[Pocus]

nice issue to raise Truper. It is true that in doms I you have many population killing spells, but few (one, a global) which do the reverse. I wonder if doms II is a bit more gentle with the poor farmers and workers... I like to be able to reverse a process (is it akin to the fear of death, doctor?). In doms I for example, if you 'liberate' the wasteland which constitute Ermor, you are left with a barren land, without hope of any reconstruction, and despite a growth +3 factor (because the growth is a % bonus of increase, and dont give you a base increase of say 300 pop a turn). Whats more its even stranger when you read your dominions description : it is written that the lush of nature can be seen everywhere, and that harvest is done 4 times a year, but ... nobody live here!

to answer more specifically your question, in dominions I, with growth +3, you can raise your population slowly.

Treebeard : in doms II patrolling wont allow you to increase taxes, if I recall. In fact I dont think there is a tax % to be modified.