if either of the following are true: Has more than 45 Civilian Factories including trade; Has constructed more than 14 cics excluding trade; Gain 120 Political Power upon removal |
| Severe lack of ammunition | Division Attack: -10.0%; Division Defense: -10.0% |
| King Gustaf V | When Gustaf V took the throne, he still had great authority over Swedish politics. |
| Folkhemmet | Stability: +25.00%; War Support: -25.00%; infra construction speed: +20.00%; mic construction speed: -20.00%; cic construction speed: +20.00%; nic construction speed: -20.00% |
The focus tree
as part of the Arms Against Tyranny expansion. Without the expansion, Sweden utilizes the generic national focus tree . The Swedish national focus tree can be divided into 2 branches and 15 subbranches: Defense Act Branch The industrial focus allows Sweden to balance internal social policies and focus on the civilian industry and Stability or its defensive industrial capacity and focus on military industry and War support Government Weapons Contract Sub-branch This gives Sweden bonuses to the army and allows Sweden to use Bicycle Infantry and the Lynx Armored Car Form SAAB Sub-branch This gives bonuses to the Airforce Götaverken Sub-branch This gives bonuses to the Navy Seize Landsverk/Allow Landsverk to Operate Independently Sub-branch This allows the player to decide on focusing on defense or offense for the Swedish military Continue the Second Industrial Revolution Sub-branch This starts the Communist or Democratic sub-branches Align more Closely with Landsorganisationen Sub-branch The Communist sub-branch gives Sweden Communist advisors from other countries and foments Communism in the other Nordic countries Sámi Reconciliation/En Svensk Tiger/Form RFSU Sub-branch These focuses shared between the historical Democratic and Communist sub-branches allow Sweden to reconcile with the Sámi people and gain army bonuses, get bonuses for Intel, and gain Stability and Democracy support Democratic War Cabinet Sub-branch The historical Democratic path allows Sweden to prepare for war and save Denmark and Norway from an enemy nation. Scandinavian Defense Union/The Threat Of The Iron Curtain Sub-branch This shared Communist and general Democratic sub-branch allows Sweden to form a Communist faction with other Nordic nations or join another faction of the same ideology.
Fascist Sweden → Scandinavia → Nordic Empire
As of version 1.12.3 (By Blood Alone), Sweden can fairly easily (re)form Scandinavia and eventually proclaim Nordic Unity and - if one is lucky - without being dragged into the 2nd World War, doing so however can be somewhat a race against the clock. Start off by taking the focus "Political Effort", then choose the fascist political advisor Per Engdahl and eventually become fascist. After this you can chose whichever focuses you feel like though expanding your industry via the generic focus tree is a good option. While slowly becoming fascist, make sure to construct civil and military factories as well as naval dockyards, Sweden has a decent navy but if playing the long game, a much stronger navy is a must, in particular if participating in the 2nd World War. You should also not disband your current fleets, but should station them it in Malmö (the southern tip of Sweden just east of Copenhagen), it can be given an exercise order but will most likely deplete your fuel stockpile unless you find enough people to buy oil from. As for military you can make do with 20 width infantry with support engineers, recon, artillery, anti-air, and anti-tank - not a particularly good combination but a decent "jack of all trades", but you should make sure you have at least 12 by the time you declare war on Denmark, however keep training more!
Also worth knowing
- The starting numbers above are the 1936 start. A 1939 start hands you a different army and a different industry, and most written advice assumes 1936.
- National spirits are removable. Several of them are the first thing a focus tree clears, and the order you clear them in is usually the whole opening.
- Wiki strategy is written by players, not by the developers. It is the best free advice there is for a nation nobody films, and it can still be out of date with the current patch.
Source: Sweden on the Hearts of Iron 4 Wiki.
Frequently asked
What does Sweden start with in HOI4?
The tables above list Sweden's factories, dockyards and resources at the 1936 start, taken from the game's wiki. A 1939 start differs, and most written advice assumes 1936.
What are Sweden's national spirits?
Sweden begins with file=Generic spy intel, Neutral Foreign Policy, Hungersköld, Severe lack of ammunition, King Gustaf V, Folkhemmet. Each one is a modifier applied before the first day, and clearing them is usually what the early focus tree is for.
Is Sweden good for a beginner?
A minor nation teaches the parts of the game a major hides — supply, manpower limits and industry order all matter immediately. The starting tables above are the honest measure of how much room there is.
Read next
HOI4 Turkey Guide
What Turkey starts with in Hearts of Iron IV, what its national spirits cost it, where the focus tree leads, and the openings the wiki's own editors recommend. Written for a nation with almost no video coverage, from the game's reference wiki.
HOI4 Poland Guide
What Poland starts with in Hearts of Iron IV, what its national spirits cost it, where the focus tree leads, and the openings the wiki's own editors recommend. Written for a nation with almost no video coverage, from the game's reference wiki.
HOI4 China Guide
What China starts with in Hearts of Iron IV, what its national spirits cost it, where the focus tree leads, and the openings the wiki's own editors recommend. Written for a nation with almost no video coverage, from the game's reference wiki.
HOI4 Romania Guide
What Romania starts with in Hearts of Iron IV, what its national spirits cost it, where the focus tree leads, and the openings the wiki's own editors recommend. Written for a nation with almost no video coverage, from the game's reference wiki.