Baktrian Conditions

[Tenebrous]

Hey guys.

Must say I'm really enjoying my Baktrian campaign. Doing well, have most of India and Persopolis along the coast and am enjoying pushing the AS and the great mulititude of units. I can recruit 35 different units in Baktra alone. Awesome mod!

Anyways I have to ask, I did a search but turned up nothing. Why do the VC include the steppes. I want to avoid them like the plague, but they are in the VC. I am wondering the historical reason for this, because if there is a reason Baktria would go up there, then I will. I find that pushing westward, trying to create Alexanders empire the way he envisioned it (I accept all ethnicities into the family tree, other RP like that), seems more logical, and I'm planning to go all the way to Greece and Egypt.
So what reasons would Baktria want to involve itself in the hell that is the steppes? Or is it more of a challenge thing?

[anubis88]

The VC are more guidelines then anything alse.

After all, not all of the EB factions were expansionistic, or at least not nearly expansionistic as their VC want them to be.

Baktria never opted for the steppes, but i guess if you go there you kinda cover your back from the other nomadic groups in Asia

[podoh]

If I'm not mistaken the Baktria VC don't include any real steppe regions.
Ok, they do include the starting province of the saka, but that's very mountainous anyway, so it's not that hard to keep it as a settled faction.
The "real" steppes are more westward, like the north of sogdiane and the pahlava homelands and off course the sarmatian steppes.

[Skoran]

I am thinking about starting a Baktrian campaign soon. I never fought in the east, though. I always play with western factions

Any stuff that I must know that are different?

[anubis88]

I am thinking about starting a Baktrian campaign soon. I never fought in the east, though. I always play with western factions

Any stuff that I must know that are different?

You're pretty much screwed if you must attack a Saka/Pahlava army that has a lot of Horse Archers, and a few FM and Cata's to boot.

[Cute Wolf]

Don't worry about taking Steppes... Once you got India and many Rich area at the south, pushing northward with 1 Strategos, 3 hellenikoi Kataphraktoi, 6 Baktrioi Hippotoxotai, and another native horse archers (Daha or Pahlava Shivatirs should be fine) should be an easy job..... as they will just shrug off most nomad army thrown at them (Consider bad luck if AI Sauromatae start sending countless Roxolani Nobles against you)

[Yarema]

If you like playing western factions, you'll have to learn to command horse archers and massive cavalry armies.
I played Baktria on VH/VH and i was surprised to be flooded by very good quality saka armies after i took the city north of Kophen from the eleutheroi. They would send armies of FMs, saka horse archers, saka riders, saka heavy cav, dahae riders, saka catas, alan nobles. In the meantime, the Parthians and Seleucids would send massive armies consisting of levies (only from time to time strong, elite pahlava armies), so i decided to destroy saka as the first. Fighting them on the steppes was quite a challenge - i had to attack settlements and destroy their armies on the steppe, on the way from one settlement to another.

Conquer India as soon as possible. Beware AS backstabbing.
Leaving the city west of Baktra (i think its Ant. Margiane) to the parthians is a good idea - this might be your homeland, but if you leave it to Pahlava it will permit you to ally with them against the AS.
Don't wage an unnecairy war agaings Pahlava or AS (the latter will attack you anyway, but you should not launch any counter-offensive, just take one or 2 towns and defend your new borders). Destroy the Saka first - they nearly always send at you good quality troops, countrary to AS and Pahlava levies (although, as i already mentioned, the pahlava do send well trained and well armed men from time to time).
And don't bother to train phalanx (or any other infantry) - apart from maintaining order in towns, i used only Hellenikoi katas, batrian hippotox, dahae riders, podromoi and FMs. they do an excellent job on the battlefield, and on the campaign map such a cavalry army will move fast enough to relieve any of your besiged cities.