[WIP] Middle Earth Strategikon ~60% Complete

[Incomitatus]

I am not sure how it is in FroGS, but in the vanilla version if you capture Kugaovd the dwarves will never help you against Rhun and you will have to fight both in the north east as well as the south east of the sea of Rhun. If the dwarves are not bordering any enemies then they will see no use in sending down any troops to fight against Rhun. If you avoid capturing Kugaovd the dwarves will most likely send down troops after a while and capture it. That will allow you to focus on Rhun`s regions south of the sea of Rhun. Rhun will then use a good deal of men to try to fight back against the dwarves, atleast that is what happened in my Dale campaign 3 times. All of the campaigns where they tried to take back Kugaovd, they were actually unable to do it in all three, and in two of the campaigns the dwarves even captured the city some clicks east. I just thought you might add that, because the player should know that there are advantages(easy defending, more income) and disadvantages(Dwarves will not help, constant stream of units needed, forces of Rhun will be coming from both north and south of the Rhun sea) to capturing Kugaovd.

Yeah, it is different in FRoGS because there is a settlement north of Kugavod which also borders North Rhun, the Dwarves can take that and still be in the fight. On the other hand, what is still the same is that to the East of Kugavod there are still only two very defensible river crossings. Who needs the Dwarves when Rivermen and Woodsmen can hold off anything Rhun sends?

Good luck with the Physics tests!

[divad]

You might like to know that ExRM (Extended Realism submod for RTR Platinum) has their latest (and probably final) version in a public beta release right now. I intend to check it out if/when this is done and I have time.

I am currently reading " Extended Realism Mod v4.0 Documentation". And starting to foam.

But with that and TATW too, I am now in serious trouble: I need another life, without wife or child or work

[Incomitatus]

I am currently reading " Extended Realism Mod v4.0 Documentation". And starting to foam.

But with that and TATW too, I am now in serious trouble: I need another life, without wife or child or work

My problem exactly. Well, no wife or child for me, but I own my work which is it's own full-time commitment.


UPDATE: I am trying to get the Economics section written in full before posting, it is being worked on. Yesterday's planned work was lost to flatmates begging me to bake some pumpkin pies - they turned out well, but getting around the kitchen can be challenging when wearing a basket-hilt (can't be without a costume on Halloween, after all).

I can't promise to have the section done today, but I'm going to try.

[uddhava]

(NOTE: I was very much hoping to get the whole Part done today and posted in full, but a steam burn to my index finger puts finishing on hold until it hurts less to type. Nevertheless, I wanted to put up an explanation and an introduction/teaser. Enjoy! -Incomitatus)

OMG, the things people make up, seriously a steam burn?....... Naw just kidding . Good to see some new stuff! Thanks.

Let me begin by pointing out that the AI cheats. Or perhaps it would be better to say that the AI has several built in economic advantages. What are they? Well, let's take a survey:

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

• First, and least, is the money script. 5000 in the Treasury every time an AI goes -1000 in debt. It also takes 5000 away when the AI has over 50,000 gold.
• Second, some AI controlled factions, but not all, get a larger King's Purse.
• Third, AI factions get extra Generals and armies at the beginning.
• Fourth, AI factions have the ambush armies removed from their territories and nearby rebel garrisons weakened.
• Fifth, AI factions get extra troops and an increased Kings Purse if they start to lose.
• Sixth, the Garrison Script provides troops to some AI-controlled settlements if they come under siege.
• Seventh, the AI gets extra Law, extra Tax Income, extra Trade Income, and 50% off all construction in their settlements.
• Eighth, AI troops get extra morale - awarded when trained in their settlements, not including the extra morale from H or VH battle difficulty levels.
• Ninth, the AI gets Growth bonuses from some buildings that the human player doesn't.
• Tenth, the AI is sometimes allowed to recruit units from a lower level of building than the human player, or, with the Shire, can recruit Hobbit units directly.

Didn't know that there were so many. Looking forward to the next part

[Incomitatus]

OMG, the things people make up, seriously a steam burn?....... Naw just kidding . Good to see some new stuff! Thanks.

Yeah, I was steaming some potatoes in the microwave, in a Ziploc bag. They got finished and I opened the bag and burned myself. As my flatmate helpfully pointed out, "Oh my God, you do that every time! What is wrong with you?"

I'm just glad I didn't spill boiling beer on myself, too... that was an accomplishment (I was making beer-boiled bratwurst).

I'm okay to type today, though. Top of my hand is sore, but the pads of my fingers are better.

Didn't know that there were so many. Looking forward to the next part

Yeah, I could make that list more detailed, but I think it gets the point across. The AI has a serious boost. Most of the building-based bonuses come from the walls, but the Stables also provide bonuses, so if you want to train your assassins in sabotage, Stable buildings should be on the list of targets.

AI Generals get a boost as do AI strat map characters: spies, assassins, and diplomats get extra movement and skill points. But like I said, it's all just to make the AI competitive. The econ boosts are only an issue because the AI starts with them and doesn't have to invest any time or money... and the -50% Construction Cost they get is a big boost.

[DrDragun]

Are the triggers for Harsh Ruler inclusive? If I walk a governor so he's not been in the settlement 4 turns, can I keep above 10k bank? 10k is pretty low for mid/late game.

[Incomitatus]

Are the triggers for Harsh Ruler inclusive? If I walk a governor so he's not been in the settlement 4 turns, can I keep above 10k bank? 10k is pretty low for mid/late game.

;------------------------------------------
Trigger governing8
WhenToTest CharacterTurnEnd

Condition IsGeneral
and GovernorTaxLevel = tax_extortionate
and GovernorLoyaltyLevel < loyalty_happy
and Treasury > 10000
and TimeInRegion > 3

Affects StrategyDread 1 Chance 33
Affects HarshRuler 1 Chance 8

You'd have to walk the Governor out of the province and back, not just the town, but otherwise walking him can get around the trigger, yes.

EVERYONE: I'm sorry I haven't progressed on the guide. I've had a medical issue come up, nothing life threatening, but it does require surgery. I've been trying to get that scheduled, doing all the consultations, and trying to figure out how to pay for it - no insurance. It's been eating up a lot of my time, and more importantly, my energy. No promises, but I will try to get the strategy guide wrapped up before Christmas.

Thank you all for your patience!

[DrDragun]

Best of luck man. A lot of hospitals will negotiate when the bill comes due. They EXPECT to negotiate from the sticker price (thats the asking price to insurance companies) so never pay the asking price.

Now a more technical question. Do you know when 'TimeInRegion > 3' is checked? Do I have to leave a governor outside of the province at the end of the turn for it to recognize TimeinRegion? Or does any movement outside of the province instantly break it? (i.e. I could walk him out then back in in a single turn)

[Harkonnen]

Hey great guide Incomitatus. So if I read this right you no longer need to have the tax rate on very high during last turn of construction in order to get positive traits/ancillaries. Also does having tax rate on lowest during last turn of construction give you bed traits?

[Flinn]

EVERYONE: I'm sorry I haven't progressed on the guide. I've had a medical issue come up, nothing life threatening, but it does require surgery. I've been trying to get that scheduled, doing all the consultations, and trying to figure out how to pay for it - no insurance. It's been eating up a lot of my time, and more importantly, my energy. No promises, but I will try to get the strategy guide wrapped up before Christmas.

ahhh our poor free healtcare

anyway, jokes apart, thanks for the great guide, I find it very useful expecially for those details that looks unimportant at a first glance, but that usually aren't so, due to the game mechanics.

Good luck for the surgery

Flinn

[Bullgroz]

Hi all,
and thank you for your guide, Incomitatus. I'm an old strategy-games and TW player
who discovered TATW only recently, and this guide prove itself very useful, especially concerning character development. I usually play good factions, as I know how to deal with it ; however, I would have a few advices about how to manage character dev playing an evil faction : I would like to know if it is possible to develop "chivalric" administrators (for growth bonus, as law can be obtained playing dread) without having loyalty issues with them, as factions leaders usually go dread. Is the loyalty really a problem, or can I just don't care about it ? Or do I have to forget the chivalric growth bonus playing evil factions ?

[Bullgroz]

Hey great guide Incomitatus. So if I read this right you no longer need to have the tax rate on very high during last turn of construction in order to get positive traits/ancillaries. Also does having tax rate on lowest during last turn of construction give you bed traits?

Hi Harkonnen,
unfortunately, you need to have tax rate on VH when completing a building to get several positive traits, such as GoodAdmin or Good Taxman. On the other hand, having tax rate on low or normal can give you bad traits when a building is finished, for instance :
- IF the Public Order is superior to 80 % (so, better than "blue face")
- AND the tax level is low or normal
- AND if the settlement you're building in has at least a wooden palissade (so, if it's at least a town),
SO you have 5% chance to get BadTaxman and 5% chance to get BadAdmin.

Likewise, finishing a building in a settlement which is at least a large town (wooden wall) and possess NO trade building (even a grain exchange) gives you 1 point in BadTrader, 100% chance.

If you can, follow Icomitatus advice and take time to get used with the EDCT file ; very useful !

Hope I provided some help.

[FC Groningen]

Hi all,
and thank you for your guide, Incomitatus. I'm an old strategy-games and TW player
who discovered TATW only recently, and this guide prove itself very useful, especially concerning character development. I usually play good factions, as I know how to deal with it ; however, I would have a few advices about how to manage character dev playing an evil faction : I would like to know if it is possible to develop "chivalric" administrators (for growth bonus, as law can be obtained playing dread) without having loyalty issues with them, as factions leaders usually go dread. Is the loyalty really a problem, or can I just don't care about it ? Or do I have to forget the chivalric growth bonus playing evil factions ?

Compared to the vanilla game, my personal experience is that characters and armies have less of a tendency to go rogue. Especially in settlements, you have nothing to fear, which is usually where you keep your governors.

[YassirX]

Very nice guide, there have been many things that made me understand the game economy and character development a lot better than I did before.
Now I will not have "Gandalf the Profane" anymore .

[aRandomPerson]

To say this is an amazing guide would be an understatement. Great job, I feel that I understand the logistic side of this game a lot better now.

I did see you say on the 2nd page that you have never seen reels occupying the HE's western territories (Forlond, Harlond, Mithlond, Elostirion). Though I am not sure of the other 3, I HAVE seen rebels in Mithlond during my Eriador campaign. Just a random thought that crossed my mind when I read that.

I really appreciate this guide that isn't focused specifically on one faction, but general tactics to improve any campaign. That's Rep for you

[Aldor]

Great guide but just somthing I noticed:

People experienced with cavalry can get away due to AI's stupidity and cavalry's power if cycle charging. You can beat big armies with less units (largely outweighs the upkeep difference)

I can easily kill everything with cavalry, even most players online (in RTW) go for large cavalry divisions.

Cavalry perform very well if combined with infantry archers. This combination ensures minimal losses as they enemy must either split up or get shot to death. If they split, they are easy to pick off by cavalry. Add 3-5 melee infnatry units in the back to finish the job after skirmishing and no army has a chance.

This also makes the HE the most efficient faction in the game: archers don't have losses and your generals replenish (or Eldar cavalry are very good). But can be done with nearly all good factions and evil men (not possible for Orc factions or Silvan Elves).

[Coldfire88]

My heir just got the lazy attribute, 3 of its triggers are when a general comes of age, the fourth is called "brother adopted" i think this means I adopted a brother to him? and the last one is automatic 4% chance if he already has the attribute

I never adopted and he didnt come of age, not sure why am I getting it? and its self perpetuating so he will be a fat lazy pig soon enough

anyway thanks alot to incomitatus, this guide helped me understand traits, but I almost giving up on training them, it looks like bad traits are gained twice as easy as good one, getting the Goodtaxman trait also gave me a bunch of authoritarian/harshruler traits.

and building 1 town hall gave me firm ruler which is supposed to be 5% chance

[Incomitatus]

Hello Everyone,

First, I must humbly beg everyone's forgiveness for disappearing into thin air for months. Imagine me down on my knees, grovelling.

The medical issue I mentioned earlier wasn't able to be resolved ideally. In fact, shortly after my last post I became very, very ill. To be specific, an issue with gallstones spread to my pancreas and I was pretty much good for nothing but lying in bed and doing my best not to die throughout the last bit of December, January, and February. Unfortunately (fortunately?) it never got so bad as to require emergency surgery, which means with my lack of insurance I was just sort of lingering on, in pain, with barely enough energy to get through the bare minimum of necessary activity every day.

I still haven't had the surgery I need, but working with a (in my opinion) much better doctor, I've learned how to control my diet to get me sufficient nutrition without triggering a flare-up of the offending organ (which basically meant using trial and error to find the level of fat I can tolerate - no more bratwurst or cheeseburgers or cheesecake ). I've been back on my feet since mid-March, but I've been scrambling to try to restore my finances, find part-time work, and re-build my full-time business. Rest assured that at no point in this did I forget about this guide, I just haven't had the energy, time, or mindset to work on it - I find working on this type of thing to be a good stress relief, but not in the face of that much stress.

I cannot make any promises when I will be able to update and then finish this work. I have every intention of doing so, but while I am currently feeling better and more mentally able to commit to it, I am also working to rebuild my business and about to start a 30ish hour a week night job in a few days and I have a 10ish hour a week volunteering commitment... so time is at a premium. That said, I will do my best to get around to working on it again sometime this summer, after I have a chance to re-familiarize myself with the game (I don't believe I've even played since late last Fall!).

Again, I offer a thousand apologies! I see that other people have gotten some usefulness out of what has already been done and I appreciate your thanks and the rep I've gotten very much! Take care, and I'll try to be less scarce! :-)

EDIT: I see something caused some of the formatting of the guide to become messed up (mostly paragraph breaks disappearing). *sigh* I guess I know what I'll be doing as the very first thing when I pick up my pen (keyboard) again.

[Flinn]

ah man, welcome back

I was looking for your return, I followed this guide since the beginning and found it very useful, again, thanks for your effort.

I've had a look around about gallstones in pancreas, they are not nice at all, do they hurt? It looks like ..

in any case I'm happy to see you back and take your time

F

[Incomitatus]

Thanks. I'm not really back, yet, though. Just announcing my intention to be!

Do the gallstones hurt? In a word, yes, but not all the time. I've learned how not to trigger an attack, so I only get an occasional twinge now and then to remind me I'm not really healed. But, anyway, enough about my health issues... talking about them probably violates a ToS or something.

Am I correct in understanding there have been no major updates to TATW since I was last here?