Your best command decisions

[professorspatula]

My best tactical decision/moment was the evacuation / tactical retreat of Cyrene in my Numidian campaign. I'd lost Siwa to the backstabbing Egyptians, as well as 2 family members, but a couple of turns earlier, I'd had the father of one of the doomed family members leave to build up the defenses and army at nearby Cyrene. I had so few resources or money, and was fighting wars against the Scipii with my Carthaginian allies, as well as ousting the Spainish from their homeland. I wouldn't be able to hold Cyrene, but figured the extra income and any troops I could build there before the Egyptians arrived would be welcome, so I had to hold on for as long as possible.

I built up a barracks and a temple and tried to build some kind of garrison out of the very few resources I had, but in the end, all my resources were required in the fight against the Scipii to the West. With the Egyptians closing in, I had to evacuate the city and get the survivors out and ready to join in the fight against the Romans. The only way I could do this was to use the 1 ship I had. Its crew was half dead, and it was on the far side of the map by Spain. But I sent it on a long journey to Cyrene, avoiding Spanish and Roman fleets along the way. With each turn that passed, the ship got closer to Cyrene, but so did the Egyptians. Finally, the ship was within a turn of its destination - but the Egyptians were practically knocking on the door also. I had my army leave the settlement to the north, with just 1 peasant unit to slow down the Egyptian advance. But I had a plan: what if I could get the city to revolt before the Egyptians could take it? So I torn down everything I could and raised taxes to the max.

When I ended the turn, the town rebelled just as the Egyptians laid siege! I couldn't believe my luck. It was filled with Macedonian peasants! My peasants were kicked out, attacked by the Egyptians, but fled to the south. But with my ship at the coast, my main army and general boarded it and left to rejoin the fight against the Scipii. Another turn, and it would have been too late. It might not sound like much, but it changed the course of my campaign. I'd managed to withdraw from lands I couldn't hold on to, and halted the Egyptian advance for many years to come. With one less front to worry about, my ship then transported the small army towards Carthage where they joined my king and proceeded to kick the Scipii out of Africa - and just in the nick of time. Everything went with precision timing and luck. And in a very nice touch, I managed to get the peasants who had stood alone to prevent the Egyptians taking Cyrene, back safely with the rest of my army also. It was a long walk, so I rewarded them by disbanding them in the nearest friendly settlement where they were well provided for for the rest of their lives.

Best campaign I ever had, until my King Gisgo's cavalry army was undefeatable and I knew there was little point continuing from that point on.

[Claudius the God]

playing as Thrace, i was stuck in a war with the much richer, much more powerful Macedon.

unlike most other factions, Thrace doesn't have much in the way of decent cavalry

Macedon was repeatedly sending full armies under a single banner at me

i managed to get a full army, plus a bit more besides. with the lesser quality troops, i surrounded the single enemy army and hit it with my main one. all i had to do was make them rout, and the entire army was annihilated because they were surrounded.