Why are the Ptolemaioi such a hated faction?

[Kevin]

I find them actually pretty fun especially since they are the only faction that actually makes money in the beginning. They're like easier than playing as the Romani
Plus, their elite phalanxes look pretty cool

[Centurio Nixalsverdrus]

I find them actually pretty fun especially since they are the only faction that actually makes money in the beginning. They're like easier than playing as the Romani
Plus, their elite phalanxes look pretty cool

Because they regularly win against the AS and become the Yellow Fever, aka Yellow Plague or Yellow Death.

[Megas Methuselah]

Because they regularly win against the AS and become the Yellow Fever, aka Yellow Plague or Yellow Death.

Yes. They're fun to play as, but when put in the hands of the AI, they become the scum of the earth: elite spammers.

[gamegeek2]

Because they make me cheat the AS money every few turns

[satalexton]

come to think of it, why don't we just modify the script to give the AS a special 'anti yellow-plague' financial boost?

[Celtic_Punk]

cause the AS is supposed to collapse.

[Knight of Heaven]

Yes or other option will be a kingdom of Judia? No?

[Cute Wolf]

No, at least I didn't hate Ptolemaioi..... Actually they are the funniest faction because I once found their family are filled with Iudaios.... No other factions could do that........

But although they are elite spammers..... they didn't pose much threat.....

[Kevin]

Yes or other option will be a kingdom of Judia? No?

I have no idea what you're talking about

No, at least I didn't hate Ptolemaioi..... Actually they are the funniest faction because I once found their family are filled with Iudaios.... No other factions could do that........

But although they are elite spammers..... they didn't pose much threat.....

Iudaios? What's that?

[fleaza]

it means jewish i think.

no one likes the ptolemaioi because their founder was a snivelling ratbag who stole alexanders corpse and brought it to egypt.
they live in a desert.

they mate with their sisters.
they were historically weak after the first few rulers.
they have bad units.
they are not interesting.
the egyptians werent conquerors or warriors, they were farmers.
the constant yellow colour is sickening to the eyes.
they shouldve been the second diadoch to have been conquered dammit, i hate it how they outlasted all others.
their name is confusing to prnounce.

[Kevin]

it means jewish i think.

no one likes the ptolemaioi because their founder was a snivelling ratbag who stole alexanders corpse and brought it to egypt.
they live in a desert.

they mate with their sisters.
they were historically weak after the first few rulers.
they have bad units.
they are not interesting.
the egyptians werent conquerors or warriors, they were farmers.
the constant yellow colour is sickening to the eyes.
they shouldve been the second diadoch to have been conquered dammit, i hate it how they outlasted all others.
their name is confusing to prnounce.

...a..a..alright then....

[kekailoa]

it means jewish i think.

no one likes the ptolemaioi because their founder was a snivelling ratbag who stole alexanders corpse and brought it to egypt.
they live in a desert.

they mate with their sisters.
they were historically weak after the first few rulers.
they have bad units.
they are not interesting.
the egyptians werent conquerors or warriors, they were farmers.
the constant yellow colour is sickening to the eyes.
they shouldve been the second diadoch to have been conquered dammit, i hate it how they outlasted all others.
their name is confusing to prnounce.

Seriously, you gotta cut out the things like calling them (...). Not respectful at all, and plus some of the rest of what you said isn't respectful to those who like them or the modders who created the faction.

I like the Ptolemai, especially their Galatians.

[mountaingoat]

i lol'd

i never really encounter them , but the yellow death is annoying to see , even when you are playing as the casse.

[Apázlinemjó]

The players like the challenges and the Ptolies offer little about that. You start with a good position, good economy, good army, your only enemy is a collapsing AS in the first 50 years, so yeah, maybe that's why.

[gamegeek2]

It has more to do with the AI Ptollies.

[Apázlinemjó]

It has more to do with the AI Ptollies.

In most of my campaigns they don't become the Yellow Fever. They usually lose Anatolia to AS, Makedonia, Pontos or KH then they reach Seleukeia and Babylon and stop there. Eventually they end up battling the Carthagians, who are quite equal with them by there. So I don't really have experience with them as "the superpower".

[Megas Methuselah]

they mate with their sisters.

Hey, mane! We all have our turn-ons...

In most of my campaigns they don't become the Yellow Fever. They usually lose Anatolia to AS, Makedonia, Pontos or KH then they reach Seleukeia and Babylon and stop there.

Wow. You're a lucky kid. Have you seen any of the screenshots scattered across the EB Forums? Yellow death from Cyrene to India, from Nubia to the Crimean Peninsula.

[Alsatia]

Ptolemaioi are obliterating AS in my campaigns, not comforting when you have to conquer half of their lands for Victory Conditions.

I thought Rome was hated the most.

[Ca Putt]

as Player:
1. they are easy
1. b : theyonly have one "direct" enemy (the AS) and two far away possible enemies (Saba and Kart hadast) of which one is Saba ;)
2. They have almost the same roster as the AS(+ their Celtic friends)
2b. they lack the really cool units of the AS :(
3. they live in the desert(and are not a HA faction^^)
4.They are Yellow

as AI opponent
1. they often become a elite spamming superpower(tho they always loose to AS in my campaigns)
2. they live in the desert
3. They are Yellow

[HunGeneral]

no one likes the ptolemaioi because their founder was a snivelling ratbag who stole alexanders corpse and brought it to egypt.

Seconded - this is the reason I try to kill of the ptolies as soon as possible while playing as any Diadochi faction

they live in a desert.

I don't think thats the reason. They have all there centers around the nile so they have a nice economy (one worth taking).

they mate with their sisters.
they were historically weak after the first few rulers.
they have bad units.

Seconded, seconded and seconded

they are not interesting.

Well not as interresting as the others, but still noteworthy to conquer them.

the egyptians werent conquerors or warriors, they were farmers.

Most of the ruling Elite and the warriors the Ptolies fielded were primarly of Hellene, Galatian or foreign descent and considered foreigners to Egypt (no wonder the locals hated them so much).

the constant yellow colour is sickening to the eyes.

Especially is such a size they would become if you leave them unchecked

they shouldve been the second diadoch to have been conquered dammit, i hate it how they outlasted all others.

I think the Arche Seleukeia could have been a worthy heir to Alexander but besides them the Ptolies were closest to being "the strongest".... for a while.

their name is confusing to pronounce.

I think you can get used to it, but there is an easier solution -

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

you quessed it: conquer Aigyptos

[Seneca]

I'm in 237 bc now on my KH save. the Ptolemaioi are doing their best to obliterate the AS and all things around it, and has spammed countless stacks of quality units to siege me at Rhodos.

I feed the AS and the sabyn with mnai to bring some balance, but the stupid AS just spam stacks of merc to take baktria while losing all of their western provinces.

I'm thinking about a punitive expedition to sack alexandria and memphis, and thereby damage their economy. Trusted ally my ass.

[Andronikos]

no one likes the ptolemaioi because their founder was a snivelling ratbag who stole alexanders corpse and brought it to egypt.

I prefer Antigonids, but first 3 Ptolemies are another of my favourite Successors, they were good and strong kings.

they live in a desert

I like deserts and desert people, but I don't consider Ptolemies desert people, Saba and Numidians are.

the egyptians werent conquerors or warriors, they were farmers

yes, but your warrior class are Greeks, Makedonians and Galatians, so you can have Egyptians farming and making money for your expansions with these three nations in armies

They are Yellow

What's wrong with yellow color???


Actually, in the beginnig Egypt was the most stable successor kingdom, Egyptians hated Persians, so they adored Alexander who freed them and they accepted Makedonian rule, yes they were farmers and so they were happy when they didn't have to be in army and their rulers were tolerant to their culture and religion. Unlike Seleucid empire, where Persians who were defeated and conquered by Alexandros didn't accept Makedonian rule. Revolts in Egypt started as a consequence to later weak kings. So in 272 BC they are on a good starting position to become great empire if a wise and strong king (the player) controls them.

[Apázlinemjó]

Wow. You're a lucky kid. Have you seen any of the screenshots scattered across the EB Forums? Yellow death from Cyrene to India, from Nubia to the Crimean Peninsula.

Yeah maybe, in my two top priority campaigns they are forced to retreat settlement by settlement.

In the Makedonia one, they are losing ground against Karthadast and KH, while they are also at war with Saba and AS:

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

In the Luso one, they started the campaign good, took Assyria and such, but it turned sad around 250 BC. They lost Anatolia to AS and currently losing their ground on the Levant. They are at war with a strong Saba. Though their war with the Karthadast ended with peace, because I invaded Morocco and Algeria.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

[The General]

I find them actually pretty fun especially since they are the only faction that actually makes money in the beginning. They're like easier than playing as the Romani
Plus, their elite phalanxes look pretty cool

It's not so much playing as them that people hate, but the playing against them, due to their tendency to conquer Syria and become an elite-stack spamming powerhouse.

it means jewish i think.

no one likes the ptolemaioi because their founder was a snivelling ratbag who stole alexanders corpse and brought it to egypt.
they live in a desert.
they mate with their sisters.
they were historically weak after the first few rulers.
they have bad units.
they are not interesting.
the egyptians werent conquerors or warriors, they were farmers.
the constant yellow colour is sickening to the eyes.
they shouldve been the second diadoch to have been conquered dammit, i hate it how they outlasted all others.
their name is confusing to prnounce.

Ptolemy just happened to be the one of the diadochi who was succesful, I'd think everyone wanted to claim Alexander's body as a justification of their reign and/or right to become the master of the hellenistic world.

They do not live in a desert, they live surrounded by a desert (the Nile valley is, after all, one of the most fertile patches of land on Earth).

Can't say I agree with their decision, but it was a part of their attempt to appear as Pharaohs of old to appease the native Egyptians. Think we all know how well that worked out...

All the Diadochi states waned in power after their initial rulers, usually due to a combination of constant warfare between themselves, increasing external pressure and internal instability.

They do not have bad units; they don't have as strong units as the other Diadochi do - however, they're not "bad" (Klerouchon Agema, Galatikoi Kleruchoi, Hetairoi, etc.).

They are not interesting to you. Personally I find them quite an interesting bunch of inbreds (think Habsburgs).

The Egyptians were primarily farmers, yes, and Ptolemaic warriors are primarily Makedonian, Greek and Galatian. However, even the ancient Egyptians conquered lands from Sudan to Iraq and Libya.

It's a tough world, sometimes the snake outlasts the lion.

Ptolemy is pronounced 'tɒləmi.



(I'm not even a fan of the Ptolemies, for the sake of record)

[fleaza]

Seriously, you gotta cut out the things like calling them gay. Not respectful at all, and plus some of the rest of what you said isn't respectful to those who like them or the modders who created the faction.

I like the Ptolemai, especially their Galatians.

well its my opinion. im sure they wont actually mind. if they went around digging their nose into everyone who didnt respect them theyd get nothing done.

i find playing against them the most rewarding aspects to RTW. in every campaign near the mediterannian sea i ship my units over there to sack alexandria and memphis. to cripple them. conquering egypt is the most rewarding aspect to the game as well because its such a population booster. every 20 turns you conquer alexandria/memphis and enslave it. gives you around 20000 extra population which rocks. you can do the same to carthage but carthage isnt such a destructive blitzer as the ptolemies so you dont need to keep them in check.

btw the gay names thing was a joke.

oh and they have bad temples. none of their gods appeal to me. makedons have herakles and zeus. seleukids have seleukos himself! ptolemies have...serapis.

i admit that ptolemy himself was a brilliant successor. except for the fact that seleukos ruled the gretest amount of land, ptolemy was the most succesful diadoch.

[Mister V]

I don't really hate them either. I don't find them too interesting to play, but they're always fun to crush (and I've never had to deal with the Yellow Death either). I also like yellow (not their sand yellow, more like Golden Yellow, but still).

Another irrational dislike fed by favourable circumstances for the AI.

[A_Dane]

i hate them and the seleucids equally much, coz in my camapaings they never fight, and instead go after me -.- (pontus or armenia mostly) even when they could gain a hell alot more and easier from the other part. never actually seen them expand that much, even when i'm not nearby..

[abou]

well its my opinion. im sure they wont actually mind. if they went around digging their nose into everyone who didnt respect them theyd get nothing done.

Well, no, we wouldn't get much done. That doesn't mean we're cool with people calling things "gay". Please refrain from it on this board.

[Raygereio]

Well, let's see what my English dictionary has to say about the matter:
Gay:
1. having or showing a merry, lively mood: gay spirits; gay music.
2. bright or showy: gay colors; gay ornaments.

Surely, both definitions can apply to the Ptolemaioi?
I certainly would be in a merry and lively mood if I kicked the Arche Seleukia around like it's nobody's business and have more money then I know what to do with.
And those yellow colours of theirs, if that's not bright and showy I don't know what is...

(Sorry, I just can't resist dumb jokes like that)

Anyway:
In my experience, as long as the Arche's eastern front is stable enough so that they don't have to send a lot of resource that way; they can do a good job of halting the Ptolemaioi's advance to the north. Certainly long enough for the Saba and Carthaginians to start harassing them from the east and west, effectivly stopping the Ptolemaioi and force them on the defensive.

Only problem is that on campaign difficulties of hard or very-hard the Ptolemaioi's main target - Arche Seleukia -tends to switch to 'Rahr! Player! Smash!'-mode and starts to mindlessly attack you if you're a neighbouring faction, allowing the Ptolemaioi to strike in the Arche's soft underbelly early in the game, which is is not something the AI can deal with.

Usually though, I am able to use force-diplomacy to keep the Arche's east stable and keep them focussed on their west long enough (roughly 10-20 years) to allow the Arche's AI to build up a decent infrastructure, at which point they don't need help anymore and can actually defend themselves against the dreaded yellow fever.

Honestly though, if your criteria for hating a faction is that the AI will form a superpower 9 out 10 times, then why not hate the Sweboz of the Lusotanna too?

[Tyrfingr]

Because the most guys who are familiar with RTW's "The Mummy's return"-egyptians hates, by default, any faction used to represent Egypt during the timespan of 272BC and 0AD.