Played several campaigns on VH/VH/Huge Thrace and was wiped out every time before 250.

My problem was that until you can build phalangites you have nothing that can stand up to the stacks full of lancers that Macedon throw at you.

While falxmen and peltasts should be able to deal with the early Mac militia pikemen they usually do not get a chance to flank them as they are routed by the lancers.

The lack of decent cavalry is a real problem and totally unhistoric - Thracians were famous horsemen and should probably have light lancers of their own.

They should probably also have Getic horse archers (the Getae were a Thracian tribe that adopted HA from the Scythians).

Shame - as with better cavalry the phalanx, peltasts, falxmen and archers should make a good combination at least in the early game.

A simple and more historic alternative would be to give the Thracians militia pikemen at level 2 as well as light lancers and horse archers at level 2.

They should also have a Thracian noble cavalry unit at level 3 - a tougher version of the barbarian unit.

It also seems rather unfair that whereas the Greeks and Macedonians get extra experience from their temples of Ares, the Thracians only get a + to morale - rectifying this would at least give them the upgrades to stand up to the Brutii in the middle game.

(Have used RTR but can't get on with it - too many dubious and unnecessary additions).

Think I will try once more using an all-out rush at the Macedonians before they can build the lancer hordes....