Favourite Faction 2009

[gollum]

Sure, the Turks were always the greatest favorite due to the variety of the roster among other things. Its one of the few ones that never stops evolving either as the game progresses. The Byzantines are the complete antithesis of this being given everything out initially and actually losing units overtime. The Catholics increase in melee strength and armor. The Egyptians play all late without any new units - the last blooming are the Mameluk units. The Almohads are another Byzantine type roster philosophy. The Russians are a catholic and Byzantine hybrid. The Italians should have been more unique, having exclusivity in the pavise units. The English have a good amount of flavor - although they should have been denied mounted Chivalric knights and given the foot variety exclusively - Billmen are overpowered for SP - longbows are ok as they are imho. Spanish and HRE and Italians can expect the heavy mounted horrors they get in high/late to spice up the roster.

The French are the most dull of the lot as are the Sicilians that also have no exclusive units. The French really deserved something in late like the Gendarmes but the unit is given to many others too (Italian, Burgundian, Aragonese), has a relatively low morale (4) and no lance - in other words better stick with Chivalric Knights. The Chiv. Knights bonuses in France are really a gift to the HRE/English/Aragonese/Spanish/Italian player rather than a bolstering of the French forces.