As great as it is however, I think Total War has a lot to improve on on the strategic aspect of gameplay (diplomacy and the way you interact with other factions in general). I've had a lot of TW games where I feel like I'm playing a slower version of a Free-For-All multiplayer FPS, wherein you just run around and shoot people. Here, I was simply amassing armies and sending them out en masse, without even moving a single diplomat.
Heck, Total War could learn a few things from Civilization, Crusader Kings, even Galactic Civlizations! (Which, IMO, has one of the best AI in the turn-based strategy genre).