By Paul Goodman Of the 16 Nations, Holland is probably the most vulnerable, along with the Rhineland, and I'm immediately struck by the sheer size of France, my neighbour. To play Holland you must get into diplomacy, either write or phone, preferably both to as many players as you can and definitely all your neighbours. I made contact with France offering Alliance, it's better to have peace than war especially with a powerful Nation. I also agree to a pact with Rhineland, not an Alliance as such, but we agree to inform each other of any gossip, especially conspiracies against ourselves. I also speak to Spain and we agree to assist each other should France invade either way.
Alliance is made with Britain, Sweden and Denmark.
In this age of Americanism, sales, targets, goals, etc. Firstly, I try for peace on my borders for a year, build up my economy, and expand as rapidly as I can in the colonies. I also early on in the game ship out 20,000 citizens to India to set up a fall-back position should Holland fall in Europe. Holland starts off with a large army compared to the bigger Nations, a decent sized navy, a fair amount of money in the bank and 4 Commanders. I increased my home population too early.