Roleplay/Your Houserules

[seienchin]

Hi,
Since my last Romani campain I started to play Eb with Roleplaying and used the romans historicaly correct in battles and simulated struggle between the families. I also played really really slowly and tried to conquer one country in 20-30 years.
I often see people in this forum talk about their Houserules/Roleplay so I would like to hear/poll about your playstyle.

[miotas]

-don't blitz,
-very few elites, usually only two per army
-try to have(depending on the faction) up to half the army as levies.
-as the romans i have half my army as allied troops, half roman
-disband armies with silver chevrons or 10+ years, as the romans I disband my roman troops in territories they have captured, and allied troops in the place I recruited them.
-as the romans i use the manipulator formation
-i don't use force diplomacy, but i do try and play enemies off against each other.
-only use the general as a last resort, this also depends on the faction, as it seems more likely that in monarchic factions the generals would take a more active role.

As other factions i use as many of these house rules as seem to fit.

basically i just use common sense for the most part and do things that make sense.

makes for a very enjoyable game

[seienchin]

Interesting. I never hold my generals back, but it would be historical correct to do so sometimes.^^
Cant imagine a roman general atacking with the first wave of soldiers

[miotas]

Also, in my current baktrian campaign i've basically been using a more heavily armoured core of 5 or 6 hellenes with all the rest being light native infantry and horse with the occasional more heavily armoured native horse unit.

In this campaign though, seeing as the generals have very heavy cavalry they take a more significant role than i would with romans, they are very heavy though and get tired quickly so i try to wait until they will have maximum impact

[Elcmar]

Yeah i'd probably do a lot of what miotas does, but of course it varies depending on which faction i'm playing. I've found roleplaying to be a lot more fun than just blitzing along - having great fun in a Karthadastim campaign RP'ing the dissolution of their senate and the establishment of an Emperor

[miotas]

Yeah i'd probably do a lot of what miotas does, but of course it varies depending on which faction i'm playing. I've found roleplaying to be a lot more fun than just blitzing along - having great fun in a Karthadastim campaign RP'ing the dissolution of their senate and the establishment of an Emperor

now that is an interesting idea, I'll have to give that a go sometime.

*edit*
something else i should add

I only disband units that have been on campaign abroad, i have no issues with keeping a few units that are acting as a garrison for many generations, i roleplay that the sons join the levy defence unit when their fathers get too old.

[NickTheGreek]

The only acceptable time to blitz is at the start, to secure a good foothold for your nation. Allow the AI to build up its strength. Use FD to get peace treaties so that a series of wars are possible, not just one long slog.

[Elcmar]

I also tend to give a ton of cash to the Eleutheroi at the start to stop the AI factions going nuts too soon

[/Bean\]

Does that work?

[miotas]

I also tend to give a ton of cash to the Eleutheroi at the start to stop the AI factions going nuts too soon

How! How! How!

what is the code for this cheat?

This seems like a very good idea, it would slow the ai down to a more realistic pace.

[/Bean\]

add_money slave, 40000

[miotas]

add_money slave, 40000

Its that simple? Does this work for all factions?

[Centurio Nixalsverdrus]

• I play slowly (well, mostly), but certainly not according to the historic timeline - my faction would be terminated the next year then
• I use historically balanced armies, but not to the extent of repeating the desastrous mistakes of Perseus at Pydna...
• Also I use FD, but not to halt the AI expansion, but to help them - giving them money and sometimes big stacks that I can fight.
• Also I play "pseudohistorically". That means that I mod my own military / political reforms for me and sometimes for the AI. I always ask myself "what would the faction do if it was in the position you are in now," according to their culture and mentality?

[Ibrahim]

well, all the "houserules" are informal; I expand slowly and historically simply because I do not want to stretch the army out. I use historically accurate armies because, depending on the factions and circumstances, they are more efficient, or more challenging, or even both-same for formations. and forced diplomacy is so that I can have something known as diplomacy without resorting to large bribes

[Aemilius Paulus]

Heh, I do not do any of the aforementioned (in the poll, not the previous replies) things really, but I do play slower than I could in my newly started Eperios VH/H, although for most people, it would still seem very fast expansion. At least it is not my Romani campaign, where by 225 BC I had 154 provinces. I also severely limit myself on elites, especially Elepahntes Indikoi, Peltastai Makedonikoi, Hypaspistai, Chaonion Agema, etc, and even allow no more than two Pezhetairoi per army, which is rather radical for me.

Otherwise, no other roleplay. Except the fact that I record everything a general with an army does, how many units he has, the losses he inflicts and takes, and etc, etc. I suppose it is a sort of roleplay, but I am not quite sure.

[Africanvs]

These are the house rules I am using for my ongoing Mak campaign:

Military house rules:

• Troops must be retrained/disbanded in the province from which they were recruited.
• An army can be in the field for as many years as the general has command stars or influence, whichever is higher, before it must return to it's home province.
• Any army on a major campaign must be commanded by the faction leader. (For example, if I invade another faction. Eleutheroi may be attacked by any general. Another general may lead an army in an opposing faction's province only if the faction leader is present in the same province or region to give him orders.)
• The faction leader may disband troops in a far away province for the purpose of settling that province only if the troops disbanded are native to Makedonia. Regional troops may not be settled in far off provinces.
• One Makedonian Army will typically consist of 4 units of Phalangites, one of which may be elite, 2 units of hoplitai/thureophoroi/peltastai/etc. to guard the flanks of the phalanx, one of which may be elite, 2 units of archers/slingers/skirmishers, 1 unit of heavy cavalry, and 1 general for a total of 10 units. This is ~1600 foot and 200 horse on huge unit sizes. If two such armies are combined it will be referred to as a Royal Makedonian Army. Troop composition may change depending on the region it is operating in. (For example, when fighting in the east, some phalangites would be sacrificed for more missle or mounted troops.)
• If caught in the field in the winter, an army must build a fort and make no movement in the winter season.
• No troops may travel without a general; ever.

Diplomatic house rules:

• When away on campaign, the faction leader must appoint two men to govern homeland provinces. The first man will be the regent and must be the homeland governor with the highest influence. The second man will be the commander of the homeland armies and must command the army in any battle near the homeland. This man must possess the highest command rating of homeland governors.
• If either of these men die while the faction leader is away, he must return (no matter what he is doing) to the capital to appoint a replacement. This is to prevent a pretender from taking the throne while the king is away.
• The faction heir must always be the eldest son of the faction leader, or if the faction leader has no sons, the eldest blood relative of the faction leader. If the faction leader has no blood relatives, a man may be appointed.
• No city without a governor may be taxed higher than normal.
• All new generals must attend first training in Sparte, then schooling for two years in Athenai.
• To simulate communication problems caused by distance in ancient times, any communication between two characters which occupy the same province happens in the same season, but if the two characters are in a different province, the news does not reach the other character until the next season. (For example if a spy spots an enemy army coming toward the faction leader, the faction leader may act on this information, only if the spy is in the same province. If the spy is in a different province, the faction leader is roleplayed to not yet have this knowledge, until the following season. This is the same for any two characters communicating.

[Aemilius Paulus]

Wow, and I though Quintus Sertorius was taking roleplay too far...

Holy Cow man! Do you play Romani? If so, then do you follow the historical expansion?

[satalexton]

These are the house rules I am using for my ongoing Mak campaign:

Military house rules:

• Troops must be retrained/disbanded in the province from which they were recruited.
• An army can be in the field for as many years as the general has command stars or influence, whichever is higher, before it must return to it's home province.
• Any army on a major campaign must be commanded by the faction leader. (For example, if I invade another faction. Eleutheroi may be attacked by any general. Another general may lead an army in an opposing faction's province only if the faction leader is present in the same province or region to give him orders.)
• The faction leader may disband troops in a far away province for the purpose of settling that province only if the troops disbanded are native to Makedonia. Regional troops may not be settled in far off provinces.
• One Makedonian Army will typically consist of 4 units of Phalangites, one of which may be elite, 2 units of hoplitai/thureophoroi/peltastai/etc. to guard the flanks of the phalanx, one of which may be elite, 2 units of archers/slingers/skirmishers, 1 unit of heavy cavalry, and 1 general for a total of 10 units. This is ~1600 foot and 200 horse on huge unit sizes. If two such armies are combined it will be referred to as a Royal Makedonian Army. Troop composition may change depending on the region it is operating in. (For example, when fighting in the east, some phalangites would be sacrificed for more missle or mounted troops.)
• If caught in the field in the winter, an army must build a fort and make no movement in the winter season.
• No troops may travel without a general; ever.

Diplomatic house rules:

• When away on campaign, the faction leader must appoint two men to govern homeland provinces. The first man will be the regent and must be the homeland governor with the highest influence. The second man will be the commander of the homeland armies and must command the army in any battle near the homeland. This man must possess the highest command rating of homeland governors.
• If either of these men die while the faction leader is away, he must return (no matter what he is doing) to the capital to appoint a replacement. This is to prevent a pretender from taking the throne while the king is away.
• The faction heir must always be the eldest son of the faction leader, or if the faction leader has no sons, the eldest blood relative of the faction leader. If the faction leader has no blood relatives, a man may be appointed.
• No city without a governor may be taxed higher than normal.
• All new generals must attend first training in Sparte, then schooling for two years in Athenai.
• To simulate communication problems caused by distance in ancient times, any communication between two characters which occupy the same province happens in the same season, but if the two characters are in a different province, the news does not reach the other character until the next season. (For example if a spy spots an enemy army coming toward the faction leader, the faction leader may act on this information, only if the spy is in the same province. If the spy is in a different province, the faction leader is roleplayed to not yet have this knowledge, until the following season. This is the same for any two characters communicating.

Brilliant, ALL HAIL MAKEDONIA!!!

p.s. You should add razing Barbaropolis as one of your kingdom's prime objective.

[seienchin]

To simulate communication problems caused by distance in ancient times, any communication between two characters which occupy the same province happens in the same season, but if the two characters are in a different province, the news does not reach the other character until the next season. (For example if a spy spots an enemy army coming toward the faction leader, the faction leader may act on this information, only if the spy is in the same province. If the spy is in a different province, the faction leader is roleplayed to not yet have this knowledge, until the following season. This is the same for any two characters communicating.


Brilliant Idea!!!
Ive never thought about it myself, but I guess its pretty cool.
Anyway Roleplaying the Romani is just too much fun, exspecially the Augustus Reforms.

[Elcmar]

To simulate communication problems caused by distance in ancient times, any communication between two characters which occupy the same province happens in the same season, but if the two characters are in a different province, the news does not reach the other character until the next season. (For example if a spy spots an enemy army coming toward the faction leader, the faction leader may act on this information, only if the spy is in the same province. If the spy is in a different province, the faction leader is roleplayed to not yet have this knowledge, until the following season. This is the same for any two characters communicating.


Brilliant Idea!!!
Ive never thought about it myself, but I guess its pretty cool.
Anyway Roleplaying the Romani is just too much fun, exspecially the Augustus Reforms.

I've heard of a similar idea using diplomats to relay orders from Leaders to generals - a general can only make large strategic decisions once the 'diplomat' hands over the orders - means generals aren't limited by seasons per se, but rather by how long it takes diplomat to get there.

[glouch]

for my Mak campaign, as well as my AS campaign back in 1.0:

-rules regarding armies, garrisons, and the subjugation of rebellious and enemy states:

a) one argyrasides with two pezhetairoi/hysteroi pazhetairoi, or three pezhetairoi/hysteroi pezhetairoi to serve as a wall and pivot around which a battle will be fought; they are laid out on a continuous wall with the overlaps between units of phalangites to serve as hinges. each phalangite unit is laid out four to five men deep to provide a suitably long, continuous surface upon which the enemy soldiers can tire themselves out; in desperate situations, they are laid out three men deep. one reserve unit of pezhetairoi/hysteroi pezhetairoi will stay at the nearest city able to recruit argyraspides/pezhetairoi/hysteroi pezhetairoi, referenced as a recruitment center.
* in events wherein one or more units of phalangites need urgent retraining while the army is campaigning due to depletion of numbers, the aforementioned reserve unit will take the place of the phalangite unit that is most depleted in numbers; upon retraining the unit rejoins the army immediately, while the reserve unit either returns to the recruitment center or takes the place of another unit in dire need of retraining.
*any unit within the army can only be retrained once in a year.
* any elite unit (such as argyraspides, pheraspides, and hetairoi) can only be retrained once every five years.
b) two to three non-phalangite, sword, axe, or spear-armed melee units to guard the flanks. two of these units are composed of the regional units within the area of responsibility of the particular army it is a part of, while the third will be either an elite melee unit coming from the nearest province which can train melee units which can be deemed as elite or a normal melee unit with significantly more experience than the other two. the purpose of the third melee unit is to support either flank, whichever is in need of assistance; the three units can also be used to strike the enemy at critical moments of the battle, as well as to cover the main army whenever there is a need to make a tactical retreat to a much defensible position, or simply a reordering of the phalangite lines to better face the enemy. an absence of a third supporting elite unit is permissible. one reserve unit will stay at any suitable nearby recruitment center.
* in events wherein one or more units of melee units need urgent retraining while the army is campaigning due to depletion of numbers, the aforementioned reserve unit will take the place of the melee unit that is most depleted in numbers; upon retraining the unit rejoins the army immediately, while the reserve unit either returns to the recruitment center or takes the place of another unit in dire need of retraining.
* any unit within the army can only be retrained once in a year.
* any elite unit (such as argyraspides, pheraspides, and hetairoi) can only be retrained once every five years.
c) two to three units of long-range archers, most commonly kretan archers. celtic archers to the extreme western fronts (massalia), bosporan heavy archers to the north (chersonesos), and syrian and caucasian archers to the extreme east (kotais and antiocheia) will serve this purpose. auxiliary units such as slingers, javelineers, and shorter-ranged archers are permitted, but only two of these kinds of units are ever allowed; after the battle in which their services were required has been concluded, they are detached and sent to their places of origin to be disbanded. one reserve unit will stay at any suitable nearby recruitment center.
* in events wherein one or more units of archer units need urgent retraining while the army is campaigning due to depletion of numbers, the aforementioned reserve unit will take the place of the archer unit that is most depleted in numbers; upon retraining the unit rejoins the army immediately, while the reserve unit either returns to the recruitment center or takes the place of another unit in dire need of retraining.
* any unit within the army can only be retrained once in a year.
* krete is recognized as a special archer recruitment center; at least four units of kretan archers will be present within kydonia at all times.
d) at least four units of prodromoi and two units of lonchophoroi to act as the hammers on the phalangite anvil, as well as to "clean up" any fleeing enemy troops, engage enemy cavalry and skirmishers, and provide additional support for the flanks.
* retraining of any number of cavalry units within an army means a complete retreat of that army to a suitable recruitment center.
e) elite cavalry such as hetairoi are, as much as possible, excluded from any army. if an occasion on which the services of an elite cavalry units is required arises (such as the threat of an enemy army with a, sizeable contingent of kataphractoi or a situation described below) only a maximum of three units are allowed.
* any elite unit (such as argyraspides, pheraspides, and hetairoi) can only be retrained once every five years
f) only one general can lead an army, who should be at least sharp, vigorous, and loyal. upon the appointment of a general to an army, a minimum term of 25 years and a maximum of 50 years of command as strategos of an army will commence. if a general succeeds as basileos during his term of command, he has two options. the first option is to cut short his term upon which he will immediately journey towards the capital, leaving his army to its area of responsibility, but not before a suitable replacement as strategos has been appointed and has taken command of the army. the second option is to remain strategos of the army he currently commands, upon which one unit of hetairoi and one unit of pheraspidai is required to join the army within a peroiod of three years (due to the time required for travel).
g) any unit, upon joining an army, can neither be detached nor disbanded until after 35 years of service, although a unit can be detached from an army to join a newly formed one. however, the three phalangite units are identified with the particular army it is a part of; it cannot be detached from the army.
h) an army can only exist within a certain area of responsibility bordering with another state(s). one special area also exist, which consists of the territories immediately around the capital (one example would be taras, rhegion, and sicily, which borders the romans to the north, and massilia and segesta, which borders the aedui, arverni, and the romans as well). an army can leave its area of responsibility either because of a need to avert disaster in another nearby area of responsibility, or to invade an enemy territory. however, it cannot leave if its area of responsibility is itself threatened with attack without another army to take its place. also, a royal army consisting exactly of three units of argyraspides, three units of pheraspidai, two units of kretan or syrian archers, four units of prodromoi with at least one silver chevron, and three units of hetairoi, commanded by a general who is sharp/uncharismatic/vigorous, honest, and loyal, guards the capital and the surrounding territories. additionally, an internal army consisting of one pezhetairoi/hysteroi pezhetairoi, two melee units, one kretan archer unit, two units of prodromoi, one unit of lonchophoroi, will travel throughout makedonia and its territories to defeat rebels and, if necessary, take extreme measures in cities. It will be sent to areas with serious problems with regards to rebellions and commanded by a governor stationed within that area of territories (thereby simulating a request for additional troops to quell or destroy any rebellion by a governor under his authority)
i) an army which has been defeated with such severity as to render it powerless to retaliate or prevent incursion or invasion is thereafter regarded as decommissioned and therefore disbanded after the crisis resulting from its defeat has been averted. (thankfully this has never happened to me)
j) an army is created after one of three conditions are fulfilled: 1) an invasion of an enemy territory with the intent of permanent control and subsequent development, in which case a new army may be required to protect a territory bordering the areas to be taken; 2) an invasion of an enemy territory not bordering any part of the makedonia and its holdings or dependent states, in which case a new army is required to either take over the area of responsibility of a more experienced army which has been chosen to undertake the aforementioned invasion or to undertake the invasion itself; 3) an army controlling a particular area of responsibility has been annihilated or has suffered such a catastrophic defeat as to render it powerless to retaliate or prevent incursion or invasion, in which case a new army is needed either to take over the destroyed army's area of responsibility after the aversion of crisis by a previously existing army, or to avert the current or potential disaster which the defeat of the previous army in charge of the area of responsibility has caused itself.
k) city garrisons consist of at least one unit of phalangites or two melee units; total garrison cannot exceed four units except if it is a recruitment center or a border city, or both. for cities with public order levels below 105% and above 30%, an additional six units (aside from the four units minimum for a city with good public order) of cheap, numerous auxilia, such as akontistai or eastern skirmishers are allowed. for cities with public order levels of below 30% despite these measures, an extreme measure, the culling of rebellious population, will be undertaken in which 25% of the populace is rounded up and executed every three months (one turn in EB), until public order has been restored to at least 105%. a culling can only be undertaken when an army is ordered to occupy the subject city. (this 'culling' is accomplished through the console command add_population x, with x being a negative number whose absolute value is equal to 25% of the tallied number of the population of the subject city). in events wherein a rebellious populace manages to secede from the empire before a culling can take place, the internal army, which deals with rebellions and cullings, will retake the city and occupy it. after the retaking of a rebellious city a force of ten melee units and ten auxiliary units taken from the areas around the said city will occupy the city for 25 years and perform cullings of 50% of the population every season for one year, after which a culling of 10% of the population every six years will ensue. after the 'culling period' has expired, normal garrison levels will be reinstated, and any additional garrison will be sent back to their place of origin and disbanded.
l) enemy states are conquered, territory by territory, until the last settlement, or more preferably the capital. the enemy state is then offered a protectorate status for 1000000-3000000mnai.


i'm aware that the cavalry levels as well as the phalangite levels in my armies may be ahistorical, but they do the job. also, i've always followed napoleon's suggestion of having more or less a third of the army as cavalry, and it works for me. phalangites meanwhile are for me used to tire out and stall the enemy while i wait for the opportune time to maneuver the cavalry behind them and charge.

i'm going to stop here. i also have rules regarding economy, buildings, etc. hahaha

[glouch]

for my Mak campaign, as well as my AS campaign back in 1.0:

-rules regarding armies, garrisons, and the subjugation of rebellious and enemy states:

a) one argyrasides with two pezhetairoi/hysteroi pazhetairoi, or three pezhetairoi/hysteroi pezhetairoi to serve as a wall and pivot around which a battle will be fought; they are laid out on a continuous wall with the overlaps between units of phalangites to serve as hinges. each phalangite unit is laid out four to five men deep to provide a suitably long, continuous surface upon which the enemy soldiers can tire themselves out; in desperate situations, they are laid out three men deep. one reserve unit of pezhetairoi/hysteroi pezhetairoi will stay at the nearest city able to recruit argyraspides/pezhetairoi/hysteroi pezhetairoi, referenced as a recruitment center.
* in events wherein one or more units of phalangites need urgent retraining while the army is campaigning due to depletion of numbers, the aforementioned reserve unit will take the place of the phalangite unit that is most depleted in numbers; upon retraining the unit rejoins the army immediately, while the reserve unit either returns to the recruitment center or takes the place of another unit in dire need of retraining.
*any unit within the army can only be retrained once in a year.
* any elite unit (such as argyraspides, pheraspides, and hetairoi) can only be retrained once every five years.
b) two to three non-phalangite, sword, axe, or spear-armed melee units to guard the flanks. two of these units are composed of the regional units within the area of responsibility of the particular army it is a part of, while the third will be either an elite melee unit coming from the nearest province which can train melee units which can be deemed as elite or a normal melee unit with significantly more experience than the other two. the purpose of the third melee unit is to support either flank, whichever is in need of assistance; the three units can also be used to strike the enemy at critical moments of the battle, as well as to cover the main army whenever there is a need to make a tactical retreat to a much defensible position, or simply a reordering of the phalangite lines to better face the enemy. an absence of a third supporting elite unit is permissible. one reserve unit will stay at any suitable nearby recruitment center.
* in events wherein one or more units of melee units need urgent retraining while the army is campaigning due to depletion of numbers, the aforementioned reserve unit will take the place of the melee unit that is most depleted in numbers; upon retraining the unit rejoins the army immediately, while the reserve unit either returns to the recruitment center or takes the place of another unit in dire need of retraining.
* any unit within the army can only be retrained once in a year.
* any elite unit (such as argyraspides, pheraspides, and hetairoi) can only be retrained once every five years.
c) two to three units of long-range archers, most commonly kretan archers. celtic archers to the extreme western fronts (massalia), bosporan heavy archers to the north (chersonesos), and syrian and caucasian archers to the extreme east (kotais and antiocheia) will serve this purpose. auxiliary units such as slingers, javelineers, and shorter-ranged archers are permitted, but only two of these kinds of units are ever allowed; after the battle in which their services were required has been concluded, they are detached and sent to their places of origin to be disbanded. one reserve unit will stay at any suitable nearby recruitment center.
* in events wherein one or more units of archer units need urgent retraining while the army is campaigning due to depletion of numbers, the aforementioned reserve unit will take the place of the archer unit that is most depleted in numbers; upon retraining the unit rejoins the army immediately, while the reserve unit either returns to the recruitment center or takes the place of another unit in dire need of retraining.
* any unit within the army can only be retrained once in a year.
* krete is recognized as a special archer recruitment center; at least four units of kretan archers will be present within kydonia at all times.
d) at least four units of prodromoi and two units of lonchophoroi to act as the hammers on the phalangite anvil, as well as to "clean up" any fleeing enemy troops, engage enemy cavalry and skirmishers, and provide additional support for the flanks.
* retraining of any number of cavalry units within an army means a complete retreat of that army to a suitable recruitment center.
e) elite cavalry such as hetairoi are, as much as possible, excluded from any army. if an occasion on which the services of an elite cavalry units is required arises (such as the threat of an enemy army with a, sizeable contingent of kataphractoi or a situation described below) only a maximum of three units are allowed.
* any elite unit (such as argyraspides, pheraspides, and hetairoi) can only be retrained once every five years
f) only one general can lead an army, who should be at least sharp, vigorous, and loyal. upon the appointment of a general to an army, a minimum term of 25 years and a maximum of 50 years of command as strategos of an army will commence. if a general succeeds as basileos during his term of command, he has two options. the first option is to cut short his term upon which he will immediately journey towards the capital, leaving his army to its area of responsibility, but not before a suitable replacement as strategos has been appointed and has taken command of the army. the second option is to remain strategos of the army he currently commands, upon which one unit of hetairoi and one unit of pheraspidai is required to join the army within a peroiod of three years (due to the time required for travel).
g) any unit, upon joining an army, can neither be detached nor disbanded until after 35 years of service, although a unit can be detached from an army to join a newly formed one. however, the three phalangite units are identified with the particular army it is a part of; it cannot be detached from the army.
h) an army can only exist within a certain area of responsibility bordering with another state(s). one special area also exist, which consists of the territories immediately around the capital (one example would be taras, rhegion, and sicily, which borders the romans to the north, and massilia and segesta, which borders the aedui, arverni, and the romans as well). an army can leave its area of responsibility either because of a need to avert disaster in another nearby area of responsibility, or to invade an enemy territory. however, it cannot leave if its area of responsibility is itself threatened with attack without another army to take its place. also, a royal army consisting exactly of three units of argyraspides, three units of pheraspidai, two units of kretan or syrian archers, four units of prodromoi with at least one silver chevron, and three units of hetairoi, commanded by a general who is sharp/uncharismatic/vigorous, honest, and loyal, guards the capital and the surrounding territories. additionally, an internal army consisting of one pezhetairoi/hysteroi pezhetairoi, two melee units, one kretan archer unit, two units of prodromoi, one unit of lonchophoroi, commanded by a general who is at least sharp, vigorous (better with traits pertaining to increased movement), and loyal, will travel throughout makedonia and its territories to defeat rebels and, in necessary, take extreme measures in cities. this internal army is stationed as close as possible to the geographical center of the empire to minimize the time it needs to get to any part of the empire.
i) an army which has been defeated with such severity as to render it powerless to retaliate or prevent incursion or invasion is thereafter regarded as decommissioned and therefore disbanded after the crisis resulting from its defeat has been averted. (thankfully this has never happened to me)
j) an army is created after one of three conditions are fulfilled: 1) an invasion of an enemy territory with the intent of permanent control and subsequent development, in which case a new army may be required to protect a territory bordering the areas to be taken; 2) an invasion of an enemy territory not bordering any part of the makedonia and its holdings or dependent states, in which case a new army is required to either take over the area of responsibility of a more experienced army which has been chosen to undertake the aforementioned invasion or to undertake the invasion itself; 3) an army controlling a particular area of responsibility has been annihilated or has suffered such a catastrophic defeat as to render it powerless to retaliate or prevent incursion or invasion, in which case a new army is needed either to take over the destroyed army's area of responsibility after the aversion of crisis by a previously existing army, or to avert the current or potential disaster which the defeat of the previous army in charge of the area of responsibility has caused itself.
k) city garrisons consist of at least one unit of phalangites or two melee units; total garrison cannot exceed four units except if it is a recruitment center or a border city, or both. for cities with public order levels below 105% and above 30%, an additional six units (aside from the four units minimum for a city with good public order) of cheap, numerous auxilia, such as akontistai or eastern skirmishers are allowed. for cities with public order levels of below 30% despite these measures, an extreme measure, the culling of rebellious population, will be undertaken in which 25% of the populace is rounded up and executed every three months (one turn in EB), until public order has been restored to at least 105%. a culling can only be undertaken when an army is ordered to occupy the subject city. (this 'culling' is accomplished through the console command add_population x, with x being a negative number whose absolute value is equal to 25% of the tallied number of the population of the subject city). in events wherein a rebellious populace manages to secede from the empire before a culling can take place, the internal army, which deals with rebellions and cullings, will retake the city and occupy it. after the retaking of a rebellious city a force of ten melee units and ten auxiliary units taken from the areas around the said city will occupy the city for 25 years and perform cullings of 50% of the population every season for one year, after which a culling of 10% of the population every six years will ensue. after the 'culling period' has expired, normal garrison levels will be reinstated, and any additional garrison will be sent back to their place of origin and disbanded.
l) the empire is carved up into different territories composed of about +/- 5 adjacent provinces; in the richest of these provinces a governor is assigned. these 'minor capitals' have additional contingents of two units of prodromoi, a unit of archers, and a unit of pezhetairoi/hysteroi pezhetairoi stationed in forts outside the city. when the internal army is called up in cases of emergency, these units are temporarily combined with the internal army, forming a full-sized army capable of dealing with any rebellion. at the conclusion of the crisis, the internal army is sent back to its post. this system however cannot be reliably used to counter against enemy incursion since the internal army needs a turn or two at least to reach any territory in need of assistance because of its base at the center of the empire.
m) enemy states are conquered, territory by territory, until the last settlement, or more preferably the capital. the enemy state is then offered a protectorate status for 1000000-3000000mnai.


i'm aware that the cavalry levels as well as the phalangite levels in my armies may be ahistorical, but they do the job. also, i've always followed napoleon's suggestion of having more or less a third of the army as cavalry, and it works for me. phalangites meanwhile are for me used to tire out and stall the enemy while i wait for the opportune time to maneuver the cavalry behind them and charge. also, use made these house rules to keep the combined number of my armies as small as possible without sacrificing effectiveness so that i get the absolute optimum income every turn.

i'm going to stop here. i also have rules regarding economy, buildings, etc. hahaha

[seienchin]

f) only one general can lead an army, who should be at least sharp, vigorous, and loyal. upon the appointment of a general to an army, a minimum term of 25 years and a maximum of 50 years of command as strategos of an army will commence
Why do you choose only smart guys??

[Centurio Nixalsverdrus]

No troops may travel without a general; ever.

Don't you send around your units to arrange them finely ordered by unit types in your armies?

To simulate communication problems caused by distance in ancient times, any communication between two characters which occupy the same province happens in the same season, but if the two characters are in a different province, the news does not reach the other character until the next season.

That's a good thing. I do that as well, but I don't have to force myself in the slightest, I'm just so lazy that I take a look at the menace, look a second time the next turn, look a third time the next turn again, until I can finally get myself to order some mass-recruitments or whatever... Well great empires react slow but steady, don't they?

[Heilong]

I play on VH campaign and Medium battle difficulty. I do not replay battles or redo turns.

I limit myself by having only one city out of 15 produce field armies. For example, when I play as the Romans, I only produce troops in Rome. When I have conquered 15 cities, I allow myself to produce troops in an additional city (usually Segesta). This limits my expansion significantly.
However when I play as Rome, I build Brihentin in Mediolanium because Roman cavalry is pretty poor in my opinion (especially in the Camilian and Polybian eras).
I produce garrisons in another city (usually Taras if I'm playing Rome) and the garissons are entirely Akontistai. I never have garrison armies fight battles by themselves unless they are under siege and the AI assults the settlement.

I rarely use mercs. When I play as Rome I hire Merc Kretian archers and sometimes some additional cavalry. When I played as Pontus, I hired a couple of horse archers.

When I play as Rome my army usually comprises of 10 infantry, 4 cavalry, 4 ranged units and one or two family members. After an army engages in combat I bring up a reserve half stack comprised of 5 infantry, 2 cavalry and 2 ranged units to reinforce the main army. I retrain the remnants of the half stack. I amost never have the reserve half stack engage in combat unless its against rebels or its an emergency.

I always expel (the last option) when I conquer a settlement. I always build a type 4 government and recruit a Client Ruler to govern the settlement. I do not upgrade the settlement until the Client Ruler dies or until he is really old (60+).

I do use Force diplomacy but I do not abuse it. I only use it to make peace with the AI when the AI is too stupid to realize that it is loosing the war.

I do not cause rebelions in AI controlled settlements because the AI isn't advanced enough to use spies and assassins against me.
I do not bribe.

I do "sit" on bridges, river crossings and other choke points along the map. I feel that "sitting" is historical and makes the most logical sense.

After reading this thread, I will give the slave faction some extra money each turn when I begin a new campaign. In my current Roman campaign, the game is too far along for the slave faction to make a difference.

I have only played as Rome, Pontus, Macedon and Bactria.

[seienchin]

I always expel (the last option) when I conquer a settlement. I always build a type 4 government and recruit a Client Ruler to govern the settlement. I do not upgrade the settlement until the Client Ruler dies or until he is really old (60+).


I have only played as Rome, Pontus, Macedon and Bactria.

I did this too in my bactrian campain, but it ruined me cause the client rulers in the east are incredible expensive.

By the way dull characters often tunr out to be the better generals.

[Elcmar]

If i have a huge surplus of FM's and a reasonable amount of cash (usually late game Romani, Maks, AS etc) i'll use spare FM's to roleplay stuff - like build a fort on/near choke points or resources and stick a low-influence or useless character and RP that they've been 'banished' to some backwater or fallen out of favour etc. Usually only happens when i have too many FM's or generals.

Oh and as mentioned before, i'll usually simulate reforms for the AS and Makedonia by adding units to the roster as i defeat certain factions or have prolonged wars with them