Japan starts already deep in a war with 
China that, if you let it stagnate, can swallow resources indefinitely without giving much back. This guide's goal is to close that front as soon as possible so you can calmly decide between 
Hokushin-ron (north) and 
Nanshin-ron (south), and understand how Imperial Influence — the struggle between the Army, Navy, zaibatsu, and civilian wing — shapes a good chunk of what you can do.
Historical Context
After the Meiji Restoration of 1868, Japan industrialized and modernized its military at a pace that stunned the world, and the Great Depression fed the ultranationalist factions within the Army, who in 1931 occupied Manchuria with barely any authorization from Tokyo. The game starts in 1936, weeks before the attempted coup of the February 26 Incident, and the game captures that tension between the Army, Navy, zaibatsu, and the civilian wing in its own Imperial Influence system, explained further below.
What Changed with No Compromise, No Surrender
This expansion rewrote a good part of Japan's tree (and China's), adding much deeper development of internal political factions — Kodoha, Imperial Influence, and several alternate routes toward civilian government, communism, or imperial restoration — while also considerably expanding the Chinese front's content. If you play without the expansion, the tree is noticeably smaller and the internal factional struggle is much simpler. This guide assumes you have it enabled, which is already the de facto standard.
National Spirits at Start
Japan starts with seven national spirits that paint a picture of an army and navy with high morale but full of internal friction, plus an industry that still isn't up to its own ambitions.
Militarism
-5% research speed. -20% time to justify war goals. -25% conscription law cost.
London Naval Treaty Signatory
Design cost caps: 9,500 for carriers, 5,300 for cruisers, 10,000 for capital ships.
State Shintoism
+10% surrender limit. +20% war support.
Imperial Army
-10% armor research speed. -10% armor division attack. +10% initiative. +20% supply consumption.
Imperial Navy
-10% naval detection. +10% naval max range. +15% torpedo hit chance. -15% escort efficiency.
Army and Naval Air Services
-10% air research speed. +10% naval mission efficiency. +10% untrained pilots penalty.
Early Industrialization Efforts
30% of factories dedicated to consumer goods. +10% lack of resources penalty. -3% research speed.
Imperial Influence: Army, Navy, Zaibatsu, and Civilians
Beyond the spirits above, the system that really defines Japan is 
Imperial Influence: four internal factions — Army, Navy, Zaibatsu, and the civilian wing — compete for the Emperor's favor, and whichever one dominates at any given moment imposes its own modifiers on the whole country. If the Army is in charge, production costs for infantry, artillery, and aircraft go up, and fuel available to your divisions drops. If the Navy is in charge, carrier and warship costs go up, and naval fuel consumption rises. If the Zaibatsu are in charge, changing economic laws costs 20% more, but infrastructure and civilian industry construction goes 10% faster. And if the civilian wing is in charge, you gain political power and stability, at the cost of less recruitable population and war support.
A Front Built to Last
The war with China is designed to eat up time and resources if you leave it on autopilot. In the first few months, prioritize the focuses that speed up closing it out: the sooner it ends, the sooner you can pour your industry and army into this nation's real decision.
In parallel, three non-political branches are worth keeping running in the background at all times: 
Purge the Kodoha Faction — the historical route that cements Army dominance over the government —, 
the Ministry of Commerce and Industry — economic and industrial development —, and 
the Imperial Defense Plan — joint modernization of the Army, Navy, and air force. This guide doesn't go into the alternate political routes (democratic civilian government, the communist path, an imperial restoration via coup) — they're alternate playthrough routes that will be covered in separate content later.
Hokushin-ron or Nanshin-ron: North or South
The big decision, right after resolving China, is Hokushin-ron ("Northward Expansion Doctrine"), aimed at the 
USSR and Siberia, or Nanshin-ron ("Southward Expansion Doctrine"), aimed at the European colonies in the Pacific and, later, the United States. The sooner you make this call, the better: splitting industrial investment between a large land army and a large fleet at the same time is the surest way to end up with neither ready when it matters.
- Heading south (Nanshin-ron): the Navy and naval aviation are the industrial priority almost from the start.
- Heading north (Hokushin-ron): the land army carries the weight, with naval industry taking a back seat.
- If you pick the south, watch your relationship with
the United States — it's the power most likely to complicate that route down the line.
Doctrine and Division Templates
Japan doesn't start with any doctrine unlocked out of the box, and the real choice depends almost entirely on whether you go north or south. Heading north, with the Imperial Army's industry as the priority, a conventional land doctrine with sturdy infantry makes sense. Heading south, the priority shifts to the Imperial Navy and its carrier aviation, so investment in naval and air doctrine matters far more than land doctrine. Either way, for the land doctrine tree we recommend 
Superior Firepower: the Imperial Army spirit itself penalizes armor research and attack directly, so chasing Mobile Warfare rows against your own modifiers — artillery and entrenchment get more out of what you actually have.
For the exact breakdown of combat widths and template composition, the combat width guide and the doctrines guide go into the numerical detail this guide only sketches out.
War Campaigns
If you're going to follow the historical script, what really matters isn't the exact dates but what you need to have ready at each stage so you don't repeat Japan's real mistakes. Here's what to do at each campaign:
- Second Sino-Japanese War against China — don't leave it on autopilot: prioritize the focuses that speed up closing it out and end it as soon as possible, because every extra month drains equipment and manpower you need for the north/south decision.
- Khalkhin Gol-style clash against the USSR — if you're heading Hokushin-ron, don't attack without armor and artillery on par with the Soviets; if you can't match that force, take it as the signal to pivot to Nanshin-ron instead of insisting on a front you can't win.
- Tripartite Pact with
Germany and 
Italy — sign it as soon as you can; it needs no military preparation and locks in Axis diplomatic coordination ahead of your own expansion. - Occupation of French Indochina — if you're heading south, have oil reserves or synthetic refining already underway before this step: it triggers the US embargo, and your fleet and aviation run out of fuel right when you need them most if you haven't planned for it.
- Pearl Harbor-style attack on the United States — don't attempt it until your carrier air groups and fleet are fully built up; it's the window that buys your initial expansion, so don't waste it half-ready.
- Advance on Singapore, the Philippines, and the East Indies — press hard while you hold the initiative; that window closes once the Allies finish mobilizing, so this isn't the time to consolidate slowly.
- Midway-style naval battle — don't commit your entire carrier fleet to one operation without reserves; invest in naval detection and damage control before this point, because losing a decisive battle here is what turns the war around in the real game.
- Guadalcanal-style campaign — secure naval logistics to your forward garrisons before the attrition starts; an island without supply surrenders on its own, no enemy conquest required.
- "Island-hopping" defense — once you're on the defensive, fortify and concentrate whatever fleet you have left at key points instead of spreading it thin trying to defend everywhere.
- Iwo Jima and Okinawa-style advance — if you've reached this point steadily losing ground, consider whether a negotiated peace is more realistic than fighting on island by island.
Common Mistakes
- Trying to build a huge land army and a huge fleet at the same time without the industry to properly sustain either one — commit to north or south early.
- Ignoring which faction dominates Imperial Influence — building a fleet while the Army is in charge, or an army while the Navy is in charge, works against your own modifiers.
This guide will expand with the north and south routes developed separately; in the meantime, the DLC guide covers how No Compromise, No Surrender especially expands Japan and China's content.
Japan's Achievements
Five achievements specific to Japan, from the most straightforward to the ones that require a whole game planned around them:
Sunrise Invasion
As Japan, conquer Mexico then Europe before 1945.
Tojo Shot First
As Japan, nuke a core territory of the US before the US develops nuclear weapons.
Paradisus Paradoxum
As Japan, proclaim the creation of a Pure Buddhist Land.
An Equivalent Exchange
As Democratic Japan, complete the focus Foreign Exchange Allocation Policy and capitulate fascist Germany.
The Sun Will Never Set
As Japan, proclaim the Eternal Empire and control all of your core states.