The Spaniards - Easiest Faction?

[Nazgûl Killer]

From what I've seen, the Spaniards are a VERY easy faction, I've played as England before, and I've had some difficulty in taking out 2 (sometimes 3) factions at once, but as Spain, I just attacked Portugal AND the Moors, TOGETHER, at turn 11, and I annihilated them.
This makes me think that the Spaniards could be very easy, and almost overpowered, as by turn 87, I controlled North Africa (Up to Cairo, and I also took Alexandria), the British Isles, France and the Iberian Peninsula... This is a feat I've yet to achieve with ANY other faction...
Luckily, this was changed in the mod Stainless Steel 6.1, with the addition of other factions, which are also strong, this has made the Spaniards much more balanced, and I play SS6.1 far more than I play Vanilla as of late.
Could you care to discuss:
What is it that makes the Spaniards in Vanilla so easy!? If they really are that easy, if it's not just me?

[Viking Prince]

The truth is that they are all easy once you master the details. The great thing going for the Spanish/Portuguese are the Jinetes. A great cavalry unit that is useful for nearly the whole game since it takes several armor upgrades. If you limit the numbers of Jinetes in an army, you might have a better balanced game to play. It is your choice of course. I usually limit myself to one until the army has 10 units and then the limit is 2 Jinetes.

The other great thing with the Spanish/Portuguese would be the javalins on defense from the walls. They simple give the assaulting units a haircut before they are at the top of the walls.

The only real lack in the early and mid game are good crossbow units.

[Kawee]

I'm pretty sure in SS 6.1 the Spaniards and Portuguese have peasant crossbowmen?

[D.B. Cooper]

Strange, I had a hard time with Spain when I tried them. Their unit roster is awful, it takes too long to build barracks that can train anything decent. Their economy is nothing great, and their territories aren't good either. You have two medium-sized settlements quite spread out from each other, and getting from point A to B in the Iberian peninsula takes a long time.

And then there's all the factions that attack me within 15 turns. France and Sicily invaded, and even England came down from the north to have a piece of Spain.

What difficulty are you playing at?

[Viking Prince]

I'm pretty sure in SS 6.1 the Spaniards and Portuguese have peasant crossbowmen?

They are only good in the early game and only if you do not get anywhere near Italy or Germany or ...

But yeah, they are the same generic peasant crossbow throughout the game and work fine for the first 20-40 turns. Just like the spear and town militia, mailed knights, etc.

[Imperator Romani]

I think that they're pretty easy considering that once you get the Iberian Penisula under control, you have a pretty easily defendable position. You can move a ship to the Gibralter Strait to keep the Moors out(you can do this at any time, even when they still have Granada and Cordoba) to keep your south safe, and you can just defend the mountain passes to keep France out until you're ready to attack.

[Nazgûl Killer]

I played on VH/VH on M2TW...
Never tried them on SS6.1... I will though.
I must say, that the Spaniards, in my eyes, are VERY easy on M2TW... I don't know, maybe the faction style just suits me.

[Paulus Rubio]

I also find Spain an easy faction to play. Their starting position is awesome, and if you take out Portugal and the Moors quickly, you've got the game all figured out. The only problem I've ever had with them, is to decide where to have your capital. Until you get Naples, Palermo or Rome, you'll have a lot of Corruption problems with cities in the Middle East.
Both Spain and Portgual are sort of Hybrid factions, and that might suit your style of playing very well Nazgul-Killer.

@ Viking Prince: I'm almost 100% sure that both Portugal and Spain gets pavise crossbowmen as tier 3 ranged units. With a large shield, and 12 missile attack.

[Viking Prince]

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@ Viking Prince: I'm almost 100% sure that both Portugal and Spain gets pavise crossbowmen as tier 3 ranged units. With a large shield, and 12 missile attack.

You are correct. The population base in Italy is the real edge rather than the specific unit roster.

Just as the other Catholic castle based units will eventually outclass the Italian urban based output as population growth and technology take there toll.

For this reason, population growth is vital for all factions more than worrying about the unit roster. You can either acquire the population by conquest or promote the growth in home regions.

For all ot the above as well as some other reasons, I do not find any faction to be particularly easier -- knowing the keys make them all easy in the end. This is why the blitz records are with specific factions -- they are selected due to aspects that the blitzer takes advantage of in the mechanics of how the game is put together. I enjoy the playing of the game for the role playing aspects as well as experimentation.

[merocaine]

I'm in the middle of a great spain campaign in SS 6.1.

They are one of the most managable factions, as it is easy to keep the pope on side, I've played many meat grinder type campaignes, and have to say the play it at your pace Spanish are much more enjoyable!

I allied with Portugal and Aragon early on securing my flanks from France and England, grabbed the rebel and Moor settlements on the Iberian peninsula, after about 20 turns with my Argonese and Portoguese allies the Moors were destroyed.
Got a break when the Normans got excommed, made an allience with the Pope in return for attacking Palermo, grabbed genoa, milan, syracuse, and that spot beside Corsica. The Argonese took there north African possessions and Marsilles. The Pope then made Vassels of the Normans.

Pope loves me.

Crusade called on Cario, Faties dont know what hits them, Cario, Alexandeia, Gaza, Damatia, fall quickly.
Foolishly decide not to exterminate, eastern cities rebel, all are exterminated, scrath defence of milita spearmen and peasent bowmen manage to hold the line. Counter attack on the Holy City, success! Unfortunatly the locals are less than pleased, a terrible slaughter ensues.

Assault on Karnak is beaten off with heavy loses sole General in the Middle East killed in the Gate House, large numbers of Faties run down my Milita stacks in the desert, I'll need more than spam milita and peasents and jinetes to bottle them up. Cairo and the Holy City placed under siege. Reinforcements from Gaza and Dammaita arrive in the nick of time. Lackin a General and any sence of reality a renewed Karnak Campaign ends in humiliation...

After a series of military disasters in the Holyland at the hands of a revitalised Egypt (were do they get that money?), the Spanish Empire under goes a series of wide ranging military reforms, new Military academies are built, the Spanish army is reorganised along professional lines.
Two stacks of generals, gendermes, Terico pikemen and pike milita, sword and bucklermen, pavice crossbows dispathed from Collection Points in Iberia, Sicaly, and North Africa.

Mongols arrive, bad news for somebody...

The Turks call a jihad on Palermo , in retaliation I call a crusade on Bagdad. Catholic stacks converge on Bagdad.
Aragon take Bagdad in record time, the clever fellows had a stack lost in the Holy land after the last Crusade.

Spanish War Gallerys sighted in Byzanine waters for the first time, Greeks accuse Spanish of spying, relations are strained....althought war is in no ones interest at the moment.

House Rules - Never more than two Stacks in the field. Never attack a Catholic faction. Never Sack.
Exterminate only when rebelion is a real possiblity. Never destroy a faction if you can help it.

I love this game!

[Sodbuster]

I had a Spanish campaign on VH/VH in vanilla, and was attacked by the Moors, Portugal, France, Scotland, and Sicily within the first 20 turns. Scotland landed a full stack on northern Iberia and attacked my capital, Sicily landed a stack on eastern Iberia and attacked me there. The Moors sent two full stacks of crap infantry towards my capital as well, France attacked me with a half stack right as Sicily landed troops, and Portugal sent a bunch of little stacks at me. This was before I knew how good Jinetes were, so I didn't even touch them until the end of the game vs. the Timurids. However, once I had destroyed Portugal and beaten the Moors off the peninsula, it was all gravy.

[Imperator Romani]

The Moors sent two full stacks of crap infantry towards my capital as well.

Wow everyone's hatin on you. But it helps to put a ship at the Gibralter crossing so the Iberian settlements can't be supported. I've done this and had 3 full stacks waiting for me to move( Haha I didn't of course) That's when you knock them off the Iberian and turn your attention elsewhere.

P.S

They sometimes build a navy, so then you will have to fight them off.