favorite MOD for MTW

[Lurker on the Threshold]

Been playing MTW for quite a while now (best 10 dollar Wal-Mart purchase ever!!!). After playing the hell out of vanilla I purchased Viking Invasion which I had a much harder time beating (thanks all who put up the guides, without which I may not have won even one campain.) I read up on and down loaded XL mod which absolutely blew me away! I've played XL it for close to 9 months and have not gotten bored.
SO...... I know of BXB's Mod as well as MED MOD but what are the pro's con's of each and is there another of the same calibre? (I chose XL specifically for its reported ease in installation as I am technotarded). I await all you're replys with great eagerness.

[Ludens]

It depends a bit on what you want. If you like the medieval era, those three mods are the ones you should try out. Personally, I played WesW's MedMod a lot. WesW set out to make the game more challenging and the A.I. more competitive and he certainly succeeded in that. The MedMod v2 version doesn't really change the overall game, but makes various adjustments that improve A.I. performance. For the full mod, you have to install MedMod v3: this is a total conversion, and would be the most challenging M:TW mod if it wasn't for the MedMod v4 beta. Sadly, the beta won't be finished, but I am told it is very playable.

There are also modifications that change the game to another era. Have a look in the Engineer's Guild and hosted mods sections. I have heard good things about Hellenic:TW, Napoleonic: TW and Samurai wars.

[macsen rufus]

Following straight on from Ludens, I can say I have played Hellenic, Napoleonic and Samurai and can heartily recommend all three, and also Pike and Musket (new version released today, by the way ). Going into a new era makes it an entirely new game. I've only just got around to XL myself, but my two campaigns so far have been great fun (Armenia and the Golden Horde).

Hellenic was the first MTW mod I tried, and the first battle in that got me totally hooked. Amazing new maps, really sharp graphics, new era, unfamiliar troop types, complete wow. Napoleonic gives you a new emphasis again. Samurai recreates STW with better gameplay.

All of the mods above have been easy to install. As you can probably tell, I like the mods particularly for different eras and I can go pretty much anywhere between the Greek Bronze Age, right through to the Napoleonic Wars. Given that the mods are also free downloads, that REALLY stretches your WalMart bucks into incredible value for money

[Lurker on the Threshold]

Thanks. All sound so good. Seems I'll have several different installs at once, just so I can try some. Think I'll take a look at the pike and musket for starters (them mabey the Hellenic era).

[GodWillsIt]

MedMod 1.85. It renewed my interest in MTW

[Marcus Caelius]

You don't have to make lots of installs if you use the mod-switcher:

https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showthread.php?p=1009484

[Geezer57]

I'm primarily interested in the medieval period, so my favorite mods are XL, BKB, and MedMod (in order of preference). I'd have to say they're all excellent pieces of work, offering substantially different gaming experiences from each other and the original game. Kudos to all the various authors!

Pike & Musket sounds good, I just haven't found time to take a look yet.

[Puzz3D]

I played a Med Mod IV English campaign on normal difficulty all the way through to the end. It was quite challenging even after my empire became large.

STWmod for MTW/VI v2.01 is playable now but is still in beta. It will get an update soon with new frontend graphics and some unit stat adjustments for improved battlefield gameplay. A more complete update featuring better horse graphics, maps (including all the original Shogun maps) retextured with the original ground textures plus new Japanese models including castles, possible enhancements to faction build priorities and possibly some new unit types, and hopefully the Mongol faction, will be released at some point in the future.