Strategy Guide - DON'T BUY IT!

[favedave]

I bought the game today here in Los Angeles - the "gamestop" edition" which has a map and a tech tree.

I also bought the BradyGames Strategy Guide. What a mistake! All the unit listings are wrong! The attack/defense numbers are off by huge amounts.

FOr example, in the game, English Spear Militia have attack 5 and defense 7.

In the Strategy Guide, it says they are attk 7, def 12. The costs for the units are off, too.

I could not find even ONE listing in the guide that was correct! They are off by wild amounts.

And it simply lists the buildings you can make but doesn't give details. I would like to know HOW to get a Mason's Guild, for example.

There is an extensive list in the back of all the retinues and character traits - WHO CARES?!?

So, I'm warning everyone, do not bother with the BradyGames guide. It bites big time.

Grrrr....

[Doug-Thompson]

I never buy strategy guides. A good forum — like this one — will give better guidence after a day or two.

[Sir Robin]

I really do not like buying strategy guides. They are usually wrong to one degree or another and you can find better guides, tips, and strategies online in forums like this one.

[Lemur]

After buying the Prima guide for Rome: Total War, I felt used, abused and generally ripped off. Until I see evidence that the quality of the guides for the TW games has improved, I'm staying far, far away.

Who don't those idiots at Prima and/or Brady contract with Froggy to do their guides? The quality would improve immeasurably ...

[Tamur]

Because Froggy takes the time to do it right. That's not something publishers respect. Unfortunately for us all, because TW fans would be far better served by a Froggy guide that hits the stores a month after the game than something worthless that's there on release day.

As usual, it's all about the cash. Sorry to hear about that favedave, and in the future make sure to rely on the forums for info! As DT said, it's far better to get info online.

[BDC]

I suspect it's more the writers had to work with pre-release stuff, rather than them being useless.

[Prince of the Poodles]

Damnit...

Bought.

[Darkmoor_Dragon]

I've actually been asked to write strategy guides (couple of years back now) for two companies and turned down both offers:

For the simple reason that the vast majority of of the information in them is out-of-date by the time the game is published.
This isn't some eveil plot mind you, its just simple issues of timing: to produce a guide requires a fair amount of time to go from game-playing to publication. And if the publication is to coincide with game launch (mostly the case) then by definition game-play and feature sets are ALWAYS using pre-release, beta information (which as we all know is most radically changed during later beta-testing stages as balance issues are handled and adjusted for).

The upshot is that assigning your name to writing a strategy guide is an exercise in literary suicide.

No matter how good a job you do your efforts will almost always, inevitably, be out of date, invalid, altered, missing or just lain wrong, by the time the game comes out.

So, don't ever be tempted to do one!

And at the same time have some pity for the poor saps who got lumbered with the job, they inevitably did their best but "launch-day strategy guides" are almost *never* worth buying.

And with specific regard to Total War titles - the ORG and other forums will, within a week to 10 days of release always offer better information and more detailed help.

Its just the way it is, So to the first poster: I'm sorry you wasted your money but do learn from it and dont (ever) buy launch-day strategy guides again! At least that way your money wont have been entirely wasted!

[metatron]

The original guide for MTW was a godsend, so hopefully this will be quite nice as well.

[favedave]

The original guide for MTW was a godsend, so hopefully this will be quite nice as well.

Dude, read my post. Unless you're being sarcastic, please note: the strat guide sucks! It's a horrible ripoff with 99% wrong information!

So, yes, it's a "godsend." Just as useless as gods in real life...

[CrownOfSwords]

no reason to buy a guide just play some custom battles and learn it all yourself.

[Bob the Insane]

It is a shame, I had my hopes up a little because the last Bradygames one (for MTW) was very good, very deep with a whole chapter writen by one of the devs...

Prima and RTW's was truely awful but I had hopes for M2TW's with it returning to Brady...

Well thanks for the heads up, that saved me $10...

[GreyOne40]

One of the things about a good simulation is that you can apply real life strategies and/or techniques and they will come up with believable results. So if you want to know how to win a medieval battle for instance, just study the real history.

I have never bought a strategy guide for any game. I enjoy figuring it out for myself, or applying lessons from the world, as noted above.

It must be frustrating for the author when all the pre release information is revised as appears to have happened here.

I haven't bought this game yet, but am looking forward to it. Still beating on the egyptians right now in RTM.

[Scipio Africano]

How about you put that thing to good use and see if it says anything about:

Princesses (ways to increase charm effectively)
Priests (I'd like to have a different title than always 'the Unorthodox')
Why my diplomats can't bribe anyone. (most likely because they're not very good)

[Shadow_Wolf33]

Princesses (ways to increase charm effectively)

I don't think they had plastic surgery and implants back then.

[Polemists]

Yea okay whoever said use real life tactics obviously is doing something wierd. On all demo battles I went to various historical links, if you did exactly what any of those leaders did, in your demo battle you just flat out lost. At least in gold demo.

You have to create tactics, and yes knowing tactics helps you create them, however maybe with the exception of obvious basics like high ground and flanking it's better to just learn as you go.

As for strategy guides, there only useful in my view, in collecting games. RPGS, certain puzzle adventure games, the like. Where people playing seem to miss one or two things, and where basic story is not bound to change by release.

Why anyone would buy any strat guide for any strat game is beyond me. There are tourney winners on most boards, most people here have mastered the campaign map since days of shogun. All the advice you need is right here :)

Give it a week and all the princess, guild, questions will be answered.