Lost 3 campaigns in a row...ON NORMAL.

[eXistenZ]

I've done this in 2 of the 3 I recently lost. Wanted to try something different. Hmm.

I've only done it once, as chosokabe, and that was only to get the achievements. its a real pain in the backside for me.

[Charsi]

I get smashed any time I move the difficulty slider above Hard

[M2TWRocks]

Now thinking back, I believe I converted to Christianity 2/3 of the failed campaigns, and I grabbed all the trade nodes immediately.

[forcerecon569]

Let me start off qualifying this by saying I know there are super-awesome players who can beat the game on legendary while blind-folded. I am not one of those people. But I am someone who has had no trouble whatsoever defeating the campaign/battle AI easily in past titles. Like others, I literally could beat the game on VH/H without any real hope of a challenge, or any real dynamic experiences.

I used to have to handicap myself to have any sort of challenge. Although this somewhat changed with NTW, I still had no trouble defeating the AI on VH.(With the exception of Austria, which was very challenging for me.)

Long story short, I just LOST 3 campaigns in a row.(Date twice. And Oda once.) And this was straight up on normal difficulty. The AI seems to be doing pretty clever things like paying attention to alliances, and using alliances to their advantage. What can I say other than this is a refreshing change of pace. Now that I have some variation with the unique DLC units, I am really enjoying playing this game. Much moreso than past titles where the campaign AI was nigh on retarded. And these weren't those silly campaigns where you do something ridiculous right from the start and lose. No, these were campaigns where I had a very solid economy going, with sea trade, a navy, a decent army, and decent generals. Also, this was before realm divide took place, LOL.

I have no idea what different strategic approach to take in order to win, and God that feels awesome. It really does. I'm actually trying to figure out how to tackle the challenge for once. I honestly haven't felt this excited about a TW campaign since the original STW when I had no idea what I was doing.

Good times. Now, if only they would release hattori as DLC.

yeah shogun is the best so far but i still use darthmod it makes the game 100x better but yeah without any mods the original is still good

[wealthmonger]

I must live in some sort of freak alternative reality because it appears everyone else has it harder with Mori and Shimazu than I. I'm just the opposite...all the Mori compaigns I've played have been a wash. Same with Shimazu for the most part. Where as I get my arse handed to me as Date and Uesugi. Matter of fact, the only way I found I could win as Uesugi was to take a large army and ship them to Shimazu island. I lost about 10 campaigns as them prior to doing this.

And FYI...I can say in pretty good confidence that I will NEVER win a campaign on legendary.

I tried about 15-30 turns with each clan on normal when I got the game. Starting with Shimazu I had to restart 3 times. When I got to Oda I experienced realm divide for the first time, I survived but got banged up pretty good. This is more of a challenge then previous titles.

Now I've done a number of campaigns and I'm slowly getting better each time. I've developed fast expansion techniques with Shimazu, Mori and Oda that work well up to hard difficulty so now I think any future campaigns playing them will have to be done on VH.

[DarkArk]

One of the things that I like about Shogun 2 is also how quantifiable my own progress of learning the game has come. I lost my first two starts as Hojo, and didn't do particularly well on the third try.

Now I just finished a Christian Shimazu campaign. Fortunately I had another Christian nation to ally with which made things a bit easier when trying to do the conversion. Once you do manage to get your provinces converted though I think it is better to be Christian. Nanban trade ships are great, as is the tech boost you get from missions. Early guns are also nice.

Now I managed to take out both the Imagawa and Hojo as the Takeda early game, quite the improvement.

[Doge Domenico]

You are not awesome. You are super-awesome.

If you thin that's awesome, I only 64 hours on the game. The scale to small, after I beat my legendary Ida campaign, I'm gonna figure out a way to sell this game. Luckily I bough the disc.

[eXistenZ]

If you thin that's awesome, I only 64 hours on the game. The scale to small, after I beat my legendary Ida campaign, I'm gonna figure out a way to sell this game. Luckily I bough the disc.

it will have to be an idiot that buys that, cause its tied to your steam account. unless you sell that with it. the disc is pretty much wortless

[Halloween Prince]

Let me start off qualifying this by saying I know there are super-awesome players who can beat the game on legendary while blind-folded. I am not one of those people. But I am someone who has had no trouble whatsoever defeating the campaign/battle AI easily in past titles. Like others, I literally could beat the game on VH/H without any real hope of a challenge, or any real dynamic experiences.

I used to have to handicap myself to have any sort of challenge. Although this somewhat changed with NTW, I still had no trouble defeating the AI on VH.(With the exception of Austria, which was very challenging for me.)

Long story short, I just LOST 3 campaigns in a row.(Date twice. And Oda once.) And this was straight up on normal difficulty. The AI seems to be doing pretty clever things like paying attention to alliances, and using alliances to their advantage. What can I say other than this is a refreshing change of pace. Now that I have some variation with the unique DLC units, I am really enjoying playing this game. Much moreso than past titles where the campaign AI was nigh on retarded. And these weren't those silly campaigns where you do something ridiculous right from the start and lose. No, these were campaigns where I had a very solid economy going, with sea trade, a navy, a decent army, and decent generals. Also, this was before realm divide took place, LOL.

I have no idea what different strategic approach to take in order to win, and God that feels awesome. It really does. I'm actually trying to figure out how to tackle the challenge for once. I honestly haven't felt this excited about a TW campaign since the original STW when I had no idea what I was doing.

Good times. Now, if only they would release hattori as DLC.

Should have got the game sooner NOOB!

[Asiriya]

I agree with what other people have said, S2 is the most fun to play so far in terms of difficulty. The issue I have is the lack of variety in battle maps, in units, and the small scope. I appreciate most of the new Shogun features, but I just wish the game was R2 or moddable so that the variety would be there. I'm not particularly tempted to play another campaign because it will just be more of the same.

[Barser]

I also have big problems in my current campaign as Tokugawa and might loose it.
Everything was going fine and I took on the Shogunate before he declared war on me and I got a realm divide penalty. As soon as I got to be shogun after 4 turns I got another huge penalty and the realm divide movie suddenly appeared followed with the "you are shogun movie" at the same turn. This is the first time I get realm divide 2 times in one campaign.

Well after that turn ALL factions declared war on me and I went from +10000money a turn to -5000 with mori going after all my trade notes ;(. I can hardly keep a stand while getting new vassals to boost my economy and I will be bankrupt next turn and cant afford my armies or navies. Dont think I can get the last 6 provinces needed to get the victory condition.
All the factions hate me now with some having almost -500 penalty. Even though I knock at there door with my armies they will not become my vassals or cease fire. Atleast I have some great generals and high experienced ashigaru as I will have to disband everything else.

[Doge Domenico]

it will have to be an idiot that buys that, cause its tied to your steam account. unless you sell that with it. the disc is pretty much wortless

SSSHHHHH!!! Don't let them know!

Realm divide seems to be a pretty cheap way to add difficulty to me, though all it did was piss me off and make me blitz harder.

[Jaxin]

We all complained about weak AI, now we pay for it

This is the first TW game i've actually lost (RTW-ETW VH/VH)

So Great!

Go CA

[Barser]

Also I have to disband my 5 ranks Tokugawa Kisho ninjas . These guys are pretty fun and totally destroys everything when I let them loose in an enemy fort to mob up after the mangonels. But the upkeep of them is to much for a poor shogun.

[Doge Domenico]

Just wondering, what are you guys tatics? I cant beleive that you guys are losing at all.

[crzyrndm]

I think alot of people haven't figured out that you have to stick with ashigaru as much as possible unlike previous games where teching up was essential, or they can't use ashigaru effectively enough to beat the AI's samurai stacks. That and VH/L are very boring grindfest's quite often. I stick to hard now, but with no permanent use of trade nodes, and triggering RD as early as possible (8-9 provinces, I'm at war with as many as possible).

[gord96]

I think alot of people haven't figured out that you have to stick with ashigaru as much as possible unlike previous games where teching up was essential, or they can't use ashigaru effectively enough to beat the AI's samurai stacks. That and VH/L are very boring grindfest's quite often. I stick to hard now, but with no permanent use of trade nodes, and triggering RD as early as possible (8-9 provinces, I'm at war with as many as possible).

what are some good tactics for beating samurai with ashigaru?

[crzyrndm]

what are some good tactics for beating samurai with ashigaru?

Basicly archers, flanking, hills.

Archers- A spearwall with archers behind is deadly. Most of my early armies are about 2:1, BA:YA. YA form spearwall, BA do most of the killing. Once melee force is routed charge YA at archers in loose formation. double up on each archer to rout as fast as possible. Use general to chase down routers for extra xp and less opponents.
Flanking- 2 YA can beat 1 KS with very low casualties if they come from opposite directions
Hills- Self explanatory. Less friendly fire, more enemy casualties, greater melee effectiveness etc.

Also, on the campaign map, stick with chi research for as long as possible. chi, tokofuden, zen, then as many of the farming and taxation researches as you can manage really helps a campaign. Try and get to atleast terrace farming before changing to bushido, and switch back as often as possible. Having all provinces with land consolidation and a 1st level market will get your economy really boosting. If you can get epic architecture and kinza mint(in that order preferably) on top of that, you will never have any economic problems.

With bushido techs, Heaven and Earth should be the first major one as encampments are really helpful and +50% ammunition is even better. I normally switch back after that to get the rest of the chi arts (neo-confuciasm, the ninja and metsuke techs, noh. Don't bother with sumo tournament.). Then back again and get all the master dojo's for 1 turn samurai recruitment (as by that time I'm sitting at 15+ provinces) the order depends upon which specialties I have control of and the clan. Chosokabe always gets bow master first, date and shimazu sword master, spear master always second for every clan as naginata's are very usefull, especially from a smithing province for +6 attack (archer focus) or +5 defence (sword focus).

As many archers as possible are recruited from a crafting province with +20 accuracy/+2 armour(bow ashigaru/monks) and if I have a second one +25 accuracy for samurai other wise they get +20/+2 aswell. Same with melee troops, for a smithing province. If Uesuegi/Ikko all +5 armour(monk/ashigaru focus), else +6 attack(samurai focus). Get katana cav from there as fast as possible and use 4 with +6 attack in every stack.

[gord96]

awesome. thanks bro! +rep!

[M2TWRocks]

Should have got the game sooner NOOB!

Just remember noob rhymes with boob, and everyone loves boobs.