The Seychelles is a Tier I Nation located in the West Indian Ocean, although it's considered to be part of Africa 
. Even though it's not the most recommended country to play as for beginners, it is a nation often used by more experienced players for Experience.
Background[]
Seychelles was uninhabited prior to being encountered by Europeans in the 16th century. It faced competing French and British interests until coming under full British control in the late 18th century. Since proclaiming independence from the United Kingdom in 1976, Seychelles has developed from a largely agricultural society to a market-based diversified economy, characterized by rapidly rising service, public sector, and tourism activities. From 1976 until 2015, nominal GDP grew nearly sevenfold, and purchasing power parity increased nearly sixteen times. Since the late 2010s, the government has taken steps to encourage foreign investment.
Today, Seychelles boasts the highest nominal per capita GDP of any African nation. It is the first African country with an HDI score exceeding 0.800. It is one of only two countries in Africa classified as a high-income economy by the World Bank, the other being Mauritius. Despite its relative prosperity, poverty remains widespread as the country has one of the highest levels of economic inequality in the world and markedly unequal wealth distribution, with the upper and ruling class commanding a vast proportion of the country's wealth.
Base Statistics[]
Economy[]
- Seychelles has a base income of $102,238, all of which comes from taxes. This can get upgraded up to $82,686 if Victoria is developed to become a Tier III City, and up to $113,358 if developed to become a Tier IV City, meaning that the city generates ~$30,670 more every time it's developed. Upgrading the Economy Research Tree in Technology and conquering/developing even more cities will further contribute to the economy.
Resources[]
Seychelles produces no resources.
Military[]
- Seychelles starts with a home guard of 20,000 infantry based in its capital, Victoria. Its manpower cap is 60,000 and gains 294 manpower every turn. Manpower can be upgraded up to 316 every turn if a Recruitment Center is built. This number will be reduced to 127 if the Specialization Doctrine is used, or will be increased to 631 if the Mass Attack Doctrine is used. Conquering and Developing more cities will further increase the number. (These numbers are only accurate if Victoria isn't developed and stays as Tier II.)
| Base Manpower Capacity of Seychelles per Conscription Law | |
|---|---|
| The following columns below present the manpower capacity from lowest (Disarmed) to highest (Required). RP stands for "Recruitable Population". | |
| Disarmed [1% RP] |
|
| Volunteer [2% RP] |
|
| Limited [5% RP] |
|
| Extensive [10% RP] |
|
| Required [25% RP] |
|
Geography[]
Terrain & Biome[]
Seychelles is flat and has no biome, as it's an island nation with only one city. It has no real territory in-game.
Borders[]
Seychelles is an archipelagic island country in the Indian Ocean at the eastern edge of the Somali Sea. The country consists of 115 islands. Its capital and largest city, Victoria, lies 1.500 kilometres (932 mi) east of mainland Africa. Other nearby island countries and territories include the 
Comoros, 
Madagascar, 
Mauritius, and the French overseas regions of 
Mayotte and 
Réunion to the south; as well as 
Maldives and the Chagos Archipelago (administered by the 
United Kingdom as the British Indian Ocean Territory) to the east.
Formables[]
Seychelles can only form one formable, that being 
African Union.
Threats[]
Seychelles is not particularly threatened and is rarely, to almost never, invaded. This is because one of the formables Seychelles is required for is African Union, and on most occasions, players do not in fact achieve forming it, as they have left before being able to, or they got conquered by another player in advance. It's also geographically isolated, and its geographical proximity to continental Africa or Madagascar further contributes to that. Seychelles is also required for 
British Empire. To its advantage, however, most United Kingdom players don't manage to conquer it (or Southern and Eastern Africa in general), as the formable is too time-consuming. This doesn't change the fact that you'll have to look out for the following threats if you were to expand:
- African Nations bordering the Indian Ocean, but most commonly
South Africa. (COMMON) - United Kingdom requires Seychelles to form British Empire. (SUPER RARE)
- India wishing to assert dominance over its own ocean. (RARE)
- Players who want a port relatively close to continental Africa. (RARE)
- Generally any nation that desires to form African Union, despite their geographical location. (COMMON)
- Most commonly Indonesia or Madagascar conquering Seychelles due to its close distance to them if they wish to form Alam Melayu (or any country which has the ability to do so for that matter), even though Seychelles itself isn't required. (RARE, but not an unusual practise in general.)
Strategies[]
African Union isn't the most common formable among average African Players, let alone by Seychelles. Many people have achieved forming this ginormous formable with very small nations, including Seychelles, but it isn't recommended if you don't have the time, patience, or skill to do it. Due to the fact that Africa is very unpredictable and that there are many possible case scenarios, along with everything mentioned earlier, take the following with a grain of salt.
If South Africa isn't a Player[]
Island nations, such as the ones in the Carribean, Oceania or Africa are usually untouched. So worrying about keeping up with other players isn't that necessary, especially if South Africa is AI.
Firstly, the player should spend their research power adequately. It is often underestimated, and can be extremely useful, especially if quicker developement is desired. As soon as the player enters the game, it's suggested they go to the Research Tree in Technology, and select ''Research Improvements'' and ''Standardize Research Objectives''. The remaining research power should be spent on the Economy Tree if possible, and research power should be checked once in a while to upgrade more and more. When one's economy gets larger, Research Spending could be upgraded if it is sustainable by the economy. Switching from Balanced to the Specialization Doctrine is also advised but not mandatory.
Then, the player should produce as much infantry as possible and start conquering nearby islands, starting with Comoros. Landing on land isn't necessary when invading cities with ports, and moving your infantry close to the city but not touching the land, which would waste a lot of time, as transitioning from sea to land is needed. Once all of the infantry has been killed, take the city and sign the peace treaty, taking all of their land, seizing 75% of their state treasury, 75% of their state resources and demand 25% of their income for 5 years as war reperations. (This is recommended to be done every time a treaty is signed). The player should let their infantry heal, and proceed to do the same process with Réunion, Mauritius, and Mayotte, but creating two electronic factories prior, buying 4 units of copper and gold, and selling them to AI to boost their economy is an excellent decision.
Once all African Islands in the Indian Ocean are annexed, an invasion of Madagascar must be planned. At that point, the player must make sure to have made recruitment centers in the six cities which they have, develop them as much as they can, as well as letting their infantry heal once again and produce more of them. Most of Madagascar's cities are ports, meaning they can still be occupied without touching the land. When the first city, (preferrably on the northern part of the island) gets occupied, the player must wait for the starter infantry of Madagascar to lose their entrenchment, reach Seychelles' own infantry unit and kill it, to proceed occupying all ports. Once that is done, the inland cities must be taken, including the capital of Madagascar, Antananarivo, to fully annex the island.
Finally, for the player to start their journey in continental Africa, it would be preferrable to start in 
Mozambique. The army will be big enough to succesfully annex the country without huge losses.
Everything after is determined by luck. As mentioned earlier, Africa is very unpredictable, and any country could take over. Good luck forming!
If South Africa is a Player[]
South Africa players are stereotyped for being expansionist, and that stereotype is true to Seychelles' disadvantage at most occasions. They will most likely not let the player expand in continental Africa, and they will be a big threat to the player even if they've managed to conquer all the small islands and Madagascar in the short amount of time they've had, and as a result, server hopping is a must in these situations.
Trivia[]
- Due to the fact that Seychelles' capital, Victoria, is more than 750 km away from any other city, it is impossible to move its capital elsewhere. This can only be bypassed if Seychelles loses its capital while it's at peace, as players are able to move their capital anywhere they want in this situation.
