Crippling the Seleucids?? A KH strategical question.

[Novellus]

If you're in the Asia Minor region, there are going to be quite a few restrictions on unit recruitment. One of my favorite units as the Koinon Hellenon faction were the Xystophoroi (Greek Noble Cavalry) which could give hell to infantrymen if used properly. But since they are not going to be readily available, make sure you have a good force of Prodomoi (Successor Medium Cavalry) that have a good charge and are readily available for retraining. This flexibility makes them an excellent candidate to deal with enemy pikemen. As for the enemy heavy cavalry, you are going to have to be especially careful. The Prodomoi could easily get chewed up by the Hetairoi bodyguards or cataphract-types if they are in use at the moment. Set traps and use the AI's lack of strategy to your advantage. If the enemy cavalry find another cavalry unit within charging distance, they'll usually pursue. If you can spot this in time and order them to run away while another nearby cavalry unit pursues, it can be a devastating trap. This is how I usually dispose of enemy bodyguard cavalry from other factions, especially since Koinon Hellenon lack bodyguard cavalry.

As for the campaign map, do NOT allow cavalry units to be trapped in your settlements if sieges are iminent. Use them as powerful reinforcements to mess up the enemy lines from behind, and it gives them enough flexibility. Historically, the Greeks did not focus on cavalry as a key element in warfare. But it might be a good idea to start. Focus on securing your borders at the moment. Pontus is annoying to deal with, but they should be no problem for the Greek army (I even dealt with stacks of them on VH/VH and routed entire armies with far fewer soldiers on my side). Avoid the Pandotopoi until you can stab them in the back without being checked by skirmishers or cavalry (they have numbers). But the main point here is to start on defense until you are able to send armies to Seleucia to destroy their recruitment centers.

Oh, and Rome: Total War is built around epic battles and lots of soldiers. I would avoid fighting large forces and focus on taking out individual units if I could. I would try ambushes, but I've never had a successful one before. So it is an option if you believe you can pull the battles off successfully. So it's your call.

By the way, Ekdromoi (Greek Light Hoplites) do a great job at engulfing the flanks of phalangites. They don't do the greatest at melee, but they can freak the enemy out with numbers while the cavalry swerve around to attack from behind. They're manuverable and easily recruitable in the region. Go for flexibility!