Do you have some tips on the HRE?

[Sloty]

How is it possible to keep such a big empire together?
Should I turtle sometime and then strike?
Do you reccomend the early or late campaign with them?
How do you compose your armies?
Are there cities that I should just sell to the AI?

[LuckyPistol]

HRE is pretty simple. Basically make alliances where you don't want to expand at first. Since you're surrounded by Catholics, it's best to expand slow (pick up some rebel settlements) while building up your economy with farms, roads, ports, and markets. IIRC Denmark and Genoa are on your victory conditions, so you could probably blitz Genoa and possibly kick Venice out of Europe while you're at it.

Make an alliance with Papal States and maintain one with Sicily. Maybe France or Poland to keep your flanks safe. Army composition is pretty standard, HRE has no real special units until much later in the game.

[Sloty]

How difficult is the hre on hard/hard? Is it easier as for example the Teutonic Order?Because TO became too hard later on hard/hard...
Which Units can I count on/are the strongest in my hre roster?

Another question: Would you suggest me to play the early or late campaign(which one is the bigger challenge)?

Also should I keep Bologna or sell it? Who should I sell it to?

Is it a good strategy to turtle for a while before striking out? I mean I have a good economy from the beginning...

[LuckyPistol]

Earlier campaign is always easier, but usually has more variability than late game. However I believe HRE is easier than Teutonic Order given that you should never come near negative gold and start with a lot of castles. You should keep Bologna, gives you a good foothold in Italy for expansion into Genoa and Venice.

Turtling all depends on who you ally with and where you expand. You can turtle for a bit before Venice, Poland, or France decide to attack (if you haven't allied with any of them).

[bigdaddy1204]

In my HRE campaign, I basically attempted to recreate Hitler's invasion of the Soviet Union, using medieval knights, spearmen, archers and swordsmen. I managed to conquer Poland and advance into Belarus and Ukraine. My panzer divisions... I mean medieval units... advanced east right up to the gates of the Soviet...I mean Russian capital, where an epic battle took place outside their capital. My units were exhausted by numerous battles and attrition had taken its toll. Eventually I got bored and gave up. Lol.

[Sloty]

Thanks!
What are the actual disadvantages of the hre roster? Do they even have bad units?

[bigdaddy1204]

It's a good roster; like most factions, the real difference between success and failure is down to how you handle money. In my HRE campaign I was constantly attacked by rebel stacks spawning all over the place, and it took something like 20 turns or so just to defeat all the spawned rebel armies and secure my own territory. I remember that in some versions of the game, you have to capture the northwest coast of Germany before somebody else does. Apart from that, just keep a mix of spears with your swordsmen behind that and archers behind that and heavy cavalry behind that and you can't go wrong. I usually rush to build the advanced barracks in Hamburg so I can train heavy swordsmen early on.

[Duck of Death]

You could do what I like to do with HRE...
Attack the Teutonic Knights, get them to be your vassal, and then gift all of your territories to them (except Bologna) and migrate all your people to Italy.

You can take northern Italy own your way over the Alps and taking the south isn't to hard, as long as you do this early on.

Now you've got the most profitable area in the game + your vassal the Teutons own all your old German territories, so major cash flow from that.