best defensive formations

[Macilrille]

Guess it depends on year. Perrsonally I try to keep the Roman Republic of a similar size to its historical size at any given year, and if I have conquered too much in order to force AI to adhere to my demands and diplomatic advances (as I am now), I Keep quiet long time after. If I get bored I can always raid some enemy city; take it, loot it all- including buildings torn down- leave, or give it to an ally. Koinon shall have one or two cities in Hellas back that Macedon took, if I can take and hold them, Macedon and Epeiros both blitzed so macedon is strong, Epeiros middling.

[Cyrus]

Ok well i'm in 248 and i have 20-21 settlements:all the aislands surrounding italy, all of continental modern italy, massalia,two settlements north of the alps and 2 in illyria. i signed a peace treaty with Carthage and am currently sending my two best generals with their armies to take a few more chunks of gaul and illiria.so it seems kinda historical to me (more or less)

[Connacht]

Well, perhaps you went too far northside.
Historically after the first Punic war the Romans stayed in Italy, occasionally dealing with celtic tribes in Cisalpine Gaul, but not trying to expand north to the Alps, in Noricum and Raetia (which are today's Tirol and Bavary).
After the second Punic war they finally started too look outside (Iberia and Greece).

the only people thats attacking me is the dog-gone Audis [...] and the Audi are much stronger than I.

?

(I'm imagining EB2 with an Audi that charges a line of cohortes reformatae just like a scythed chariot would do)

stop playing romani, start playing makedonia. ALL HAIL MAKEDONIA!!!

edit: ok, i'm actually tempted to play a romani campaign starting in britannia with marian reforms...ALL HAIL BRITANNIA!!!

I'd really like to create a Casse general named Lelouch and then reduce into carrion and ashes the whole map.

[Zues!]

Ok well i'm in 248 and i have 20-21 settlements:all the aislands surrounding italy, all of continental modern italy, massalia,two settlements north of the alps and 2 in illyria. i signed a peace treaty with Carthage and am currently sending my two best generals with their armies to take a few more chunks of gaul and illiria.so it seems kinda historical to me (more or less)

Maybe your going to fast or im going a little to slow because in 234 I have about 13-14 settlements, where I just took Messena from the Carthaginians after they back stabbed, and after I get everything in place im going to go on the offensive to take their islands Sardinia, and Corsica

[Strategos Alexandros]

I would say you were going at a slightly better speed than him, but then again I roleplay pretty heavily and often go for years without taking a city or fighting a major battle. I don't play the Romani often but I find the best formation with them to be the Roman's own checkerboard formation or variations on it. This is described more fully in the unit descriptions than what I could say now, but I will say that it often requires the sacrifice of a fair number of your Hastati.