Expensive slaves who think they're elites?

[Intranetusa]

Why are slaves, the weakest unit in the game (4 melee, 1 missile, ~8 defense skill, no decent traits) so expensive to recruit and maintain?

They cost around ~1400-1500 to train, which is more than many "good" levies such as levy archers and levy skirmishers, and is very expensive to maintain ~360-370+
(I think their unit size is either 100 or 120 on large/200 or 240 on huge)

Why do these "freed slave" units who have wooden sticks and no armor cost more to maintain than a unit of heavy infantry principes?

[Dayve]

Because they've all been personally trained by Chuck Norris himself. Have you ever fought them without using that mini-fix someone on the forum made? They're bloody lethal. One unit will wipe out an entire army!

[bovi]

They are more expensive so that they will not be good at anything. They are only there to avoid the rebellion CTDs. See their description too.

[Intranetusa]

They are more expensive so that they will not be good at anything. They are only there to avoid the rebellion CTDs. See their description too.

But I don't understand why they cost so much? If they suck so badly, shouldn't freed slaves be paid dirt?

[Philippus Flavius Homovallumus]

They are expensive so that the AI will be dissuaded from training them. In fact only the Slave faction can train them, you'll notice they never show up in your recruitment viewer.

They're an engine work around, which is the only reason for their existance.

[Intranetusa]

They are expensive so that the AI will be dissuaded from training them. In fact only the Slave faction can train them, you'll notice they never show up in your recruitment viewer.

They're an engine work around, which is the only reason for their existance.

Actually, the reason why I asked this question is because I just fought a 2300+ Epierot army composed of 50% "free slaves." I thought I was doomed ( I had 800 troops) but I routed half their army in 15 seconds and won the battle.

[bovi]

But I don't understand why they cost so much? If they suck so badly, shouldn't freed slaves be paid dirt?

Also, this way they are not useful as garrison. There will always be a better unit for garrison duty for every faction, and there will always be a better levy unit for fighting.

[blank]

Actually, the reason why I asked this question is because I just fought a 2300+ Epierot army composed of 50% "free slaves." I thought I was doomed ( I had 800 troops) but I routed half their army in 15 seconds and won the battle.

Sometimes if a city rebels to a faction, the faction can keep the clubmen that automatically spawn

[Thaatu]

It's a pain in the kidney to have a useless settlement rebel to you and wreck your budget because you have to pay for the garrison's upkeep from the first season. That's the only downside of the high cost of freed slaves.

[bovi]

Perhaps you too should take a look at their description. It says you should release them from their temporary militia duty and allow them to take up their new lives as citizens, AKA disband.

[Sakkura]

Perhaps you too should take a look at their description. It says you should release them from their temporary militia duty and allow them to take up their new lives as citizens, AKA disband.

You can't disband them until it is your turn, and if you get them before it is your turn (by the city of another faction rebelling to you), you have to pay their upkeep.

[NeoSpartan]

You can't disband them until it is your turn, and if you get them before it is your turn (by the city of another faction rebelling to you), you have to pay their upkeep.

all the more reason to disban then so u don't have to pay for them in the next turn.


Now my question:... What part of:
-made to avoid rebelling city CTD
-Cost high so Eleutheroi (sp) doesn't train them.
-u should "disban" them ASAP.
do u fellars don't understand????????

Is it a pain that u have to pay for them? YES. Can that cost be avoided? NO
besides.... dude u just got a "Free city" thx to them!

[hoom]

You can't disband them until it is your turn, and if you get them before it is your turn (by the city of another faction rebelling to you), you have to pay their upkeep.

Just think of it as the cost of greasing palms & fomenting unrest.
They are after all the force that did the uprising for you so you damn well should be paying them.

[Pharnakes]

Is it a pain that u have to pay for them? YES. Can that cost be avoided? NO
besides.... dude u just got a "Free city" thx to them!

Also a free war!

What a bargain!

[Sakkura]

besides.... dude u just got a "Free city" thx to them!

Oh yeah, and that's always a good thing when it comes from a faction that might be three times your size

Just think of it as the cost of greasing palms & fomenting unrest.
They are after all the force that did the uprising for you so you damn well should be paying them.

Hey, half the time you don't even want the city, so you probably wouldn't be paying for it. So ideally you shouldn't lose cash by getting a city that way. But I'm guessing that it's hardcoded, so not a lot can be done about it.

[Pharnakes]

Who cares, frankly?

2-3000 at most. Absolute peanuts for a non steppe faction after turn 20 or so.

[Intranetusa]

all the more reason to disban then so u don't have to pay for them in the next turn.


Now my question:... What part of:
-made to avoid rebelling city CTD
-Cost high so Eleutheroi (sp) doesn't train them.
-u should "disban" them ASAP.
do u fellars don't understand????????

Is it a pain that u have to pay for them? YES. Can that cost be avoided? NO
besides.... dude u just got a "Free city" thx to them!

The problem is that they rebel to the AI Epierot faction, and basically wrecked their budget cuz AI doesn't disband them...even the scripting that gave them tons of money per turn would be offset by tons of expensive crap troops :D

[NeoSpartan]

wrecked the AI's budjet? No offence man, but are u sure?

[Philippus Flavius Homovallumus]

Those troops will die pretty quick, you should help the AI by killing them off for him.

[Pharnakes]

Yeah, an AI fation with 3 cities, gets what, upwards of 15K a turn? couple of thousand for a few turns before the slaves get themselves wasted by missiles ain't gona hurt to much.

[Soggius Chippius]

Why do these "freed slave" units who have wooden sticks and no armor cost more to maintain than a unit of heavy infantry principes?

Really? I was under the impression they were baguettes.
Though admittedly having a weapon made out of wood *does* make a bit more sense.

[antisocialmunky]

Baguettes hurt.

[Tellos Athenaios]

Especially the longer French version after it's 'dried out'...

Anywho they got a stick and some rocks... Just bring on the archers + flaming arrows and explain it afterwards in Geneva.

[Intranetusa]

Dip the baguette in pig's fat and light it on fire - it's a useful weapon to scare away elephants, as well as a good emergency high calorie food.

[Thaatu]

Not that I'm complaining (much), but as the Aedui, KH had taken the eastern Europe between Getai and Illyria, and I had all those worthless provinces rebel to me. My income was something in the area of 2500 per season, so when most garrisons of the freedom fighters had 8 Apeleutheroi plus 4 random merc units, and the total income from the settlement was below 1000, it's needless to say I was f-. I disbanded all the garrisons as soon at it came my turn and gave away the province to Getai. This happened three times with different settlements, meaning I was 3xF-. But, as I said, that's about the only downside of the Apeleutheroi upkeep.

That campaign has some other nifty stuff going on too. For example, when my Insubre horde was stranded behind Roman lines and couldn't break on through to the other side, I bought Syracusa from Epirus and used it to build a fleet which then ferried my horde to Crete. Now I have a band of Celtic pirates controlling the island, raiding Greece. Needless to say, Rhodos had a little accident.

[bovi]

It could also be Dwarfish bread.

{generic_militia_descr}
These men are slaves who have taken their freedom in a revolt, or have been freed by their native masters to secure their aid in one led by them. They will fight a perceived oppressor, but are untrained and carry minimal weaponry found at the time of revolt. They pick up stones to throw, which can be useful against unarmoured opponents, but don't expect them to do any wonders on the battlefield. They are inferior to every other unit, and particularly unsuitable for fighting cavalry.

They should be released from this temporary militia service to pursue a new life as free citizens as soon as the risk of retribution has passed and a more suitable garrison has been established.

{generic_militia_descr_short}
We have freed some slaves to hold our settlement until a more suitable force arrives. Pray they fight better in battle than what we've seen of them so far.

[J.Alco]

Actually, the reason why I asked this question is because I just fought a 2300+ Epierot army composed of 50% "free slaves." I thought I was doomed ( I had 800 troops) but I routed half their army in 15 seconds and won the battle.

Chuck Norris is proud.

[Intranetusa]

Chuck Norris is proud.

Yup, and Bruce Lee would be proud of the time when I beat an army of 2500 with an army of 374 (half strength triaris and mercs) [strength ratio 3:20]

[Digby Tatham Warter]

Because they've all been personally trained by Chuck Norris himself. Have you ever fought them without using that mini-fix someone on the forum made? They're bloody lethal. One unit will wipe out an entire army!

Your not far wrong there mi old sausage.
My plans back fired slightly recently, when I took a village, stripped it of it's buildings, hoping it would revolt to rebel to serve as a buffer state. The problem was it came back to the faction with gold chevroned, weapons, etc Peasants.

Normally I sally out from my Pike wall, but on this occasion it didn't go so well. After softening with missiles I attacked 2 units of the blighters on my left flank, with 1 armoured Nellie, 1 Thoratikai heavy inf and 1 Cataphract cav, all had 2-3 cheverons, needless to say I got creamed.