Choice of faction and length of game...

[Todd]

I've noticed that of the 3 games that I've played to the victory conditions that they took radically different amounts of time. I was wondering if others encountered similar issues. I have also listed the high level strategy for each as it could have had an impact on the amount of time. In order of shortest to longest:

1. Baktria (1.1): Overall strategy was to blitz AS right out of the gate.
2. Sweboz (1.0): Consolidated Gaul first followed by successful raids and pillaging of Rome
to break their power.
3. Macedoina: (0.8): Securing Greece and Asia Minor were time consuming. Also, got bogged down in a war with Sweboz.

I play on VH/H.

For others with experience playing multiple factions, which ones took the most time? the least time?

[a completely inoffensive name]

Well the game will take much longer on h or vh then on medium because the AI gets more agressive and lots more money and bonuses. but yeah, i didn't really expect a ptole camp to take the same amount of time as a casse camp when i first started to play EB.

[burn_again]

It really depends on playing style, if you blitz a lot you can win very fast as Sweboz or Baktria, perhaps also as Aedui and Arverni if you can raid Rome early on.
I guess it will take longest for the steppe factions and perhaps for the Romani. The Romans have one of the easiest military and economic situations in the game, but also need to conquer and raid a lot to win.

In my games I mostly ignore the victory conditions for roleplaying and other reasons, like waiting for reforms or such, so I can't really tell. As Baktria for example I often wait very long before I destroy the Saka or expand too far westwards.

[Megas Methuselah]

I just ignore victory conditions and play as I deem fit. I hate victory conditions, as I see it almost as a guide telling me what I'm supposed to do. I'll just do whatever I want. Just because I've conquered certain territories, doesn't mean I should win and just quit. Empires don't just stop, they keep going on and on until their fall.

In this way, my games never end. I've got about 4 campaigns which I stopped playing, though they never did end. Most of them are migrations...

[Aemilius Paulus]

I just ignore victory conditions and play as I deem fit. I hate victory conditions, as I see it almost as a guide telling me what I'm supposed to do. I'll just do whatever I want. Just because I've conquered certain territories, doesn't mean I should win and just quit. Empires don't just stop, they keep going on and on until their fall.

In this way, my games never end. I've got about 4 campaigns which I stopped playing, though they never did end. Most of them are migrations...

Yeah, I tend to to the same, with the exception of migrations. They rob you of your factional units, which are usually the best you can get.

I usually leave one victory condition territory alone, so I can conquer almost the entire world (with the exception of the far, far East) and then finally capture that territory to get a much sweeter victory.

[Celtic_Punk]

if you reach the victory conditions can you continue play? ive never gotten close to winning cause i usually lose interest or the save gets corrupt, only recently have i been deleting saves to make a new one

[Megas Methuselah]

They rob you of your factional units, which are usually the best you can get.

I just to slight moddings to the areas of recruitment for my choice of factions, and for my government, I made it so that I can build whichever government I want anywhere. I succesfully limit myself to houserules.

@Celtic Punk: Yeah, I think you can keep playing...

[tapanojum]

I love migration campaigns. It causes a player to use not so standard regional armies, and then once you work your way back home, it makes those factional units such a sweet sweet thing =D

Koinon Hellenon from Massalia to Italy, turning Tarsus into my factional recruitment center.

[Rilder]

I prefer slow, steady diliberate expansion, no matter who I'm playing.

Not only to make the game last longer, but to allow interesting AI expansion. If you can confine yourself to a general area till 200 BC, you can see some EPIC AI empires.