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Introduction
Seleucids is they greatest empire after the death of Alexander, they've rich territories and an incredible choice of troops. But when you starts the empire is vulnerable, extended and surounded by multiples ennemies, this guide will help you (I hope) to rebuild Alexander's empire. The main difficulty of a seleucid campaign lies in your starting choices and how you deal with all your agressive neighbours as you often have to fight on two or tree side at time. Once you're sorted with this you'll be unstopable, that's why this guide is quite short. I like to play a camp as long I've a challenge and I often give up if it's becoming too easy.
Like in every campain, don't hesitate to use a lot of spies and watch towers to see the moves the ennemy, it's crucial. I also recomend you to train yourself to play a phalanx army supported by cavalry in custom battles just to train yourself at maneovering this slow but deadly infantry force. I also appolgy for all my horrible english mistakes, :sweating: it's not my main language.
Good starting choices :
Your starting economy is very good but your situation isn’t, you’ve got many neigbours the Greeks, Pontus, Armenia, Parthia and Egypt. You’re allied with egypt but don't except to keep them away for too long. Pontus will not bother you in the early game and often ask for an alliance, same with Armenia. The greeks are weak in asia minor so they're you first target. Finaly prepare to hold the parthian assault.
Economy :
As you've a lot of money you can build what you want in each city. At first build ports an roads to enchance your economy but don’t forget baracks to be able to construct better pikemen than the levies who aren’t very efficient on the field. As you've a good income don't tax to much your cities, let the population grows this will give you access to better units faster.
Army :
Your strating forces are is mainly composed of week phalanx units, milita hoplites and light javelin cavalry, not very impressive especialy when you have to face parthians cataphracts and horse archers or greek hoplites. Hopefully you've access to a wide selection of mercenaries : arabs, persians, cretan archers, thracians, cilicians ect...
As you know the seleucid army is phalanx based and has to act with the alexander anvil and hammer tactic to be efficient.
You basic army sould be composed by a good cavalry force, a massive phalanx on the front and some lighter units to support the flanks supported by archer/peltast fire. Peltast can aslo be used on the flanks to rain a shower of javelins in an already engaged ennemy :innocent: .
You must gather your forces to protect yourself from all sides, try to have 3 armies wich are ganisoned or near those cites : Seleucia, Antioch and Halicarnassus. I suggest to keep one levy pikemen unit as garnison in your other cites.
- Halicarnassus force :Lacks of cavalry but has to powerfull mercs such as cretans and hoplites for flanking duty. They're you conquering force.
- Antioch force : Has few cavarly unit a better phalanx and has access to persians mercs wich aren't bad for flanking you phalanx. Building an haras quickly give you access to the elephants so don't hesitate. They're your guarding force against Egypt and parthians and sould not move too far from Antioch. The simple pesence of this large force near you border can keep egypt away for a time.
- Seleucia force : This force must a least hold the parthians, but phalanx as you can expect is realy useless against horse archers and vulnerable to arrows. As they have larger shields milita hoplite is better to hold a rain of arrows and still good against cavalry, so build them. Don't forget to recruit Syrians archers.
Strategic moves :
Don't hesitate, take Rhodes it'll be easy and the collossus will enchance your naval economy. On the east, keep your antioch force near your border and don't engage egypt. If you're lucky parthia will not attack you and will concentrate on armenia first, use this time to gatther you forces. Continue to take the greeks and rebel cities to get an other nice wonder to help your developement. You better troops are coming shortly, just try to stay alive long enought.
Time to test your valor :
Now you've built your forces and extended in asia-minor. Armenia is being destroyed by parthians or pontus, egypt has build larges armies and now they look at the rich guy wich has four wonders and a lot of money : you :tooth: .
Against egypt : If you want to have an advantage when facing egypt, uses your money well a build a powefull fleet. If you gain control of the sea you'll be able to protect your ports and blocked egypt's ones. Both empire have a rich sea trade, controling the sea will lead you to the path of victory. When you have control of the sea you can strike the island Chippria (spelling ?) with a your hallicarnassus force or a small part of it. Don't hestitate one second to hire elephants mercs, yes they're expensive but very powerfull too, both empire can afford them so try to have them on your side. With this you'll be able to easly beat egyptian forces with the seleucian anvil and hammer (see the tactics).
Against parthia :
Stay on the defensive use a lot of archer (Syrians) and take thier very bad siege ability to your advantage. Stay in your city and uses your hoplites to hold thier fire and protect your archers, your general can be an usefull cataphract killer too. Let'em waste thier forces and loose cataphracts. once it's done strike back as hard as you can before they can rebuild, siege thier cities with your vast armies to secure the babylonian region.
Pontus/Armenia :
In my game they were very weak and remained realy easy to beat, so nothing special to say about them. Just keep a good force in asia minor to keep them away.
Battles or the part I like the most :jedi:
The Seleucid army is one of the best of RTW and Darthmod, you have heavy cavalry, phalanx, legionaries, good mercs and... ELEPHANTS ! :rambo: just need some horse archers to be perfect...
In early combats against non-horse archers armies :
The phalanx, is the core of your army but it manoeuver slowly but it's truly a moving wall. A phalanx has to be mobile I mean waiting your ennemy to flank you is a bad idea, just march towards him like alexander did and engage. The best way to do this is to no to attack but simply marching your group trought the ennemy and push the stop key before they engage (it'll helps with the current phalanx buggy behaviour). An important thing to do and that was used in real life by phalanx armies, is to mass the cavalry on one flank traditionaly the left and use your best/elite phalangite on the right as they're strong enought to hold the ennemy.
A phalanx never wins a battle alone, it have to be well supported by a more moblile force, cavalry is ideal but not realy present in your early game except mounted javelin men. Pordromoïs aren't useless, yes charging with them is pointless unless you're sure the ennemy will imediatly break. They sould not be used against parthians unless you'll like to waste your troops. But against egypt they can harash the ennemy cavalry with thier javelins and threaten thier infantry hitting them hard on the back as they're already engaged with your phalanx, never underestimate to power of a javelin especialy on a roman's bottom :laughter: . They're also good like all the light cavalry to kill routing soldiers, try to have at least one unit of them for this "noble" task .
Also the phalanx has to be supported by infantry, you can use mercenaries with spears to react to cavalry attacks. But you can also use peltats... you know guys armed with knives and javelins, just to the same thing as the mounted milita to an already engaged ennemy unit and watch the power of the dark force. Instead of the anvil of the hammer you've got the pike and the toothpicks :yes: ! I suggest to make them holding the line in close formation if they're charged, once the inital shock is gone just retreat, it's better to loose 50 peltast too keep your phalanx healty.
Elephants are also crucials, you can have the lighter quite early in antioch, they have to be placed on one of your flanx acting like heavy cavalry, let them charge when your phalanx engage the ennemy and watch them flee like rabbits. Place some infantry behind them to follow and support them once they've break and ennemy formation, I use arab sabremen and thracians for this duty.
Against horse archers :
Fighting horse archers on open ground with a phalanx is pointless, the AI maybe stupid sometims but not enought to charge your phalanx from front with horse archers. Use long range archers, use hoplites instead of phalanx and try to be as defensive as possible. Doing a shiltorn like formation with your army can be usefull in some situations too the best is to avoid fighting on open ground.
Advanced army :
Finaly you've acces to a good troops like heavy elephants and cavalry and better phalangites. You have enought money to purchase an incredible army : my prefered build is to have a good phalangite line, with one elephants unit on each flank with arbarian sabremen (can be remplaced with legionaries) for support and compagnions massed on the left as the seleucus guard the right. Nothing will resist you.
The final word :
Once the babylonian region is secured and the sea is yours, invade egypt with your elephant supported amies. Gatther a force to deal with pontus in asia minor, and finish the parthians in the arbian sector to have one corner of the map free of ennemies. Your power will easly grows as you conquer the richest region of the game and gain acces to nearly all the wonders. Dont' forget to keep the population grows to allow your cites to develop. Once you've finished conquering all the middle east and egypt you'll be unstopable and you've won the short campaign.
