u/Conscious_Rock7407

Something I've wanted in HOI4 for a very long time but know is probably impossible to mod in without changing some extremely basic stuff is the ability to set front lines the way real battle plans work -- that is, without "snapping" onto a neighboring tag's provinces. This wouldn't just be a fallback line, as those don't give you the planning bonuses for an offensive (I think), don't work with offensive orders, and just can't move at all.

I have two thoughts in mind for how this could be implemented, though both (especially the second) would probably require HOI5.

The first is simply for frontlines and offensive orders to be able to freely be drawn across tags even without those countries being allies. I can't imagine this would be so difficult for paradox to do, though I'll admit I don't really know anything about the underlying logic here, so maybe it's harder than it sounds.

The second, and less obvious, thing that's been on my mind is the idea of "ghost" occupation. Basically, I think you should be able to mark you own controlled provinces as "enemy" controlled from the perspective of your battle plans. This would have a lot of uses, but would be most obviously helpful when it comes to capitulating a large tag that has uncapitulated allies. There's nothing more irritating than having your whole offensive fall apart because you're winning too quickly.

If we're talking hoi5, paradox might as well take it a step further and give you the ability to mark enemy provinces as "friendly", but this would require a model of supply and garrisoning that physically existed in the world so that you could be "punished" for sending them into actually dangerous territory. I know rapid response divisions are a real thing to an extent, but the amount of mopping up needed after the local divisions have already been destroyed can sometimes be excessive. This would mainly be used after cutting off a spearhead or naval invasion, since they sometimes leave a bunch of disconnected enemy provinces that aren't actually accessible to any enemy units but need to be "mopped up" anyway.

So what are your thoughts? Does anyone have any ideas of what might be possible in hoi4 that would carry the spirit of these ideas? Or is it a total nonstarter to modify battle plan mechanics?

I'd like to do a minor "total overhaul", but I'm talking less like EAW/OWB and more like a mod that happens to involve a new map and none of the base game tags. Whats the best way to approach such a solo project? Should I still make a small regular mod first to practice? I don't really want to, but I could if it would save time in the long run. If I do, anyone have any ideas? I don't really find WWII that interesting anyway.

I'm not really concerned with my mod ever coming out, either. I just want a nice long project to chip away at without too many difficult parts in my way.

I'm stuck on a level. I don't wanna look up the solution or even a specific hint, but I wonder if there's some other way i should be looking at this game.