v.0.3.0 BETA Release

It's been two months since I launched Hoidesigner, and seeing the community use the tool to blueprint and save their favorite templates has been incredible.

However, a template is only half the battle when planning your runs. The greatest divisions aren't just generated out of thin air. They are engineered through a series of decisions: precisely timing your research, hand-picking which high-stakes breakthroughs are worth chasing, and weighing the trade-offs of every technological investment. Strategic planning is about navigating this complex web of choices long before your troops ever see combat.

This update takes a step further in turning your browser into a high-level war room, giving you the tools to map out the technological arms race before the first bell rings.

Granular Research & Special Projects Planning

In the first version, I used a "Tech Year" dropdown as a shortcut. It worked, but it was an oversimplification. This update makes micromanaging your edge a reality

Research Decisions: You can now manually toggle through individual research trees and hand-pick technologies you're planning on pursuing. Want to see if that 1940 Artillery upgrade is actually worth the research time for your current template? Now you can see your template stats update instantly before committing to it during your Ironman run.

Special Projects Integration: High-risk ventures are now part of the planning. Special support companies and locked technologies become available once you commit to special projects unlocking them. You can now simulate exactly how these projects influence your plans and see their effect on your division's stats.

Your Strategic Paths, Saved

Winning a multiplayer duel or a world conquest isn't only about which template you'r using; it's also about the sequence of choices you make during your run to capture a winning edge.

This update unlocks the ability to save and track your strategic paths. Capture your doctrines favorite combinations, research paths and special project unlocks effortlessly with a single click.

Numbered badges on your selections show the order you're building your path so you can reproduce them step-by-step in your campaign. The path order is stored when you save your paths so you can pick things up where you left them when you load them back on.

Unlocking Your Arsenal

With this update, requirements are now enforced on units, technologies, and special projects. Explicit selection of requirements will guide users in having an accurate walktrough on how templates can be built in-game.

For locked units or research, I've added requirement badges and tooltip helpers across the designer to act as your intelligence department if you ever run into a disabled tech/unit that you're considering adding.

Field Tested: Engine Calibration

A blueprint planner is worthless if the math is wrong. I've performed a significant overhaul of the data pipeline and calculation engine to better align with the game logic.

Bug Reporting: If you see any discrepancies, please flag them! Accurate data is critical to making this tool useful, and I treat these reports as a top priority.

What's Next?

The arms race never truly ends. During this beta phase, I'll be focused on addressing your feedback and making the research integration feel seamless within the division designer. I'll also be adding a few missing research trees (Air & Navy) which aren't blockers in our designer at the moment but would be useful in stategic planning.

This system sets the foundation for other future types of designers which could see the light in the future.

The feedback and bug reports have been incredibly helpful, please keep them coming! You can reach out by clicking the feedback button in the footer of the designer.

Until next time!

It's been an incredible first month since launching HOI4 Designer. After sharing the tool with the community on Reddit (here and here), the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive. Players clearly see the value in a platform where they can visualize, customize, and save their template creations.

Whether you're building a 14-width infantry hold-the-line template or a 35-width medium tank division, understanding the trade-offs behind your designs and which doctrines to pair them with is key to a winning strategy. This is my first log as I document my journey in building this platform, with the hope that it becomes a staple tool for the Hearts of Iron 4 community.

The Basics: Save Templates Across New Campaigns

If you’ve played more than one campaign of Hearts of Iron IV, you know the routine: You start a fresh campaign and immediately have to manually recreate your favorite infantry or tank templates from memory.

The Reality: In-game division templates are locked to your specific save file. They don't carry over, and you can't export them to your next run. This has been a community pain point for years. HOI4 Designer was built so you can carry around your template designs over multiple runs specifically to bridge this gap:

• Global Saves: Your designs are saved locally on your device without requiring any accounts.
• Cross-Campaign Access: Close the game, start a new run, and your favorite "Space Marine" or "Blitzkrieg" designs are right there on your phone or second monitor, ready to be replicated.

Compare Templates Side by Side

With several templates saved, the next question is: which one fits this situation? Same infantry with different support companies (engineers vs recon)? Or swapping in artillery versus extra line battalions?

Comparison tools: The comparison grid and compare against feature let you pit your templates against each other. Select multiple designs and see their stats (soft attack, breakthrough, defense, production cost, and more) laid out in one view. No more flipping between templates or memorizing the stats of all 5 templates you're comparing; you can see at a glance which template hits harder, holds the line better, or fits your industry. Whether you're fine-tuning for a specific front or deciding what to use for your next campaign, these tools help you make the call with real numbers.

Feature Spotlight: The NCNS Doctrine Overhaul

The biggest addition since launch is the integration of the new Grand Doctrine & Sub-doctrine system. With the latest No Compromise, No Surrender update, players can now toggle between Grand Doctrines like Superior Firepower or Mobile Warfare, then drill down into Sub-doctrine Mastery levels.

This allows you to see the instant impact of sub-doctrine mastery bonuses on your template stats before you spend a single point of Army XP in-game.

Feature Highlight in Action:

Tech Year: Planning for the Future

A 1936 Infantry battalion is not the same as a 1939 one. As you unlock new technologies, your stats evolve. Our Tech Year Dropdown automatically applies the best technologies available for that era to your templates.

Planning for a 1941 Barbarossa defense? Toggle to that year to make sure your Anti-Tank piercing is high enough to counter German Panzers with the tech available at that time.

Community Feedback: I’ve heard you! Some of you requested more granular control over specific technologies (like choosing between different Artillery upgrades). This is on my radar for future updates, so be on the lookout for more customization options in the near future!

What's Next?

The roadmap for the coming months is driven by the feedback I’ve received and a vision for where I want to take this tool. While I'm staying flexible to ensure the designer evolves alongside new game updates and DLCs, here are the three core areas I’m currently exploring:

• Granular Research Customization: While the "Tech Year" dropdown is a great start, I’m contemplating a system that would let you toggle specific research tech and projects. This will allow you to see the exact impact of individual upgrades, like specific artillery shell types or special force unit levels, rather than just "era" unlocks.
• Community Catalog & Curated Templates: I want to make it easier for new and seasoned players to explore templates and discuss strategies. I'm exploring a "Catalog" feature where users can publish designs that the community can rate, tag, and discuss. Whether you're looking for optimized meta builds for a competitive lobby or a historical roleplay division, this will be your go-to library to explore templates and get inspired.
• The Tank Designer: This is significant milestone on my long-term wishlist. I’m planning for a system that eventually allows you to design tank chassis, engines, and armor modules directly within the platform. The goal is to let these custom designs plug into your tank templates so you can get a more accurate representation of your tank division’s stats and production costs based on your custom tank designs.

Note: These themes represent the intended direction of the platform rather than a fixed schedule. Priorities may shift as I dive deeper into the requirements and continue to gathering feedback. My goal is to make sure every feature is accurate and stable before release, so I appreciate your patience as the tool evolves!