If you're trying to start a new country and another, more powerful country steals some land from your neighbors, you're likely to feel threatened by their actions – and so will the world leaders Europa Universalis 5both your own and the rulers of your neighboring nations.
Expansion is a natural desire for countries to establish themselves, but claiming new countries from others will affect how other countries view yours, and the antagonism in the EU5 is not very welcoming. The severity of your impacts depends on the size of the territory you've taken, but in any case, expect some blowback as you expand.
Overview of antagonism
What happens when your antagonism is high?
The primary way you'll see your antagonism increase in Europa Universalis 5 is if you've recently claimed land from another country. It's only natural to want to expand the borders of your country, especially with such a wide range of history as the one you'll be playing through many iconic eras of history, but annexing countries that belong to other countries it can make said countries (and their potentially powerful allies) rather unhappy about you.
If you've played Europa Universalis 4, you're probably familiar with Aggressive Expansion – it's pretty much the same as Antagonism in EU5.
Antagonism affects to a great extent your opinions of other countriesusually in a very negative way. You will find that other nations are less likely to engage in informal diplomacy with yours, and you will often find that allied nations may withdraw from your alliances if they are not satisfied with your recent actions, which may limit your market access, trade routes and other economic means.
You will also notice that your total Antagonism score increases with each Rival you declare. Not only will the rival country be unhappy, but the global stage will take notice as you continue to condemn other countries for one reason or another.
The coalition sees other countries defending each other
One of the main things you'll need to watch out for if you've recently antagonized your neighbors on your mission to expand is other countries may form a coalition against you. This starts to happen when your antagonism reaches 50 with several countries nearby and you become a real threat to many others.
Countries are more likely to join coalitions against you if they do share a culture or religion with the country you are attacking. For example, if you try to acquire land from a predominantly Catholic country, other predominantly Catholic countries in the immediate vicinity will likely feel threatened by your actions.
The Coalition sees these countries banding together to resist your growing aggression, and that's never good news for your expansion efforts. While these coalitions are largely defensive in the wild, with other countries vowing to help each other should push back, you can almost guarantee a lot of trouble the next time you try to attack one of the coalition members.
These will usually be neighboring countries, often powerful ones, so be careful when choosing your battles – literally. If you decide to try to expand into a territory that falls under the coalition, expect a quick response coalition members will defend each other in battle. These coalitions can come together quickly and turn skirmishes into slaughterhouses, so remember to be too warmongering.
It's easier to prevent a coalition starting against you softening of diplomatic positions while expanding rather than dissolving coalitions that form after your aggressive actions. Balance your actions carefully so you don't become known as the aggressor!
How do you reduce antagonism?
Since your antagonism in the EU5 has everything to do with how other countries see you, you will have to keep working improving your diplomatic relations with other countries to start repairing your global reputation. Make sure you don't attack territories that already fear you, as this will increase your antagonism score and cause lingering effects.
The best way to lower your Antagonism score in Europa Universalis 5 is to send diplomats to other countries who see you as increasingly antagonistic on the world stage. These diplomats will work on your behalf in these locations to improve the general reception of your country, thereby raising opinion and lowering your antagonism score in that country.
You can too develop the territories you have claimed as part of your expansion mission as lands are claimed, with your antagonism score decreasing along with you improve the lands you have claimed to show other countries that you are not such a bad leader after all. Decline any disputes they may be involved in to keep your antagonism low.
The best way to lower your Antagonism overall is to not attack other countries while chasing their territory, which goes against the expanding mission trees and associated objectives – and establishing a large, prosperous country – but it will ensure you remain in global favor with enemies who may overwhelm you at some point later.
