What major Faction...

[Longshanks]

Assuming of course that you've already unlocked every faction.

[PSYCHO]

http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/gc-no.gif Well, I was curious as to what others had voted before casting my vote ... hence without due diligence I have accidently voted "Null" http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/tongue.gif


http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/gc-lost.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/gc-wall.gif

[Longshanks]

I've done that before.

What major faction were you most looking forward to playing as Psycho? One of the 3 Western barbarian factions methinks. http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[The Wizard]

This would be Macedonia, followed very closely by Parthia. I would say Carthage comes third trailing a bit followed by one of the Roman factions or the Seleucids (since the latter are also a Successor state, they are less interesting after I've played Macedonia).



~Wiz

[Rosacrux]

If the Southern Greek city states will be playable (seems they won't be) I'll start with them. Otherwise, I'll pick one of the other Greek factions, most probably Macedonia, and follow them up with Seleucids.

After I've played my first campaign I'll Mod the heck out of this game: Pharaonic units dissapear, Southern Greeks get their own playable faction and the names of the funny barbarian units kiss RTW goodbye.

But... I WANT TO PLAY THIS BLOODY GAME, NOW GAH http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/gc-furious3.gif

[Spino]

Macedonia followed by Gaul and then either Carthage or Parthia.

[Sir Robin]

Carthage baby

I want to watch Rome burn... and burn... and burn... http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/gc-yes.gif

[RisingSun]

Of course, this is all assuming you guys have completed a full campaign as the Romans first. *sigh*

EDIT- Just noticed he said the same thing in the first post. Well, I was probably gonna play as the Romans anyway, but it was between Carthage, Rome, and the Antigonids.

[Knight_Yellow]

Britons.

lotsa cool units and who doesnt like chariots

[Julius Caesar]

House of Julli, or however you spell it.

[Sternness]

I'd love to go with Carthage first. I'd do everything in my power to keep the Roman's from expanding.

[dessa14]

why did you put major faction and not just faction, im pretty sure, you've listed every faction there.
thanks, dessa

[Leet Eriksson]

Hmmmm....me thinks....Carthage + Mercenaries + Slave Trading = Teh win...
http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/gc-thinking2.gif

[The_Emperor]

Carthage... Just to see if I could do what Hannibal didn't http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

After that I'd try my hand at the Britons and then move onto some of the Successor Kingdoms.

Of course given the unlock feature, it looks like I'll be forced to play as Julli or Scipi first...

[Basileus]

anything with greeks, dunno yet which ones will be major except macedon selucid and egypt..

[TigerVX]

I personally want to try the egpytians. They don't seem really alike with any other faction. I also wanna try the persians with the Parthian Shot =P

[The_678]

I want to play a Roman faction first but I dont know the difference between the 3. And also to "unlock them all" you must play as a Roman first ( http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/angry.gif ) so I picked Germania. They look to be very different from the romans and have some very nice heavy infantry and hopefully some nice heavey cav.

[Spartacus]

hoplites, hoplites, hoplites http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/smokin.gif

[Tricky Lady]

Macedonia, and then Carthage http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/gc-2thumbsup.gif

[Orda Khan]

Can't see me playing as Rome first http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/angry.gif ....so I'll just wait for a cheat to unlock something worth while

........Orda

[Kraxis]

Was a little unsure of which faction I would pick, Macedonia or Seleucia, but I thought that the Macedonians would be more fun.

My list would be something like: Macedonia-Seleucia-Carthage (who doesn't want to pull a Hannibal with the Romans)-Parthia and after that I'm rather unsure, but the Romans are much at the bottom as I would already have played them a good deal (I suspect I would lose or go bad a few times).

[Nowake]

What I'd go for would be:

Julii, Greek states and, if possible, Dacia.

[Divine Wind]

Carthage with the Britons in a close 2nd.

[SwordsMaster]

Carthage, they have as good infantry as romans, except fot the testudo thing, and they have those big ELEPHANTS..... MWAHAHAAHHAAH.......*sighs* ay.... Im sensitive today... http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[Mablung]

Give me hoplites And Toxotes?

[Kommodus]

This is a tough choice. They all look like they're so different from each other, and so much fun to play. I'd probably go something like:

1. Carthage - It will probably have great variety and balance, with good infantry, great cavalry, elephants, and skirmishers.

2. Parthia - I love commanding mobile armies that use ranged attacks. This will probably be one of the most unique factions.

4. Rome (Scipii) - I'm sure the Romans will be fun to play, and this faction will probably have Scipio Africanus Hopefully it will provide a good variety of enemies to face.

5. Seleucia - I bet this faction will combine western heavy infantry/phalanx tactics with a dash of eastern tactics, although perhaps without the Macedonian heavy cavalry... I almost picked Macedonia here for that very reason.

6. Germania - Instead of cheesy British druids, you get fearsome night raiders Can the barbarians turn the tables on the Roman war machine? If any can, it's got to be the Germans

That should give me a good range of the cultures in the game. After that, I'd have to try the Julii (to fight the barbarians), the Macedonians (to reunite the Empire), the British, the Ptolomies, the Brutii, and the Gauls... not necessarily in that order. This is gonna be fun...

[The Wizard]

Quote[/b] (Kommodus @ May 07 2004,19:10)]This is a tough choice. They all look like they're so different from each other, and so much fun to play. I'd probably go something like:

1. Carthage - It will probably have great variety and balance, with good infantry, great cavalry, elephants, and skirmishers.

2. Parthia - I love commanding mobile armies that use ranged attacks. This will probably be one of the most unique factions.

4. Rome (Scipii) - I'm sure the Romans will be fun to play, and this faction will probably have Scipio Africanus Hopefully it will provide a good variety of enemies to face.

5. Seleucia - I bet this faction will combine western heavy infantry/phalanx tactics with a dash of eastern tactics, although perhaps without the Macedonian heavy cavalry... I almost picked Macedonia here for that very reason.

6. Germania - Instead of cheesy British druids, you get fearsome night raiders Can the barbarians turn the tables on the Roman war machine? If any can, it's got to be the Germans

That should give me a good range of the cultures in the game. After that, I'd have to try the Julii (to fight the barbarians), the Macedonians (to reunite the Empire), the British, the Ptolomies, the Brutii, and the Gauls... not necessarily in that order. This is gonna be fun...
Just a bit of historical nitpicking regarding CA...

Parthia would be a very hard faction to play stragetically, if CA held true to history and gave the Parthians nothing but ladders... the poor lads couldn't even sap. So no capitalizing on huge victories on the field...

Seleucia should be interesting, just look at the reign of Antiochus the Great That's why I'm kind of split between Macedon and Seleucia. Seleucia eventually gets the articulated phalanx and silver shield pikemen, while Macedon has the traditional phalanx and (I would guess) hypaspists, Alexander's 'commandos'. The only faction with a remote right to have strong cavalry like the hetairoi of old would be Macedon, because all Successor states failed to keep up the high quality of horsebreeding that made Alexander's cavalry so mighty. Also, CA should remember that the only Successor state to adopt eastern tactics was the Greco-Bactrian kingdom.



~Wiz http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/gc-juggle.gif

[Kraxis]

Quote[/b] (The Wizard @ May 08 2004,11:11)]Parthia would be a very hard faction to play stragetically, if CA held true to history and gave the Parthians nothing but ladders... the poor lads couldn't even sap. So no capitalizing on huge victories on the field...
The ladders will be sufficient if you have plenty of expendable infantry, but the Parthians didn't. Well they had expendable infantry and a good number of them, but they never really worked out how to use them properly.

But CA has actually done a little research into the Parthies. In one of the IGN interviews it is said that the Parthians will have much more trouble with rebellions and disgruntled populations. Nice eh... And now we know which faction will have the greatest benefit of the Eastern Execution Square. http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/cool.gif

[The Wizard]

That's excellent news (Wiz was too lazy to download all of the interviews)

This means that the Arsacids will depend on influence, as medieval feudal kings did to rule their vassals. A strong king meant a strong nation, a weak one meant a weak nation.

For extra intrigue and dephth playing the Parthians, CA should also include the intrigues of the Seven (the seven most important noble families, or clans, in Parthia), where the player needs to watch who they're supporting, and if they are getting a bit too much involved in intrigue furthering their own cause rather than that of the whole realm... these kind of 'games' were an important cause for the fall of Parthia and the fact that Parthia had no real offensive capabilities, a fact which Augustus realised soon enough. Other factions nearby the Parthians should be able to influence the dynastic struggles of the Parthian empire, like the Romans did so many times.

For more on that, view my Europa Barbarorum article... once it's there of course http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

But then again, that seems like Paradox-like dephth.. I'd rather have CA-like polish than that, given. http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/gc-jester.gif



~Wiz

[Mr Durian]

The whole reason I want to play the Romans is because of the Marius Reformed Legionnaires. But after founding out that I can only get them at the every end I decided to choose Macedon. I want to try out those long spike hoplites.

[Oleander Ardens]

I go for Scythia With men called Toxaris from a tribe called "Shoother" few enemy shall survive the wrath of my arrows and war-axes http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[AggonyDuck]

I'm gonna really look forward to playing Seleucids... http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif
Phalanx, Cataphracts and Elephants........... http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/smokin.gif

[The Wizard]

Seleucids didn't have cataphracts... http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/gc-no.gif



~Wiz

[Spino]

Quote[/b] ]Seleucia should be interesting, just look at the reign of Antiochus the Great That's why I'm kind of split between Macedon and Seleucia. Seleucia eventually gets the articulated phalanx and silver shield pikemen, while Macedon has the traditional phalanx and (I would guess) hypaspists, Alexander's 'commandos'...

Don't forget the Indian elephants... http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

It is possible that the Seleucids may have the best balanced army of of all the Greek/Greek influenced factions. The Seleucids will certainly have an eclectic mix of eastern and western units.

[Ellesthyan]

I've decided on Egypt, as I've grown to like the Ptolemees ever since I saw the Time Commander battle at Raffia. Their successor history, their obvious focus on the navy and their control of a most interesting starting position (Egypt and threequarter of the Greek islands, and only one real enemy to worry about) could/should make them a wonderful faction; if only those dopes at CA would realise the Egyptians are already the coolest without silly faraos walking the place... *sigh* http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/gc-disappointed.gif

http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/gc-stop.gif
Sign your autograph here to help the poor, homeless Ptolomees They're lonely, they're cute, and they want your mone... Ehum, your help http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/gc-help.gif

So pick up your phone http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/ht_phone_call.gif, call 0900-HELPPTOLOMAEUS and give us all your money so we can bribe CA to our side http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/gc-deal2.gif

[ShadesWolf]

Carthage and War Elephants

[Aymar de Bois Mauri]

Quote[/b] (Ellesthyan @ May 13 2004,17:43)]I've decided on Egypt, as I've grown to like the Ptolemees ever since I saw the Time Commander battle at Raffia. Their successor history, their obvious focus on the navy and their control of a most interesting starting position (Egypt and threequarter of the Greek islands, and only one real enemy to worry about) could/should make them a wonderful faction; if only those dopes at CA would realise the Egyptians are already the coolest without silly faraos walking the place... *sigh* http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/gc-disappointed.gif

http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/gc-stop.gif
Sign your autograph here to help the poor, homeless Ptolomees They're lonely, they're cute, and they want your mone... Ehum, your help http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/gc-help.gif

So pick up your phone http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/ht_phone_call.gif, call 0900-HELPPTOLOMAEUS and give us all your money so we can bribe CA to our side http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/gc-deal2.gif
ROTFL http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/gc-laugh4.gif You got my support... http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/gc-jester.gif

[Leo]

Gauls.
Just to see if they really put off their clothes before fighting.

[bighairyman]

I was gonna pick one of the three roman factions, but i don't know the difference between them do i'm gonna wait until more info comes through. Btw anyone know anything about them? http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/confused.gif . please share if do http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/cheers.gif

[Longshanks]

I'm most looking forward to playing as the Julii, and crushing the barbarian Gauls, Germans and Britons. http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

After completing a campaign with the Julii I'll probably play as Carthage. Their armies should be diverse and interesting, plus it would be fun to try and succeed where Hannibal failed.

After Carthage I'll probably give one of the barbarian factions a try, maybe the Gauls.