Hearts of Iron IV

Hearts of Iron IV

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Doctrines Explanation
By ASSPIRE and 1 collaborators
This a guide that explains how the 3 types of doctrine work and what's the best pick.
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1 Land Doctrine
Mobile Warfare
  • Extremely powerful combat bonuses
  • Focuses on mobile divisions, especially tanks
  • Great on the offensive, the worst doctrine when losing
  • Thrives in places it can utilize it's mobility(central Europe), but suffers in places with bad terrain, low supply and unforgiving weather(Russia, Africa,..).
  • Requires a very large industrial base for production of expensive mobile divisions
- Always pick Mobile Infantry over Blitzkrieg
- Pick Modern Blitzkrieg, but if you are out of manpower pick Desperate Defense

Superior Firepower
  • Good general combat bonuses
  • Great at preserving manpower
  • Focuses on an Infantry/Artillery heavy unit composition
  • Balanced between offense and defense, with a slight preference for defense
  • Requires a large industrial base for production of costly infantry divisions
- Dispersed Support and Integrated Support and quite Similar. Dispersed Support gives buffs to you art divisions, but Integrated Support gives buffs to support companies.
- Use Airland Battle if you will fight against tanks and use Sock & Awe if you will fight against infantry
Grand Battle Plan
  • Jack of all trades, master of none
  • Great at stale fronts, utilizing it's high entrenchment and planning bonuses
  • Balanced between offensive and defensive abilities
  • Emphasis on Inf, Mot and Mec - provides the most powerful offensive Infantry bonuses
  • Requires no special industrial base
- Assault offers some small extra bonuses to armed and mot/mec, and doubles the max planning bonus from 30% to 60%, while Infiltration mainly gives -10% supply consumption and +25% night attack.I would rather pick Infiltration
Mass Assault
  • Poor general combat bonuses
  • Very powerful other defensive bonuses, to supplies, manpower, partisan effects on enemy etc.
  • Heavily focused on cheap Infantry
  • Very defensive
  • Great in difficult terrain, weather, and low supply areas
- Mass Mobilization is a desperate attempt at holding back an aggressor, while Deep Battle focuses more on getting back at the offensive


xxxxxx - I marked with this font what i would pick and what i recommend.


Specific Doctrines for specific Countries(debatable)
2 Air Doctrine
Strategic Destruction
By bombing the enemies factories, either by night, or more dangerously, during the day we can seriously hinder their war machine.
- Research this doctrine if you will be using strategic bombers.
Battlefield Support
By improving how close air support interacts with divisions we can lay waste to enemy divisions with optimal support.
- Research this doctrine if you will be using fighters / cas.
Operational Integrity
Tactical bombers are flexible and can perform both ground support and regular bombing.
- Research this doctrine if you will be using tactical bombers.

3 Naval Doctrine
Fleet in Being
This is the well-rounded general purpose set of naval doctrines that most substantial navies used. It enhances Search & Destroy for capital ships, submarine detection for screening ships, and bonuses for all classes, although subs seem least favored. This is the most powerful doctrine for surface action. It is the most efficient in responding to the escort needs of convoys and in anti-submarine warfare.
Trade Interdiction
This is an offensive doctrine focusing on attacking enemy convoys with coordinated stealthy surface and submarine raiders that have superior abilities to find and destroy enemy shipping while evading enemy detection. Such stealthiness can also be valuable in normal combat or escaping from it, which is usually the best course. Submarines are made very dangerous to the enemy. The trade-off under this doctrine is that light cruisers and destroyers have mediocre anti-submarine warfare capabilities and weak escort efficiency bonuses, so vulnerable friendly shipping may require more effort to defend. Germany adopted the raiding strategy in its efforts in both world wars to strangle Great Britain by cutting off its shipping, but this can also be suitable for minors seeking a naval presence to strike enemy trade with moderate risk and expense.
Base Strike
This is similar to the approach of Japan and the United States. It focuses on blue water navy carriers and their light cruiser and destroyer screens, with submarines also receiving decent bonuses for supporting carrier operations. There are no class-specific bonuses at all for battleships, battlecruisers or heavy cruisers, but if built they share the array of global bonuses under this doctrine. Having at least a few fast heavy cruisers that can keep pace with the carriers for bombardment and surface action is advisable, but it is possible to focus just on research and production of carriers, screens and carrier aircraft to make the best use of limited resources.

Specific Naval Doctrines for Specific Countries(debatable)
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24 Comments
GamerGodeighty 18 Feb @ 9:48am 
sock & awe
fisto the robo 12 Dec, 2022 @ 2:01pm 
Could you add the total bonuses you get by researching full doctrine paths?
lakupupu 6 Aug, 2022 @ 11:14am 
wouldnt it be best to pick blitzkrieg instead of mobile infantry, to get the absolute most out of your tanks? other nations going for tanks could and should still pick mobile infantry
G man 13 Apr, 2022 @ 2:53pm 
ah yes, the best millitary tactic in my opinion is sock and awe.
KENSHI ENTHUSIAST 1 Feb, 2022 @ 6:20am 
I think GBP is also really good for Natty China. I'm having a pretty good run right now, where I just created the "Modern Great Wall of China". My troops have like 1000 defence and the Japanese have just been throwing themselves at me.

Not optimal, but I've also used some spare civs to build some forts.
Venom 17 Nov, 2021 @ 12:08pm 
thx for this guide +1000 social credit
Zarathustra1889 17 Oct, 2021 @ 6:10am 
Blitzkrieg is a great option if you know how to move your armored divisions.
Bot RIP 2 Sep, 2021 @ 7:31am 
Fleet in being is to not really good for anything, wierd mix of mediocre bonuses with surface, subs and carriers, battleships arent good at all and it requires more effort on research it.

Base Strike is good for carriers, but CV's are no longer the kings of the sea, an island with a lvl 10 airfield can do a better job at a fraction of the price.

Trade interdiction is the best for the meta from what i've heard and experienced, same org bonuses BUT huge surface detection buffs, you will be able to spot your anemies much quicker thus giving you first strike.
HMS-Shadow 26 Aug, 2021 @ 5:57am 
Air doctrine wise u missed out, that the best fighter bonuses are in strategic bombing and operational integrity, hence they give you agility bonuses which battlefield support does not. It also depend on the type of aircraft you are using (light ore heavy fighter; special or multi-purpose).
HMS-Shadow 25 Aug, 2021 @ 10:10am 
I am sorry but your explanation of mobile warfare is wrong. Adding all bonuses and stats up which you get out completing it, you can sumarise that it is more of a defensive doctrine. Locking at all stats you only really get org and breaktrough (a lithe speed and some minor other things as well but nowhere u can find attack bonuses).