Byzantine Cataphracts?

**Rhyfelwyr** · 01-05-2008, 22:38

I've got the highest level Stables, but the best cavalry I can get are the Latinkon. Latinkon are great, but I really wanted to get some tanks on the battlefield in this campaign. How can you have a Byzantine faction without Cataphracts?

**FactionHeir** · 01-05-2008, 22:40

Unless you got a mod running that changes it, you get Kataphraktoi from the King's Stables in Citadels.
So make sure:
1. You are not running a mod that changes it
2. You have a Citadel (not a Fortress)
3. The building is a King's Stables

**Cheetah** · 01-05-2008, 23:35

IMO this is all silly. By the time the byz player gets his catapracts all other factions get their late era units. Catapracts should have been available to the byz player from the very start.

**rvg** · 01-06-2008, 00:45

Originally Posted by Cheetah

...Cataphracts should have been available to the byz player from the very start...

From a historical perspective -- absolutely. From a gameplay perspective, it would make the Byzantines even more overpowered than they already are.

**Cheetah** · 01-06-2008, 16:20

Against the AI the human player is always "overpowered", every faction has strength that can be exploited vs the AI.
Against humans (i.e. in a hotseat) the byzantine empire are not over powered at all. First of all, it has very vulnerable starting position. Constantinople is probably one of the juiciest early era target. It is at the border of christian and muslim countires without any natural allies (early russia wont be a great help). Could be targetted by both crusades and jihads. Even if not targetted it is at the cross-road of crusades not all of them coming with the best intentions.
Second, the early byz troops are no better than the troops of any other faction. It has mostly spearmen and archers, the only above averge troop is the vardariotai. It's tier 3 castle inf is weaker than the western counterpart (dism lancer vs DFK). It has to build tier 5 (!!!) city barracks to get a good reliable melee inf (VG) and it has to build tier 5 (!!!) castle stable to get catapracts.
I just do not see how the byz player would be overpowered. Yes, Constantinople and Thessalonica has very good economic potential, but there are other factions with good economic potential too.

**Askthepizzaguy** · 01-07-2008, 01:46

Originally Posted by rvg

From a historical perspective -- absolutely. From a gameplay perspective, it would make the Byzantines even more overpowered than they already are.

Lol I always considered the Byzantines weak (not as bad as Russia) because they are Orthodox and they cannot crusade or jihad, making blitzing with that faction difficult due to public order and upkeep concerns.

However, from a turtle's perspective, the Byzantines are overpowered indeed.

**ReiseReise** · 01-07-2008, 03:27

Kataphracts don't seem all that great. They would be better if they were available early like in MTW where they outclassed other early cav and lost their supremacy in late game. Instead, by the time you can build them, everyone else gets something better.

**Rhyfelwyr** · 01-06-2008, 21:08

Originally Posted by FactionHeir

Unless you got a mod running that changes it, you get Kataphraktoi from the King's Stables in Citadels.

Glad to hear that, I thought the Stable costing 9600F would have been the highest, the one I am building just gives Latinkon. In that case, I can't wait to get those Kataphraktoi onto the battlefield! And Jerusalem is my first Huge City and is building the Barracks that allows Varangian Guardsmen...