Has anyone actually completed the 361 campaign?

[Blatta Optima Maxima]

As the romans. Have you?

[legio_XX]

No. I like to take my time on my games and every Time I get the ball rolling on one he announces A new none save compatible Patch So I end up quiting and waiting for the next one!

...I think this one will be worth the wait though.

[♔DARTH LEGO♔]

This^^

[SeniorBatavianHorse]

As above - currently having Julian's backside handed to him in the lower/upper Danube areas due to severe manpower shortage but have now suspended play awaiting the new release. The 2 previous campaigns were overwritten due to newer releases and not being save-game compatible!

[First Citizen Gallienus]

Well that sucks, the no-save compatibility. But anyway, I downloaded IBJuliani a few days ago and I gotta say, this mod is epic. There's so much stuff in it, its a wonder how they crammed it all in. I really can't wait for the 260 AD campaign though, as no one has covered that era yet. I want to see Emperor Gallienus and all those guys from that time, with mid to late 3rd century AD Roman legions!!

[SeniorBatavianHorse]

Me too. I think I might just have finished the 361 AD Campaign by the time Restitutor Orbis will be released! (Nice pics by the way.)

[First Citizen Gallienus]

Thanks, and you ought to show us some pics from your campaign!

[Flavius Vegetius Renatus]

Yes, I finished it on M/M difficulty.

[Blatta Optima Maxima]

Yes, I finished it on M/M difficulty.

wow...

+rep

[Flavius Vegetius Renatus]

Not really that difficult. 1st turn is a whopper, it took me 2 hours to set up everything in motion and then 30 turns later u can complete your objectives.

[Flavius Vegetius Renatus]

Sorry, the above message is a reply to Cocroach the Great

[Constantius]

Like SBH I play slow, so I probably never will complete it, I just like rushing my forces to areas of crisis e.g the East, only to find the Rhine frontier breached, great fun. Actually I really have no intention of completing it .

[SeniorBatavianHorse]

A wonderful sentiment, Constantius! And one I share wholeheartedly in!

[Flavius Vegetius Renatus]

Dont rush the East boys before taking care of the West. Think ancient tank batallions and blitzkrieg (light, medium, heavy cavalry, Julian has tons of em in the west). Combine your troops in pure cavalry divisions while withdrawing your infantry to important towns (sirmium, antioch, A.T, argentoratum, thats where they r good at). Make franks, goths, alemanni, saxons, gaels come to u on your chosing. Pepper them with arrows and javelins (always 30% troop loss for these infantry oriented nations) and withdraw. They come again on the same turn the rusult will be the same, 30% troop loss for them with one difference, now u charge em with your medium and heavys (cimbris, cataphs.), one stack down onother one to go. U might loose 5-10% if u play it right. Clean up the barbies, get your econ going, retrain your vets then move East to take care of the Sassies. If u need some more detailed pointers let me know

[SeniorBatavianHorse]

Thanks, Flavius Renatus, but I prefer to play using the tactics and the army compositions used by the late Roman Emperors from this period and see what happens! Masochistic I know but fun too!

[Flavius Vegetius Renatus]

True SBH but with no cash and upgrades u will run out of them fairly quickly. It takes 3-4 turns for palatini and comitatensis to get recruited (1 unit!) in one recruiting city if u have money. And i dont see anything wrong with using tactics that use full potential of the given unit against that of enemies

[Constantius]

Indeed, interesting though your tactics are FVR, I like the authenticity of contemporary army composition, I also like the Emperor himself to lead the best troops on the major campaigns, whether it be burning Ctesiphon or leading punitive raids against the Franks

[Flavius Vegetius Renatus]

I guess u guys have the point but i never looked at it this way from the stand point of historical composition style. I wonder if u can tell me what r your biggest problems u r encountering when u play like this? I mean right after 1 turn and u set everything in motion.

[SeniorBatavianHorse]

I have no real problems and am raking around 20-30,000 per turn. The Sassanid border is stable but I have lost Nisibis to them. On the other hand a lightning march some turns earlier had Julian and Antiochus storming into Ctesiphon and razing it to the ground. I then pulled out and regrouped to allow the city to revolt and tie up the Sassies. The Rhine is secure. Britain, Hispania, Africa, all quite and loyal. Aegypt is quiet but suffers sporadic Blemmye raids.

The Danube has had a sudden incursion of Gothic and Quadi invasions with several towns being occupied. I am rushing two field armies to the area but alas they won't arrive in time. The local limitanei and remnants of the comitatenses are manning the walls.

The Franks are quiet and being probed by Saxons and Gaels. The Alemanni are sometimes dangerous and at other times dealing with Burgundian threats to their rear. I have sacked the Alemanni settlements on 3 occasions and let them revolt back.

My main aim is to stabilise the borders and then build up a huge triple stack to invade Persia properly but those damned barbarians along the Rhine and the Danube always seem to be diverting me from that aim. It's easy to see how the later Emperors were always frustrated in the long run from their grandiose aims!

[Flavius Vegetius Renatus]

Hmm, interesting moves SBH. See i never went for the Ctesiphon right away. I always pull that expeditionary force from around Antioch back to Thrace to deal with Gothic threat. Franks and Alamanni i do almost the same except i use a different style, u know my cavalry blitz. Britain the same. In africa i pull troops from forts back to cities since berber AI bypasses them anyway. I keep all my Comitatensis and palatines intact in the cities till im in green but waste 90% of my cavalry within first 10 turns. I almost never loose any cities to barbarians with parthians being an exception, Amida being most repeating. Oh yeah, don't u get any rebellions by generals cause I loose on average one or 2 stacks.