Dominion of Canada

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Dominion of Canada
Dominion of Canada.png

Government Type:
Democratic Regime


Canada is a British Dominion, member of the British Commonwealth, and regional power in North America.

Historical background[edit]

During the First World War, Canada automatically entered the conflict on the side of the Entente as a semi-independent dominion of the British Empire. With the Statute of Westminster in 1931, Canada was transformed into a sovereign nation, though remaining a key member of the British Commonwealth with strong ties to its parent country. Canada followed Britain's declaration of war against Flag of Germany Germany on the 10 September 1939, its first independent declaration of war.

Canada's military in 1939 was small, poorly-equipped, and technologically backward, despite measures taken by the government of Mackenzie King in 1936 to gradually increase the gutted defense budget. After the outbreak of war, Britain placed responsibility for the protection of North America in Canadian hands, and the nation placed military expansion and modernization as a top priority.

By the war's end over 15% of all Canadian citizens would serve in uniform (out of a prewar population of 11 million) and Canada would possess the fourth-largest air force and fifth-largest naval surface fleet in the world. Canada's industrial contribution to the war was highly significant, particularly in the form of raw materials and motorized vehicles (Canada was the second-largest producer of wheeled vehicles after the Flag of United States United States). Canadian troops fought on all fronts in Western Europe, particularly in Italy and in France, during and after D-Day.


Main article: Canadian events

Geography and geology[edit]

Bordered on the east and west by expansive oceans, Canada is relatively secure from amphibious invasions if playing on the Allied side. Additionally, the United States is directly to the south of Canada. In a traditional game (i.e., the United States, Flag of United Kingdom United Kingdom, and Canada are all members of the same faction), Canada's geography virtually ensures that it is safe from attack. And if it is attacked, the United States is right next door to assist. Thus, Canada does not necessarily need to build up defensive forces on its borders. This allows Canada to specialize on a specific unit type that will help its faction. Alternatively, because it is in a relatively safe corner of the world, Canada can choose not to produce units, but instead funnel its production to countries on the front lines via the lend lease diplomatic action. Canada's special location on the map allows players to experiment with various strategies and decisions unique to Canada.

Canada's geology and great size bestows the country with mineral wealth. Canada is an oil producing country. Its most productive oil fields were the Turner Valley oil fields which had been discovered on 14 May 1914. Production at Turner Valley peaked in 1942 at about 10 million barrels which constituted about 95% of Canada’s oil production and represented 0.48% of world crude oil production in 1942. The downside of the increased production was, as feared by the industry insiders, the lowering of the gas pressure, which ultimately shortened the productive life of the field.


Canada starts with three of the four 1918 technologies, along with eight technologies from 1933, 1934, and 1936, and the two smallest ship designs (destroyer and light cruiser) from 1922. This means Canada essentially starts with most of the first tier equipment technologies. Canada also begins with technologies under the Grand Battleplan land doctrine and Fleet in Being naval doctrine trees. Notably, Canada also begins with Light Tank I (1934), the first step up from the 1918 Great War Tank.

Army Technology Naval Technology Air Technology Electronics & Industry
  • Infantry Eq. I
  • Engineer Company I
  • Recon Company I
  • Light Tank I
  • Destroyer I
  • Light Cruiser I
  • Transport Ship
  • Interwar Fighter
  • Interwar Bomber
  • Naval Bomber I
  • None
  • None


Canada begins as a member of the Allies. Assuming the player intends to remain in the Allies (i.e., not leave the faction), the player may generally choose to leave diplomacy with United Kingdom and United States on autopilot. In most cases, those countries will be Canada's top trading partners without diplomatic effort on the player's part.


Canada begins the game with the democratic ideology under the leadership of Mackenzie King. Though there is very low support for these ideologies at the beginning of the game, it is possible to shift to fascist or communist ideology (joining the Axis awards the Canada First achievement in Ironman mode).

National spirits[edit]

If the Together for Victory Together for Victory expansion is active, Canada starts with the following National Spirits. Otherwise, Canada has no national spirits.

Great Depression  icon
Great Depression

  • Consumer Goods Factories: 25%
  • Factory Output: −30%
Conscription Crisis among French Canadians icon
Conscription Crisis among French Canadians
  • Recruitable Population Factor: −30%


Conscription Law Economy Law Trade Law
Volunteer Only.png Volunteer Only
  • 1.5% Recruitable population
Civilian Economy.png Civilian Economy
  • 30% Consumer Goods factories
  • –30% Factory construction speed
  • +30% Factory (type) conversion cost
Export Focus.png Export Focus
  • 50% Resources to market
  • –5% Research time
  • +10% Factory output
  • +10% Construction speed

With Together for Victory, Canada's conscription laws are restricted by its focuses:

  • Limited Conscription requires "Commit to the War"
  • Extensive Conscription requires "Commit to the War" and "If Day"
  • Service by Requirement and higher require either "Forced Quebec Conscription" or "Compromise with Quebec", both of which in turn have "Commit to the War", but not "If Day," as prerequisites.

Note that the Quebec conscription focuses are mutually exclusive with "War Fueled Economy," which completely removes the "Great Depression" modifier, although the modifier may be still be reduced through compatible focuses.


Advisor Type Effect Cost
Ian A. Mackenzie Quartermaster General Air base construction speed: +15% Naval base construction speed: +15% Rocket Site construction speed: +15% Radar Station construction speed: +15% Nuclear Reactor construction speed: +15% 150 pp
R. B. Bennett Silent Workhorse Political Power Gain: +15% 150 pp
Newton Wesley Rowell Ideological Crusader Same ideology monthly opinion: +100% 150 pp
William Kashtan Communist Revolutionary Daily Communism Support: +0.1 Gets event 'Communism on the Rise' 150 pp
Robert Manion Democratic Reformer Daily Democracy Support: +0.1 150 pp
Chuck Crate Fascist Demagogue Daily Fascism Support: +0.1 Gets event 'Fascism on the Rise' 150 pp

National focus[edit]

Canada's unique NF tree (part of the Together for Victory expansion).

Without the expansion Canada utilizes the generic national focus tree.

Canada's Unique Focus Tree has six main branches:

  • A large interwoven Industrial and Internal Politics tree that serves to increase industrial capacity, resource availability and to lift the country out of the Great Depression.
  • Army Modernisation focuses on research bonuses for infantry, armour, artilery and support divisions.
  • Strengthen the Commonwealth Ties and Patriation form two mutually exclusive Political branches.
    • Strengthen the Commonwealth Ties keeps Canada within the Allies, providing bonuses to Commonwealth technology sharing and other buffs to industry and resources.
    • Patriation allows Canada to leave the Allies, becoming either an independent Democracy, or realigning to become Fascist or Communist.
  • RCAF Station Borden provides bonuses to RADAR, aircraft and air doctrine research.
  • Halifax Shipyards focuses on the Canadian Navy, giving bonuses to ship model and naval doctrine research.



Oil Rubber Steel Aluminium Tungsten Chromium
2 0 12 30 0 0

Industrial production[edit]

The Canadian economy begins with five military factories, one naval dockyard, and thirteen civilian factories. It is recommended that the player prioritize the construction of civilian factories and research concentrated industry technologies in order to maximize the country's performance. Due to Canada's relatively low manpower pool, the player may want to consider developing well-equipped and highly trained armies. Alternatively, Canada's manpower and industrial potential can lend itself to efficiently providing warships and air wings rather than substantial ground forces in order to further its war effort. While Canada has a reasonable number of natural resources, they are also typically insufficient to field large numbers of vehicles without relying on imports (particularly oil and rubber). As such, civilian factories will often play an important role for Canada because of their use in trade.



8 Infantry Divisions
5 Cavalry Divisions
Naval Strike Tactics.png
24 Naval Bombers
2 Destroyers

While paling in comparison to the United States, Canada has a moderately-sized army in 1936, made up of eight District Militia divisions comprised of nine Infantry battalions each and five Cavalry Militia divisions comprised of three cavalry battalions each. While they lack any armor divisions, they do have a single 1934 Vickers Medium Mark II stockpiled and are producing more at a rate of 1.75 tanks per week. Unfortunately, the army is extremely underequipped, with divisions only armed with 30% of the infantry equipment needed to operate at full capacity, but their five military factories and steel industry allow them to quickly resupply. The only obstacle preventing Canada from producing a formidable fighting force early on is its low available manpower, which is at 14.27K in the beginning of 1936.

Canada's navy is very small, made up of only two 1922 Sanguenay Class destroyers docked in Halifax. Their air force, also small, is composed of a single wing of 24 1936 Fairey Swordfish naval bombers stationed near Ottawa.


9 Infantry Divisions
5 Cavalry Divisions
Air Skirmish.png
48 Fighters
Naval Strike Tactics.png
12 Naval Bombers
7 Destroyers

In the 1939 scenario, Canada's army is not much larger than in 1936, only increasing by a single infantry division. However, the divisions themselves have been reorganized into two types: there's the new Infantry Division, which are made up of eight Infantry battalions and an Engineer Company, and the old District Militia, which has been decreased in size to six Infantry battalions each. The Cavalry Militia has also been decreased to only two Cavalry battalions each. The navy has been increased to seven 1922 Saguenay Class destroyers and divided into two fleets: one fleet of three destroyers is docked in Halifax and the other fleet of four destroyers is docked in Vancouver on the west coast. The air force has increased significantly and is now composed of three air wings. A single wing of 24 Gloster Gladiator interwar fighters is stationed near Ottawa, while a wing of 12 Fairey Swordfish naval bombers and a wing of 24 1936 Hawker Hurricane fighters are stationed at the air base in British Columbia.

Strategies and guides[edit]

Strategies often focus on Canada's use of its resources and abilities to fill specific niches in its faction's war effort.

Light Armor Focus[edit]

Very fast Canadian light tanks exploit breaches made by allied forces, creating large enemy pockets starved of supplies. Canadian tanks scream across the battlefield seizing airfields, ports, cities, and resources.

Canada begins the 1936 game with a fully efficient production line of light tanks. By building on this start, Canada can field several divisions of light tanks combined with light tank destroyers and light sp artillery.

General guidelines for Fast Armor Focus[edit]

At the start of the 1936 scenario, place your divisions in one or more armies set to exercise. The military exercises will generate experience points (XP). Consider deleting all but one of your divisions (one division generates more XP than all of them and uses less supplies).

At the game's start, focus on Canada's industrial base. First, build at least 15 civilian factories. This will take some time. The civilian factories will allow Canada to trade for the oil needed to manufacture light tanks. After building more than 15 civilian factories, focus on building military factories.

Political power expenditure[edit]

  1. Change trade law from export focus to free trade for the increased construction speed and research.
  2. Always watch world tension: even if it is 5%, improve your economy laws. Your best pre-war political power expenditure comes with 15% world tension, partial mobilization.
  3. Select the silent workhorse political advisor (+15% PP production) or the Industrial Company industrial concern
  4. Choose a theorist by selecting the military theorist to generate experience for your army. The army experience points will be used to design faster tanks.
  5. Choose Vickers-Armstrong as the tank designer before you complete the research for your first tank. It is OK to start any tank research without it (although the -10% research speed helps). But make sure that by the time you end the tank research, you have the tank design company in place, for that will grant all your tanks +5% reliability and +5% soft attack.

Research priorities[edit]

Game start: Under the industry tab, research Basic Machine Tools (production path) and Construction I (construction path). Also research Electronic Mechanical Engineering under the engineering tab for the research boost.

Second round of research: Under the industry tab, select Improved Machine Tools, Concentrated Industry I, and Construction II (you do not need to research Synthetic Oil Experiments; you'll get sufficient oil through trade).

Research Light Tank II before producing tanks in earnest. Ensure you have chosen the Vickers-Armstrong tank designer before completing the research.

The Mobile Warfare land doctrine gives +10% speed to all divisions, including tanks. Also, Canada benefits from the Desperate Defense branch under Mobile Ware, which provides a total of +5% recruitable population (Volkssturm and Non-Discriminatory Conscription).

National Focus Considerations[edit]

By selecting the fascism-centric national focus branch, beginning with Nationalism Focus beneath Political Effort, Canada can get an additional 7% recruitable population (Militarism and Military Youth) in addition to training divisions 10% faster (Paramilitarism). This can help provide the manpower and training boost to generate multiple light armor divisions.

Expanding the Unitary Canada Empire[edit]

By converting to fascism, Canada is in a unique position to change the tide of World War 2. Specifically, you can easily knock the United States out of the game before they have a chance to end the Great Depression and begin gearing up.

Canada should justify war goals against the United States in January or February of 1939, in preparation for a September 1939 blitzkrieg simultaneous with Germany's invasion of Poland. However, don't join the Axis just yet! You want to keep your war with the United States separate from World War 2 as long as you can.

Train 6 tank divisions and 10 additional infantry divisions. Make sure every tank and infantry division has a Reconnaissance support battalion for extra speed, but it's optional for the cavalry. Place all but 4 units on a front line with the Eastern United States with orders to rush New England, New York, and Michigan's lower peninsula. Also place one infantry to defend troops crossing from Michigan's upper peninsula into Canada. Finally, place one cavalry and two infantry divisions on the West Coast in Vancouver.

When you begin war with the US in 1939, the US will have spread it's troops thinly across your borders and will begin to slowly capture worthless territory in central Canada. Begin your plans in the East and rush New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, and Washington DC. Encircling will be easy for your fast moving light tank divisions. On the West Coast, rush one cavalry and one infantry division to Seattle and hold that and Vancouver for now.

Within a month the United States will join that Allies, but don't expect them to get much aid. At this point you can feel free to join the Axis.

Once Washington DC is captures, begin to slowly advance into the American heartland. By this point the US will pull troops away from the West Coast and Central Canada and you're probably notice that the country's new Capital is Los Angeles. Begin aggressively advancing your main East Coast force and advance your West Coast cavalry division to Portland, then San Fransisco, and finally Los Angeles. With all their major cities captured, the United States should capitulate by November 1939.

From here, Canada can easily conquer all the Americas or begin assisting with the European War.

Naval Bomber Strategy (1936 Scenario)[edit]

Enter the war in 1939 with more than 1,500 naval bombers (NAV). NAV production plays to Canada's strengths and weaknesses. Canada begins the game with a head start in naval bombers technology and 30 units of aluminum, the main ingredient in aircraft manufacturing. Focusing on naval bombers allows Canada to be thrifty with its low manpower.

In this NAV-focused strategy, the roles of air, land, and sea units revolve around the NAV. Canada's small navy exists to locate enemy ships and once the navy locates the ships, the Canadian NAV flies in and destroys the enemy fleet. Land forces receive the least attention, given that their role is to seize land: air fields and territory. The reason to take over territory is to enlarge or establish air fields and radar stations that will increase the potency of Canadian NAV.

General guidelines for Naval Bomber Focus[edit]

Early game, build up civilian industry, then military factories. Production of NAV in early game is not important, because you will not have the resources to fully fuel your production lines. That being said, focus your production on NAV. You may even want to completely turn off the pre-existing production of tanks and infantry equipment. Remember, in this strategy, NAV is king. The entire Canadian economy revolves around ensuring success of King NAV.

Before the outbreak of war (traditionally, August 1939), pre-place your naval bombers in areas where they can interdict shipping in Europe (This assumes that Japan will likely not be in the war yet). Malta is a great location. Norway, Denmark, Poland, Baltic States are also good locations from where you can port strike the Axis fleet in any of the Baltic ports. If Japan is in the war, Singapore is key terrain. Place some of your NAV in Singapore to destroy any enemy ships transiting the Straits of Malacca or amphibiously invading Singapore to get all that rubber.

Political power expenditure[edit]

At all times, keep an eye on WT. If above 5+, then get a better set of economic laws. Canada benefits from better economic laws because it allows for faster building of civilian and military factories. Also, less civilian industry has to be dedicated to non-producing civilian goods. 5% WT gets you Early Mobilization and 15% WT will get you Canada's best pre-war Economic laws: partial mobilization.

  1. Free trade (this is a trade lose NAV production as much of your raw materials are diverted into the world market, but you gain faster factory construction time and improved research). This free trade choice will allow you to just barely complete "Basic Machine Tools" and begin researching Concentrated Industry right before you get the +50% bonus to research Construction II. You may want to use that +50% research bonus on Construction II (build factories faster!). Choosing free trade grants you a research bonus that allows completion of the production research just in time.
  2. Get the +10% industry research ("Industrial Company") -- at this point, Canada still has to research Concentrated Industry II, excavation I and Excavation II, and improved machine tools.
  3. Before 3d PP purchase, look at WT and wait 30 days if need be. Get the Silent Workhorse, (+15% Political Power gain)
  4. . Before 4th PP purchase, look at WT. Wait if need be. If not, then choose Air theorist. This will accelerate your Air Doctrine research and generate air XP
  5. Before 5th PP purchase, look at WT. Wait if need be. If not, then choose Old Guard infantry general (Army chief of staff). This will boost up your PP production
  6. WT should be above 15% by now. Get the best set of industry laws that you can
  7. Naval Air Company (+10% research of light air craft, but more importantly, when you research your level II naval bomber, this Naval Air Company will ensure that Canada's level II NAV have an extra 10% range and an extra 10% naval attack)
  8. Save your PPs. Wait till war breaks out. When you are at war, choose War Economy. If you were to choose Total Mobilization, Total Mobilization's -3% recruitable population penalty bottoms out Canada's manpower to zero...even with the +2.5% bonus from limited conscription.
  9. As your Air Force chief of staff, choose the +10% air experience general in order to generate more air experience. More air experience points will allow you to design NAV variants.
  10. Obtain the political advisor, Quartermaster General. The QM General's bonus of +20% airfield and radar building will allow Canada to quickly build NAV friendly structures on newly conquered territories that belong to Canada.

Research priorities[edit]

  1. Industry (first civilian, then military): You'll need a lot of civilian factories which you'll use to get rubber and oil through trade.
  2. Engineering: especially the computers so that your research is faster
  3. Naval doctrine: Choose Base Strike. The base strike doctrine is by far and away naval bombers' best doctrine: +50% port strike and +40% naval targeting. Here is a comparison of the different Naval (and Air) Doctrines.
Doctrine Type of Doctrine Name of doctrine Bonus Comments
Naval Doctrine Trade Interdiction
  • +10% Naval Targeting
  • +10% Naval Targeting
Modifies our planes' ability to target their objectives when executing naval strikes.
Naval Doctrine Base Strike Base StrikeBase Strike +50% Port Strike Each successful hit does 50% more damage to ships docked at a port [needs verification]
Naval Doctrine Base Strike
  • +10% Naval Targeting
  • +10% Naval Targeting
  • +20% Naval Targeting
  • Modifies our planes' ability to target their objectives when executing naval strikes.
  • One interpretation is that naval targeting is a per cent increase in the chance of a naval bomber hitting a ship (40% is the base chance of a plane to hit a ship)
Air Doctrine
  • Battlefield Support
  • Operational Integrity
+10% Naval mission efficiency
  • Improved tactics for planes doing naval bombing or port strikes resulting in increased ability.
  • One interpretation is that Mission efficiency is a multiplicative on Attack + Defense of the naval bomber. This grants more chances to hit ships and avoid AA fire or enemy planes.
Air Doctrine Strategic Destruction Naval Strike TacticsNaval Strike Tactics +15% Naval mission efficiency Improved tactics for planes doing naval bombing or port strikes resulting in increased ability.
  1. Air doctrine: Either Battlefield Support or Operational Integrity will grant NAV +10% naval mission efficiency. If you like to generate aces, then choose Battlefield Support with its +25% ace generation.
  2. NAV II then NAV III
  3. Naval Doctrine (destroyer branch of the Base Strike tree). Improving your destroyers will allow Canada to better detect enemy subs (+40% chance). Once detected, Canadian NAV can destroy the enemy sub fleets.
  4. (alternative): Naval Doctrine (Sub branch of the base strike tree). This choice allows Canada's sub fleet to detect surface ships and convoys. NOTE: Detection of enemy fleet should be done primarily by a faction member with the naval doctrine "Trade Interdiction" fully explored. As part of a Hunter/Killer team, Canada's NAV wings represents the latter part of the team. Canada's faction partner can be the hunter with Trade Interdiction doctrine which grants subs a 100% boost (2 times) in detecting surface ships. The Trade Interdiction doctrine gives battleships and battlecruisers a +50% chance to detect surface ships.
  5. Land units (marines for seizing enemy radar stations and air strips), land weapons and equipment, and land warfare doctrine. Consider Mobile Warfare Doctrine in order to gain the Desperate Defense research branch with its +5% (total) manpower boost.

National focus priorities[edit]

  1. Political Effort to gain 120 political points. Use the PP to obtain Free Trade
  2. Industrial Effort
  3. Construction Effort
  4. Construction Effort II
  5. Infrastructure Effort
  6. Construction Effort III
  7. Infrastructure Effort II
  8. Extra Research Slot
  9. Secret Weapons (October 1937...use this to power through Mechanical Computing and Computing Machine)
  10. Armament Effort'll not have enough rubber and oil to maximize the extra military factory, but that's ok
  11. Armament Effort II
  12. Armament Effort III
  13. Naval Effort (+3 dockyards for either submarines or destroyers which will help your NAV find targets)
  14. Aviation Effort
  15. Either Fighter or Bomber focus
  16. Aviation Effort II
  17. Nav Effort
  18. Extra research slot II
19+. depends. If you need more manpower, consider fascism with the +7% manpower bonus. Or Liberty/Neutrality focus if you need the +20% military factory building boost)

Arsenal for India[edit]

Canada's industrial cornucopia spews forth an unending stream of equipment to arm the countless multitudes waiting to serve in the Indian Army. Well, they would serve, if they only had the equipment. But look! On the horizon! Convoy after convoy steaming into Dacca from Vancouver laden with tons of advanced infantry equipment.

That is where Canada brings victory to the Allied cause.

Yep. This strategy is not sexy. It is not challenging. It is a perfect strategy for someone who really doesn't like the idea of a "war game" but wants to help a friend in a multiplayer game.

In this strategy, Canada focuses on production. Once Canada can provide India with Lend Lease, Canada bequeaths everything and the kitchen sink to its friends in India. Want to demonstrate total commitment to India? Delete the Canadian army at the beginning of the game so that the infantry equipment and tanks being produced won't be funneled into some Canadian unit. "Canada supports India!"


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