Booming Macedon

[Pat89]

Hey,

Everyone knows (I assume...) the problem with the exploding macedonian faction. I read somewere that this is due to the fact that, in auto battles, the computer thinks hitpoints (Hp) are far too important. In RTR PE this is fixed, but still Macedon is booming (mostly to the north but in my games they always seem to go East, like Alexander ). I wonder if there is any way in stopping them (without having to destroy there homeland or giving the other faction a lot of money).

I also read somwere that Greece itself (the region, not the faction) is the problem. There should be too much trade in the region, resulting in an endless amount of money. Isn't it just possible to remove some ports or make trade less effective in this region :hmmm:.

Any reply is appreciated
PatricianS

[Tiberius Tosi]

The only way to stop them I've found is to kill them, and leave Greece as a bunch of rebels. I tried it once and it prevented Macedon from becoming too powerful. Since no one else could take over Greece (I put a legion in North Greece to protect the now rebel cities) no one really got too much of an edge. The only thing I cannot figure out is how to keep Ptolemaic Empire or Seleucid Empire from conquering each other. One always takes over the other.

Sometimes I conquer western Asia Minor and give it to the Greek States because I feel sorry for them always dying out so quickly.

[Solaris]

There have been lots and lots and lots and lots of threads on this (some of them still ongoing), try searching for some, should give you some good answers.

[Pat89]

There have been lots and lots and lots and lots of threads on this (some of them still ongoing), try searching for some, should give you some good answers.

Oops I see :S

[Solaris]

Oops I see :S

I wasn't having a go, I was just trying to be helpful

[Quinn Inuit]

For the record, I believe it is Greece itself that is the problem, not necessarily Macedon. I've made some serious strides toward fixing this in the next version of the ExRM, mostly by nerfing the economy there. Macedon still gets very powerful, but it's just strong as opposed to ridiculous.

[Tiberius Tosi]

For the record, I believe it is Greece itself that is the problem, not necessarily Macedon. I've made some serious strides toward fixing this in the next version of the ExRM, mostly by nerfing the economy there. Macedon still gets very powerful, but it's just strong as opposed to ridiculous.

I agree, it is the southern tip of Greece especially in my opinion that gives way to much money to the Macedonians. That is why I do not give Greece to any faction, because if I did, they would become the new Macedonia.

[QuintusSertorius]

Historically though, Greece was rich.

The bigger problem I find is that the Greek Cities are flimsy and incapable of holding onto their territory, even when I campaign against Macedonia and restore their provinces to them repeatedly. Although that is a fun mini-game in itself, preserving the Greek Cities.

[Pat89]

Another reason for the Greek Cities being destroyed so fast (I think), is because there cities are all on there own. So the AI tries to defent them all and that way defents none of them. In other words: the AI can't handle a scattered empire.

[Solaris]

I think it'd perfectly acceptable for Macedon to conquer Greece, after all they did. It's the huge expansion north which bothers me. My solution all along has been make the rebels to the north stronger, yet not aggressive (i.e. they won't invade) and use a garrison script.

[Brusilov]

I guess someone could always try a land block as has been done between the Ptolemaic and Carthage factions.....

[Quinn Inuit]

I've actually got it working pretty well ATM. I buffed Thrace, took Elis from Macedon, and set up their victory conditions to lead them by the hand into Asia Minor. They generally don't get too far north before getting sucked into the war vortex in Asia Minor now.

[Jamey]

I've actually got it working pretty well ATM. I buffed Thrace, took Elis from Macedon, and set up their victory conditions to lead them by the hand into Asia Minor. They generally don't get too far north before getting sucked into the war vortex in Asia Minor now.

I was going to suggest this as an interesting solution. I'm glad to hear that it works. What does it do to the Ptolemy/Selecuia balance to throw Macedon into that mix?

[Pat89]

I've actually got it working pretty well ATM. I buffed Thrace, took Elis from Macedon, and set up their victory conditions to lead them by the hand into Asia Minor. They generally don't get too far north before getting sucked into the war vortex in Asia Minor now.

In my games they always seem to go East (don't know why, I use an unmoded RTR PE version :hmmm, that's even worse than having them going North, as they will easily take the illdefended but rich Asia Minor cities. This way they become an extremely strong semi-Alexander empire conquering all of the successors... They become almost invincible sending stack after stack from the rich and dencely populated East, while I (as Rome) owe Italy, Carthage, Spain, parts of Gaul and parts of Greece (wich I am about to lose). It's almost like playing RS .

(not that I don't like RS )

[Quinn Inuit]

It just hastens the demise of the Seleucids. Often, you end up with Macedon in Asia Minor, Ptolemies in Syria, Bactria in Mesopotamia, and Armenia sending stacks down the mountains.

[Jamey]

It just hastens the demise of the Seleucids. Often, you end up with Macedon in Asia Minor, Ptolemies in Syria, Bactria in Mesopotamia, and Armenia sending stacks down the mountains.

That doesn't sound too bad. From what I've seen in RTR-PE 1.9, the Seleucids always wind up in a war with everyone. I doubt there's much you can do to prevent them from getting crushed. They're just in a very weak strategic position given how the AI treats alliances.

[Brusilov]

That doesn't sound too bad. From what I've seen in RTR-PE 1.9, the Seleucids always wind up in a war with everyone. I doubt there's much you can do to prevent them from getting crushed. They're just in a very weak strategic position given how the AI treats alliances.

Well, when I play a faction near or around the Seleucids they tend to attack me at some stage. This is even when I've had no new borders with them (e.g. Bactria).

I expect a war to start when I get a border or a new border with a faction as that is what usually happens in RTW based games.

[Jamey]

Well, when I play a faction near or around the Seleucids they tend to attack me at some stage. This is even when I've had no new borders with them (e.g. Bactria).

I expect a war to start when I get a border or a new border with a faction as that is what usually happens in RTW based games.

Yeah. The best that you can do is sign an alliance, give tribute per turn (100 per turn is enough), and heavily fortify the border. As long as it has other land borders, the AI will usually attack them first. If you have shared enemies, that also greatly helps. I've maintained alliances for 50+ years while sharing a land border.

Of course, sometimes the AI decides to flip out and go berserk. In general, this happens because the AI classifies a weaker area as an opportunity. The biggest judgment error is its tendency to blockade unguarded ports for no good reason, but it will also attack border areas with moderate or weak garrisons.
Lastly, it sometimes appears to attack you just because it can.

[Quinn Inuit]

Definitely. I've improved their funding situation, which helps somewhat. The AI just isn't very good as a defensive player.

On the plus side, changes I've made to build times and availabilities means that converting a province into a war factory is a slow process. That means that simply capturing areas far from your homeland isn't going to help you build good units quickly and close to the fight.

[Quinn Inuit]

They go east for you? Wow. That's pretty cool.

ExRM 3.3 will have two things to prevent Macedon from cranking out stacks, both of which are working reasonably well in beta. First, I've nerfed the economy of Greece. Second, it's now much harder to build high level barracks. Combined, those should make the Macs powerful, but more manageable. If they get further than Pontus, their supply lines will be too long to be easily manageable.