Weak Golden Horde

**dgfred** · 08-10-2005, 19:58

Originally Posted by Procrustes

I just got the horde to emerge in my current game. I had Khazar for a long time; I built a citadel and a +2 armorer, and put four full stacks of prize troops there. The horde appeared there with 30 stacks, all gold armor, all good troops. Should be fun!

Wow, that is bravery in the extreme

. Please let us know how it
turns out

.

**antisocialmunky** · 08-11-2005, 02:19

Heh... those Halberdiers are going to have some great fun on those gold shields.

**Roark** · 08-11-2005, 03:55

I found the 40-50K shrieking pagans in my campaign to be more than enough...

I think they're using Lithuania as a pinchushion at the moment.

**Procrustes** · 08-11-2005, 18:27

Originally Posted by dgfred

Wow, that is bravery in the extreme

. Please let us know how it
turns out

.

Bravery or foolishness - hard to tell. And I should note that I mis-spoke - there are twenty stacks for the horde, not thirty. (Twenty-one if you include the Khan's short stack.) Unfortunately the Kahn has only three stars!

I'm trying to decide how to play it. I'm not up to an all-night battle, I'll probably take two stacks and fight as long as I can, then retreat to the citadel. I'm really hoping I can get them to assault my fortifications - I managed to hire two merc organ guns a while ago and I've been saving them for this moment!

**dgfred** · 08-11-2005, 19:56

TWO Organ guns

, that is going to leave a mark

.

Where/How did you hire them by the way?

**Procrustes** · 08-11-2005, 20:25

Originally Posted by dgfred

TWO Organ guns

, that is going to leave a mark

.

Ha! I hope they do. I've never actually had the opportunity to use them before - I hope it doesn't rain that day!

Originally Posted by dgfred

Where/How did you hire them by the way?

Around 1200 all hell broke loose and everyone started attacking me. I ended up swallowing Turkey after a tough campaign, and found an inn in Trebazond. I watched it for a while, and they popped up over the next few years - not at the same time. Maintenance was low so I just stuck them in a castle and left them there, waiting for the Horde.

Inns are fun - I build one here and there, along contested borders especially. I look for unique units I can't build myself - I've gotten several longbows and firearms this game. Disciplined cavalry is a good buy if you are playing a christian faction.

Best,

**dgfred** · 08-11-2005, 20:57

I'm not much for inns, but I didn't really think about the unique units

. I'll have to get me a couple

.

**Procrustes** · 08-11-2005, 21:15

The AI seems to build them, although I'm not sure it ever uses them. I find them in captured provinces fairly regularly.

If you build them, you'll get more troops if you have less infrastructure in the province (keep the castles, watchtowers and town guards to a minimum) and if you build them close to someplace where folks are fighting (you won't find many mercs in your backwater provinces.) You can't really depend on them, though - it's something to try if you are curious or desperate.

**Philippus Flavius Homovallumus** · 08-11-2005, 22:35

The problem with Inns is that mercs are usually one shot units. After one or two battles all you have is a remnant. Especially with Cav.

Still, such is life. Currently my empire is hemoraging around 6,000 florins a year. First thing I did was ditch the merc cav.