What is your aim early in the campgien?

[TigerVX]

I'm just curious. When you usually start a campgien, waht do you usually do in the beganning? Do you make trade routes, raze and pillage every province? I'd like to see how you each play and if you stay true to your factions historical background.

[andrewt]

I play a faction because I want to use this or that unit. I start the game in a way so that I can be one of the most powerful nations, defend myself and get myself rich through getting a trade route going while rushing to the units I want. After that, I'll sit tight, defend myself, maybe grab a few territories and launch full scale attacks once I got the army composition I wanted.

When I was Spain, I conquered the entire Iberian peninsula and a few provinces in North Africa immediately and sat tight until I got to Lancers. I sent lots of crusades in the mean time just to weaken Egyptian and Byzantine power, whoever was winning their war at the time. When I used the English, I expanded into the Iberian peninsula after Spain and then the Almohads attacked me. I sat tight until I got some of the more advanced units. The only times I didn't sit tight during the midgame was when using factions such as Almohad, Egyptians, Hungarians and Danish when getting the units I want happened early enough. I went to conquer mode immediately. Generally, though, I conquer a few provinces and make myself economically strong before launching wars again.

[Tricky Lady]

Quote[/b] (andrewt @ April 10 2004,08:18)]Generally, though, I conquer a few provinces and make myself economically strong before launching wars again.
That is exactly what I do too. First I try to conquer a few provinces, to stabilise my borders if necessary, then I build up my economy, hold off an attacking army and then start upgrading my armies to a higher level (I usually start in Early).
I prefer to play the game rather slowly. No need to rush to conquer the whole map in as little years as possible. I like to fight as many battles/wars as possible.

[mercian billman]

This depends on who I'm playing with if it's the Byzantines, Danes, or Almohads I try to expand immediately to make the best use of my troops. With other factions like the Hungarians, HRE, and Sicilians I content with building a stable economy and A army capable of defending my lands.

Im playing a medmod campaign with the Hungarians while they do recieve excellent cavalry, their early infantry just plain suck. I've captured Moldovia, Wallachia, Serbia, and Bulgaria (luckily the Byzantines were fight with the Turks and they accepted a ceasefire). I am now building up my economy so I can sustain a war High Era with Hussars, Croatian Spearmen, and Bulgarian Brigands.

[PseRamesses]

Playing the Spanish, Aragonese, English, Danish, HRE, Polish, Russian, Hungarian or Byzantine I usually take out the rebels near by then build up my economy before taking out anyone else. Playing the other faction I just build up my economy although sometimes an early rush is quite effective.

[nick_maxell]

turkey at early needs to rush (I usually take out egyptians or at least reduce them to a province or so) to get sea access - after that I sit tight, weather some crusades and build up economy (the last time the sicilians took out the pope - no crusades for 20 years yay http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/bigthumb.gif ) - for other factions I go with Tricky Ladys strategy

http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/cheers.gif

nick

[katank]

regardless of faction, I merc assisted rush two or three near by factions to get some power.

ie. as french take out english, italians the sicilians, spanish the aragonese and almos, and vice versa

then, it's mad rush towards setting up ships with 6+ coastal provinces going straight for port, keep, shipwright and pump out those ships until mine fill every sea zone for trade.

I then tech up like crazy and fill my kingdom with citadels and fortresses from the mucho moola I get.

splurging on high tech stuff is fun.

BTW, I will routinely crush some measly little faction who thinks he can war upon me. I would also only use a fractio of my forces to make it even remotely interesting.

[VikingHorde]

I go for becomming economically balanced and get 20+ provinces.

[DeadRunner]

well i started to become economic balanced ,but star to build up a a army with 2 jobs protect my lands and when i see that my main lands are giving the limit i get some new lands

[andrewt]

This is what I did against the Turks. I'm playing Turks on early and I easily crushed the Egyptians. I built troops nonstop on Rum and moved many of my troops downwards to attack Antioch, then Tripoli. The Egyptians gave up both those territories without a fight and only started putting up a stand when I attacked Palestine. I defeated them there and attacked Arabia.

When I attacked Sinai from Palestine and Arabia, the Egpytians attacked Palestine with half their troops from Sinai. Fortunately, I used the inn I captured to get a unit of Druzhina Cavalry and a unit Faris. The Faris was quite useful but the Druzhina made all the difference. The Feudal Foot Knights took on a few units of nubian spearmen and peasants at the same time and lost only 21 out of 60. I bought another one the next turn and used them to crush Egypt easily.

I consolidated a little and attacked the Byzantines. I plan to expand to the northeast to get Steppe Heavy Cavalry and hold Constantinople because it's a chokepoint and then sit tight until I get Janissary.

[katank]

first turn pulling all your troops to Syria and the second turn invading Palestine and Tripoli simultaneously would cause them to withdraw without a fight both times.

the third turn invade Antioch and you can capture their sultan for mucho moola. The ransom finances your merc buying in palestine.

going for sinai first and then hitting the province the sultan is in will likely garner yet another ransom.

this is by far the easiest way to play the Turks although I get boring after a while.

By 1105, I was able to have 50k in da bank from multiple ransoms of eggy sultan and byz emperor as well as owning everything between Georgia, Const., and Egypt.

This is really too easy though.

I suggest taking Bulgaria and Greece too since they provide some trade and the former will grant valour bonused JHI.

[SwordsMaster]

Normally, for me the first one implies the second one...so i couldnt pick one...

[Durruti]

I strengthen my economy-which includes expanding trade. After, I upgrade my army and MARCH http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/cool.gif

[alman9898]

depends. usually take out easy rebel targets and build up army and economy.

[Martok]

Quote[/b] (Tricky Lady @ April 10 2004,03:08)]First I try to conquer a few provinces, to stabilise my borders if necessery, then I build up my economy, hold off an attacking army and then start upgrading my armies to a higher level (I usually start in Early).
I prefer to play the game rather slowly. No need to rush to conquer the whole map in as little years as possible. I like to fight as many battles/wars as possible.
This is generally how I play as well, although as many others have pointed out, it can also depend on which faction you are.

The Almos and the Danes, for instance, are almost perfectly suited for an early land grab. They both start out with decent lands, and at least in the Early period, they both have good low-level troops that other factions simply cannot match (AUM, Vikings, etc.). For the most part, it's actually disadvantageous for these two factions to just sit there and develop their infrastructure; rapid expansion is usually going to be the better route for them.

In addition, a few other factions are pretty much forced to expand early on--whether they want to or not--due to geographical and/or political constraints. The Spanish, the French, the Turks, and the Argonese will often find themselves in a position where they simply cannot afford to just stay put and build up their provinces. The Turks are squeezed by the Byz and the Egyptians, the French are caught between the English and the HRE; and Spain and Aragon are hemmed in by not only each other, but also by the Almos and a very feisty Portuguese province. (The Iberian peninsula is always a happening place http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/cool.gif ) If these factions don't expand, they will almost certainly perish.

That said, even with those factions, I still try not to go to war more than I need to. Regardless of who I'm playing as, I try to take only as many lands as I need to be economically viable, and/or what I can easily hold and defend. If I'm the Turks, I generally will take the Holy Lands, but will let the Egyptians keep Egypt, Sanai, and sometimes Arabia (depending on how zealously Muslim I'm feeling that day http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif ). If I'm the Spanish, I'll take the peninsula (including Aragon), and then drive the Almohads down north Africa until they only have Cyrenacia, at which point I usually stop.

[Voigtkampf]

There is no rule to that for me at all; I judge each and every situation the way it presents itself. When on killing ground, fight; when on surrounded ground, plot.

[JAG]

Economically balance myself first, always. I have found that if you are on sound economic footing you can pretty much take anyone, anytime. It allows you to build up very strong standing armies in provinces aswell as strike force armys. Currently playing a german campaigne on expert lvl and have all of europe bar spain, and I am at war with 6 nations, but I am able to because I started off well with sound economic footing and continued it. You avoid silly things like civil war too.

[Mouzafphaerre]

-
Depends.

I may start buying valuable rebels if any, or attack to gain my monarch some influence. In any case, I start with the happiness buildings, usually the watchtowers for their "eye" ability.

Then I start farming one by one. Later comes the construction of ports and shipwrights etc.

In short, GAH http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif
_

[gaijinalways]

I like to simply sit on the territories I have and not expand at all. I have done this in the beginning of my last two campaigns on early, expert with the Italians and the Spanish.

With the Italians I went something like 200 years without attacking anyone, with the Spaish a little less as the Spanish only start with two and I wanted to grab some more turf. I took Flanders, then later Swedan and Norway.

Sitting and building up your units and trade, navy and just teching up is okay and leads to a fairly well palanned strategic push later.

[Doug-Thompson]

Eliminate a rival faction. They're very vulnerable in the beginning.

I don't normally play Catholics, but follow the same rule when I do. If I get excommunicated, it's better to have it happen before other factions have an army.

[TinCow]

I voted for economic balance, but that's not 100% accurate. My first goal is essentially to secure a defensible homeland. Depending on the nation I am playing, I set myself some territorial goals based on ease of defense and economic potential. I then expand rapidly to take those areas. Once I am I done, I consolidate my holdings and build up the facilities and economy. Only when I then feel like this area is capable of supplying my needs for prolonged warfare do I expand further.

[katank]

agreed with doug and tincow.

my rushing of neighbors deal with shortening borders and threats.

for example, as the french, it's almost necessary to kill the english as their territories intertwine with mine.

also, if you are excommed as catholic, no problem as no AI has ability to crusade yet so the pope is just an angry dude screaming about nothing. http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/bigthumb.gif

[Vlad Tzepes]

For me, it's a mix between getting economical independence and defensible/strong borders. War is expensive; you can't wage war when you lack funds, but you can't afford peace when you're military inexistent. http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/gc-book2.gif

[Leodegar]

i´m currently playing the almohads. and i´m going for all three possibilities...

1. i captured the whole spanish peninsula in the first few turns (till 1105)

2. i´m fortifying aragon and navarre, while i´m getting my economy going. trading with my allies in egypt...

3. i´m sending armies north for raiding france. i just keep moving and dont bother with occupying provinces. my next armies will come soon to raid them again...

if any other faction is becoming to strong i will ally with their enemies and focus on raiding them to keep the game balanced and as many factions as possible alive...

[Satyr]

I am like most of you, I will take out my prime enemy first which usually helps to strengthen my borders and gives me sufficient territory to then gain an economic advantage. Once I have consolidated a little I attack my next target, etc, etc, etc.

[Cazbol]

My priorities list:
1. Defend all borders
2. Ensure the loyalty of all generals
3. Build up the economy
4. Conquer the world

Priority 1 tends to conflict with priority 4, which for instance resulted in my keeping the peace for the whole early era when playing the Almohads.

Priority 2 may lead me to expand a little to improve my influence.

Priority 3 fuels the other ones. I try to strike a balance between the stable agriculture and the lucrative trade. When establishing trade routes I try to take far away islands and build harbours there as the support cost of fleets is dependent on the distance to your next harbour.

[AgentBif]

I try to prep for the trade phase:

Acquire 2 or 3 or half a dozen good trade-goods sectors on the water.

Acquire at least 1 iron sector.

Minimize my border count.... I try to "circularize" my initial empire so that I have the minimum number of border sectors to guard. Usually this involves capturing initial territory up to choke points on the map (EX: Spain: I take Morroco, Aquitane, Toulouse for a total border count of 3... all other sectors can be left with 1 peasant to guard them.)

Then I go into the trade and tech phase where I cover the oceans with ships, build max trading posts, and tech up my iron sectors for wartime production of elite units.

As Catholic I also pick one enemy and crusade one of his sectors, repeatedly giving it up so I can crusade it over and over again... This generates lots of high quality units for when I'm ready to take over the world.

I am just starting my first Muslim campaign. In this I guess instead of actually launching jihads like I do crusades, I'll just accumulate masses of them for when I need them later... no need to pay the maintenance costs of all those troops until I'm actually trying to take over the world. There is no limit to how many simultaneous jihads you may have active so the best thing I think is to just store them for use later. (It's kind of a perverse abuse of the game system, but eh... I wanna try it at least once.)

[The_Emperor]

It depends on the faction I am playing as to what I am going to do.

Some factions with a reasonable amount of land need a massive period of consolidation and economy building (Byzantium, Holy Roman Empire... Etc).

other factions (well Most Smaller factions), I tend to launch a quickl land grab against someone to provide that little extra income next tax turn... Rebels especially are a good target and other provinces tend to be lightly defended so early on.

Especially good if I'm the Turks in Early and I capture the Egyptian Sultan. http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[Aelwyn]

like most others i usually try to become a bit rich before i attack, but if i see a good opportunity, i usually take it. and the factions i usually play kind of have to attack to become rich, like the Turks, or the Polish. The English can become sort of rich without attacking, but its difficult. With them I usually try to take at least Flanders so I can set up a good trade economy with one rich province.

[Zhuge_Liang]

i use to conquer all the rich provinces near me so i can build an imperial empire, i use to play with spain, because they are rich catholics, i mean, they have cordoba, portugal, leon and castile, provinces very rich for traders, that provinces are not as good as egiptian (egypt, antioch and tripoli) but i dont like muslin army
i use to take this provinces (flandres, norway, sicily, venice, novgord, khazar, constantinople, egytp, tripoli, antioch, greece and another provinces which i dont remember, and then i just take a great naval army and buildings to take lots of elite units, so i have no rebellions and i can trade with all the world earning even 30.000 every year

[katank]

good job listing all the richest provinces of the medieval world.

However, by the time you are done taking those, you will be at war with soo many factions, it's not even funny.

BTW, 30k is not that rare at all. I've pulled off 50k profits. The key is to really upgrade the merchants of the rich provinces.

half of these you list is already enough for that.

[Red Yak]

I first stabilise my borders by going for a quick land grab if i'm playing a smaller faction or one that would benefit from a couple of coastal provinces. Perhaps bribe local rebels (thinking Aragon there). And then concentrate on getting a good economy, mainly through trade.

[Wishazu]

I dont worry about staying true to history, i just build up my economy and occasionally take an enemy province if the opportunity arrises, then once im nicely established i will just overwhelm my enemies with superior troops and technology

[WorkNeglecter]

I try to take rebel territory and at the same time get a trade network going so that I can build for armor, morale and weapon upgrades before going campaigning.
In medmod I'll try desperately to take nearby provinces with valour upgrades for basic units (northumb. for archers, navarre for spearmen, brittany for hobilars...). This makes a huge difference.

[Kristaps]

I used to go with the "stabilize economy, then build up, then expand" approach. However, lately, i've taken disliking to this way of playing. The AI is really bad at upgrading its troops and infrastruture. By the time, my armies ar high-tech, the AI is usually still living in the stone age so my troops can steam-roll over any futile AI resistance. Therefore, to keep myself interested, nowadays I go for straight war and land-grab from day one. I overextend myself and then try to survive it :)

[SpencerH]

I take as much rebel land as possible. For some factions I make deliberate choices to expand in the most financially advantegous direction i.e. Poles - go north to Baltic, Hungary - west to Kiev. I also try to get 20% farms going ASAP.

Once I've stabilized a nice group of provinces I build trade.

[NewJeffCT]

It all depends on what faction I am playing. If I am playing a faction that is big to start – HRE, Byzantium, Italy or Egypt – I tend to try to become economically balanced while securing my borders. I do some expansion when playing as Italy to get rebel territories like Serbia and Naples (if it falls in to rebel hands early…)

If I play a smaller faction – Turks, Danes, Polish, Spanish – I generally go for aggressive early expansion followed by becoming economically balanced. I think you need more territories when you are small to start building and cranking out troops – it can be scary early as the Danes when you see the HRE just to your south with thousands of troops and you with a few royal knights, a few Vikings and maybe an archer unit and a spear unit or two.

If I play the English or French, I try to wipe out the French or English, then secure my borders and expand my economy.

With the Almos, I try to wipe out Spain & Aragon and secure the Iberian pensinsula at Navarre & Aragon and then work on my economy. If I can secure Iberia, I only have 3 territories I need to mass troops in to defend borders, two with mountainous terrain and 1 with desert terrain.