How to win in Viking Campaign

[Budwise]

Also, I have never played the Picts so I can't comment on them but as a general strategy, what I suggested usually does work.

Against the Vikings, the Picts are the first to lose the ABBEYS. If you must keep one, keep the Landlocked one.

[ajaxfetish]

An alliance with the Vikings is your best defense against them. If you have that you can build abbeys reasonably safely, especially once you have enough ships in the water to shield your shores. Abbeys make for a big income boost much faster than farming which is especially valuable in poor farming areas.

Otherwise I agree with most everything, though as some factions (scots, welsh) attacking Ireland early on can be very beneficial. Once you have it it's basically safe from attack by anyone except Vikings (who you are hopefully allied to), and has very good farming income compared to the poorer Welsh and Scottish lands.

Ajax

[Budwise]

An alliance with the Vikings is your best defense against them. If you have that you can build abbeys reasonably safely, especially once you have enough ships in the water to shield your shores. Abbeys make for a big income boost much faster than farming which is especially valuable in poor farming areas.

Otherwise I agree with most everything, though as some factions (scots, welsh) attacking Ireland early on can be very beneficial. Once you have it it's basically safe from attack by anyone except Vikings (who you are hopefully allied to), and has very good farming income compared to the poorer Welsh and Scottish lands.

Ajax

In my game as the Scots, I lost Ireland very quickly so I can't comment on that. Yeah, well after you get ships in the water and can waste they years for an abbey, then go for it. But honestly, even with the 266 dollars a year, you still have to wait 12 years to build it and another 7-8 years (Too Lazy to do the math.) to get your money back, I don't feel like wasting all those years when I can build something I need now.

[Budwise]

If you can hold Ireland as the Scots, BY ALL MEANS DO IT. I just couldn't pull it off. Just don't kill off your mainland to do it.

[ajaxfetish]

Yeah, well after you get ships in the water and can waste they years for an abbey, then go for it. But honestly, even with the 266 dollars a year, you still have to wait 12 years to build it and another 7-8 years (Too Lazy to do the math.) to get your money back, I don't feel like wasting all those years when I can build something I need now.

An Abbey costs 2000 florins and takes 12 years to build, and after that grants a significant income reliably every year regardless of how poor the province is.

A forest clearing costs 1500 florins and takes 16 years, basic farms means another 1500 florins and 16 years, 20% is another 600 florins and 6 years, and 40% is another 800 florins and 8 years. Full farming upgrades cost you 4400 florins and take 46 years to complete. And in a poor province you still won't be getting much return for that investment. I don't see how the abbey is a waste. Compared to other Viking-era options, it seems like very fast cash. Plus it increases happiness and Catholic faith in its province.

Once you have basic farms in place it doesn't take too long or cost too much to finish the upgrades, and of course farming is the foundation of a Viking-era economy, but in my early game it's the abbeys giving me the cash to build those farm upgrades, along with whatever military or political buildings "I need now."

Ajax

[Roark]

Interesting ideas. Thanks.

I tend to build ships for transport, and blocking sea attacks, rather than trade.

[Budwise]

Thats why I love this game so much, you can play how you choose. Personally, the quick thousand helps a lot more for me and as long as I keep the Vikings from attacking, I tend to have enough money. But, if you can hold your Abbeys, then your strategy is better than mine. I forgot to mention that I do build and keep abbeys in LANDLOCKED territories. I find that they get raided a lot less and I keep them for longer.

What I wrote is just a guideline that I follow when I play VI. Its not edged in stone so take what you can use and discard the rest. Its just what I use to play and from the feedback, a lot of its good.

I have just seen so many strategies for the Main campaign and I have never seen a guideling for VI - so I made one.

[King Kurt]

I have just started my first VI campaign and so far, so good. I choose the Saxons - purely because one of their starting provinces is where I live! ( that nice diamond shaped island just off the South coast of England) - mind you, now I have built a few, those Huscarles are OK aren't they!! To begin, I conquered the rebel provinces to secure the south coast and made an alliance with the welsh and scots. I then built up resources and troops - principally Fyrd with some archers and when I can build them Huscarles. Inns are very important - I concentrate on getting Gallowglasses, Kern and good cavalry. The Gallows and cav are obvious but the Kern are a nice unit to have due to their armour piercing ability. They sit behind the shield wall, wait until the Huscarles - or even better royal cav - close with the shield wall and then they pelt the appropiate unit with javs.

So after the build up - don't forget to include a few spys assassins etc - it is time to stuff the Mercians. I have had 1 large battle with them where my shield wall stood nicely, my Huscales, backed by Royal cav broke their line and I routed the whole army, killing the King at the same time. Key event - the Kern + archers showering the Mercian's King's unit with missles to kill him while he was fighting a unit of Fyrd.

Two more things of note.
1) The reason for taking Cantabrae (eastern most south coast province) is to build up a small navy to seal the English channel.
2) I have had 1 Viking raid so far. Initially I was worried - I only had 1 unit of Fyrd and 1 unit of archers and the Vikings had beserkers, huscarles, spears and carl.I then noticed that all the units were small, so I deployed to wards the back of the deployment area so they had to come over a lot of open ground, up hill to attack me. My archers shot up the danger units - beserkers and huscarles, so the time they got to me they were so shot up - I had killed all the beserkers and Huscarles - that my Fyrd made short work of them - about 6 Vikings made it back to the boats!!!

So far, so good - only set back - the Abbey I had built got destroyed by a storm the year it was finished.