Welcome back, proud bear.. And just to point one thing out.. Clibs are what we use now to name the devestating tanks in BI..

when it was released?
You are kidding.. (Just check some site)
is it an online only download?
You can get with the "Total War Eras" package, and also, when you buy it online, you get the option to have it on a CD (With extra fees).
Do you need BI installed in order to install this?
You need Rome Total War 1.5.
Is there a large group of players online with it yet, if its even up online yet?
I can't see why you're too happy about it.. BI is better IMO, though, answering your question, no.. There is almost no online community for Alexander, and yes, it does have online gameplay.


Surrounding Info:

Well.. From the Historical side, it goes very exciting. With interesting cinamatics, and nice story-telling througout your advance in the game.. Historical Battles in it are more than worth to play.. And to sum it all up, it gets boring fast (Campaign), but I guess some people just have more stamina, as a lot of the OR-gahs liked it and enjoyed it much more than I did.