Mercs and bribes

[Doug-Thompson]

It was more of an experiment than anything else, really, but I just destroyed a faction last night using mercenaries and bribery plus a few fleets and some regular army troops.

It's nothing to brag about. It was darned expensive and denied my generals many battles where they could have gained victories. I just had plenty of money and was curious.

The faction was the Pontus. Every time I saw a captain outside of a town, I bribed him. Most of the times I saw a family member, I bribe him. Just about every time I could hire a mercenary, I did. I did NOT bribe the occupiers of cities. The amount of money they wanted was absurd, even if I could have recouped much of it by destroying the city's buildings. I wanted to capture the buildings instead.

Next thing I know, the ruler of Pontus is down to one small army and the garrisons of his towns, which I took. He had a huge navy, which disappeared along with his faction.

While I wouldn't recommend this approach, there were some good lessons here:

1. Keep diplomats at hand. If you can save an army from being beseiged and taken by a 1,000 denarii bribe, it's a bargain. I often put diplomats at choke points and in advance of the regular army.

2. The easiest way to expand your family tree is to bribe the family members of a failing faction with their remnant troops.

3. When you bribe a family member, be sure to check and see if he can hire mercs. Also, he may be able to build a fort.

4. March just across the border when invading a new province. Stop and check to see if you can hire mercs in the new province, then continue the move. Mercs are tied to each province, apparently. If you're going to hire them, hire them just after you cross the border and before you fight.