which faction and mods?

[Bombasticus Maximus]

I am getting this game in a few days time and was wondering who would be a good start off faction and are there any mods?

[King Kurt]

There are loads of mods, but, currently i haven't indulged, but plan to try XL when I finish my current campaign. The best faction to try for starters is either the Spanish or the Byzantines. The muslims need a bit of experience so are ideal for a second or third campaign. Both start next to muslim factions so no need to go looking for enemies!! Also the Byzants don't have to worry about the Pope/ excommunication etc and the Spanish have a convienient muslim enemy for starters in the Almos so no Pope problems in the begining. Finaly, have a read of the faction guides within the forum before you kick off - they give you a style to play with as well as useful starting moves to get the best start. So enjoy and prepare for long nights of just one more turn.

[caravel]

I would say the Spanish as well. Though I do think that the Egyptians and the Almohads are ok for starting out also.

[Stormcrow]

How about the english?
They're reasonably safe on their island .

[caravel]

How about the english?
They're reasonably safe on their island .

In game terms (unless you've modded it) it's not an island as it's joined to mainland europe via the Wessex/Flanders "landbridge". So it has a chokepoint, though not a particularly good one, but isn't a true island such as Malta, Crete, Rhodes, Cyprus, Ireland or Sardinia/Corsica.

I have modded out all of the landbridges, except Denmark-Sweden from my MTW/VI.

Also the English campaign throws you pretty much straight into war with the French, with all of the hassle from the Pope that comes with it.

• WesW's MedMod v3 or v4 beta: the most challenging M:TW mod available, introduced the homelands concept and has the best A.I. performance.

I need to get around to trying this one.

[DisruptorX]

I found the Egyptians to be a great starting faction. Desert lands are hard for non muslims to invade, and you start off next to two weaker muslim factions that are easy to invade. You get rich mediterean provinces off the bat which will bring you in tons of gold once you set up shipping routes and get access to many great anti-cavalry and anti-armour troops.

[Alexios]

I have modded out all of the landbridges, except Denmark-Sweden from my MTW/VI.

Hmmm... interesting. How does one go about modding out all the landbridges? I've considered doing this myself, as the landbridges tend to make the game less realistic in my opinion.

[Ludens]

Compared to R:TW, M:TW has a rather steep learning curve so I would recommend you to start with the vanilla game, as most modifications increase the difficulty even more. Good factions to learn the game with are the Byzantines (rich, strong generals, initially powerfull units), the Spanish (strong units, potential to become very rich, nearby enemy ripe for crusades) and the English (good position, strong units once you hit high), all three in early. If you also got the expansion, you should try the Vikings: they have very powerful units, can loot-and-run with impunity and are generally a very fun faction to play with.

Once you have gotten the hang of the game, I recommend installing MedMod v2.14: it's a balance patch that improves A.I. performance without changing overmuch. If you are looking for something different but still want to stay in the medieval theme, there are three mods available:

1. VikingHorde's Medieval XL: one of the most popular mods, based on the concept that Land is Power.
2. Blind King of Bohemia's Supermedieval: a more historically-oriented mod, perhaps slightly less popular but generally held to be just as good as Medieval XL.
3. WesW's MedMod v3 or v4 beta: the most challenging M:TW mod available, introduced the homelands concept and has the best A.I. performance.

If you want a different setting, you could have a look at Napoleonic:TW, Shogun for M:TW/VI, Hellenic:TW or Pike & Musket: TW.