Introductions from an EB noob

[RomanHoliday]

Hi all,

have just joined these forums as i'm about to play EB for the first time(!) and the 'forum' link on europabarbarorum.com links to here, so I thought I'd introduce myself. I normally post as "DSmtw2" on the yuku forums, so some of you may know me from there...

I'm an old school RTS player (C&C titles, AoE and EE titles), introduced to TW series with Rome, since played Rome Vanilla, BI, Alexander and Rome Darth Mod, Medieval 2, Med2 Stainless Steel, Med2 retrofit/grand campaign unit add-on, Empire Vanilla. Finding Empire to be incredibly disappointing, so i reloaded RTW and went to visit the RTW yuku forums, where i found everyone was raving about something called EB...

So now I'm about to play EB for the first time...!!

Just finished downloading 1.1 and 1.2, so I'll install it tonight (provided my GF hasn't made other plans for us) and have a bit of play, then come back and post some initial impressions. Have been reading up on the mod on europabarbarorum.com so I think I'm pretty clued up, but we'll see...

one thing i didn't see any reference to on europabarbarorum.com was artillery - is there none in this mod?

looking forward to playing EB and forum-ing with you all,
cheers,
DS

[Vasiliyi]

Hi all,

have just joined these forums as i'm about to play EB for the first time(!) and the 'forum' link on europabarbarorum.com links to here, so I thought I'd introduce myself. I normally post as "DSmtw2" on the yuku forums, so some of you may know me from there...

I'm an old school RTS player (C&C titles, AoE and EE titles), introduced to TW series with Rome, since played Rome Vanilla, BI, Alexander and Rome Darth Mod, Medieval 2, Med2 Stainless Steel, Med2 retrofit/grand campaign unit add-on, Empire Vanilla. Finding Empire to be incredibly disappointing, so i reloaded RTW and went to visit the RTW yuku forums, where i found everyone was raving about something called EB...

So now I'm about to play EB for the first time...!!

Just finished downloading 1.1 and 1.2, so I'll install it tonight (provided my GF hasn't made other plans for us) and have a bit of play, then come back and post some initial impressions. Have been reading up on the mod on europabarbarorum.com so I think I'm pretty clued up, but we'll see...

one thing i didn't see any reference to on europabarbarorum.com was artillery - is there none in this mod?

looking forward to playing EB and forum-ing with you all,
cheers,
DS

Well, welcome to the org. Oh and ill be waiting for you to be saying.....

"THIS IS THE BEST MOD EVER!!!!!" ... trust me, you'll be saying it.. We get those posts every other week or so. Anyways enjoy the mod, its amazing.

Oh, and there is artillery in this mod, but its extremely expensive and not available to all factions.

[Nachtmeister]

Welcome to the .org, RomanHoliday!

First off, to answer your question - yes there is artillery in EB, although I personally have not used it very much so far - it is not really necessary and very expensive in terms of upkeep.
You will generally find that the big spending days for your faction as they were in RTW vanilla are now over - you have to carefully consider cost-effective army composition and plan your economy well; even roman units cost a lot more than in RTW vanilla.
If you *want* siege weapons anyway, I recommend the western Greek factions (Epeiros, Makedonia, Koinon Hellenon) as they have the easiest access to siege weapons. This is by no means the only reason to play them, but they are the inventors of much of the EB time period's siege weaponry.
In general, elephants are far more useful (if your faction can recruit them) and they cost about the same.

If you want to find out about the availability of any units for a faction, check the recruitment viewer that will install with EB. It is a bit outdated (from EB1.0 iirc), but for the most part it is still accurate.

Before you try your first battles, read Ibrahim's guide to using cavalry.
The gameplay guide thread is a bit outdated in terms of details, but the general guidance is still very valid.

Also, the FAQ thread is a must-read due to the intricate reform, ancillary and government systems of EB...

There are a couple of useful tactics threads around here to prepare you for commanding and fighting against Hellenistic armies - something that you will likely be doing a lot, unless you intend to play the Casse or Sweboz (which I would not recommend for starters because they are economically even more difficult than the rest):
https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showthread.php?t=116505
https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showthread.php?t=116238

Or a starting guide for the Saba faction that I once did on request by another forum member:
https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showp...2&postcount=10

I hope some of this is useful to you.
Enjoy!

[satalexton]

feel free to ask maion and me on how to play as the civillized people! and welcome!

[Ariovistus Maximus]

Welcome Bacchanalia! ( just a guess?)

The forums are full of cool stuff! Check out some gameplay guides unless you like to learn the hard way. Then go check out the AAR forum! Truly inspiring; you will want to play 5 factions at once. Also, looking at AARs will drag you through the impossible installation sequence (unless you are on something other than Vista).

And then you should go to the Location... thread and tell us about yourself!

And then post lots of smileys.



And then check out my ancient weapons study. If you are interested in the topic, that is.

[Fluvius Camillus]

Welcome to the Forums!

Feel free to ask questions here (if the FAQ does not answer them), the members here are very helpful and usually answer quite fast.

For the artillery question, there is still artillery here, however I rarely use it. I don't find them that worthwhile as RTW and the costs are immense. So don't expect to use heavy onagers on enemy formations.

Good luck choosing one of the varied, awesome factions of EB.

~Fluvius

[Dutchhoplite]

Hmm, i just was on the receiving end of some KH artillery which is...errrr...a experience you want to forget ;)


For the rest: have fun

[RomanHoliday]

@Vasiliyi: thanks, yes I think I will be exclaiming that quite soon!

@ Nachtmeister: yes I checked out that recruitment viewer before starting a game, very handy tool. And thanks for those other links, the FAQ in particular looks very helpful, I do want to know more about government types (and using cavalry). Yes I'm starting as Romani, so will definitely read those tactics threads.

@ satalexton: thanks, will hit you up when I need 'civilized' advice!

@Ariovistus Maximus: Bacchanalia? Not sure what you're guessing there. And AAR forum? will check that out, thanks...

@ Fluvius Camillus and Dutchhoplite: thanks for the advice on artillery, yes it will be very interesting to adjust my gameplay to working without it...


So... first impression is, of course, WOW! what an unbelievable mod, so rich and deep, i want to take a few days off work and just immerse myself in it. Didn't have much time last night, so I started a Romani game and process_cq'd each settlement a few times to see what buildings lead to what and what units each can train etc.. There is so much choice and variation, and even though the descriptors attached to everything in-game are quite detailed, I'll definitely need to read the links Nachtmeister has supplied above before commencing a proper game.

Ok thanks again everyone for the warm welcome and advice, looks like I've got a whole new TW game to get lost in this winter (Empire who?)

cheers,
DS

[Ariovistus Maximus]

You will love it; guaranteed by my little yellow attorney here

Oh, bacchannalia (I don't even remember the spelling) was a psychotic holiday to celebrate the Roman god Bacchus. It was one of the more riotous celebrations in the year... kinda like Mardi Gras x 1000 i guess.

Oh, general reference 4 your first game (something I still don't have figured out); early game debt management is crucial. You will start out losing like 3000 a turn as most factions. Rome and Carthage are good though.

Anyways, enjoy!!!

[teh1337tim]

you will want to releplay the legions in your Roma empire and also dont just blitz. Start out slow, all you really got is strong stacks of eluethriea (dump epirote out asap and ceasefire + traderights)




1. Expand historically south till u get to sicily. Then head north and conquer to mediolanium and massalia. Hold them till the 2nd punic wars then take sicily. Hold it till it gets to polybian reforms then wait 10 years and move torwards greece...

Theres a guide somewhere to historical roma expansion, you should dig it up...

ALSO always use type 4 no matter if you got home settlement or not, after 20 or so years destroy it and move a type 3, then another generation later put to type 2 and so on!

[TheStranger]

ALSO always use type 4 no matter if you got home settlement or not, after 20 or so years destroy it and move a type 3, then another generation later put to type 2 and so on!

Aha and why?

[V.T. Marvin]

Well, just because it is nice for role-playing.

For Romani, one may want to take some inspiration from this guide.

Have fun and welcome to the Guild!

[RomanHoliday]

@ Ariovistus Maximus: oh, that Bacchanalia! No, my sign-in name come from the old 1950s movie 'Roman Holiday', but is more about the fact that I'm taking a holiday in R:TW/EB while I wait for CA to make Empire playable - insert 'Waiting for Godot' joke here...! And yeah I've read about the early debt issues, cheers

@ teh1337tim: yeah I'm a turtle of epic proportions, so i will definitely start out slow. Yep got some good guides about initial expansion from earlier replies, thanks. Like 'TheStranger' said, interested to know why you recommend always going for type IV...?

@ V.T. Marvin: was your comment, "Well, just because it is nice for role-playing", and answer to TheStranger's question about teh1337tim's comment?

cheers,
DS

[V.T. Marvin]

@ V.T. Marvin: was your comment, "Well, just because it is nice for role-playing", and answer to TheStranger's question about teh1337tim's comment?

cheers,
DS

Yes it was.
For instance, I like to role-play that until the late Republican period the "Roman Empire" was actually a system of alliances of formally still independent states. This is well represented in the game by Type4 gov. With the exeption of Italic core (Rome, Capua, Arpi, Arretium, Ariminum), Sicily and Corse/Sardin, all my provinces are Type4 (I am just pass year 200 BC) - some have a third client ruler now. They recruit and pay for their own troops (i.e. the upkeep of such "allied army" cannot exceed the income of th province) and fight alongside Roman legions if/when appropriate.

[iounas]

I recently got into TW and didnt even finish the rtw campaign and got straight to EB..
I also got med2+kingdoms but didnt play it yet.. Maybe I will try Stainless Steel and Third Age until EB2 comes out as I like ancient age the most for variety of units and factions and different tactics against other factions.
As for empire I dont like that age and Im not a fan of gunpowder and I hear every nation has basically the same units.

[HunGeneral]

Welcome to the forums RomanHoliday!

Good to see new faces on the forums. Well I can't add too much to all the suggestions which have been made so far so I'll just say: enjoy EB

And something extra: if you ever get to play as a nomad faction and could use some tips or have any questions then I and some other Nomadfans around here will be glad to help. All you need to do is answer.

[Fluvius Camillus]

Roleplay or Blitz, its your choice not ours.

You just play like you want to and how you enjoy this awesome mod the most.

~Fluvius

[Molinaargh]

Roleplay or Blitz, its your choice not ours.

You just play like you want to and how you enjoy this awesome mod the most.

~Fluvius

Personally I like to Blitzplay or Roleitz.

[Scud]

"THIS IS THE BEST MOD EVER!!!!!"

This a double-edged sword though. I now expect all other mods (not only for the TW series) to be of the same high quality and completeness (as in, putting the 'total' into 'total conversion')..

I've only found a few mods that come close, with plenty mods being discarded. If it wasn't for EB, I'd probably been very content with such mods - but I have too high standards now!

[Ariovistus Maximus]

If u r a CivIV player Diversica 1.0 is an AWESOME MOD!!! Find it on civfanatics.com.

It would probably fulfill your expectations. It basically changes all the skins so that each faction has different-looking units.

Anyways,

[soup_alex]

Hail! I hope to see you around on the fora!

I really like the film on which your name is (partially) based! (really, gorgeous film... those who haven't seen it, should)

and last of all,

"Don't forget to activate the script!" :D

[RomanHoliday]

@ V.T. Marvin: ah I see, thanks for elaborating. That's an interesting realism strategy, and I like the idea of client rulers recruiting and paying for their own troops. So does this happen automatically once you set up a type IV government?

@ iounas: yes i agree re; Empire, I don't like that era either, and besides all the bug and AI problems they have with that game, I think the fundamental problem with it is the age they've chosen - not enough variety, challenge or strategy in rows of riflemen lining up to shoot at each other...

@ HunGeneral: thanks, I'll remember that when I progress to playing the Nomads

@ Fluvius Camillus and Molinaargh: yes this roleplay v. blitz dichotomy is something I'm only just becoming aware of after reading some of the guides previous posters recommended to me. It took me a while to realize that some of what I was reading was actually about how best to Roleplay, which often means limiting what you do and when you do it for the purposes of realism, rather than the most direct or efficient way to dominate, which I guess falls in to the category of Blitz. I think, as per Molinaargh's comment, that I might be in the Blitzplay or Roleitz middle part of the spectrum (typical Libran!)...

@ Scud: yes the modders do keep raising the bar, great for us!

@ Ariovistus Maximus: never played the Civ games (blasphemous to some, I know), but thanks for the tip

@ soup_alex: yep classic film! tried to pretend I was in it when tramping around Rome in my backpacker days...

cheers,
DS

[Ariovistus Maximus]

Well, it is just your first game after all, not the Olympics...

Unless you suffer from OCD.

I have to confess I played my first game as Bactria, and on easy! Abominable, I know... it was mostly to get past the beginning.

Anyways, its not the end of the world if ur 1st EB experience is confusing is it?

Ooh, now I remember why I posted in the 1st place; if you get confused or need inspiration, check out the AAR forum! MAA, Chirurgeon, and SwissBarbar have some great ones in there! And there are a number of others as well! Grand stuff!

Bon Apetite!

[soup_alex]

To continue a thread: I don't think that finding EB quite confusing initially is anything to really be ashamed of. I know I took a little while to completely comprehend Gov't types (playing as SSbQ, I wondered why they only had three available types, and that they were for some reason numbered II-IV)


This just in: Roman Holiday is still awesome, and everybody should see it (including Maion and satalexton ~:P). I actually visited Rome before watching the film, though, but I suppose this made the experience all the sweeter.
[/OOT]

[RomanHoliday]

Hey Ariovistus Maximus you mentioned AAR in your first post too, but i can't find any reference to that acronym in the 'search' for these forums. What is AAR?

edit: is it 'After Action Review'? That is the only definition on google that would make sense in this context...

[soup_alex]

After Action Report, IIRC ()

You should find a subforum mostly dedicated to them at the top of the EB Fora index page. An AAR is essentially some form of write-up of events from a game, that can encompass many different styles. I have to admit that I personally prefer to discuss the game itself (or play it!), but can nonetheless heartily recommend them (at least, most of those I have read)

[Vasiliyi]

This a double-edged sword though. I now expect all other mods (not only for the TW series) to be of the same high quality and completeness (as in, putting the 'total' into 'total conversion')..

I've only found a few mods that come close, with plenty mods being discarded. If it wasn't for EB, I'd probably been very content with such mods - but I have too high standards now!

HA! EB is the only thing I play and I dont regret it. There is NOTHING that compares to it. Im kinda upset I wasted money on getting ETW, although it did prompt me to get a new video card so now I can enjoy eb even more..

[RomanHoliday]

ah thanks soup_alex, you must have been posting at the same time as I edited. Yep, have found that area of the fora, cheers...

I feel the same way Vasiliyi! I wish i'd known about EB before i wasted $110 on Empire...

[V.T. Marvin]

@ V.T. Marvin: ah I see, thanks for elaborating. That's an interesting realism strategy, and I like the idea of client rulers recruiting and paying for their own troops. So does this happen automatically once you set up a type IV government?DS

It would be a cool feature to have, but (un)fortunately you have to to do it yourself, aka role-pay it. Some people set TypeIV provinces on auto-management, but I personally NEVER do that, I simply do not trust the AI to do the right thing. What I do is to check the settlement details how much the province actually make from trade/taxes(mining) and based on that I recruit locally available troops to simulate regional army.
For instance Segesta (Liguria): 2 Sotaroas, 3 Gaemilae Liguriae, 1 Ligurian Cavalry; Segestica (Pannonia Illyrica) 3 Illyroi Theureoporoi, 2 Illyroi Paraktioi, 1x Illyrioi Hippeis; Syracusai: 1 akontistai, 3 syracusan hoplites, 2 peltastai; Taras: 1 toxotai, 2 hoplitai, 2 petastai, 1 Hippeis Tarentinoi; and so on...

My "legion" is 1-2 Family memebers as commander(s), 1 velites, 2 hastati, 2 principes, 1 triarii. This roman core is always the same in all my legions, complemented by the above-mentioned allied army according to the theatre of operations.

But of course, you are completely free to develop your own house-rules and play the game according to your own taste. This was just to provide some inspiration.

[RomanHoliday]

Nice, thanks V.T. Marvin. I am slowly coming to terms with the differentiation between roleplay and standard gameplay conventions in the replies so far, likewise in the guides some posters have provided links for.