Fog of war hides enemy divisions and movements until you have intel on them. Toggling it off lets you see the entire battlefield in Hearts of Iron IV — every enemy stack, reinforcement and naval task force, in real time.
How to toggle fog of war
- Open the console with the
~key. - Type
fow(or the long formdebug_fow) and pressEnterto reveal the whole map. - Run
fowagain to switch fog of war back on.
Examples
fow— toggles fog of war on or off for the whole mapfow 12— toggles it only in province 12 (pass a province ID)
Why use it
With fog disabled you can watch every enemy stack and plan around their movements — spotting encirclements, naval invasions and reinforcements before they land. See the full fow command reference for details.
Frequently asked questions
How do you turn off fog of war in HOI4?
Open the console and type fow (also written debug_fow), then press Enter. It toggles fog of war off for the whole map, revealing every enemy division and movement. Run it again to turn fog back on.
What is the difference between fow and debug_fow?
They are the same command — debug_fow is the full name and fow is the alias. Both toggle fog of war the same way.
Can I remove fog of war in just one province?
Yes. fow [province ID] toggles fog of war for a single province instead of the entire map, which is useful for revealing one contested area without lifting the whole front.
Does removing fog of war give the AI an advantage?
No — fow only affects what you can see. The AI plays the same; you simply gain full visibility of enemy stacks and movements to plan around them.