Indeed, "Pontos rocks", with EB 1.0 even more ...

In my campaigns with Pontos, either successful or unsuccessful, I noted some similarities (level M/E):

- AS is rather peaceful if you stay at war with Ptolemaioi & KH (after taking Sinope and/or Nikaia);

- The Hai betray you sooner or later, so I learned to strike first;

- Ariobarzanes' son Mithridates has the tendency to father girls, one son among four is the exeption.


Additional information:
- build your first mine in Nikaia, it gives 1200 compared to the 600 mnai of Trapezous or Ani-Kamah or the Hai-capital.

Roleplay tips:
- Did you notice the decrepancy between the gov2 regions (old persia) and the Victory Condition regions? This gives you as player the possibility to do some role-play, similar to the Carthagians "Barkid" / "Anti-Bakid" traits. I call it "Persian" / "Anti-Persian" trait (though a hidden one ), the struggle within the Pontic Royal Family about the direction to conquer: either try to get all the old Persian Empire lands back (= gov1 & gov2 provinces) or go for the V.C. provinces. I'm not sure which way is easier.

- When conquering new provinces, I'll roleplay that too.
These provinces get a gov3 ("Pontic Hellen Satrapy"):Trapezous, Sinope, Nikaia, Pergamon, Ipsos, Halikarnassos, Side & Tarsos.
The provinces in modern-day Greece & Byzantion get a gov3 too, they're Hellen after all ... at least this is how it is seen in the Royal Palace,
The "old Persian Empire" provinces get a gov2 ("Pontic Persian Satrapy").
Exeptions/special cases:
Mazaka is considered Homeland to me and thus I build a gov1 there, btw the only province that gets a gov1 immediatly after conquest.
Antiochaia first gets a gov3 and maybe later leveled up to gov1.
The two Hellen cities of the Chersonesos get a gov3.
Galatia, Sythia, Skythia minor & Jerusalem/Judaea get a gov4 ("Pontic Allied State"). I respectively the P.R.F. see those people as "special cases", fitting neither in the Hellen nor in the Persian dominated culture and thus binding them via an "ever lasting alliance between the P.R.F. and the Rulers of G., S. or J." to the Pontic crown is the best way possible, for both sides. Judaea is chosen due to their (unique) religious concept: monotheism. Their client ruler will be replaced after death.
The "Barbarian Territories" in Europe (= all the non Hellenic V.C. provinces) get a gov4, their client rulers will not be replaced after death (I even think that an assasination by an own Assasin would be alright before they die naturally).
Upgrading the Homeland provinces:
After 25 years of Pontic rule, those provinces with a Homeland "sticky" can be upgraded to gov1. (Feel free to change it to 12, 16, 20 or whatever years you find adequate). But: don't exploit your MICs, if you can recruit, say "Syrian Archers" in Antiochaia and you thus have a regMIC4, stop recruiting them (be either strict and even stop retraining them or adopt my Houserule: if their's already a regMIC4 built, it's alright to retrain them).

A last recommendation:
Read After Action Reports (AARs). Not only have their authors put hard work into them, but you as a reader can learn something from them. I, for example, learned how to get better at role-playing.

Enjoy Pontos or whatever faction gives you the "This-is-my-faction-and-I-want-to-play-them-now-and-I-want-to-know-all-to-become-a-better-player-with-them"

Yours, Treverer

P.S. Additional hints may follow via edit.