Finally got VI

[bamff]

And am having a woderful time coming to grips with learning the strengths and weaknesses of a bunch of new units and factions.....but most of all with the completely different tech tree!

I recall Froggie & Bushface mentioning this in one of their truly excellent guides....will have to revisit those....

Looking forward to seeing some flaming arrows and boiling oil.....

[Csargo]

Yeah VI is pretty fun I always liked playing as the Vikings so I could raid.

[bamff]

At first glance the Vikings look to have a significant military edge....and the Welsh appear to be at the opposite end of the spectrum - under-armed and with a divided kingdom....so I'm guessing that I will really need to hone my skills before trying on the red & green jersey....

[Sensei Warrior]

At first glance the Vikings look to have a significant military edge....and the Welsh appear to be at the opposite end of the spectrum - under-armed and with a divided kingdom....so I'm guessing that I will really need to hone my skills before trying on the red & green jersey....

Don't let those minor things fool you. I've played the Welsh a ton (they are my favorite VI Faction). Once you figure where there strengths lie they are Easy to win with. To me, VI doesn't seem as hard as a regular campaign.

Raiding is fun, but the Vikings tend to get a little boring. Its too easy to steamroll over everyone.

Wait until you get back into the Regular game. There are a number of new units there, as well. Some you will see in Viking Invasion like Huscarles and Celtic Warriors, but some were added only to the regular game like Druzina Cav and Steppe Heavy Cav. Frogbeast has a whole section of her Unit Guide that lists the ones VI adds, and she'll tell you if they are in the regular campaign, the Viking Invasion or both.

[Csargo]

Don't let those minor things fool you. I've played the Welsh a ton (they are my favorite VI Faction). Once you figure where there strengths lie they are Easy to win with. To me, VI doesn't seem as hard as a regular campaign.

Yes the are really fun to play with too. I also like the Saxons fun too.

[econ21]

I had fun with the Welsh in a PBM:

https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showthread.php?t=30670

They start off clinging to the peripherary but given time can have solid armies of Welsh longbows, armoured spears and Celtic swords.

The other faction I like in VI single player are the Northumbrians - their early game in particular is extremely tense, threatened by the Vikings from the sea and the powerful Mercians from the south. Trying to "turtle" until you have the power to strike out is fun.

[Lucjan]

I always took a liking to the Irish and the Welsh. Irish Kerns can rule the field when used correctly, and the welsh, though having a difficult get-go, can become very powerful later on. The trick is picking your battles carefully at the start.

[danfda]

I've only tried the VI campagin as the Saxons...I do enjoy spamming huscarles and just pointing them at the enemy. :)

The Viking campaign seems much less complex, as there are fewer units types available and a much thinner variety of battle terrain. But I was rather pleased with the tech tree...CA did an excellent job with making it look far less advanced than in the standard campaigns. My biggest complaint is no GA mode--I love GA mode. Its really a shame that it likely is not in M2TW..

[Sensei Warrior]

I remember white-knuckleing my way through a Northumbrian Campaign. It was during those "I think I want a challenge" phases. It would've been at least mildly humorous to watch me hold my breath as the arrow moved towards the end year button.

[Lucjan]

If you want a challenge Northumbria or the Picts are definately the way to go. Both of them have a terrible position and not exactly the most fertile land available.

[bamff]

And what of the Scots guys? The only faction not to get a mention so far...Just looking at their location, I would expect they are likely to get put under some pressure.

[Sensei Warrior]

Hmm the Scots. I vaguely remember playing a Campaign with them. IIRC, they are in the league with the Northumbrians, Picts, and possibly Welsh, where it will be very touch and go until you get stabilized. Then, it seems like overnight you are dominating the board.

IIRC, getting ships into the water is high priority or sacrificing one side or the other. Although, if you take IRE quickly then you have a stable platform for the rest of your conquests. Thats the route I took. Conquering IRE and getting ships, then using IRE to expand holdings on the British Isles.

Sheesh, its been a really long time since I played the Scots. I mean I think they were the 3rd game I played after the Welsh and the Vikings. It seems like it must have been tough considering I didn't go back to play them again. I have yet to play the Mercians?(the lt. blue ones in the middle) or the Saxons, just for the record.

EDIT: I will humbly, oh so humbly give my apologies. After reviewing my notes I have realized I had started a game with the Scots, but NEVER FINISHED IT. That means I LOST.

So please ignore the above. That must have started out being my general strategy and it might have been flawed. I have won games with all the other factions I have played.

So I will state that this must be one of the toughest factions to play. And yes I do make notes about games I've played, in a notebook, actually a few of them. I'm weird like that.

[mercian billman]

I've only played campaigns with the Irish and Vikings. Personally I prefer the main campaign to VI, and I find that the added factions are a huge bonus, especially the Hungarians.

Don't forget mods and the replay value they add to the game. I cannot tell you how many times I've uninstalled and reinstalled MTW on my hard drive, in the past 4 years I've had 3 computers and played the game on all three, I've played at least 5-6 different mods and am currently playing NTW (this is probably the third or fourth install) the replay value of VI is simply amazing and I wouldn't be surprised to find myself playing the game 2-3 years down the road.

[professorspatula]

The Welsh and their Celtic warriors are great, more than a match for their neighbours' spearmen when used correctly. Unfortunately their best units don't really get to feature much. I greatly enjoy the VI campaign, even if it is smaller and less complicated than the full campaign. And many of the factions seem varied enough to make it worthwhile attempting playing with a few of them. The Saxons and Mercians are a bit too easy though. Huscarles and Noblemen only have to look in the direction of the enemy to scare the life out them and have them run to the hills in fear.

[bamff]

I agree wholeheartedly, Mr Billman! I originally tracked down VI to access the add-ons to the main campaign, but couldn't resist sneaking a peek at Dark Ages Britain....So many nuances to be explored!

I'm in no hurry for MTW2 - there's way too much territory still to be explored by me here!

[Fragony]

Don't like the unit-recycling in the Viking campaign, militia sergeants just feel out of place. The real meat is in the regular campaigns imvho, the new units are a blast.

[Sensei Warrior]

There is no doubt in my mind that the additions VI made to the regular campaign give it much more depth and playability (as if it needed it).

With that said I like the feel of the Viking campaign. CA managed to give it a gritty primitive feel. I always feel a little nervous when I'm playing someone other than the Vikings, like at any minute the sea wolves are going to take a whack at me, or that I'm going into battle with a hodge-podge army, not because I was caught off guard but because its all I can afford. I guess there is a certain amount of desperation I feel in the Viking game that I don't normally get from the regular campaign.

Overall, I like Vikings and the regular campaigns the same, but for different reasons. The regular campaigns are expansive, detailed and really satisfies my urge for God-like conquering. Vikings is great for a quick and dirty. The campaign is fast enough where I can get a nice little fix without having to micromanged 30 different armies and 10 different enemies across the whole expanse of Europe. To me Vikings isn't so intimidatingly big in the end stages of the game.

[bamff]

Tell you what - I rate the Irish!

I decided to "play safe" first time out, and chose to carry the Saxon banner, beat off a few Viking raids, took down the Welsh, smashed the Mercians....but the Irish are proving tougher nuts to crack....

Two battles forced on me underline the point. 4,800 - odd Mercians attack my 1,100 Saxons in Mierce....my guys suffer 300-odd casualties whilst despatching 4,469 of the enemy (yes, okay, so I love the sound of the "kill prisoners" button!)....victory is ours, and the Mercian forces are now so depleted that I roll up their remaining territories...

But then - 2,500 plus Irish attack 600 Saxon troops. My guys kill 1,700-odd Irishmen (including their general) but the Irish keep coming and overwhelm them!

[Lucjan]

It's those nasty kerns, they're a dirt cheap and from-the-start unit, but last well through the whole campaign and are suprisingly rough on anything that isn't decked out like a walking medieval panzer. It's why I love the Irish so much in VI. for the kerns!

[bamff]

I think that the javelins of the Bonnachts took their toll as well.....sigh! I suppose I underestimated both units because they have to get so close to fire...but with those number involved, they could get in nice and close while my guys were tied up elsewhere chopping Gallowglasses and horsemen into little pieces....

Not that I under-rate the Gallowglasses - one of my true fave-rave units from the original MTW. Just love to send them around the flank to charge in from behind!

[Lucjan]

..Strangely enough I never cared much for the gallowglasses at all.

I'm twisted. I know.

[Sensei Warrior]

I always liked the Clansmen/Galloglasses combo when Crusading with the English. It seemed to be a great one-two punch that laid them low. With the Irish I think they performed quite admirably while skulking through the woods.

[bamff]

Both good handy units for the desert - no armour, so they are less likely to roast than other cath units.

[Sensei Warrior]

Yup, those along with Celtic Warriors from Wales and you can conquer the Muslim heathens with your own heathens

[DisruptorX]

While I thought the VI campaign wasn't nearly as good as the standard campaign, its so worth it just for all the new units (and factions) added to the standard campaign.

[CountMRVHS]

I'm a huge fan of the Viking campaign. I've definitely played on the smaller Viking map more often than I have on the big, Europe map. I think that's because, with VI, you can end up winning with at least somewhat reasonably-sized territories in the end, whereas in MTW, even if YOU'RE playing GA, the AI gobbles up huge, ridiculously unhistorical spans of land.

But I'm weird like that.

Another plus for VI in my book is that I love the period. And, if you ever get into modding your game, the Viking map is a very good place to start. When I start up MTW, I can choose between around 7 different eras -- The Vikings, Early, High, Late, and several others I've made for myself which focus on the early Dark age period in the British Isles. Tons of fun there.

In regular VI, however, I love all the factions. It's so hard to pick a favorite. The Vikings and Mercians strike me as a bit too easy, however. Probably my two absolute favorites are the Welsh and Northumbrians -- such a challenge with both of them, *especially* when turtling. I know in VI there's not much incentive to turtle (no GAs), but I highly recommend it if you're looking for more of a tense, challenging campaign.

VI: best. expansion. ever.