Do you wait before expanding at start?

[bthizle1]

In my most recent Roman campaign I waited about 30+ years, and found the game to be much more interesting and more of a challenge. Although so far I've only played as the greeks, epirots and now the romans I've had the most fun with the Romans and Epirots as they are both proving to be the most challenging....

So do you wait before expanding and the start of the game?

[zznɟ ǝɥʇ]

Sort of. I go slowly all throughout the game. I focus on buildings, then armies if I have the money. Wars are slower but army position matters more and everything feels more epic, and more fun.

[The10thLegion]

I waited around 10 turns before i got out of the Peninsula. I think that my main problem is going to be the Selucids, so i mostly start out hitting the West

[Nellup]

It depends, if I'm playing as a major faction (Rome, Macedn etc.) then I'll wait at the start to give the smaller nations a chance to develop. But if I'm playing as a small nation (Bosporus, Pergamum) then I'll expand right from the start.

[MarcusTullius]

It depends, if I'm playing as a major faction (Rome, Macedn etc.) then I'll wait at the start to give the smaller nations a chance to develop. But if I'm playing as a small nation (Bosporus, Pergamum) then I'll expand right from the start.

I do exactly the same thing. Its more challenging if you allow the smaller states to first expand.

Then you crush them

[lolgast]

With the romans I first expand untill I have some natural borders (alps, river nearby patavium) And than I wait for about 35 turns

[Coldcall]

Playing as Rome I wait a really long time to expand and allow the rest of the factions to develop into large empires. I take over the Italian penninsula and Sicily early and then just build up Romes infrastrcuture for the next 75-100 years. The aim is to have all the local based legions up and running by the time I am ready to take on some major wars. Up until about 550 AUC i start no aggressive wars and only defend the early Roman territories.

Try this on h/vh and it becomes a serious challenge.

[Brusilov]

I don't tend to wait, however, as I am a fairly cautious player so it's not as if I am 'rushing' any expansion.

My 'house rules' prevent me from starting a war with a faction so that also tends to slow down the game a bit.

[ptg]

I do pretty much the same as coldcall, consolidate the Italian penisula - maybe Sicily, Sardinia and Corsica too, build, then expand slowly form that power base...

[EternalSlayer]

I don't tend to wait, however, as I am a fairly cautious player so it's not as if I am 'rushing' any expansion.

My 'house rules' prevent me from starting a war with a faction so that also tends to slow down the game a bit.

Same here, it often prevents me from expanding as quickly as I would like.

[Cyphon88]

I Would include Segestica and Salona in that mix of securing the area. As they are big mob points by the AI and i prefer to be controlling those chokepoints.

Although i've started playing 1 turn, (due to the fact i dont have time to play all those epic battles) and im finding it much more difficult to expand. Especially with the syra's bothering me in the south,

[Selifator]

I tend to rush the beginning, then when I begin to overextend I stop and develop untill I can rush again.

[Redolegna]

As the Romans, I took out Pyrrhus immediately (and I mean immediately) from Italy, and captured Cannes, Tarente and Croton rather quickly. Then I engaged in a bit of warfare with Carthage, but only small field battles, no siege. I waited for fifteen years before taking Northern Italian cities and another fifteen before attacking Greece. It IS challenging and I had to learn to plan carefully. Two tactic victories in Greece and Macedonia were total strategic defeats when their reinforcements wiped out my legions right after them. Those pesky Greeks had built up (especially with the money I gave them to fight the Macedonians).
But when I attack a faction, I push all my might against them. I might stop doing that and letting them live and try to take back their cities.

[bthizle1]

Right now I waited 30+ years, and I've been facing a massive Dacian force, they took over everything north of Corinth, except Delphi from the free people. They are allied with the Gauls, and they own all of france and much of the Germanic tribe lands. I love the challenge, but I honestly think that if I had to face the Macedonians in place of the Gatae I would loose, as Roman troops just seem to be a perfect match for "barbarian" type armies.