East and West in a showdown

[The_crusader]

Me and my friends where having a debate about wich Roman Empire was better then the other if they did not have there inner problems and there economies was running well.And I wanted to have the opinion of some forumers on the org..

I said that the East is far better because of it's rich provinces such as Athens,
Constantinople,Jerusalem and especially Alexandria.I also believe they are better because of there super heave calvalry.....maybe im wrong

[Fate]

Me and my friends where having a debate about wich Roman Empire was better then the other if they did not have there inner problems and there economies was running well.And I wanted to have the opinion of some forumers on the org..

I said that the East is far better because of it's rich provinces such as Athens,
Constantinople,Jerusalem and especially Alexandria.I also believe they are better because of there super heave calvalry.....maybe im wrong

Yup, i completely agree!
The east has stronger trade links, better cities, and as far as i can tell, better mercs available and better troop types overall.

I mean, lets face it, all you've got to do is look at which one lasted longer to make a decision!

[GeneralHankerchief]

Neither are a walk in the park (in BI, nothing is) but the ERE is much easier.

Religion issues are present, but it's nothing compared to the Pagan/Christian rift that's ripping the WRE apart. In addition, financial success comes fairly easy.

The main thing that makes the ERE easier is, for a while, they only have to worry about one enemy - the Sassanids. It allows time for forces to be built up in the west of the Empire (Greece) to face off against the Hordes. Compare that to the WRE where just about every barbarian faction is gunning for you right from the start, not to mention the Western Rebels that will surely pop up.

[Shieldmaiden]

Its an interesting question.

But I believe Fate and GeneralHankerchief are correct, due to invasions and geography the WRE would fall as it did in 476AD, perhaps just a little later...

The ERE... would better Rulers have left it with the strength and size to defeat the Turks in 1453AD? What if Constantinople hadn't fallen?

[Nikos_Rouvelas]

Its an interesting question.

But I believe Fate and GeneralHankerchief are correct, due to invasions and geography the WRE would fall as it did in 476AD, perhaps just a little later...

The ERE... would better Rulers have left it with the strength and size to defeat the Turks in 1453AD? What if Constantinople hadn't fallen?

Then ALL of the East Mediterranean would be speaking Greek! LOL

[The_crusader]

Neither are a walk in the park (in BI, nothing is) but the ERE is much easier.

Religion issues are present, but it's nothing compared to the Pagan/Christian rift that's ripping the WRE apart. In addition, financial success comes fairly easy.

The main thing that makes the ERE easier is, for a while, they only have to worry about one enemy - the Sassanids. It allows time for forces to be built up in the west of the Empire (Greece) to face off against the Hordes. Compare that to the WRE where just about every barbarian faction is gunning for you right from the start, not to mention the Western Rebels that will surely pop up.

That's a nice comparison but if you read my initial message I was wondering
of what if the two factions never had religios problems and the hordes just plain confrontation .....

And yes Fate I too agreed with with the ERE having better trade links althoug they are only inner trade links

[Whacker]

Kinda partial to the good ol' WRE myself, BUT the simple fact of the matter is the game set them up at a very strong disadvantage. Not only do they not have any super rich provinces, they have several factions gunning for their provinces from the get go, which can also horde after you get them down to the last city. Fighting a horde down to almost the last man and then watching them capture another city to start all over again was the cause of much swearing and rending of clothes on my end. ERE has a great starting position and a strong economy, and with some good blitzing can easily take out the sassanids from the get-go. From there on it's bouncing hordes off of your borders and letting the WRE tear itself apart, and picking up the pieces. Both are fun to play IMO.

[Maxinius Scipio]

Yeah I gotta agree with most of the people here, the ERE had many rich trade routes and roman legions at it's disposal.

While the west had poor lands, rebellion, corrupt/insane emperors, and the fact that it's armies were filled with foederati instead of proper roman legionaries.