Tips for Getai?

Does any one have any tips for playing the Getai on VH/M. I started a game a few days ago. It is now 254BC. I have 7 provinces in my mini-empire and an income of only about 9k. I am at war with Makedon - they were my allies then attacked me for no reason in Serdike - Who in turn are allies of the Seleucids, who already have about 35 provinces including Nikiai. The problem really is lack of cash to pay for an army large enough to take out the Macedonians. Any suggestions for army composition? It seems to me that slingers and falx-armed guys are the best cheap option available. The heavy phalanx and the various cavalry types seem to me a waste of time.

Yes I find the falxmen to be quite good coupled with the axemen and archers and skirmishers. Why rush to build high level units? You should of spent that time building mines and ports.

Axemen? What Axemen? Is this a native getai unit or is it from a type 3 or 4 government?
As to building for high level units i built a level 4 unit thingy in Sarmisa-whatsit just to see whta all the units wer. I can't really afford units that have an upkeep of 500 (most cavalry) and as for the medium cavalry that cost 1000 in upkeep, i cant see the point.

Komatai Epilektoi are a must imho! Their sword has a nice lethality, just like the Thraikioi Peltastai.

Please don't refer to Thraikioi Peltastai when I'm near.

THE HORRORS THAT I HAD WHEN BESIEGING TYLIS! *cries* I'm gonna slaughter those Thraikian pieces of poo!

i hate when i accidentally refresh the page about the time i finish typing out my post...aargh.

Historically, Danubian peoples frequently used plundering invasions into Hellenic territories to win glory and lots of loot. The Getai unit list is well-suited to using ambush and hit-and-run tactics on the battlefield when confronted with a larger and better-equipped Hellenic force. Make a run down into Hellas, plunder a few cities, then come back home. You'll weaken the Maks, get some experience outwitting and outfighting the Hellenic AI, and come home with a huge bankroll.

You've got a lot of units that are good flankers and ambushers, and very few good line units...use that to your advantage on the battlefield.

Thoughts from a couple of Getai campaigns on 0.81...

Your heavy phalanxes can pin the serious Mak/Epeirote/Seleucid phalanxes in a way that's beyond your other troops. Then your many good+cheap close quarter infantry can swarm around and butcher them. I found them a great comfort, I wasn't muttering "oh god I hope the line holds" every fifteen seconds.

Skythian horse archers from Kallatis and Olbia are also very useful. Phalanxes make good archery targets, HAs can get themselves out of trouble, they lure enemies to divide their forces, and the Skythians are really cheap. They're good for hunting routers too, so you don't have to fight the same troops twice.

Try to build the experience on some slingers. Due to a statistical peculiarity their attack doubles when they get a couple of chevrons. If you can last long enough to get them up to silver or gold, their armour-piercing bullets will do a real job on the back of a pinned phalanx. And they're cheap.

If you can get a predictable choke point -- a river, a fort, a town wall -- try to hire mercenary hellenic medium phalanxes to hold it. That will get you an exceptional kill ratio.

The best results I've had with the Getai in field battles used a simultaneous combination of feinting horse archers to tie up (and wear down) a part of the enemy, while the phalanxes and infantry did successor style "pin and flank" to slaughter manageable chunks. I fight a battle of manoeuvre to keep most of their army busy while I do a meatgrinder job on a manageable chunk. Repeat until done.

(Before i say anything, i don't think this is an AAR or Guides :idea2: You have to move the post and ask an admin to move it)

Okay here it goes.

As Getai, you really must find a good combination of troops of army for you. Getai's Falxman/axeman/archers/Skirmisher are really good as long as you operate them properly. Expecially, with your strong neighbor, Makedonia which is based on Phalanx/Cavarly, you have to balance your armies well:book:

Also, suppressing Hellenic factions such as Makedonia and KH quickly in important.

Umm, seeing as this forum is for gameplay guides, I think asking for tips is fine...

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Originally Posted by Bill Westwater

Does any one have any tips for playing the Getai on VH/M. I started a game a few days ago. It is now 254BC. I have 7 provinces in my mini-empire and an income of only about 9k. I am at war with Makedon - they were my allies then attacked me for no reason in Serdike - Who in turn are allies of the Seleucids, who already have about 35 provinces including Nikiai. The problem really is lack of cash to pay for an army large enough to take out the Macedonians. Any suggestions for army composition? It seems to me that slingers and falx-armed guys are the best cheap option available. The heavy phalanx and the various cavalry types seem to me a waste of time.

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I can't talk from experience since I never had a Makedonian problem (I simply took out their whole empire in one fell swoop when they weren't looking, and now they're banished to Mytilene), but I can tell you that komatai epilektoi and drapanai are the best thing to do. The Komatai are lethal and all kinds of cheap (100 and something upkeep) and the drapanai are also very cheap while having some beastly lethality. The Costobocii axemen (yes, they are native units) are some of the best investments you'll make; they'll tear up cavalry and infantry alike, they aren't particularly suceptible to missiles because of their shield and are good in a great many roles (they'll hold off elites plenty long enough to bring some drapanai around back for the flank, and they also can trash cavalry pretty effectively). I've also found the Thracian spearmen to be a cost-effective and quite good unit; their numbers and stats easily justify what they might cost (240-something upkeep I think) and they can be found in basic regional MICs all over the place. Iosatae from Tylis are also quite valuable to you.

For the Maks, falxmen are more useful to you than all that armor is to Makedonians. Hold off phalangitai with axemen or Thracians and flank with drapanai.

Now I can afford two full stack standing armies with a ~12,000 mnai income, but I converted from expensive heavy phalanx to a more simply-based army. I always keep plenty of komatai on hand supplemented with drapanai and rhomphiaphoroi and a healthy backup of Costobocii and Bosphoran or Scythian archers and hoplitai from Kallatis. One of my armies has a couple units of thorakitai as well. Any useful mercenaries I find laying around I usually pick up also (Gaecorii, Tindanotae, Rhaetic axemen, etc.) to fill the extra slot or two.

For your predicament, komatai epilektoi and drapanai all the way. Again, the komatai are 100-something upkeep; very affordable and effective. I don't know your exact financial situation, but Costobocii axemen are definately a wise investment also.

Make use of your generals at maximm because flanking from the rear with the dacian cavalry gives a big shock to the enmy while he is pinned down by your heavy spearmen. I rarely use skirmishers I prefer to get to close combat as fast as possible. I like other strategy than hit and run and ambush as in reality this wasn't practiced by the dacian tarabostes and kings at any time but only at a time of need when the borders of theyr rich and beautiful land would be under presure as happened when romans invaded.:beam:

Falxmen and Phalanxes, that's all you ever need as Getai...and some archers too.

Before you use the komatai epilektoi, it might be good to know that their upkeep is broken, it should be much higher. If you compare with the other Getai units, and I believe this is true for all units, the upkeep is roughly one fourth of the recruitment cost. So the 100 something should in fact be more like 700... (I don't remember their recruitment cost exactly.) I have therefore considered using the Komatai Epilektoi as they are as an exploit, and haven't recruited any in my Getai campaign yet. Of course, it might be that the recruitment cost is wrong as well, so it would be good to know what their real costs should be.

Does anyone know how the upkeep can be fixed? I remember seeing some instructions somewhere, but I can't find the post anymore. I would also like to know if changing the upkeep can be done without breaking the current campaign.

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Originally Posted by Fraekae

Does anyone know how the upkeep can be fixed? I remember seeing some instructions somewhere, but I can't find the post anymore. I would also like to know if changing the upkeep can be done without breaking the current campaign.

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Wouldn't altering the export_descr_unit.txt do the trick?

As a sidenote, paying over 700 mnai/turn for 60[/120] elite skirmishers seems a tad too much, imho. That doesn't mean that it wasn't meant to be that high, but rather that I wouldn't pay that much for them. They aren't that good.

I totally agree that 700 is too much, which means that the recruitment cost should be lower as well. But the current upkeep is ridiculously low, as this is now one of the cheapest Getai units. It would be nice to hear from the EB team what the cost is supposed to be.

Is changing the export_descr_unit.txt savegame compatible, or would it require that I start a new campaign? I wouldn't want to destroy my current campaign as it is great fun, but I would want to use the Komatai Epilektoi as well. If changing the file destroys my campaign, I will make do without them, I don't want them that much.

I think I remember Watchman doing something to fix the Komatai Epilektoi cost... If I could just find that post!

Edit: Just did a forum search, could not find anything about the Komatai Epilektoi cost... Maybe I don't remember correctly.

Edit 2: Ok, found it. It is in the thread "Apparent minor EDU gaffes" by Watchman, but there is no mention as to what the correct price is supposed to be. So I assume it is the current recruitment divided by four, which is rather much. Still wondering if tinkering with the file destroys the savegame or not though.

Hi
From my experience with export_descr_unit.txt: If you just change the upkeep, recruitment price, other stats, it is save game compatible if you add a unit or make big changes, then I guess not.

I don't belive Komatai Epilektoi (Dacian Elite Skirmishers) have a low upkeep (about 130 mnai I think) as Komatai (Dacian Skirmishers) have a similar upkeep . The difference is that you spend to upgrade to Komatai Epilektoi with very good gear wich is reflected in the training cost (about 3000 mnai I believe) and a needed high level for your baracks.