The difference in strategy and tactics will be felt when playing Victoria 3. That is, developers expect players to seek strategy and look at the big picture while leaving their generals to use tactics on the fronts they are assigned to.
The most radical departure from other Paradox grand strategy games, that will be present in Victoria 3, is the absence of units you move on the map. The main reason is simply that Victoria 3 is a game primarily focused on Economy, Diplomacy, and Politics, and Paradox felt a more strategic approach to warfare mechanics fits the game better than micro-intensive tactical maneuvering.
It’s important to note that how this works differs completely from having AI-controlled units in other Paradox GSGs since in Victoria 3 armies you assign armies to fronts rather than provinces, with navies of course working differently. Paradox have promised to be getting into the exact details of the mechanics for both armies and navies in the coming weeks.
Both players and the developers, of course still want Victoria 3 to have interesting and meaningful warfare mechanics, but Paradox want the player to be engaging on a higher level of decision-making, making decisions about the overall war strategy and just how much they’re willing to sacrifice to achieve their goals rather than deciding which exact battalions should be battling it out in which exact province next.
Paradox Interactive
This also ties into the general costliness of wars and the fact that you can achieve your ends through diplomacy - that is the ways in which an outmatched Victoria 3 player triumphs over their enemies to be clever diplomacy, well-planned logistics, and rational strategic thinking rather than brilliant generalship. Ultimately, developers have taken this approach to warfare for the same reason they take any game design decision, which is because they believe that it will make Victoria 3 a better game.
