Roleplay/Your Houserules

[seienchin]

Hi,
Since my last Romani campain I started to play Eb with Roleplaying and used the romans historicaly correct in battles and simulated struggle between the families. I also played really really slowly and tried to conquer one country in 20-30 years.
I often see people in this forum talk about their Houserules/Roleplay so I would like to hear/poll about your playstyle. :yes::yes:

[miotas]

-don't blitz,
-very few elites, usually only two per army
-try to have(depending on the faction) up to half the army as levies.
-as the romans i have half my army as allied troops, half roman
-disband armies with silver chevrons or 10+ years, as the romans I disband my roman troops in territories they have captured, and allied troops in the place I recruited them.
-as the romans i use the manipulator formation
-i don't use force diplomacy, but i do try and play enemies off against each other.
-only use the general as a last resort, this also depends on the faction, as it seems more likely that in monarchic factions the generals would take a more active role.

As other factions i use as many of these house rules as seem to fit.

basically i just use common sense for the most part and do things that make sense.

makes for a very enjoyable game

[seienchin]

Interesting. I never hold my generals back, but it would be historical correct to do so sometimes.^^
Cant imagine a roman general atacking with the first wave of soldiers :sweatdrop:

[miotas]

Also, in my current baktrian campaign i've basically been using a more heavily armoured core of 5 or 6 hellenes with all the rest being light native infantry and horse with the occasional more heavily armoured native horse unit.

In this campaign though, seeing as the generals have very heavy cavalry they take a more significant role than i would with romans, they are very heavy though and get tired quickly so i try to wait until they will have maximum impact

[Elcmar]

Yeah i'd probably do a lot of what miotas does, but of course it varies depending on which faction i'm playing. I've found roleplaying to be a lot more fun than just blitzing along - having great fun in a Karthadastim campaign RP'ing the dissolution of their senate and the establishment of an Emperor :smash:

[miotas]

Yeah i'd probably do a lot of what miotas does, but of course it varies depending on which faction i'm playing. I've found roleplaying to be a lot more fun than just blitzing along - having great fun in a Karthadastim campaign RP'ing the dissolution of their senate and the establishment of an Emperor :smash:

now that is an interesting idea, I'll have to give that a go sometime.

*edit*
something else i should add :tongue:

I only disband units that have been on campaign abroad, i have no issues with keeping a few units that are acting as a garrison for many generations, i roleplay that the sons join the levy defence unit when their fathers get too old.

[Elcmar]

now that is an interesting idea, I'll have to give that a go sometime.

*edit*
something else i should add :tongue:

I only disband units that have been on campaign abroad, i have no issues with keeping a few units that are acting as a garrison for many generations, i roleplay that the sons join the levy defence unit when their fathers get too old.

Aye, i'd do the same myself - also if i have a bit of spare cash on my hands i usually set up forts in strategic areas/beside resources and rp the (usually small) garrison as the militia of a small town

[seienchin]

I also enjoy making my own Army reforms.
In my Macedonian campain I first didnt use elites or pezhetairoi to simulate the heavy losses to Phyrrus, but big stacks of levies and mercenary. Then changed my Army to small Elite fighters(Only a few phalangitai, but more mobile troops), who where engaging in a lot of conflicts around the mediterean and I always gave the cities I took to my allies. Then after 50 years Macedonia had rebuild its strengh again and disbanded the small stacks and changed to bigger but heavier and less mobile armies. Then to respond to the losses I took in the forests and hills of italy I started to use mobile local allies and so on. It makes the game somewhat more fun than always playing with the same configurations.

[NickTheGreek]

The only acceptable time to blitz is at the start, to secure a good foothold for your nation. Allow the AI to build up its strength. Use FD to get peace treaties so that a series of wars are possible, not just one long slog.

[Elcmar]

I also tend to give a ton of cash to the Eleutheroi at the start to stop the AI factions going nuts too soon

[/Bean\]

Does that work?

[miotas]

I also tend to give a ton of cash to the Eleutheroi at the start to stop the AI factions going nuts too soon

How! How! How!

what is the code for this cheat?

This seems like a very good idea, it would slow the ai down to a more realistic pace.

[/Bean\]

add_money slave, 40000

[miotas]

add_money slave, 40000

Its that simple? Does this work for all factions?

[gostisa]

I usally don't blitz, I also don't use many elites and battles i tend too avoid any bridge/siege holdup. Also trying too make sure that most troops are from homeland provinces and too use the formation style that was somewhat historical for the faction. The multiple chevrons army I rather dived them amongst other arms and treat them as a part of the elit corps :juggle2:

and yeah knowing the internal names too the factions u can use add_money too take/give money to/from every faction u want, I personaly don't use it thou

EDIT: english ain't my best point

[miotas]

I usally don't blitz, I also don't use many elites and battles i tend too avoid any bridge/siege holdup. Also trying too make sure that most troops are from homeland provinces and too use the formation style that was somewhat historical for the faction. The multiple chevrons army I rather dived them amongst other arms and treat them as a part of the elit corps :juggle2:

and yeah knowing the internal names too the factions u can use add_money too take/give money to/from every faction u want, I personaly don't use it thou

EDIT: english ain't my best point

Welcome to the guild gostica,

that is an intersting idea, maybe in future i will hold onto my silver chevrons for a few years longer as elites.:2thumbsup:

This thread is giving me some good ideas.

Oh, and your english is very good.

[HunGeneral]

In my case the amount of Roleplay depends on which faction I play as. Most of the time I only start roleplaying after having a stable economy.

One of my favourite Ideas (with Saka) is that after I take the most northern city in India I roleplay that they became allies (type 4 goverment) of the Nomads who mostly left the area because of weather conditions. Then the "Indo -(Saka)- Hellenes" continue there war with the minor kingdoms in India - no nomad units used there just local forces, everything there will be payed from the Income of the towns (or towns) in India and from Time to time the Saka will ask the "Indo Hellenes" for suporting troops which must be sent and after a while be returned to there place of training.

I don't always disband experienced troops -most of the time I just send them backt to there province (they tend there fiels and live there lives but in case of crisis they can be called to fight).

[Elcmar]

Yeah giving the rebs money definitely makes a difference - they tend to have much, much larger garrisons - not only slows the AI down a bit, but can force you to carefully consider your own expansion too! Usually give them a large lump sum at the start, then if i remember some extra money each turn too - great for stopping factions like the Sweboz taking over half of europe before you really get going

Oh and i usually have to 'promote' regular units before i recruit elites at all - like when two or three units of pezhetairoi get up to silver chevrons i'll consider disbanding the three and recruiting one unit of elites with the reasoning that the best/richest/most influential men of the three form the new elite unit, and the remainder either go back to their farms or rejoin the regulars - makes an army feel more unique pretending that the Peltastai Makedonikoi actually came from the best of the pezhetairoi - things like that :yes:

[DaciaJC]

Yeah giving the rebs money definitely makes a difference - they tend to have much, much larger garrisons - not only slows the AI down a bit, but can force you to carefully consider your own expansion too! Usually give them a large lump sum at the start, then if i remember some extra money each turn too - great for stopping factions like the Sweboz taking over half of europe before you really get going



Hmm, I never realized that the Eleutheroi can actually recruit troops. I imagined that they make due with what they are given at the beginning and are slowly brought down through attrition.

Oh, and may I ask, how exactly does one go about tracking the age of every single unit in order to retire them after x years?

[Elcmar]

Hmm, I never realized that the Eleutheroi can actually recruit troops. I imagined that they make due with what they are given at the beginning and are slowly brought down through attrition.

Oh, and may I ask, how exactly does one go about tracking the age of every single unit in order to retire them after x years?

I've seen the garrisons of Eleutheroi cities go way up proportionate to the amounts of money i give to them so i'm presuming they can recruit extra units, dunno where else the units would be coming from....

[d'Arthez]

Giving money to Eleutheroi definitely affects things. You will see, for instance a lot more mines in Eleutheroi hands if you give them say 200,000 Mnai per turn (or alternatively an x amount times the number of territories they control + a lump sum to pay for the various rebel stacks. You will also see a fair amount of 35k Mnai ports in Eleutheroi hands.

They can recruit, but oftentimes they simply go bankrupt because of the high costs of unit upkeep. Sadly the Eleutheroi is depicted as a single faction. So either all Eleutheroi do well or all Eleutheroi stagnate, barring the few cities on which surplus (if any) money will be spent.

You can even add in the add_money cheat for them in the script. So you don't even have to think about it.

[DaciaJC]

You can even add in the add_money cheat for them in the script. So you don't even have to think about it.

They aren't given anything through the AI money script, like the other factions? If not, I'd imagine that they would go immediately bankrupt with all of their units' upkeeps.

[miotas]

Oh, and may I ask, how exactly does one go about tracking the age of every single unit in order to retire them after x years?

You don't need to keep track of every single unit, but say you remember that you recruited that army that's now fighting in Iberia, back in 245 and the year is now 235, you get a new army ready to relieve it so that it can retire soon, it doesn't matter that a few units, are younger or older, it's just a general guideline to make the game more fun.

Just do whatever feels right. 10 years feels right to me because after that long men would be getting older and slowing down, and the life of a soldier would be hard on the men.

[johnhughthom]

Romani houserules:

A legion is raised for 16 years and no retraining allowed, at the end of the 16 years it is disbanded in different cities across the Republic to simulate land grants. If I'm in a war it can be extended to 20 years, 25 at an emergency but no more. I'm aware this is not really historically accurate but it's as close as you can get in RTW I feel.
My Camillan legion consist of one Leves, one Hastati, one Principes, one Triarii and one Rorarii. There is one accensii shared between two legions (as I believe they are too powerful for what they represent) and FMs are used for the cavalry wing.
An allied ala is raised for each legion. these generally consist of a unit of light skirmishers, light infantry, heavy infantry, pedites extraordinarii, archers and cavalry. I may add a unit of heavier skirmisher if available and sometime two cavalry units.
I start with 2 legions, then one more is added every 16 years depending on expansion. Light expansion may see none added, large gains may need 2 more.
One legion and one ala are used in the same stack. They can be separated, to attack a small enemy or to attack from different directions but generally travel together.
I don't recruit mercs, this allows the AI to recruit them giving a greater challenge. It also simulates the greater uniformity of the Roman army when you are fighting such diverse armies.
I don't accept adoptions. I don't know why, I just don't like it. Daughters allow you to diversify your family tree anyway.
When a region is conquered it starts at level 4 govt. When the client ruler dies it becomes level 3(whether natural death or otherwise). The approx 30 years later level 2. Another 30 years or so for those regions able to become level 1.
Absolutely no reloading, I reloaded a battle I lost once and it was my biggest mistake ever in EB. I totally lost all interest in a campaign which I had been playing for 6 months and was near the Marian reforms. I have never got close to them since.
FMs go to Rome (or another big city with a school) between 16 and 20, then with the army for 10 years, then back to Rome for a political career. Only Senators can govern cities, preferably at least former Praetors but former Quaestors can govern small towns. Certain cities, like Syracuse, Tarentum etc can only be governed by somebody with Consular authority. Obviously this doesn't apply to type four govt.

Copied from my Romani AAR, I also try to roleplay traits, eg brave or rash generals will attack despite overwhelming odds. I try to have a reason for reforms, eg the "Gallic Disaster" in the AAR. My houserules are similar for other factions.

[Centurio Nixalsverdrus]

I play slowly (well, mostly), but certainly not according to the historic timeline - my faction would be terminated the next year then :wink:
I use historically balanced armies, but not to the extent of repeating the desastrous mistakes of Perseus at Pydna...
Also I use FD, but not to halt the AI expansion, but to help them - giving them money and sometimes big stacks that I can fight.
Also I play "pseudohistorically". That means that I mod my own military / political reforms for me and sometimes for the AI. I always ask myself "what would the faction do if it was in the position you are in now," according to their culture and mentality?

[Ibrahim]

well, all the "houserules" are informal; I expand slowly and historically simply because I do not want to stretch the army out. I use historically accurate armies because, depending on the factions and circumstances, they are more efficient, or more challenging, or even both-same for formations. and forced diplomacy is so that I can have something known as diplomacy without resorting to large bribes:clown:

[Aemilius Paulus]

Heh, I do not do any of the aforementioned (in the poll, not the previous replies) things really, but I do play slower than I could in my newly started Eperios VH/H, although for most people, it would still seem very fast expansion. At least it is not my Romani campaign, where by 225 BC I had 154 provinces. I also severely limit myself on elites, especially Elepahntes Indikoi, Peltastai Makedonikoi, Hypaspistai, Chaonion Agema, etc, and even allow no more than two Pezhetairoi per army, which is rather radical for me.

Otherwise, no other roleplay. Except the fact that I record everything a general with an army does, how many units he has, the losses he inflicts and takes, and etc, etc. I suppose it is a sort of roleplay, but I am not quite sure.

[/Bean\]

You'd be good in BtSH :laugh4:

[AqD]

Here are my houserules:


Be without fear in the face of your enemies. (retreat whenever the situation isn't good, even when it'd cost the lives of my soldiers and citizens)
Be brave and upright (always use missile weapons and avoid melee combat!)
Speak the truth always, even if it leads to your death. (always lie in diplomacy; pay & cancel tribute for map information is a good start! :yes:)
Safeguard the helpless and do no wrong (attack defenseless towns, massacre civilians, spread plagues and raze all conquered cities to the ground!)


:sweatdrop:

[Iskander 3.1]

Yes! Join us!!!

[Africanvs]

These are the house rules I am using for my ongoing Mak campaign:

Military house rules:

Troops must be retrained/disbanded in the province from which they were recruited. An army can be in the field for as many years as the general has command stars or influence, whichever is higher, before it must return to it's home province. Any army on a major campaign must be commanded by the faction leader. (For example, if I invade another faction. Eleutheroi may be attacked by any general. Another general may lead an army in an opposing faction's province only if the faction leader is present in the same province or region to give him orders.) The faction leader may disband troops in a far away province for the purpose of settling that province only if the troops disbanded are native to Makedonia. Regional troops may not be settled in far off provinces. One Makedonian Army will typically consist of 4 units of Phalangites, one of which may be elite, 2 units of hoplitai/thureophoroi/peltastai/etc. to guard the flanks of the phalanx, one of which may be elite, 2 units of archers/slingers/skirmishers, 1 unit of heavy cavalry, and 1 general for a total of 10 units. This is ~1600 foot and 200 horse on huge unit sizes. If two such armies are combined it will be referred to as a Royal Makedonian Army. Troop composition may change depending on the region it is operating in. (For example, when fighting in the east, some phalangites would be sacrificed for more missle or mounted troops.) If caught in the field in the winter, an army must build a fort and make no movement in the winter season. No troops may travel without a general; ever.

Diplomatic house rules:

When away on campaign, the faction leader must appoint two men to govern homeland provinces. The first man will be the regent and must be the homeland governor with the highest influence. The second man will be the commander of the homeland armies and must command the army in any battle near the homeland. This man must possess the highest command rating of homeland governors. If either of these men die while the faction leader is away, he must return (no matter what he is doing) to the capital to appoint a replacement. This is to prevent a pretender from taking the throne while the king is away. The faction heir must always be the eldest son of the faction leader, or if the faction leader has no sons, the eldest blood relative of the faction leader. If the faction leader has no blood relatives, a man may be appointed. No city without a governor may be taxed higher than normal. All new generals must attend first training in Sparte, then schooling for two years in Athenai. To simulate communication problems caused by distance in ancient times, any communication between two characters which occupy the same province happens in the same season, but if the two characters are in a different province, the news does not reach the other character until the next season. (For example if a spy spots an enemy army coming toward the faction leader, the faction leader may act on this information, only if the spy is in the same province. If the spy is in a different province, the faction leader is roleplayed to not yet have this knowledge, until the following season. This is the same for any two characters communicating.

[Aemilius Paulus]

Wow, and I though Quintus Sertorius was taking roleplay too far...

Holy Cow man! Do you play Romani? If so, then do you follow the historical expansion?

[satalexton]

These are the house rules I am using for my ongoing Mak campaign:

Military house rules:

Troops must be retrained/disbanded in the province from which they were recruited. An army can be in the field for as many years as the general has command stars or influence, whichever is higher, before it must return to it's home province. Any army on a major campaign must be commanded by the faction leader. (For example, if I invade another faction. Eleutheroi may be attacked by any general. Another general may lead an army in an opposing faction's province only if the faction leader is present in the same province or region to give him orders.) The faction leader may disband troops in a far away province for the purpose of settling that province only if the troops disbanded are native to Makedonia. Regional troops may not be settled in far off provinces. One Makedonian Army will typically consist of 4 units of Phalangites, one of which may be elite, 2 units of hoplitai/thureophoroi/peltastai/etc. to guard the flanks of the phalanx, one of which may be elite, 2 units of archers/slingers/skirmishers, 1 unit of heavy cavalry, and 1 general for a total of 10 units. This is ~1600 foot and 200 horse on huge unit sizes. If two such armies are combined it will be referred to as a Royal Makedonian Army. Troop composition may change depending on the region it is operating in. (For example, when fighting in the east, some phalangites would be sacrificed for more missle or mounted troops.) If caught in the field in the winter, an army must build a fort and make no movement in the winter season. No troops may travel without a general; ever.

Diplomatic house rules:

When away on campaign, the faction leader must appoint two men to govern homeland provinces. The first man will be the regent and must be the homeland governor with the highest influence. The second man will be the commander of the homeland armies and must command the army in any battle near the homeland. This man must possess the highest command rating of homeland governors. If either of these men die while the faction leader is away, he must return (no matter what he is doing) to the capital to appoint a replacement. This is to prevent a pretender from taking the throne while the king is away. The faction heir must always be the eldest son of the faction leader, or if the faction leader has no sons, the eldest blood relative of the faction leader. If the faction leader has no blood relatives, a man may be appointed. No city without a governor may be taxed higher than normal. All new generals must attend first training in Sparte, then schooling for two years in Athenai. To simulate communication problems caused by distance in ancient times, any communication between two characters which occupy the same province happens in the same season, but if the two characters are in a different province, the news does not reach the other character until the next season. (For example if a spy spots an enemy army coming toward the faction leader, the faction leader may act on this information, only if the spy is in the same province. If the spy is in a different province, the faction leader is roleplayed to not yet have this knowledge, until the following season. This is the same for any two characters communicating.


Brilliant, ALL HAIL MAKEDONIA!!!

p.s. You should add razing Barbaropolis as one of your kingdom's prime objective.

[seienchin]

To simulate communication problems caused by distance in ancient times, any communication between two characters which occupy the same province happens in the same season, but if the two characters are in a different province, the news does not reach the other character until the next season. (For example if a spy spots an enemy army coming toward the faction leader, the faction leader may act on this information, only if the spy is in the same province. If the spy is in a different province, the faction leader is roleplayed to not yet have this knowledge, until the following season. This is the same for any two characters communicating.


Brilliant Idea!!! :idea2:
Ive never thought about it myself, but I guess its pretty cool.:yes:
Anyway Roleplaying the Romani is just too much fun, exspecially the Augustus Reforms.

[Elcmar]

To simulate communication problems caused by distance in ancient times, any communication between two characters which occupy the same province happens in the same season, but if the two characters are in a different province, the news does not reach the other character until the next season. (For example if a spy spots an enemy army coming toward the faction leader, the faction leader may act on this information, only if the spy is in the same province. If the spy is in a different province, the faction leader is roleplayed to not yet have this knowledge, until the following season. This is the same for any two characters communicating.


Brilliant Idea!!! :idea2:
Ive never thought about it myself, but I guess its pretty cool.:yes:
Anyway Roleplaying the Romani is just too much fun, exspecially the Augustus Reforms.

I've heard of a similar idea using diplomats to relay orders from Leaders to generals - a general can only make large strategic decisions once the 'diplomat' hands over the orders - means generals aren't limited by seasons per se, but rather by how long it takes diplomat to get there.

[glouch]

for my Mak campaign, as well as my AS campaign back in 1.0:

-rules regarding armies, garrisons, and the subjugation of rebellious and enemy states:

a) one argyrasides with two pezhetairoi/hysteroi pazhetairoi, or three pezhetairoi/hysteroi pezhetairoi to serve as a wall and pivot around which a battle will be fought; they are laid out on a continuous wall with the overlaps between units of phalangites to serve as hinges. each phalangite unit is laid out four to five men deep to provide a suitably long, continuous surface upon which the enemy soldiers can tire themselves out; in desperate situations, they are laid out three men deep. one reserve unit of pezhetairoi/hysteroi pezhetairoi will stay at the nearest city able to recruit argyraspides/pezhetairoi/hysteroi pezhetairoi, referenced as a recruitment center.
* in events wherein one or more units of phalangites need urgent retraining while the army is campaigning due to depletion of numbers, the aforementioned reserve unit will take the place of the phalangite unit that is most depleted in numbers; upon retraining the unit rejoins the army immediately, while the reserve unit either returns to the recruitment center or takes the place of another unit in dire need of retraining.
*any unit within the army can only be retrained once in a year.
* any elite unit (such as argyraspides, pheraspides, and hetairoi) can only be retrained once every five years.
b) two to three non-phalangite, sword, axe, or spear-armed melee units to guard the flanks. two of these units are composed of the regional units within the area of responsibility of the particular army it is a part of, while the third will be either an elite melee unit coming from the nearest province which can train melee units which can be deemed as elite or a normal melee unit with significantly more experience than the other two. the purpose of the third melee unit is to support either flank, whichever is in need of assistance; the three units can also be used to strike the enemy at critical moments of the battle, as well as to cover the main army whenever there is a need to make a tactical retreat to a much defensible position, or simply a reordering of the phalangite lines to better face the enemy. an absence of a third supporting elite unit is permissible. one reserve unit will stay at any suitable nearby recruitment center.
* in events wherein one or more units of melee units need urgent retraining while the army is campaigning due to depletion of numbers, the aforementioned reserve unit will take the place of the melee unit that is most depleted in numbers; upon retraining the unit rejoins the army immediately, while the reserve unit either returns to the recruitment center or takes the place of another unit in dire need of retraining.
* any unit within the army can only be retrained once in a year.
* any elite unit (such as argyraspides, pheraspides, and hetairoi) can only be retrained once every five years.
c) two to three units of long-range archers, most commonly kretan archers. celtic archers to the extreme western fronts (massalia), bosporan heavy archers to the north (chersonesos), and syrian and caucasian archers to the extreme east (kotais and antiocheia) will serve this purpose. auxiliary units such as slingers, javelineers, and shorter-ranged archers are permitted, but only two of these kinds of units are ever allowed; after the battle in which their services were required has been concluded, they are detached and sent to their places of origin to be disbanded. one reserve unit will stay at any suitable nearby recruitment center.
* in events wherein one or more units of archer units need urgent retraining while the army is campaigning due to depletion of numbers, the aforementioned reserve unit will take the place of the archer unit that is most depleted in numbers; upon retraining the unit rejoins the army immediately, while the reserve unit either returns to the recruitment center or takes the place of another unit in dire need of retraining.
* any unit within the army can only be retrained once in a year.
* krete is recognized as a special archer recruitment center; at least four units of kretan archers will be present within kydonia at all times.
d) at least four units of prodromoi and two units of lonchophoroi to act as the hammers on the phalangite anvil, as well as to "clean up" any fleeing enemy troops, engage enemy cavalry and skirmishers, and provide additional support for the flanks.
* retraining of any number of cavalry units within an army means a complete retreat of that army to a suitable recruitment center.
e) elite cavalry such as hetairoi are, as much as possible, excluded from any army. if an occasion on which the services of an elite cavalry units is required arises (such as the threat of an enemy army with a, sizeable contingent of kataphractoi or a situation described below) only a maximum of three units are allowed.
* any elite unit (such as argyraspides, pheraspides, and hetairoi) can only be retrained once every five years
f) only one general can lead an army, who should be at least sharp, vigorous, and loyal. upon the appointment of a general to an army, a minimum term of 25 years and a maximum of 50 years of command as strategos of an army will commence. if a general succeeds as basileos during his term of command, he has two options. the first option is to cut short his term upon which he will immediately journey towards the capital, leaving his army to its area of responsibility, but not before a suitable replacement as strategos has been appointed and has taken command of the army. the second option is to remain strategos of the army he currently commands, upon which one unit of hetairoi and one unit of pheraspidai is required to join the army within a peroiod of three years (due to the time required for travel).
g) any unit, upon joining an army, can neither be detached nor disbanded until after 35 years of service, although a unit can be detached from an army to join a newly formed one. however, the three phalangite units are identified with the particular army it is a part of; it cannot be detached from the army.
h) an army can only exist within a certain area of responsibility bordering with another state(s). one special area also exist, which consists of the territories immediately around the capital (one example would be taras, rhegion, and sicily, which borders the romans to the north, and massilia and segesta, which borders the aedui, arverni, and the romans as well). an army can leave its area of responsibility either because of a need to avert disaster in another nearby area of responsibility, or to invade an enemy territory. however, it cannot leave if its area of responsibility is itself threatened with attack without another army to take its place. also, a royal army consisting exactly of three units of argyraspides, three units of pheraspidai, two units of kretan or syrian archers, four units of prodromoi with at least one silver chevron, and three units of hetairoi, commanded by a general who is sharp/uncharismatic/vigorous, honest, and loyal, guards the capital and the surrounding territories. additionally, an internal army consisting of one pezhetairoi/hysteroi pezhetairoi, two melee units, one kretan archer unit, two units of prodromoi, one unit of lonchophoroi, will travel throughout makedonia and its territories to defeat rebels and, if necessary, take extreme measures in cities. It will be sent to areas with serious problems with regards to rebellions and commanded by a governor stationed within that area of territories (thereby simulating a request for additional troops to quell or destroy any rebellion by a governor under his authority)
i) an army which has been defeated with such severity as to render it powerless to retaliate or prevent incursion or invasion is thereafter regarded as decommissioned and therefore disbanded after the crisis resulting from its defeat has been averted. (thankfully this has never happened to me)
j) an army is created after one of three conditions are fulfilled: 1) an invasion of an enemy territory with the intent of permanent control and subsequent development, in which case a new army may be required to protect a territory bordering the areas to be taken; 2) an invasion of an enemy territory not bordering any part of the makedonia and its holdings or dependent states, in which case a new army is required to either take over the area of responsibility of a more experienced army which has been chosen to undertake the aforementioned invasion or to undertake the invasion itself; 3) an army controlling a particular area of responsibility has been annihilated or has suffered such a catastrophic defeat as to render it powerless to retaliate or prevent incursion or invasion, in which case a new army is needed either to take over the destroyed army's area of responsibility after the aversion of crisis by a previously existing army, or to avert the current or potential disaster which the defeat of the previous army in charge of the area of responsibility has caused itself.
k) city garrisons consist of at least one unit of phalangites or two melee units; total garrison cannot exceed four units except if it is a recruitment center or a border city, or both. for cities with public order levels below 105% and above 30%, an additional six units (aside from the four units minimum for a city with good public order) of cheap, numerous auxilia, such as akontistai or eastern skirmishers are allowed. for cities with public order levels of below 30% despite these measures, an extreme measure, the culling of rebellious population, will be undertaken in which 25% of the populace is rounded up and executed every three months (one turn in EB), until public order has been restored to at least 105%. a culling can only be undertaken when an army is ordered to occupy the subject city. (this 'culling' is accomplished through the console command add_population x, with x being a negative number whose absolute value is equal to 25% of the tallied number of the population of the subject city). in events wherein a rebellious populace manages to secede from the empire before a culling can take place, the internal army, which deals with rebellions and cullings, will retake the city and occupy it. after the retaking of a rebellious city a force of ten melee units and ten auxiliary units taken from the areas around the said city will occupy the city for 25 years and perform cullings of 50% of the population every season for one year, after which a culling of 10% of the population every six years will ensue. after the 'culling period' has expired, normal garrison levels will be reinstated, and any additional garrison will be sent back to their place of origin and disbanded.
l) enemy states are conquered, territory by territory, until the last settlement, or more preferably the capital. the enemy state is then offered a protectorate status for 1000000-3000000mnai.


i'm aware that the cavalry levels as well as the phalangite levels in my armies may be ahistorical, but they do the job. also, i've always followed napoleon's suggestion of having more or less a third of the army as cavalry, and it works for me. phalangites meanwhile are for me used to tire out and stall the enemy while i wait for the opportune time to maneuver the cavalry behind them and charge.

i'm going to stop here. i also have rules regarding economy, buildings, etc. hahaha :laugh4:

[glouch]

for my Mak campaign, as well as my AS campaign back in 1.0:

-rules regarding armies, garrisons, and the subjugation of rebellious and enemy states:

a) one argyrasides with two pezhetairoi/hysteroi pazhetairoi, or three pezhetairoi/hysteroi pezhetairoi to serve as a wall and pivot around which a battle will be fought; they are laid out on a continuous wall with the overlaps between units of phalangites to serve as hinges. each phalangite unit is laid out four to five men deep to provide a suitably long, continuous surface upon which the enemy soldiers can tire themselves out; in desperate situations, they are laid out three men deep. one reserve unit of pezhetairoi/hysteroi pezhetairoi will stay at the nearest city able to recruit argyraspides/pezhetairoi/hysteroi pezhetairoi, referenced as a recruitment center.
* in events wherein one or more units of phalangites need urgent retraining while the army is campaigning due to depletion of numbers, the aforementioned reserve unit will take the place of the phalangite unit that is most depleted in numbers; upon retraining the unit rejoins the army immediately, while the reserve unit either returns to the recruitment center or takes the place of another unit in dire need of retraining.
*any unit within the army can only be retrained once in a year.
* any elite unit (such as argyraspides, pheraspides, and hetairoi) can only be retrained once every five years.
b) two to three non-phalangite, sword, axe, or spear-armed melee units to guard the flanks. two of these units are composed of the regional units within the area of responsibility of the particular army it is a part of, while the third will be either an elite melee unit coming from the nearest province which can train melee units which can be deemed as elite or a normal melee unit with significantly more experience than the other two. the purpose of the third melee unit is to support either flank, whichever is in need of assistance; the three units can also be used to strike the enemy at critical moments of the battle, as well as to cover the main army whenever there is a need to make a tactical retreat to a much defensible position, or simply a reordering of the phalangite lines to better face the enemy. an absence of a third supporting elite unit is permissible. one reserve unit will stay at any suitable nearby recruitment center.
* in events wherein one or more units of melee units need urgent retraining while the army is campaigning due to depletion of numbers, the aforementioned reserve unit will take the place of the melee unit that is most depleted in numbers; upon retraining the unit rejoins the army immediately, while the reserve unit either returns to the recruitment center or takes the place of another unit in dire need of retraining.
* any unit within the army can only be retrained once in a year.
* any elite unit (such as argyraspides, pheraspides, and hetairoi) can only be retrained once every five years.
c) two to three units of long-range archers, most commonly kretan archers. celtic archers to the extreme western fronts (massalia), bosporan heavy archers to the north (chersonesos), and syrian and caucasian archers to the extreme east (kotais and antiocheia) will serve this purpose. auxiliary units such as slingers, javelineers, and shorter-ranged archers are permitted, but only two of these kinds of units are ever allowed; after the battle in which their services were required has been concluded, they are detached and sent to their places of origin to be disbanded. one reserve unit will stay at any suitable nearby recruitment center.
* in events wherein one or more units of archer units need urgent retraining while the army is campaigning due to depletion of numbers, the aforementioned reserve unit will take the place of the archer unit that is most depleted in numbers; upon retraining the unit rejoins the army immediately, while the reserve unit either returns to the recruitment center or takes the place of another unit in dire need of retraining.
* any unit within the army can only be retrained once in a year.
* krete is recognized as a special archer recruitment center; at least four units of kretan archers will be present within kydonia at all times.
d) at least four units of prodromoi and two units of lonchophoroi to act as the hammers on the phalangite anvil, as well as to "clean up" any fleeing enemy troops, engage enemy cavalry and skirmishers, and provide additional support for the flanks.
* retraining of any number of cavalry units within an army means a complete retreat of that army to a suitable recruitment center.
e) elite cavalry such as hetairoi are, as much as possible, excluded from any army. if an occasion on which the services of an elite cavalry units is required arises (such as the threat of an enemy army with a, sizeable contingent of kataphractoi or a situation described below) only a maximum of three units are allowed.
* any elite unit (such as argyraspides, pheraspides, and hetairoi) can only be retrained once every five years
f) only one general can lead an army, who should be at least sharp, vigorous, and loyal. upon the appointment of a general to an army, a minimum term of 25 years and a maximum of 50 years of command as strategos of an army will commence. if a general succeeds as basileos during his term of command, he has two options. the first option is to cut short his term upon which he will immediately journey towards the capital, leaving his army to its area of responsibility, but not before a suitable replacement as strategos has been appointed and has taken command of the army. the second option is to remain strategos of the army he currently commands, upon which one unit of hetairoi and one unit of pheraspidai is required to join the army within a peroiod of three years (due to the time required for travel).
g) any unit, upon joining an army, can neither be detached nor disbanded until after 35 years of service, although a unit can be detached from an army to join a newly formed one. however, the three phalangite units are identified with the particular army it is a part of; it cannot be detached from the army.
h) an army can only exist within a certain area of responsibility bordering with another state(s). one special area also exist, which consists of the territories immediately around the capital (one example would be taras, rhegion, and sicily, which borders the romans to the north, and massilia and segesta, which borders the aedui, arverni, and the romans as well). an army can leave its area of responsibility either because of a need to avert disaster in another nearby area of responsibility, or to invade an enemy territory. however, it cannot leave if its area of responsibility is itself threatened with attack without another army to take its place. also, a royal army consisting exactly of three units of argyraspides, three units of pheraspidai, two units of kretan or syrian archers, four units of prodromoi with at least one silver chevron, and three units of hetairoi, commanded by a general who is sharp/uncharismatic/vigorous, honest, and loyal, guards the capital and the surrounding territories. additionally, an internal army consisting of one pezhetairoi/hysteroi pezhetairoi, two melee units, one kretan archer unit, two units of prodromoi, one unit of lonchophoroi, commanded by a general who is at least sharp, vigorous (better with traits pertaining to increased movement), and loyal, will travel throughout makedonia and its territories to defeat rebels and, in necessary, take extreme measures in cities. this internal army is stationed as close as possible to the geographical center of the empire to minimize the time it needs to get to any part of the empire.
i) an army which has been defeated with such severity as to render it powerless to retaliate or prevent incursion or invasion is thereafter regarded as decommissioned and therefore disbanded after the crisis resulting from its defeat has been averted. (thankfully this has never happened to me)
j) an army is created after one of three conditions are fulfilled: 1) an invasion of an enemy territory with the intent of permanent control and subsequent development, in which case a new army may be required to protect a territory bordering the areas to be taken; 2) an invasion of an enemy territory not bordering any part of the makedonia and its holdings or dependent states, in which case a new army is required to either take over the area of responsibility of a more experienced army which has been chosen to undertake the aforementioned invasion or to undertake the invasion itself; 3) an army controlling a particular area of responsibility has been annihilated or has suffered such a catastrophic defeat as to render it powerless to retaliate or prevent incursion or invasion, in which case a new army is needed either to take over the destroyed army's area of responsibility after the aversion of crisis by a previously existing army, or to avert the current or potential disaster which the defeat of the previous army in charge of the area of responsibility has caused itself.
k) city garrisons consist of at least one unit of phalangites or two melee units; total garrison cannot exceed four units except if it is a recruitment center or a border city, or both. for cities with public order levels below 105% and above 30%, an additional six units (aside from the four units minimum for a city with good public order) of cheap, numerous auxilia, such as akontistai or eastern skirmishers are allowed. for cities with public order levels of below 30% despite these measures, an extreme measure, the culling of rebellious population, will be undertaken in which 25% of the populace is rounded up and executed every three months (one turn in EB), until public order has been restored to at least 105%. a culling can only be undertaken when an army is ordered to occupy the subject city. (this 'culling' is accomplished through the console command add_population x, with x being a negative number whose absolute value is equal to 25% of the tallied number of the population of the subject city). in events wherein a rebellious populace manages to secede from the empire before a culling can take place, the internal army, which deals with rebellions and cullings, will retake the city and occupy it. after the retaking of a rebellious city a force of ten melee units and ten auxiliary units taken from the areas around the said city will occupy the city for 25 years and perform cullings of 50% of the population every season for one year, after which a culling of 10% of the population every six years will ensue. after the 'culling period' has expired, normal garrison levels will be reinstated, and any additional garrison will be sent back to their place of origin and disbanded.
l) the empire is carved up into different territories composed of about +/- 5 adjacent provinces; in the richest of these provinces a governor is assigned. these 'minor capitals' have additional contingents of two units of prodromoi, a unit of archers, and a unit of pezhetairoi/hysteroi pezhetairoi stationed in forts outside the city. when the internal army is called up in cases of emergency, these units are temporarily combined with the internal army, forming a full-sized army capable of dealing with any rebellion. at the conclusion of the crisis, the internal army is sent back to its post. this system however cannot be reliably used to counter against enemy incursion since the internal army needs a turn or two at least to reach any territory in need of assistance because of its base at the center of the empire.
m) enemy states are conquered, territory by territory, until the last settlement, or more preferably the capital. the enemy state is then offered a protectorate status for 1000000-3000000mnai.


i'm aware that the cavalry levels as well as the phalangite levels in my armies may be ahistorical, but they do the job. also, i've always followed napoleon's suggestion of having more or less a third of the army as cavalry, and it works for me. phalangites meanwhile are for me used to tire out and stall the enemy while i wait for the opportune time to maneuver the cavalry behind them and charge. also, use made these house rules to keep the combined number of my armies as small as possible without sacrificing effectiveness so that i get the absolute optimum income every turn.

i'm going to stop here. i also have rules regarding economy, buildings, etc. hahaha :laugh4:

[seienchin]

f) only one general can lead an army, who should be at least sharp, vigorous, and loyal. upon the appointment of a general to an army, a minimum term of 25 years and a maximum of 50 years of command as strategos of an army will commence
Why do you choose only smart guys??

[glouch]

because i like smart guys XD

[Aemilius Paulus]

f) only one general can lead an army, who should be at least sharp, vigorous, and loyal. upon the appointment of a general to an army, a minimum term of 25 years and a maximum of 50 years of command as strategos of an army will commence
Why do you choose only smart guys??
Really, they are the only ones worth getting. The Dull ones rarely turn out good, unless you spend years making them fight and developing them.

The two things I look for in a general is intelligence and charisma. Everything else barely matters as long as the general has those two things. I will however take the Uncharismatic ones at times, if they have other good traits.

Vigorous does not matter almost at all. Pessimistic may give the Gloomy/Morose/Melancholic traits, and it is quite annoying, but influence is easy to get, and usually the reason for the gloominess is long marches (even though I do not drive my generals to go 100% of the MP), meaning that my general is doing lot of conquering and he will get influence anyway. Neither does Disloyal matter, as the AI never bribed my generals

Finally, there is the Selfish/Unselfish. The selfish blokes may develop some vices, but generally they never do, and the "Restless Sleeper" trait is more common, and since it takes away management, which is harder to attain, so I actually prefer the Selfish FMs.


None of this is role-play however.

[A Very Super Market]

I've had generals been bribed. Usually by Casse, AS, Carthage, or any other "rich" faction with the money. And they are always the disloyal ones.

Oh yes, selfish generals are /random/astards too. They get "lover of beauty" and other command ruining traits, and even though it means nothing, I find it annoying that my grizzled full influence and management faction leader only has 1 command star.

[Centurio Nixalsverdrus]

No troops may travel without a general; ever.
Don't you send around your units to arrange them finely ordered by unit types in your armies?



To simulate communication problems caused by distance in ancient times, any communication between two characters which occupy the same province happens in the same season, but if the two characters are in a different province, the news does not reach the other character until the next season.

That's a good thing. I do that as well, but I don't have to force myself in the slightest, I'm just so lazy that I take a look at the menace, look a second time the next turn, look a third time the next turn again, until I can finally get myself to order some mass-recruitments or whatever... :2thumbsup: Well great empires react slow but steady, don't they?

[Heilong]

I play on VH campaign and Medium battle difficulty. I do not replay battles or redo turns.

I limit myself by having only one city out of 15 produce field armies. For example, when I play as the Romans, I only produce troops in Rome. When I have conquered 15 cities, I allow myself to produce troops in an additional city (usually Segesta). This limits my expansion significantly.
However when I play as Rome, I build Brihentin in Mediolanium because Roman cavalry is pretty poor in my opinion (especially in the Camilian and Polybian eras).
I produce garrisons in another city (usually Taras if I'm playing Rome) and the garissons are entirely Akontistai. I never have garrison armies fight battles by themselves unless they are under siege and the AI assults the settlement.

I rarely use mercs. When I play as Rome I hire Merc Kretian archers and sometimes some additional cavalry. When I played as Pontus, I hired a couple of horse archers.

When I play as Rome my army usually comprises of 10 infantry, 4 cavalry, 4 ranged units and one or two family members. After an army engages in combat I bring up a reserve half stack comprised of 5 infantry, 2 cavalry and 2 ranged units to reinforce the main army. I retrain the remnants of the half stack. I amost never have the reserve half stack engage in combat unless its against rebels or its an emergency.

I always expel (the last option) when I conquer a settlement. I always build a type 4 government and recruit a Client Ruler to govern the settlement. I do not upgrade the settlement until the Client Ruler dies or until he is really old (60+).

I do use Force diplomacy but I do not abuse it. I only use it to make peace with the AI when the AI is too stupid to realize that it is loosing the war.

I do not cause rebelions in AI controlled settlements because the AI isn't advanced enough to use spies and assassins against me.
I do not bribe.

I do "sit" on bridges, river crossings and other choke points along the map. I feel that "sitting" is historical and makes the most logical sense.

After reading this thread, I will give the slave faction some extra money each turn when I begin a new campaign. In my current Roman campaign, the game is too far along for the slave faction to make a difference.

I have only played as Rome, Pontus, Macedon and Bactria.

[seienchin]

I always expel (the last option) when I conquer a settlement. I always build a type 4 government and recruit a Client Ruler to govern the settlement. I do not upgrade the settlement until the Client Ruler dies or until he is really old (60+).


I have only played as Rome, Pontus, Macedon and Bactria.

I did this too in my bactrian campain, but it ruined me cause the client rulers in the east are incredible expensive.

By the way dull characters often tunr out to be the better generals. :egypt:

[Elcmar]

If i have a huge surplus of FM's and a reasonable amount of cash (usually late game Romani, Maks, AS etc) i'll use spare FM's to roleplay stuff - like build a fort on/near choke points or resources and stick a low-influence or useless character and RP that they've been 'banished' to some backwater or fallen out of favour etc. Usually only happens when i have too many FM's or generals.

Oh and as mentioned before, i'll usually simulate reforms for the AS and Makedonia by adding units to the roster as i defeat certain factions or have prolonged wars with them