About to play first mod

[Madoushi]

Welp, I've played all the TW games except Viking Invasion, Alexander and Napoleon, and in about an hour I'll play my first mod, a game of EB.

After it took four hours to d/l Rome Gold, another hour for EB 1.2, then after realizing I also need 1.1, another six (ugh) hours for that, and I'll be ready to go.

I'll try it on Medium first and see how many turns before I get wiped out. I'll probably try an Eastern nation first.

I'll let you know how it went.

[fraoula]

Welp, I've played all the TW games except Viking Invasion, Alexander and Napoleon, and in about an hour I'll play my first mod, a game of EB.

After it took four hours to d/l Rome Gold, another hour for EB 1.2, then after realizing I also need 1.1, another six (ugh) hours for that, and I'll be ready to go.

I'll try it on Medium first and see how many turns before I get wiped out. I'll probably try an Eastern nation first.

I'll let you know how it went.

Hello Madoushi. I am certain that you will love this mod if you have a passion for history. I would advise you to start with a not so difficult faction before you get used to the different goverment types and the ways of recruiting.
Best of luck to you!

[Madoushi]

Thanks, fraoula!
So, which factions are easier, and which are harder?

[Titus Marcellus Scato]

The easiest faction to start with is Rome. You already have a good economy built for you, and yet your empire is small enough for you to easily micromanage everything. And your starting army includes high-quality units. And all you have to do to start with is conquer Taras and Rhegion in southern Italy, then make peace with Epirus. Then all your neighbours are Eleutheroi (Rebel) cities who won't attack you, so you can build your towns in peace and quiet.

Carthage and the Ptolemies (Egyptians) are richer than Rome, but their empires are larger and need more effort from you to maintain - the larger the empire, the more difficult it is to really understand the economy as a new player.

Once you're ready for a real challenge in fighting and economy building, try starting a Sweboz (German) campaign. Your only neighbours are 'peaceful' Eleutheroi rebels, so you don't have to worry about the AI attacking you. But your economy is a LOT weaker than Rome's, you only start with one city, and you will go into very serious debt to begin with, forcing you to learn how to manage your finances very efficiently. You will also need to conquer at least four towns with only your starting army! This is a fun campaign to start, with lots of tough fighting to do. And it won't be easy, but you'll learn a lot, even (or especially) if you fail the first time. If you succeed in balancing the Sweboz economy, and recovering from the initial debt, then you're ready for almost any challenge EB can throw at you.

I recommend beginners start on M/M difficulty (Medium Campaign difficulty, Medium Battle difficulty). The AI factions get no bonuses in battles, and they only get a bonus on money if their treasury is very poor.

[Madoushi]

Kind of ironic as I always found myself playing Roman factions or Carthage in vanilla. XD
Still not sure how I unlocked Gaul and Carthage; I never managed to win a campaign before I got this comp and got lost in newer games.

Still.. not having to deal with rival Roman factions is good enough for me!

Rome it is! Off I go!
Thanks again, and I'll let you know how it goes.

[Titus Marcellus Scato]

Hi Madoushi,

You might find this guide I wrote useful. Lots of others in the Gameplay forum too.

https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showt...r-new-players.

[Subotan]

You're meant to play it at M/M, so don't sweat it if you're being battered.

If you're as experienced as you say you are, you should have no trouble though. Just remember, you need to build a military occupation first after taking a city, then the highest government able, or if in the case of a choice between a type 3 or a type 4, pick a type 4 if it's a particularly unruly populace. Government systems were the hardest thing for me to get my head around.

[fraoula]

Thanks, fraoula!
So, which factions are easier, and which are harder?

By far the easiest are Rome and Carthage as they have many ports which generate huge income and are not threatened until you start expanding.
For me the hardest is Pontos with second perhaps Hayasdan although Sabyn are pretty tough too.
You can see how hard the creators consider each faction in the faction selection screen right before you start a new campaign.
You shouldn't start with any steppe factions until you have grasped the managment of small income vs huge army upkeep or you will be quickly dissapointed.