0.8 Makedonia Gameplay Guide, by Teleklos Archelaou - *SPOILERS INSIDE*
A Makedonia Strategy Guide for 0.8. This is written for the player who has some familiarity with earlier versions of EB, but I will remind them of some things so that new players might also find it useful. I point out new things in 0.8 along the way, so it might get you ready for some new things too. Game is played at M/M - so sue me, I like them a little easy :grin:.
In 272, the king of Makedonia, Antigonos Gonatos, is at war with Pyrrhos of Epeiros and with some of the rebellious poleis of Hellas who have formed an alliance and have armies at Athenai and Sparte, as well as on the island of Rhodos. Depending on whether or not you feel like it, a player starting out might try to make peace with one of these two groups, but I prefer to keep things a little more historically accurate and remain at war with both. Often on the first turn it's far too easy to get a ceasefire anyway, so I won't take advantage of the system at this point.
The first thing you should do is make sure the background script is activated. When the advisor pops up, as soon as you click on a city at the start of the game, make sure you (1) click on his face, then you will see this image:
At this point you (2) hit the little button with the finger and chalkboard - the "Show Me How button". Now you are set, but making sure the script is running is absolutely critical at the start of the game (you only have to do it once, unless you reload a game).
Decisions, decisions...
What should your first moves be now? Well, keeping your finances under control is extremely important in the first few turns in EB. You have to make a decision whether you would like to maintain your current start army, or reduce its numbers and start making money quicker. But if you keep your starting armies, and don't take new cities quickly, you will be losing a lot of mnai each turn. I take a middle route usually. For my cities with small populations, I put their tax levels on "Growth" or "Low": Chalkis and Mytilene. But I put it on "Very High" for the others.
I also start to build structures, if I have the money, that will help my financial situation the most and the quickest. In Chalkis, I construct a Perikatharsis Paralia (Coastal Clearing, to prepare for a trade port). In Demetrias, which is in the middle of my main campaigning area, I need a better type of units to be recruited though. So what do I build? I already have a faction conscription center, so I could either build a better faction set of barracks and such, or I could build one of these new "Local MIC's". These are for foreign natives - but the natives of Thessalia are not really foreign, so I won't be able to recruit many new troops if I build one of those (this is confirmed by just right clicking on the building - and I see that no units are recruitable in the first level of it here). You can see the two different MIC "branches" here:
So I decide to build the Conscription Center and Armory in Demetrias instead, and it will allow me to build a lot of new units when it is finshed. I don't have a lot of money left, so I build a Wooden Wall in Mytilene, and Hidden Stone Sewers in Korinthos, and that's all my money for turn 1.
Now, I want to get rid of a few units too. I pull my ships outside of Pella into the port at Demetrias, and disband them there (those men add to Demetrias' population instead of Pella, since I need them more there). I also don't sense an immediate threat at Mytilene, since the Seleukids are my allies, so I disband the Hetairoi there, and one of the two Hoplitai Haploi units. This also adds to my population there. I'm going to keep the rest of my soldiers right now.
Diplomacy:
I could send my diplomat, Karpos Aiginios, north to acquire a ceasefire with the Getai now if I like. I don't plan on going north immediately, so it's a good idea. I will try to get trade rights with them too while he is up there. Otherwise there isn't any other important diplomatic moves I need to immediately make. I could send the diplomat on through Illyria to make contact with the Romans if I like. They are natural enemies of the Epeirotes too and might be willing to make an alliance with my faction even.
Military moves in Spring of 272:
My first move is to take the garrison at Korinthos, and move upon Sparte. There are armies of some size there and in the countryside of Lakonia, but I probably can hold them off. I leave only two units of Akontistai in the city and take the other soldiers out, and lay siege to the town of Sparte, building a couple of rams to knock down their flimsy palisade wall.
That might be enough, but I want to be greedy here. I also take my soldiers out of Demetrias, with Philippos at their lead, leaving only one unit of Hoplitai Haploi and one unit of Akontistai to guard the polis. I can just barely reach Athenai in this same season, and when I get there I start to build two siege towers. To add some help, I take my unit of Hetairoi and one unit of Hoplitai Haploi from Chalkis, cross over the strait, and further siege the polis of Athenai, but I don't select any siege machines to build. Here are my two sieges:
Finally, my soldiers with Antigonos and those with Alkyoneus at Pella could make up a decent army too, so I combine some of them and move towards Epeiros a little, but remaining in my province of Makedonia. I leave Alkyoneus with a few soldiers in Pella still. When I get close to the border, I find Pyrrhos and his son are on the borders of Epeiros in two armies, but I won't attack now - choosing my terrain is too important here, so I choose a spot and wait here. One other option might have been taking Antigonos towards Tylis, but leaving the borders with Epeiros totally undefended might not be the best decision to make at this point. Either way, this is what I'm doing now.
You will also find other new mercenary units in some of these regions, but I'm too poor now to afford them. Maybe later, but I'm anxious to see some new units in action so probably sooner rather than later. I think I have done all I can for now, so I save the game (this is a beta still after all - you're crazy if you don't save before battles and such).
"End Turn":
What happens before the next season? The Koinon Hellenon faction leader, the current Eurypontid King of the Lakedaimones, Areus, has attacked my besieging force outside of Sparte. He has reinforcements from the polis itself also. (Instead of fighting the battle on the battlemap, I autoresolve here. But with the new EB music, you might want to fight these out :grin:). Whew. Thankfully Captain Aristonos managed to hold them off, and though he lost a little more than half his men, he still managed an Average Victory over the king and the Spartans inside the city. (In later builds, by the way, the starting armies will be more accurate, when our unit-lists are filled out totally.)
Summer 272
When my turn rolls around, I notice my finances are doing poorly: -4027 mnai now. I will have to get rid of more armies soon or make some gains quickly. I also have a suitable husband offered for Iphianassa.
He is a royal Makedonian named Aristandros Delphikos. He is lively, optimistic, has rational concerns, and is a man grown, but he is a poor tactician, is green, and is already 44 years old. Well, I need help managing some of these cities, so I will accept him. The most important things to look at are (1) his intelligence/charisma/vitality ratings and (2) his ethnicity and its description. Based upon what you need, some are much better than others, but all are worth considering.
I find out that Pontos and the Koinon Hellenon are now at war - I might send a new diplomat to Amaseia to try and arrange a treaty, but I have more immediate concerns here first. Something else exciting has happened!
Alkyoneus, whom I had left at Pella, has decided in the summer of 272 to compete in the Olympic Games. Indeed, when I look at his character's details, he is a vigorous young man of 20 years, who is a moderate drinker in addition to being the Royal Heir. This now means that he has a -100% movement penalty for the season - he is travelling to Olympia under truce, even though his character must officially remain in Pella. No worries, my new son-in-law Aristandros is also now at Pella, so I send him to Demetrias to keep an eye on things there for the time being. Being a Royal Makedonian himself, he will govern their type2 polis well.
Now I have a few options. I will let my men outside of Athenai still work on the other siege tower. Outside of Sparte, things are more complex. Spartan armies dot the contryside. I could try to take the city now, as only a few soldiers remain inside, but my armies were greatly diminished last season there. I go ahead and decide to try and take the city now. But before I do, I send one of my two Akontistai units in Korinthos down to join my army; I need all the help I can get there. I now find out that Captain Aristonos not only faces the 75 men in Sparte, but 103 men under Demarmenos, 19 men under the Spartan heir Akrotatos, and 69 men under Areus again. Four different armies, with two generals. They proved too much for me. My 311 men suffer a Clear Defeat, and only 107 remain, fleeing back to Korinthos.
I can still see Ptolemaios' small army, so I move my main army under Antigonos to attack him, just inside the borders of Epeiros. He retreats to the southwest out of my sight, but I follow him through the mountain pass. He cannot flee further, so I attack, and although I win, it is not a very great victory since he is able to escape back further into Epeiros and I am stuck here. I reposition my soldiers to try and hold higher ground since I cannot return to Makedonia this season. This is all I can do for summer 272 now, so I end the turn.
Fall 272:
I was approached by the Getai whose diplomat Tarsa per Kallatis asked for a ceasefire. I granted it, and secured trade rights as well, though I was not interested in any alliance with the barbarians.
This year I am only -5209 mnai in debt, so my loss of soldiers in Lakonia is helping my budget, but also I now have cleared the coast at Chalkis in preparation for a trade port. I also find out that Aklyoneus lost in his efforts at Olympia, but there is no big shame in that. Antigonos is in Epeiros still, and is currently well-supplied. Aristandros has a clerk ancillary join his retinue as well.
I finally send Philippos and his army in with the attack on Athenai now. The numbers are in my favor, and the result? A Clear Victory. Chremonides is slain and Athenai is mine. I decide to "Occupy Settlement". Philippos is an unselfish, optimistic, and loyal man, who is also devout. Selling the Athenians into slavery or sending most of the men to the slaughter would have probably had a very negative effect on his psyche. As it stands now, he is the victor of Athenai, and the city is ours.
The first thing I notice now, is that the government building has been damaged 100%. I must destroy it totally now. I have no money to repair anything with anyway, but I can destroy the government now at least. I move my supplementary force of the Hetairoi and Hoplitai Haploi on to Korinthos, along with the unit of Thesssalian Cavalry and one of Philippos' Hoplitai Haploi units too. They will move on Sparte again in the late winter. I set the tax rate to "Very High" in Athenai, and leave Philippos in charge there - he is 26 and the schools are very good there still!
I move Antigonos north and I see Pyrrhos' son Alexandros. I try to attack him, but he is too distant. I am again stuck with the large army inside Epeirote borders for another season.
During the AI turn, a large and well varied Epeirote army attacks Antigonos. Although I do not know it, I would guess this was Pyrrhos' army, as elephants are present, but Pyrrhos himself is not. Maybe he has died? They all have armor upgrades too, but Antigonos is leading my army, and theirs has but a captain, Sosistratos. I decide to chance it, and suffer an Average Defeat. Rats. I should have moved towards Tylis instead of into Epeiros I guess.
Winter 272:
This season, Philippos has acquired, in Athenai, a stoic philosopher named Kleanthese Assios in his retinue, as well as a mining engineer and a comedian. Since Philippos is in Athenai, and since Athenai has mines, it will greatly aid my finances with him remaining there. I now have 1324 mnai in my treasury, and I can seek to do something in Athenai - my new conquest. I see immediately a new building: the "Provisional Military Government" or "Regional Pacification". It is quick and cheap, so I select it. When it is complete, I can build a regular government there. I spend the rest of my money repairing the Agora and Walls of Athenai.
I stubbornly move my army, except for one Akontistai unit, out of Korinthos and back to siege Sparte. My army under Antigonos though is trapped in the snows just inside the borders of Makedonia. I am facing a large Epeirote army right across the border, and I see Alexandros moving to the north perhaps to encircle my army, but there is little I can do about it. I leave him there and "end turn".
During the AI turn, Akrotatos and Areus again attack my forces in Lakonia, this time under a new captain, Memnon. In the snows this time the Makedones took an Average Victory. But I was immediately attacked again by their Captain Demarmenos and Captain Ialmenes, along with Akrotatos' army. An Average Victory is again the result. Sparte is now mine, as Ialmenes' forces were those inside the polis of Sparte. The population is low, so I choose to Occupy this polis as well.
Now Captain Sosistratos and his large army attacks Antigonos, who attempts to flee south into Thessalia, but Sosistratos follows, and in the battle Antigonos is not only Clearly Defeated, but he is slain.
Spring 271:
Antigonos is dead. Alkonyeus has the support of the armies and succeeds his father.
The captain who led my first victory at Sparte was a Royal Makedonian named Memnon, and he was offered as a candidate for adoption as a result of his victory, but in the second battle he was slain. So not only was an excellent candidate lost, but in the same turn our king is killed.
In Athens, the Regional Pacification is complete, so I now can choose the government. I select the type2 choice, a Makedonian Satrapy. It will allow more factional MIC levels, and a limited number of local MIC levels, which are not needed as much in Hellas itself.
Philippos also was joined by a Playwright, an Orator, and a Musician. That's what hanging out in Athenai will do for you I suppose. He is also chosen as the Royal Heir to Alkonyeus, whose children are too young to be considered as heirs now. At this point our treasury has 9507 mnai in it, even after starting the Makedonian Satrapy in Athenai.
This is an excellent point to stop this guide. There are enemy forces still spread throughout Lakonia, but with help from Korinthos or Athenai they can be removed. In Sparte, the old Spartan Agoge must be destroyed and a new Regional Pacification government instituted, and then the next turn a government chosen. Enough money now flows into our coffers that other economic enhancing buildings can be built, like an Agora in Pella, roads in Chalkis, traders and mercantile ports in Lakonia, etc. Inside Hellas itself, local MIC's are not necessary, but if I had conquered Tylis instead of moving into Epeiros, Local MIC's would yield Celtic units, and my Faction MIC's would yield Makedonian units available there.
Re: 0.8 Makedonia Gameplay Guide, by Teleklos Archelaou - *SPOILERS INSIDE*
Wow.
This was both timely and incredibly helpful. I found this immediately after sharing my initial observations last night. I played through again, following your game style, and had a much more positive experience.
Would you be offended if I started a new game and posted a turn by turn description here, so veterans could have the opportunity to tell me what I'm doing wrong?
Thanks again.
Spidey
Re: 0.8 Makedonia Gameplay Guide, by Teleklos Archelaou - *SPOILERS INSIDE*
Write an AAR, that really takes the experiance of EB to another level entirely.
Foot
Re: 0.8 Makedonia Gameplay Guide, by Teleklos Archelaou - *SPOILERS INSIDE*
By the way, we are starting the changes for Maks' starting positions. They will have more new units, face more new units, and have epeiros breathing down their necks at Pella too. Probably with a Mak force sitting outside the gates of Athens too. Lots of fun. If you want a long term AAR, maybe wait a few days first till we get those descr_strat.txt changes in.
Re: 0.8 Makedonia Gameplay Guide, by Teleklos Archelaou - *SPOILERS INSIDE*
WOW!!!!
LOCAL MIC????:dizzy2:
U guys are the S**!
Re: 0.8 Makedonia Gameplay Guide, by Teleklos Archelaou - *SPOILERS INSIDE*
Using your cavalry well is the key to winning easily with macedon. Korinthos begins with no fewer than two excellent cavalry units. Use your phalanxes to tie down general cavalry/strong units, and then come from behind with your cavalry. After the charge, wheel your cavalry out of battle to a suitable distance and charge again. Rinse, repeat. They'll break and die
.
After defeating Epeiros, I still had mostly intact units of all the heavy cav I started with: four of those went on to fight against the Romans, and outlasted the puny latians.[in fact, they're your only hope vs the Romans]
200 heavy cavalry will smash ANY, and I mean ANY, unit with just one charge.
You can also use your fleet near pella to move your cavalry from chalkis directly onto the mainland.
If you like to take towns and cities quickly, like me, don't put an overwhelming force outside the city. Siege with equal-to or smaller-than force and win the battle which is sure to happen, come the AIs turn.
Re: 0.8 Makedonia Gameplay Guide, by Teleklos Archelaou - *SPOILERS INSIDE*
So far I find the Maks still pretty powerful. Their Hoplitai Haploi are so numerous I can just steamroller KH because they have less of the same, and little if no cavalry. Ouch. I should not like to play as KH in the near future. Epeiros' armies were crushed by turn 8, elephants included. All that remains now is for me to march into their cities; a mere formality at this point. Freaky. Might as well just give them some Deuteroi, some Haploi, but as much as 40% less units. That big stack in Korinthos at the game start is just...so big. XD
Re: 0.8 Makedonia Gameplay Guide, by Teleklos Archelaou - *SPOILERS INSIDE*
That big stack is gone in the next patch. I had done exactly as you said - reduced the size but added a deuteroi or two. They will still need tweaking later, but they are closer to what we want. It will be harder for them to have early success against epeiros (and easier for the player as epeiros to take them out unfortunately). But they will have a stack (good mixed stack, not all haploi) right outside of athens.
Re: 0.8 Makedonia Gameplay Guide, by Teleklos Archelaou - *SPOILERS INSIDE*
If you want to know where to recruit which faction unit, here´s a little guide (updated today).
https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showthread.php?t=75407
