The Philippines is the newest addition to the game: it got its own focus tree with "No Compromise, No Surrender" in late 2025, after years of running on the generic tree. It starts as a subject of 
the United States, with the smallest industry of any playable nation with its own tree, and with a date on the calendar — the Japanese invasion of December 1941 — that's going to arrive long before you're ready. But the tree later branches out in four radically different directions: independence via the Treaty of Manila (with the door open to a monarchist restoration), a communist revolution, fascist alignment, or simply deepening ties with the United States. This guide covers all four.
Historical Context
The Philippines was a Spanish colony for over 300 years until the United States took it after winning the Spanish-American War of 1898; in 1935 the Commonwealth of the Philippines was established, a transitional government meant to last ten years and end in full independence, with Manuel L. Quezón as elected president and Washington still controlling foreign policy. Real history didn't give it time to complete that transition in peace: 
Japan invaded the archipelago hours after Pearl Harbor, and General MacArthur had to evacuate promising "I shall return" — the same tension this guide is built around: a country that in 1936 barely has an army of its own, and that knows, in the historical path, that the invasion arrives in under six years.
National Spirits at Start
The Philippines starts with one baseline spirit, and with "No Compromise, No Surrender" enabled it gets three more that perfectly capture its situation: a colonial power down on its luck, an army that barely exists, and a foreign guardian that's both safety net and cage.
Island Nation
+15% convoy speed while retreating. -5% visibility. The baseline spirit of an archipelago: the sea protects, but it also fragments your defense.
The Great Depression
-0.75 daily political power. -25% resource gain efficiency. -25% construction speed. The crisis that hit the United States hits its subject too.
Philippine Army
-80% army experience gain. -50% recruitable population. -90% factory output. An army that is, quite literally, being built from nothing.
American Interference
+20% technology sharing bonus. -0.1 daily autonomy progress. A dynamic modifier that shifts as you complete focuses — American tutelage helps with technology while slowing down your independence at the same time.
The Starting Point: Almost No Industry of Your Own
With 1 military factory, 1 dockyard, and 5 civilian factories, the Philippines has by far the smallest industry of any nation with its own focus tree in the entire game — well below even Poland, the usual benchmark for "tiny industry." You're not building an army with your own production any time soon: you're going to depend almost entirely on what the United States lends, subsidizes, or sells you, and a large chunk of the first tree branch is literally about requesting supplies.
The Focus Tree Branches
The Philippine tree is split into several main branches (some hidden) and numerous sub-branches:
United States Army Forces in the Far East (USAFFE) — the historical branch: appoints MacArthur and Eisenhower, and chains together requests for weapons, planes, trucks, and a naval base from the United States to build an army that doesn't exist yet.
Declare Military Emergency — a hidden, completely non-historical branch: turns the Philippines into a paranoid nuclear power that ends up declaring war on Japan, the United States, and the 
United Kingdom in turn. It exists, basically, for anyone who wants an unhinged playthrough.
Subject... Surrender — the branch that activates if you lose Manila to the Japanese invasion: government in exile, guerrilla warfare (Hukbalahap, the Hunters, the Juramentados of Jolo), and MacArthur's "I Shall Return" focus on the road to liberation.
Commonwealth of the Philippines — the central political and economic branch, with the Pro Hacendados (keep the Spanish-descended landed elite) vs. Anti Hacendados (land reform) fork, plus sub-branches on nationality.
Petition the Supreme Court — the communist road, toward the Partido Komunista ng Pilipinas (PKP) coup.
Treaty of Manila — the "standard" independence sub-branch, and also where the monarchist restoration (Kingdom of the Philippines) and the pan-Malay Maphilindo union split off.
Rebuild the Sakdalistas — the fascist road, reconciling with 
Spain.
National Defense Act — a proper army and air force, with a hidden sub-branch ("That's Not An Island!") that unlocks an ice-and-pykrete aircraft carrier, a direct nod to the real Project Habakkuk.
On top of that there's Offshore Patrol, a naval branch with no ideological strings attached (PT boats, coastal defense, the final "Thalassocracy"), and War for the Oceans, an expansionist sub-branch reachable from almost any of the four political endings.
The Four Roads: Which Philippines Are You Building
Just like Brazil, the Philippines doesn't have one "correct" ending — it has four, and all of them start from the same impoverished-subject baseline of 1936:
- Independence via the Treaty of Manila — the "textbook" democratic road: universal suffrage, economic modernization, the Bell Trade Act, and an industry that grows over time. From here you can branch off into a monarchist restoration (Kingdom of the Philippines) or into Maphilindo, a pan-Malay union with Indonesia.
- PKP communist coup — via Petition the Supreme Court, a full break with Washington.
- Sakdalista reconstruction — the fascist road, reconciling with Spain instead of the United States.
- Status quo with the US — simply deepening the relationship with Washington via USAFFE without forcing any break, the least flashy option but the easiest to play well.
The interesting part is that War for the Oceans — the branch that claims Malaysia, Indonesia, and half of Micronesia — is reachable from all four endings: you can end up controlling the same stretch of Southeast Asia as a republic, a monarchy, a communist dictatorship, or a fascist regime. This is what the community calls the "Maphilindia conquest" strategy: rarely worth attempting in historical mode without first planning out how you're going to beat both the United Kingdom and the United States.
The Japanese Campaign
If you're playing the historical path, here's what you need ready at each stage of the 1941-42 invasion, rather than exact dates to memorize:
- Before the invasion — make the most of the time as a US ally to complete as much of the USAFFE branch as possible: every weapons shipment, aircraft requisition, or the Mariveles naval base you get before the attack is equipment you won't be able to build yourself in time.
- The Japanese landings — they hit multiple points of the archipelago at once; don't spread your tiny army thin in symbolic garrisons across every island, concentrate your defense on Luzon, where Manila is.
- The retreat to Bataan and Corregidor — historically the resistance fell back to the Bataan peninsula and the fortress-island of Corregidor to buy time; in practice, prioritize saving units over holding ground you can no longer sustain.
- If Manila falls — the "Subject... Surrender" branch activates: government in exile and guerrilla warfare (Hukbalahap, the Hunters, the Juramentados) instead of the total destruction of your remaining forces.
- The return — MacArthur's "I Shall Return" focus represents the Allied counteroffensive; having it unlocked beforehand speeds up the reconquest when the time comes.
The intelligence guide and the occupation and resistance guide go into detail on the resistance mechanics this branch uses.
Common Mistakes
- Ignoring the USAFFE branch early on to chase independence directly — without the equipment requisitioned from the United States, you have nothing to defend yourself with, not from Japan or anyone else.
- Picking Pro Hacendados or Anti Hacendados lightly — the fork gates entire sub-branches further down (nationality, the Sakdalistas, Japanese support); check what each unlocks before committing.
- Attempting the Maphilindia conquest in historical mode with no plan — it requires beating the United Kingdom and often the United States too; without your own faction and plenty of lead time, it's a common trap for games that drag on with no direction.
Philippines' Achievements
Four achievements specific to the Philippines, all tied to the tree's most extreme paths:
The Juannines
As the Philippines, have cores and control all of Spain.
Declare Military Emergency
Have a Military Emergency declared in the Philippines.
Cobalt Sea
As the Philippines, launch nuclear missiles from a nuclear submarine.
Maphilindia
As Indonesia or the Philippines, form Maphilindo and control all Indian core states.