Introduction/Fighting As The Germans

[Gylippus]

Hi everyone,

Downloaded Rome Total Realism recently and its such an improvement over the original game! I've not really had much time to play it because of exams (I'm a Classics student, surprise, surpise!) and various other things like planning my dissertation (on Pyrrhus invasion of Italy) and getting a trip to Italy and Sicily sorted out! Can't wait to get to Agrigento!

Anyway, I've got a bit of a problem. I picked fighting as the Germans for my first campaign and I've got into a war with Gaul.

The problem is the war with Gaul seems to be going on and on and on. I just can't seem to break them. Every time I lay siege to their capital they bring a full army up from the south. I usually wipe them out but lose about half of my army and then another full strength Gaul army will turn up and I have to break the siege and retreat to get back up to strength.

I can't even commit all my limited numbers of troops to the war with Gaul because I have a terrible problem with rebel family members popping up all over the place.

The German's don't have a lot of money in the game, the Eastern rebel states have pretty large armies which would be suicidal to attack and I had a rather ill fated (ill fated meaning everyone including my general got wiped out) jaunt over to Britain.

I've managed to get a foothold in Cisalpine Gaul at Patavium but the Gauls just blockade my port and put me under siege meaning my garrison is slowing getting whittled away from continuous fighting. I seem to have run the area dry of mercenaries and my unit producing towns are a long way away.

Any tips? At this rate I'm not looking forward to the Romans showing up although I have an alliance with them at the moment!

[Clearchus of Sparta]

Look for Rebel towns to take first. Build income producing buildings as a first choice and concentrate on unit production from one settlement. Use this to defend your settlements. (You'll know which ones to defend) Once they start to repel attacks, they will build up their experience, which goes along way to winning against superior numbers of less experienced troops. Mercs will eat up large chunks of your cash to recruit. It will be a tense start while you wait for the income buildings to complete, but once you have your economy in the black, things will ease.

Lose any fleets if you have them, this will save you cash. If your ports keep getting blockaded, build up your land based income producing buildings such as traders, roads, mines etc.

Put spies into the enemy settlements as this helps to cause unrest and potentially opens locked gates for you.

Hope this helps

[Tiberius Tosi]

I agree with Clearchus, spread east in to the Rebel area and conquer those. You may want to leave a small army on the Rhine and fight the Gauls only when completely necessary.

Oh also German troops use A LOT of missiles, so I like to turn fire at will mode on and just get my troops close enough to the enemy and let them unload all of their missiles before finally attacking, this softens the enemy up a ton.

The second you share a border with Rome, they will most likely break that alliance, so watch out.

[AqD]

I agree with Clearchus, spread east in to the Rebel area and conquer those. You may want to leave a small army on the Rhine and fight the Gauls only when completely necessary.

Oh also German troops use A LOT of missiles, so I like to turn fire at will mode on and just get my troops close enough to the enemy and let them unload all of their missiles before finally attacking, this softens the enemy up a ton.

The second you share a border with Rome, they will most likely break that alliance, so watch out.

They do have a lot of javelin-thrown units, but they're not good at it, and their javelins are not effective against armour at all. In fact you would find every peltasts/legionaries of other factions can throw javelins better than the germans.
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[Jamey]

They do have a lot of javelin-thrown units, but they're not good at it, and their javelins are not effective against armour at all. In fact you would find every peltasts/legionaries of other factions can throw javelins better than the germans.

Quantity has a quality of its own. The 120 man basic German infantry is very effective with its javelins when used correctly.

I have some general advice for playing as Germany.

My ideal army composition is 8 basic infantry, 4 heavy infantry (usually the elite spears you can build at any hall of heroes), 4 ranged units, 2 generals, and 2 other cavalry. As soon as possible, I use mercenary Gallic slingers as the ranged unit (before that, I just have more basic infantry). Early in the game, I'll substitute 2 more heavy infantry for the cavalry (much cheaper to maintain). I like to use Gallic heavy cavalry or Sarmatian merc cavalry.

Some tips for using your armies:

• Your general needs to have a priest of Woden. The casualty recovery is hugely important given your small population base.
• The basic German infantry can hold against nearly any opponent long enough to get your heavy infantry and cavalry into flanking positions. Put the light infantry into the defensive stance until you need them to attack.
• Make sure that you have all javelin throwing units on 'fire at will' unless there is a good reason to conserve ammo (e.g. I'll often save some or all of my javelins for the larger of two forces).
• Be sure to turn OFF 'fire at will' when units rout while mingled with or surrounded by your forces. The AI will shoot missiles at routing units regardless of the presence of allied units engaged with them. I have fought many battles where I forgot to turn of 'fire at will' and took more casualties from 'friendly fire' than I did from enemy action.
• Your basic infantry is superb at running down routers. It is light infantry with the fast movement ability. This is especially evident when running down pikemen or heavy infantry.
• Use your generals aggressively but not stupidly. They are a key part of your fighting force, especially early in the game.
• You have several units available with the ability to inspire fear in enemy infantry (e.g. blackshields and the heavy spears). Use this ability to your advantage, hitting the flanks and rear of engaged units. The combination of morale hits can cause units to rout early in engagements, reducing your casualties as your wind up mopping up rather than fighting.

In terms of the strategic game:

• Your first priority is to get all of your Towns upgraded to Large Towns. Those without the population to do so need to be grown.
• A large part of your income will eventually be sea trade, but don't neglect roads. I generally wind up ignoring the barbarian "carrier groups" that fall out of time into the Atlantic and letting them blockade me occasionally. 10-20 pirate ships are just an insurmountable obstacle for your weak German boats (and your weak German economy).
• I like to go West instead of East at the start of the game. If you can eliminate or cripple the Gallic war machine before they start churning out heavy infantry, you will be in much better shape. In one of my games as Germany, Gaul wound up with only Cisalpine Gaul (less Patavium) under its control, and they eventually built so many units there that the population would no longer support building more units. I was using the Gauls as a buffer between me and the Romans while I fought Macedon.
• My first conquests are generally Viberi, Trebata, then Remi (in that order). I like to take and hold Viberi as a production/retraining center. It can produce Blackshields and Gallic slingers. You'll have to grow it to a Large Town before it's useful for that, though. Usually, the Gauls will ask for peace early in the game, then attack me around the time that I control Remi. Alesia is the largest Gallic settlement (and their starting capital), so you should knock it out ASAP when you go to war with them.
• I found that a British adventure pays off reasonably well. Cavella is a lucrative settlement, and it either starts as or grows to a Minor City early on. That said, the conquest of the British isles is a bloodbath, so wait until you can absorb the casualties.
• I like to hold Narbo and Burdigala against the Iberians and have never fought an offensive war into the Iberian peninsula. Instead, I've found that I wind up tangling with Macedon and/or Rome around the time I'm finishing Gaul. Some games, Iberia will stay peaceful, some games they'll decide that they really want Burdigala.

[Tiberius Tosi]

They do have a lot of javelin-thrown units, but they're not good at it, and their javelins are not effective against armour at all. In fact you would find every peltasts/legionaries of other factions can throw javelins better than the germans.

That is true to some extent but Gylippus said he has just started out and is at war with just the gauls, who do not have that much armor. He cannot afford or recruit better infantry because he has no money and has not had time to upgrade all his buildings to where he can build lots of heavier infantry. But with 120 infantry in a unit, and they each have like what 3 javelins (?, I know most units infantry throwing units have 2 but I believe Germans have more), that's a ton of missiles no matter how weak they are, and will still infilct quite a good number of casualties.

[horatius]

When I played a German campaign (where I migrated to Rome), I found the easiest way to beat Gauls on the battlefield is to basically form all of your men into one block with the width of one unit. Then, throw your javelins and charge straight into the center of the Gaul lines. I know this may seem like suicide, and is very simple and crude, but you will cause the center of the enemy's line to route and split the enemy into two. Then swarm your men onto one the halves, make it route, and turn them on the other half. It really works great.

I found that trying to extend my line and flank the Gauls really didn't work because Germans are not good hold the line fighters, and work much better just swarming the enemy.

[Mikail Mengsk]

I think the barbarians aren't so good for the classical hold-and-flank tactic: the holding units would suffer many casualties due to the lack of armour. But would your tactic work against the LEgions and the hellenistic's phalanxes?

[horatius]

I think the barbarians aren't so good for the classical hold-and-flank tactic: the holding units would suffer many casualties due to the lack of armour. But would your tactic work against the LEgions and the hellenistic's phalanxes?

I think my tactic works best with the Gauls, as Roman Infantry can withstand the initial onslaught, and hellenistic phalanxes can keep the Germans at bay with the sarissas.

[Jamey]

I've had no problems using the basic German infantry to hold the line. You take casualties in those units, but their base size is large enough to absorb them (120 men to 80 in a Roman unit on large). In defense stance, they will definitely hold long enough to flank phalanxes, particularly one you get silver chevrons on them. One key is to realize that those units will have to rotate back for retraining more often than phalanxes or Roman infantry would. Maintain a reserve to keep your best generals stocked.

My biggest problem is dealing with the Romans with their huge defense and javelin volleys. That tended to be bloody, but eventually number will win out. By the time Rome controls Italy and looks north towards Germania, you should control most of continental Europe. Macedon is the real problem, as you have to fight many full stacks to get to a port near enough to Greece to be safe for shipping an army into the Peloponnese.

I'll point out here that German units are far cheaper to build and maintain than civilized armies are. In upkeep, a typical high end unit like Principes or armored pikes will cost 250-350 per turn in upkeep. German basic infantry will cost you 113 and the elite spearmen will cost you 185. Sure, your economy starts small, but once you control Gaul and Germania, you can maintain a lot of stacks.

[Mikail Mengsk]

I've had no problems using the basic German infantry to hold the line. You take casualties in those units, but their base size is large enough to absorb them (120 men to 80 in a Roman unit on large). In defense stance, they will definitely hold long enough to flank phalanxes, particularly one you get silver chevrons on them. One key is to realize that those units will have to rotate back for retraining more often than phalanxes or Roman infantry would. Maintain a reserve to keep your best generals stocked.

My biggest problem is dealing with the Romans with their huge defense and javelin volleys. That tended to be bloody, but eventually number will win out. By the time Rome controls Italy and looks north towards Germania, you should control most of continental Europe. Macedon is the real problem, as you have to fight many full stacks to get to a port near enough to Greece to be safe for shipping an army into the Peloponnese.

I'll point out here that German units are far cheaper to build and maintain than civilized armies are. In upkeep, a typical high end unit like Principes or armored pikes will cost 250-350 per turn in upkeep. German basic infantry will cost you 113 and the elite spearmen will cost you 185. Sure, your economy starts small, but once you control Gaul and Germania, you can maintain a lot of stacks.

Sure, you are an expert . If i'll try some barbarian faction i'll ask you everything possible about them

[HouseOfHam]

One thing that I haven't seen anyone mention here yet:

When conquering towns early in the game, always use the Enslave option. The enslaved population will be distributed to towns with family member governors in them, so before you assault a town, remember to put governors into cities where you need to increase population and remove them where you don't. After the assault is over, you can move your governors back to where you like them.

While this won't give as much instant cash as exterminating the population, the long term effect will be higher population that grows faster and pays more taxes for years and years to come. Plus, you'll have bigger recruitment pools. Plus, when enslaving, you can get useful ancillaries like slave girls, and can you consider yourself a true Germanic leader if you have no slave girl?

[Mikail Mengsk]

You are right: enslaving could quickly increase the poor population of the barbarian's provinces

[enkovich]

When I take Alesia, I usually camp an army at the ford/bridge nearby that's large enough to take down a full army and small enough to encourage an attack. Usually 4-5 light infantry and 2-4 heavy infantry for back up. Set the light infantry in defensive, block your side the bridge and turn fire at will on. Most of the gauls will rout before reaching your armies, unless they have a really good general. If this isn't possible, a single line of light infantry in defensive/fire-at-will on a hill will devastate Gallic infantry, and a charge by supporting cavalry and heavy infantry will rout the survivors. Don't try these tactics on the Romans though, or any faction with well-armoured units.

[Mikail Mengsk]

i don't like fighting in the bridges: it's far too easy to win

[enkovich]

i don't like fighting in the bridges: it's far too easy to win

For barbarian vs. barbarian maybe, but not against romans or phalanxes. The computer has an uncanny knack of marching through your troops while maintaining a perfect formation and taking few casualties.

[Artax]

One important thing when playing Germania, especially on huge unit size, is to hire as much mercenaries as possible.

Your towns will have low population and huge units quickly deplete the population. Merc are good, becouse they don't deplete your population and once the unit lost most of its strenght you can disband it in your own settlement increasing the population even more. It helps the growth of your settlements.

[AqD]

One important thing when playing Germania, especially on huge unit size, is to hire as much mercenaries as possible.

Your towns will have low population and huge units quickly deplete the population. Merc are good, becouse they don't deplete your population and once the unit lost most of its strenght you can disband it in your own settlement increasing the population even more. It helps the growth of your settlements.

It's better to recruit these mercs and disband them immediately in your towns, so you'd get more men to recruit your own troops
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[Jamey]

It's better to recruit these mercs and disband them immediately in your towns, so you'd get more men to recruit your own troops

I've done this when playing Germany. I don't recall doing it when playing any other factions. No one else is up against the population wall as bad as Germany - its surrounding settlements are mostly Towns, which makes enslaving a much less productive strategy.

[Clearchus of Sparta]

Cheaper to recruit the javelinmen and move them to a town which needs its population boosting and disbanding them there.