The Poles are back and what a comeback!

[Morten viking]

In the year 1117, the Poles re-emerged on my doorstep with an army about 3200 strong. Oh I almost forgot, it included over 1100 Knights Templar http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/gc-stunned.gif

I feel like screaming from my city walls, but I can't so I'll scream on the forum instead http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

It's actually the first time I'm playing HRE. From the posts on the forum, it seemed like a hard job, but I've been lucky so far.

The English attacked Friesland on the second turn, but got kicked out, then I made peace with them to build up my forces. That's the only time a faction has attacked me so far. I'm playing on hard with the last Medmod. The French, Poles, Hungarians and Italians were all building up and I was getting nervous. I decided to strike first at the French, just waiting a couple of turns to get my forces into position. Then suddenly, the French get hit by a major rebellion. I snatch a couple of provinces and the French is mopping up from South with big stack armies. Then the French king dies and the sob has no heirs http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/cheers.gif

In quick succession the Hungarians and Poles rebels and wipes out their Royals too. So I'm happily adding former French provinces to my HRE only worring about the Italians http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

Then in the year of the Lord 1117, the happy days were
over.

MV
Well, guess I better get back to my empire and start shifting troops to the East. Got the feeling all hell is going to break loose any minute...

[kawligia]

Man some of those re-emergences are crazy. http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/eek.gif

One of my first games as the Byzantines, I decided to wipe out the Pope to stop the pesky crusades. Later on, he came back with 5 full stacks of powerfull troops. With those he mopped up all of Italy and half of Southern Germany. It wasn't long at all before he was a MAJOR world power http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/gc-speechless.gif

[Sociopsychoactive]

In my byzantine game where were approaching high era (sytarted in early) and I control half the world and half the provinces by numbers aswell, I had this same problem a few years ago.

The french were the only real power besides me, the danes, the papacy, the germans, the polish (now banished to scandinavia), the spanish and the almohads were all content to stay at home and the novogrods were to weak to do any damag, just needed a garrison stationed nearby to dissuead attacks.

The french killed the english, took all of spain, almost all of germany (germans down to one province and sandwiched between us) half of england and a few colonies in the desert. THey attacked, crusaded and generally proved a nuisance but I want to prolonge this game so I'm just holding off, not attacking (with the exeption of fighting my way into switzerland and holding it, swiss halbardiers rock when your only spear unit is normal spears).

With the failure of crusades they fell into civil war three times in ten years, claiming back mot of the rebel provinces easily, but depleting thei armies. Then, their king dies of an illness with no heirs. hey 25~ provinces turn rebel, and no-one is close enough top claim any, save one by the aragonese, and I don;t want to expand any more, at least not yet.

A mere 2 years later they re-emerge, and EVERY rebel in the map pledgeds alliegance to them, making them twice as strong as before. Even the rebel English lands join them, meaning they have around 30,000 troops, all gained in one year, all immediately useable because they were ebels already there, rather than revolting.

Even my 50,000~ strong army had trouble holding against that many troops, but thankfully they had re-emerged large enough that they werent as jealos, and accepted a cease fire.

[Rowan11088]

I just a REALLY bizaare reappearance. The Spanish are the strongest faction in my current game, circa 1220, and we were struggling over Wessex (I was Italian, and owned no provinces adjoining Wessex, long distance governorship and all). They beat me out once (stupid spanish jinettes), then I got a nice loyalist rebellion to take the province back. THey attacked again in larger numbers and retook it, but then tried to siege my stronghold (a very nice fully upgraded keep), and even though i only had 7 men I won, as the arrows flying out of my towers killed their general. I thought I had won, when the French reemerge in Wessex, kick out the Spanish, and force me to abandon my castle (not going to fight 3000 Frenchmen with 7 people). The next turn their king dies of illness and their faction becomes rebel. How on earth???

[kawligia]

On my first campaign as the Turks (I started in high) I had to choose between the sicilians and the hungarians as an ally. I held constantinople, and each of those factions held one of the two adjoining provences to the west. Both had thousands of ex-crusaders. I picked the hungarians and lucky me...the sicilian king died from an illness with no heir. It was in the very beginning to.

[Morten viking]

I sometimes engage in "asymmetrical warfare" in MTW.

Attacking a much stronger faction directly is madness, unless you are desperate for expanding your empire or fight like a cornered rat http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

If the threat has any rebel provinces in his backyard/neighborhood, I send in spies and religious agents to "encourage" a new rebellion. Hopefully a multi-stack army of kick ass troops will force the threat to move forces to deal with them and leave itself vulnerable to attack or at least buy me some time.

Of course, the AI might pull the same stunt on you http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

MV

[Senta]

Rowan, you could probably beat these 3000 French off with your magnificent seven http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif
and i don't have to worry about Poles reemergences, since i play my campaign with them, i do, however have a probelems with Danes that reemerged in Isle de France with 4 stacks over 3000 troops worth... plus some rebel provinces join them, and i have a big problem right at my doorstep... oh, well, i'll try and take them out in one massive battle http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/gc-anxious.gif

[R'as al Ghul]

Reemergences are Fun. You can trigger them off yourselves.
Move your spies into provinces fought over by other factions. During a siege the probability for revolts and reemergences is very high.
On the front line are also often provinces without border forts where you can easily slip in.
I brought back the Almos, Egypts because I thought the French were too large in the Holy land/ Africa.
Sometimes you won't know what you get. A loyalist uprising
in a former spanish province under french flag triggered off
a nice long war between France and Spain, formerly allied.
That suited me quite well.....
http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/bigthumb.gif
Valour 4 spies rock

[EGr]

I've got an awesome one


I'm playing as the Papacy and i controlled all of Western Europe except Aquitane (Spanish), Flanders (German), and Denmark (Danish). All of the eastern part of the map is controlled by the Byzantines. The Polish control 3 provinces between us and the Hungarians control one. The Almohads control Morocco and Algeria.

One year the Byzantines decide to invade my province of Bohemia with their Emperor. I beat them and kill the Emperor. They had no heirs so half of the map becomes rebel.

the Polish and Hungarians move to take rebel provinces but 3 years later BOOM they get hit with a 37 province Byzantine comeback

[Monk]

Ah the reappearances, they can be fun, of course if they are like my last one they are not. It was a Late game and i nearly had all the map, when the Turks decided to magicaly pop up with 8 full stacks half of them JHI in Constantinople. I never though a battle could last so long... at least 3000 of the JHI, all i can say is; Thank God for horse archers http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif