Strategically, HOW do you play the slow game

[Grifman]

off your arse while you try and play the slow game?

Oh, great board guys, it's given me years of fun advice and FBE's amazing RTW guide.

What's your problem? Sounds like you got what you wanted - a challenging game. Are you at the same place as with an early blitz? Yes, but it was probably more fun getting there. A blitz is easy, wipe the AI's early, then coast. The whole point of slow development and allowing them to tech up is so that they provide more of a challenge - which is what you got. It's point is not to be as easy as a blitz strategy. If you thought that, then you misunderstood the point of this.

[Blademun]

I have a tendency to blitz in the very early game. The first 40 turns usually see constant warfare as I 'establish' myself. Once I've got control of fa fair chunk of land, I'll 'ease' off and let the remaining AI's tech up. Usually my goal in the early game is to carve out a kingdom thats easily defendable geographically. For instance, as Sicilliy, I would conquer all of Italiy then hold. As spain/Moors/Portugal It would be Iberia and Western Africa. As Byzantium/Hungary it would be the balkans. Poland/Denmark/Hre/France....well, I couldn't play a slow game with them.

Once I got my kingdom set up, I'll just stick to defense until I'm fielding nice gunpowder armies. YOu know, since its so obvious that the Total War Franchise should have done the 1500-1800 era instead of revisiting the dark ages...

[dopp]

I agree with Blademun. Select a suitable chunk of territory and biltz your way through the first 50 turns, then slow down and start teching. 15-20 regions is a good figure to aim for. Expand too fast and you'll find yourself spending more money building up the outlying provinces than they can generate for you, plus you risk becoming over-extended when the big three events turn up (Black Death, Mongols, Timurids). Once you have established your superiority beyond question, you can slowly grind forward again until you win.

[Aelwyn]

Pretty much the same for me as the other people. I am playing as Russia, 1 turn = 1 year. I'm at about turn 70 or so, and am only at war with the Rebels. Even Poland has backed off of me after I killed their king in battle. His heir apparently didn't want to go to war with me, and after killing their King, we were no longer at war for some reason.

The trick is to expand enough to get a few good provinces that either have good resources, or nice land that can be upgraded for farming.

I do this by keeping only the forces that I need (plus a little more in case of a large attack). At that point I start building an infrastructure. Roads, farm upgrades, try to get as many coastal provinces trading as possible...all eventually.

Also another thing that works well, especially with Russia...is have your landlocked provinces be castles (as many as you think you need, I only have 3). Each region capable of generating an impressive income should be a city. All my coastal regions are cities, so I can meddle with the taxes, and other buildings that will generate income that aren't always available to castles.

As Russia, taking (Helsinki I think it is? the one across the sea from Novgorod) helps, as I'm making almost 3k per turn there, not including the 2-3 merchants in the area making 150 each per turn.

[katank]

You probably mean Stockholm. That city is the jewel of the Baltic in terms of trading. You should absolutely try to beat the Danes there.

[Aelwyn]

Yes, Stockholm, thx. Couldn't think of it.

[The Stranger]

i usually built up a good navy, good army, good economy... taking only necesary cities... defending necesary chokepoints, exploit diplomacy as good as possible... than train a massive army and mount a massive invasion... like i train 10 full stacks and attack spain and france taking it over in like 10-20 turns... I also like to make an island empire... taking italy that 3 islands under anatolia, malta and sicily, sardinia and that other one...