Discovering new world in MTWII questions

[Emperor[1G]]

Thanks for the help on my previous question last week, I hope for similar help here as well. Ive blown through England and Scicily on VH mode and am looking for more of a challenge. Im thinking one of the Islamic factions or the Byzantines would be more difficult. That said, can any of you answer the following:

1. Can the Muslims/Byzantines discover the new world? Can they make Carrack's in other words?

2. Is there a set time when you are able to go exploring? Or is there a certain date or event that must take place before you can build the Naval Dockyards?

Thanks again!

[FactionHeir]

Any faction can build ocean faring heavy warships at the naval drydock (only spain and portugal can get them at the dockyard already)

You can build them as soon as the World Is Round event turns up. In vanilla that is 320 - 328 years in (or 160-164 turns).

And as anyone will tell you, the Aztecs are a pushover.

[Cheetah]

Who has what:

https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showthread.php?t=74955

btw the byzantines have carracks. The muslims have baglah as their highest tier ships, tbh I do not know whether you can reach the new world with them.

It is a set date: "the world is round" event.

[Cheetah]

the Aztecs are a pushover.

With the right type of armies. they have plenty of stacks, it is a war of attrition far, far away from your training centers. Some western armies they can beat with ease, with some you can beat them with ease.

[FactionHeir]

Bring 6 regiments of cavalry and you can run them over.
Some archers if you want to see them head down on the grass before they reach you.

Infantry is not too great against them due to attrition, but as above, any other unit type will easily crush them.

Usual approach: let them run through your hail of long range missiles.
Cease fire and charge in the cavalry, 4 at the front, 2 at the flanks.
Watch chain rout.
All cavalry that were green before the battle will be something along the lines of triple bronze or silver by the end.

[Barbarian]

Bring 6 regiments of cavalry and you can run them over.

Doesn't work. I had 6 units of the best available cavalry once. I beat 4500 aztecs ( the first two stacks) with ease. My grimace changed, when I saw 4 more such stacks coming.

Bring loads of artillery with you -aztecs don't have it, and you can outrange them.

The biggest problem is that aztec infantry scare everyone, so even heavy cavalry routs soon. It is better to not go into melee with them.

Aztecs are powerful. I played them in custom campaign mod, because It thought it will be a challenge or even impossible to take over the map with nothing but unarmoured infantry.
I landed at the shores of british isles, and rolled over the Europe with no problems. No knights or advanced technologies were able to stop me.

[FactionHeir]

I'm playing small unit sizes. Maybe that's why

[Emperor[1G]]

how do you change the turn format to make the game last longer? i tried looking it up in the FAQ's section but for some reason it doesn't display for me. New PC, I may not have something installed. It just seems like by the time you get to goto the New World, the game is all but over.

thanks btw for the answers.

[Ramses II CP]

Hrm, I brought almost a full stack of cavalry (Under 800 when they arrived IIRC) across the ocean as the Danes in my AAR and wiped out the Aztecs, killing around 10k of their men and losing maybe 250 of mine(Medium units sizes). I even released some of their men so I could pretend they were a challenge. The Aztecs have no answer for cavalry, in all of my engagements they routed almost on contact.

I did have a company of elephants for the last two battles or so, but they were the only men of mine to be affected by the Aztec's supposed fearsome attitude.

[Monsieur Alphonse]

how do you change the turn format to make the game last longer? i tried looking it up in the FAQ's section but for some reason it doesn't display for me. New PC, I may not have something installed. It just seems like by the time you get to goto the New World, the game is all but over.

thanks btw for the answers.

Go to C:\Program Files\SEGA\Medieval II Total War\data\world\maps\campaign\imperial_campaign (C = harddisk) and open descr_strat. Set timescale to 1.00 or 0.50. 1.00 gives you 1 year per turn and 0.50 gives you 2 years per turn.

[ReiseReise]

Timescale is number of years per turn, default is 2. Changing the time scale to .5 or 1 would actually make it take longer to get to new world, correct?
I think what you really want to do is change the dates for that event.
In the same folder as descr_strat is descr_events. Towards the bottom of descr_events you will find
; ------------ CORE GAME EVENT --------------
event historic world_is_round
date 320 328

Change the 320 328 to something like 150 158 and you will get the new world in 150 years (75 turns) instead of 320 (160 turns)

Or you could change the timescale to 4.00 to make ALL the events (gunpowder, mongols, timurids) happen sooner

[FactionHeir]

Timescale is number of years per turn, default is 2. Changing the time scale to .5 or 1 would actually make it take longer to get to new world, correct?
I think what you really want to do is change the dates for that event.
In the same folder as descr_strat is descr_events. Towards the bottom of descr_events you will find
; ------------ CORE GAME EVENT --------------
event historic world_is_round
date 320 328

Change the 320 328 to something like 150 158 and you will get the new world in 150 years (75 turns) instead of 320 (160 turns)

Or you could change the timescale to 4.00 to make ALL the events (gunpowder, mongols, timurids) happen sooner

That was a good start but then went downhill. If he set the timescale to 4.0, his game would last only half as long as currently.

For detailed information on how to make the game last longer of change events, check link 1 of my signature.

[ReiseReise]

I don't see it as downhill, OP is complaining that the game lasts too long, I provided a possible solution to make it progress quicker.

At least you agree that my fix would work, I wasn't sure since I have never actually tried it.

[Emperor[1G]]

I was complaining the game didn't last long enough actually. As I said, just when you get to the New World, the game gets ready to end. Thanks for the mod tips btw, I altered the game file and now have 890+ turns AND the New World Event, mongols and gunpowder will arrive some 130 turns in.

Since I have you fellas here, rather then make a new thread Im going to ask your opinions on the subject of forts. I never used them in RTW and have never used them in MTWII, but I see people mentioning them as a viable tactic.

What is the point of them? Anytime I see the PC use them, I run right over and besiege them. Then they either A. sit there and lose men each turn as supplies dwindle, or B. try to sortie out the front door, where I assault them catching them in the doorway bottleneck and slaughter to my heart's content. Other then possibly slowing down an enemy stack for a turn, what is their strategic value?

[FactionHeir]

Slow down enemy stacks, prevent agents passing through, force enemy to take longer route, take out rebels that crop up around the map, place to store excess troops without fear of plague nor desertion.

[ReiseReise]

Sorry for my misinterpretation, I thought you wanted New World earlier, not to make the game last longer while keeping New World in its place. Alphonse had it right .

As for forts: I actually used them much more in RTW than in M2, but that could be due to a change in my style. The only time I use them now is when I have a weakly defended area. I will build a fort in a mountain pass and put the weakest unit I can find, eg 20 spear militias left over from some siege. The garrison will surely die, but it gives you an extra turn or two to build/move an army to defend against the invasion. I mostly use it when the AI seems to be preparing for war but they could attack next turn or maybe they will wait 10 turns, it is too expensive to keep an army around but the fort gives you a nice buffer and an extra turn to react. Also, they prevent enemy spies/merchants from moving through (if it is in a chokepoint obviously)

[phonicsmonkey]

Use forts as a fishing net for enemy merchants so you can acquire their assets. Particularly effective in north italy.

Or use them to trap Mongol and Timurid stacks and pound them with flaming artillery fire.

I have a thread somewhere about my 500k Elephant Fence.

I won't post the link (again) for fear I will be exposed as a shameless self-publicist.

[Andrei]

Thanks for the help on my previous question last week, I hope for similar help here as well. Ive blown through England and Scicily on VH mode and am looking for more of a challenge. Im thinking one of the Islamic factions or the Byzantines would be more difficult. That said, can any of you answer the following:

1. Can the Muslims/Byzantines discover the new world? Can they make Carrack's in other words?

2. Is there a set time when you are able to go exploring? Or is there a certain date or event that must take place before you can build the Naval Dockyards?

Thanks again!

Yes you can go with both factions to the new world...I have arrived there with my Moorish fleet and with Turks...have pics will post them when i get the chance..so its a very CAN DO, for islamic factions didn't try Byzantines...yet