New to EB, some questions

[wisp]

I just played through my first game using the EB mod. I've read some guides before I posted but I'm still not finding the info I need. Here are some of my impressions and questions.

First, nicely done. I think it will be more fun if I set it to VH campaign difficulty.

I set my difficulty to Hard Campaign/Hard Battles for my first campaign. I found the campaign was a cakewalk as Romani. I expanded south with little resistance and invaded Carthage to find only single or few units defending the main cities. I'll have to try VH I suppose. Seems too easy on H. I was never attacked except by naval forces once in a while. Some rebel armies popped up every now and then but were crushed easily.

So I did some reading and found that the game works best on VH/M and Huge or Large unit sizes so I will try that. Any other tweaks I should know before I start my next campaign? I'm more into the Campaign map mode than the battles, I let those auto calculate for the most part.

What do some of these structures do? I read some guides and the actual in game descriptions but I'm still not sure what to make of them. The descriptions don't tell you what actually happens in game. It would be nice if they did.

For example:

1. College of the Augeries, is it just a happiness bonus structure or does it do more?

2. Foreign Trade Venture; do i get trade bonuses? Kind of like a forum or will it do more in game? Does it start a trade route with foreign powers?

3. Colony; what exactly does it do for me, trade bonuses?

4. Grant of Land; farming bonuses?

5. Grant of Land extensions that I didn't get to yet; more farming bonuses?


Is there a guide that explains the structures or tells you precisely how it works with the game mechanics? For example +2 farming bonus, trade route established with foreign neighbor, spying bonus, etc. I couldn't find one. Thanks.

[fomalhaut]

1. It is a faction specific happiness building. just like the romans have the faction specific doctor and hospital.

2. Foreign trade venture just gives you added trade bonus, a representation of your factions interests in a region

3. A colony is a representation of a large amount of your people, merchants, tradesmen, semi pro soldiers, given land in a conquered region. It allows you to control subdued populations with greater ease, hence the growth reduction and order bonus. Many of us roleplay with these; you cannot train factional professionals or semi professionals without at least a colony.

4. Grant of land allows for the creation of estates by wealthy landowners

[Ca Putt]

if you are looking for a greater challenge try a different faction. apart from the reforms the romans actually are the easiest faction, there are a lot of threads about this topic on around here. Considering you autocalc a lot tho many factions get quite tricky due to not quite perfect autocalc balance - Nomadic and eastern factions

[Ksifos]

In VH/VH you will have a problem with autocalc battles.In that level crucial battles are meant to be played by you ;-)

A nice challenge should be Sweboz (Germania) or Pontos (Minor Asia).Both are underdogs since they can become monsters if played correctly.

[Taedius]

1. Isn't the Auguries the same line of building as the Taverns, meaning they get your FMs drunk?

2. Doesn't it also increase law?

3. As Formalhaut says, colonies reduces growth and adds law, making the settlement easier to control, and reduces corruption.

4. Adds happiness, and

5. Adds trade, but reduces law. Carefull with these as you expand far from your capitol.

[fomalhaut]

best to keep your estates and latifundias in the homeland

[wisp]

Thanks for the advice and explanations. I've started a new campaign on VH/M and will try some of these new structures more. If things are too easy again I will try Britons or Spain.

Now I also know Eletheroi are independent tribes and their presence everywhere makes more sense as well. I kept seeing Eletheroi with different flags and it was really confusing at first.

[TheLastDays]

Well, the Romani are the easiest faction in EB, so if you really want a challenge... then don't go for Lusos or Casse either ;) - they are harder than the Romani but still fairly easy... Try Pontos or the Koinon Hellenon or if you don't like the Hellenic factions try Pahlava or Sweboz... or Saba

And if you just really like the Romans you could housrule them, meanin that you set up a set of rules you have to follow, to add to the challenge, for example, have a look at Quintus Sertorius' Guide to Conduct Becoming of a True Roman and follow whatever rules you like ;)

[A_Dane]

The most challenging campaigns I've had: Pontus and Armenia. Pontos got poor factional units, and Armenia has a challenging reform to do (depending on what the AS does though), until they get decent units. For armenian campaigns I rely heavily on mercenaries, or foreign troops for the first couple of years. For Pontus I advice kicking the seleucids out ASAP, or trying to get Bosporus (including Olbia) under your control, these provinces can provide good archers, and Scythian nobles, which are probably the best cavalry you can get, if you don't rush the Seles :)

[Mulceber]

I actually find that the Romani aren't the easiest faction - maybe in the first 30 or so turns, but they've got a lot of expanding to do and its at least 400 turns before they can recruit their factional units outside of Italy. Once you get past the first 30 turns (unless you're blitzing), I find the Romani get significantly more difficult. I actually think the easiest faction is the Arche Seleukeia. Yes their economy/empire is unstable very early on, but if you can weather that and stabilize them, they're easy as pie. -M

[fomalhaut]

Arche Seleukaia is tough i think, you got to play your cards real smart. I try to smash Pontos before they have two cities because that removes an entire front, allowing you to focus on Hayasdan and Ptolemy. You have to pick and choose which cities are worth it to you, like is the poor Alexandria on the steps really worth the effort to defend it?

[TheLastDays]

Yep I think so too, the Arche is tough... especiall if you get all the ungrateful satrapies turning against you...

[Ca Putt]

for a EB veteran lategame romani may give some extra challenge as Mulceber pointed out but for most players the biggest challenge is to get the earlygame economy into the black and to pacify the vicinity, after you've conquered greece, Asia minor, Iberia or central europe it is highly inprobable to actually loose the game and most of the time you swim in money by then. As the Romani lack this time of hardship at the beginning of the game and I actually only play until I am a huge omnipotent Empire rather than until the VCs are fullfilled it would still be fair to call the romans least challenging faction to start with for someone fairly new to EB. AS start out rather difficult for a EB newcomer but once you're able to actively recruit Elites nothing can stop you.

[TheLastDays]

It all depends on how many elites you allow yourself and things like that

[vollorix]

Rome is kind of catwalk, unless you skip about 20 years and start conquering afterwards. By this time you might meet Carthaginian resistance in Sicily, Epirote armies in Italy ( led by FM´s ), perhaps even Aedui threatening your northern boarders ( pity there are no Illyrians there to raid your coastal cities ). So, yea, sitting 20 years and doing nothing, letting your FM get all wealthy, corrupt, fat and snobistic, might be a way to "enjoy" the game ^^
Seleucids are very easy, except those Parthian baggers; the only problems i had was fighting Arabian folks without using to many missile troops - in my first ( and only one ) Seleucid campaign i´ve managed to loose my FL during the siege of Palmyra, lmao...
Never played Saka or Sauros ( i hate HAs... or better said, it´s annoying how easy it is to win a battle using them, and how micro heavy a battle might get, at the same time ), but Pontus and Hay are the two "eastern" factions with a real challenge, at least untill you own a couple of money making towns. Then it´s, again, quite easy.
I find Aedui/Arverni much more challenging concerning their income even if you own enough settlements, blitzing the opposite side, and grabing some Eleutheroi towns quite fast. But i´ve never experienced a pressure from Sweboz or Lusos, nor Casse ( of course ^^ ). Romans might be nerving, though ( if they manage to take the rebell settlements fast enought, at least ).
The most fascinating experience i had was playing Pahlava, i think. You´ve got a goal - the mighty reforms. Actually, you don´t need them at all, lol, since your HA´s and Catanks make a short work of any faction, but at least you can achieve something, and you must do it right, or you´ve wasted a lot of time ( one word: nomad market and the build orders...hehe ).
Never played Ptoleys: if Seleucids are allready quite easy, what would i do with Egypt, who has no natural enemies at the game start, aside from the greyish ones?
Casse are fun, but they are to OP compared to the other two Celtic factions ( Milnaht, Batacorii - win! Who needs reforms? )
As long as there are no counterfactions in the game ( to simulate civil wars, not be safe from betrayl, to face a real threat, instead of those poppy rebels ) none of the "big" factions will be really challenging, imho.

[fomalhaut]

the Pahlavan faction should be the model for many factions, it kept me playing til the very end. very engaging, varied and fascinating campaign. the visuals, music and stuff helped too

[NikosMaximilian]

Try the Saka in H/H without rushing, now that's a challenge! You are poor, and so are your starting regions. The autocalc doesn't make you any favours, because a battle you can win easily playing with horse archers tactics, are calculated more by melee, so those 240 phalangitai are horse-archers slayers. By the time you went south enough to develop an economy it's likely that you are at war with the Arche Seleukia, Baktria, Pahlava and maybe the Sauromatae too.

Also, the goverment system is completely different from the Romans.

[moonburn]

herm playing the arche seulekids is not easy walk if you don´t play your 1st 8 turns right (ptoleis out of mikra asia secure the east and try and build mines and stone walls and ofc attack the phalava 1st as not to loose precious vassals)

[vollorix]

Why should i bother with those poor towns in Micra Asia? Drive Ptoleys back to Alexandria - that´s all you have to do in your first turns. Those two small towns are isolated, no FM´s leading their armies there ( the one at the start of the game is too old and dies short after ). Once you have secured the Middle East you can steamroll the Ptoleys if you want; let them produce levies in Tarsos and Side, who cares? :) I´d rather wait until they build some mines in Tarsos and then take it, together with Cyprus. All Ptoley barracks can be used by Seleucids, so simply give them enough time to build the military infrastructure ( and AI loves to do it in the first place ), and then invade and say "thanks"...
My campaign was even on VH, iirc, because i wanted a challenge. All i got was about 10 turns to stabilize my provinces, after 5 years i knew, there will be no sufficient resistance anymore. That´s what i call easy, though, the Parthians are a pain in the a**, but that´s only in the beginning. Voila.

[A_Dane]

I really gotta say, that I find Carthage to be easier than the romans.. If you just build up markets, and start conqueroring North Africa + Spain, you'll be swimming in money. Once you get mines upgraded as well, you'll have more money, than you know what to do with, upgrade them, and you've basically won. In my current game I bought out the AS from Mikra Asia, and gave their possessions to Pontos.

Why? Because I couldn't spend my money otherwise s:

[Ca Putt]

now that's what a real Carthagian would do ^^

so let's conclude, when looking for a challence do not play: Romani, Karthastim or Ptolemaioi. (unless you hae some nasty house rules)

[A_Dane]

Yeah, I felt like roleplaying a bit, without using FD, so I looked over the situation, and used my vast resources to balance out the power a little xD

Thinking of doing the same in Gallia, as the romans have somehow succeeded in vassalizing both of the gallic nations s:

EDIT: Also, even though this isn't really a challenging campaign, I'm having fun just looking around, building up and roleplaying :)

(Hamalcar Barca finally got a son, and have another guy with the Barca surname who also has a son, gonna be an interesting fight with the romans :P)

[Taedius]

The Romani is certainly a faction for us roleplayers. The only tricky part is getting your citicen infantry to the front as you expand, but even that is a question of roleplaying houserule: Our armies MUST be based around Roman infantry, if it's to be commanded by a FM. For the player who doesn't take such details into consideration, it matters less. It's a steamroler faction for the average gamer.

[Ca Putt]

meh getting factional troops to the front is always troublesome, exept for maybe the KH with naval supermacy^^

getting the citizens to the front is much more tiresome as Sweboz, Getai or saba. Romans even got the advantage of having a lot of coastal cities in their homeland.

[fomalhaut]

i can't imagine playing something like EB without some house rules!!!! who the heck would go through the trouble of getting the mod to work and just ignore all the complexities and good qualities of the mod to just play it like freakin' vanila RTW!

simple ones like not recruiting Klerouchi til a colony has been established, disbanding Klerouchi Pikemen after 1-2 years, etc.

no retraining, etc.

the only units i keep in between 'services' are elite agema to accompany the royal family and to place in important cities. Some Thracian mercenaries are a must just because of the cool factor :P

also a unit of Elite pikemen or infantry can only be trained at the end of a campaign when all the other pikemen have gained much experience and are being disbanded to be sent back to their homes, i just rp that due to some of their conspicous valour they are granted larger land grants and allowed to join the Agema Klerouchon

[TheLastDays]

Yeah RPing and House ruling go hand in hand especially with the Romani I think...

In my current Romani campaign I have three consular armies ready to work but only one FM currently has sufficient rank to command them... and he's in his seventies so I'm a little nervous about what to do in a couple of turns... Even if house ruled and RPed Romani still might not be too challenging, it's a lot of fun at least