This is why I love EB....despite being a keen history fan there is always something new to learn. "Hammer Troops" sounds like pure Conan yet the team can back them up with sources and now details of celtic economics!!

Please tell me that this knowledge is going to be factored into the mod. I still find in the vanilla game that Rome and the Hellenic nations can practically pull money off the trees and as money = troops = troop upgrades they can advance faster to better units.

Maybe I am just rubbish at playing the "barbarian" (excuse the term) nations, but with the vanilla economic system I have to cut every corner to field a small number of german spearmen + the occasional axeman, spending every turn keeping just out of debt, whilst playing as a "civilized" faction once the first two ports are built you are making money like a bandit!