Help!

[mavortium]

I bought M2TW yesterday, and have had some problems with it. First, I wasn't familiar with the camera controls, so I played the tutorial, and in the 'Norman Conquest' part, after you capture London, and build a church, what are you supposed to do? Everything is a restricted area, and you can't even attack anything!

Then, when I played a campaign, I played a battle in which Armoured sergeants got almost completely butchered by peasants and cheap spearmen! Then, in another battle, my spearmen got chopped up good by enemy light cavalry, and they're supposed to be good against cavalry! On both these occasions, my sergeants weren't hit in the flanks or rear, and my troops were stationary, and had braced for the impact of the charges. AAAARGGGGGHHHHH!!

On the campaign map, I hate how slow the charcters move, it's really tedious and irritating to watch them crawl across the map.
I really need some help with the above.

[notredamefan]

for the campaign map press space and all the characters move faster, and make sure to not select 'show cpu move' unless you want to wait for a year every turn

[ChivalryUK]

This game has a very steep learning curve, but stick with it because it's worth it.

In terms of what to build, I was very confused at first but just let the advisor tell you what each settlement needs for a few turns and you'll pick up the gist of it.

Basically you have buildings that bring in money, buildings that increase public order and buildings that produce troops. Keep your public order high so you can tax your settlements.

[Stolet]

About the camera, you have an option "restrict camera movement" or something that is checked by default, uncheck it and you can move the camera all around the battlefield

[Sitalkes]

Spearmen must be standing still and facing the enemy when hit by cavalry. They must also have the height advantage or on the level - cavalry and other troops get a bonus charging downhill. Most spearmen in this condition will beat, or at least severely damage, the finest cavalry. Spearmen are very vulnerable to bow fire - were they being shot at? Bow fire is very powerful and can allow cavalry to win against spearmen if cavalry and bows work together. This is what happend at the battle of Falkirk, where the cavalry forced the Scots spears into schilltrons where they had to stand and be shot down by the longbows. In this game you can shoot over other troops and it is an important tactic (even if it isn't a realistic one).

Also, check the status of your troops - are they tired, surprised or shaken? Is your general dead? That might make them vulnerable to a cavalry charge. Terrain and weather matter, too, as some troops get bonuses in woods. Spearmen should have a bad time in woods and they did in MTW1 but they don't in MTW2.