The Quitter Strategy
Hello Hello, TWC. As a somewhat long-time player of RTW, I learned a strategy or 2 that kept my pathetic civilization alive long enough to get to advanced units. Now this strategy may sound downright stupid, but this may help people who are like me: Unable to control a large empire/make a bunch of units/queue a bunch of buildings/etc... I just can't handle it all. I don't like it, even though that really hinders my gameplay. But I digress...
Strategy 1: Kydonia
If you have ever been sailing around the Mediterranian coast, you would notice a nice little island south of Greece containing a city known as Kydonia. It is a Greek town owned by some Rebels (Cretian or whatever archers and pirates, which are heavy infantry). Believe it or not, this settlement is actualy profitable, as it holds dyes and iron, along with being very close to the Greek Cities, which you will become dependant on.
Starting out:
Alright, this works the best when playing as a costal civilization close to the Mediterranian.
Recomended Factions:
Scythia, Carthage, Egypt, Greek Cities, The House of Julii, Brutii, Scipii, Macedon, Numidia, Pontus, The Selucid Empire (Which I think is the most pathetic), and Thrace.
Take your starter cities. If they have a port, start building boats. If they don't have a port built, set the queue to building a port. As the boats are being constructed or the port is being constructed, start to move all your family members towards the city building the boats.
For the next several turns, your cities will be cash farms. Reduce your military, keep the cities content, raise taxes until you are almost at a rebellion stage. You will need a lot of money with the start-up.
At this time, your boats should be constructed and your Royal Family should be on the boats. Make the fleet large as Pirates (I swear to God) will ruin your day. I'm serious. You will develop a VERY strong hatred of Pirates, especialy as a Barbarian faction with their weak-ass boats. Sail as quickly as possible towards the island of Kydonia. It's the stringy island below the Greek mainland, very close to Rhodes.
Make sure to have as many family members as possible, and don't go back for anyone that comes of age. If any marriage petitions come up, REJECT THEM. You will put more financial strife on your empire that way.
Ok, the battle for Kydonia is an easy one. You can do it manualy if you're a man, or resolve it automaticaly if you like to play it safe. Once the city is yours, try to turn your city into an almost pure financial center with booming population (Build roads, temples that increase trade/farm production/population incrase, and better farming systems. We're making the city happy and prosperous, not a military center). Set the taxes to low, build a diplomat ASAP and get a trade agreement (and maybe and alliance) with the Greeks, the Macedonians (even though they will probably be wiped out a dozen turns later), and the Egyptians.
After you have settled down your city and have a good 30-40K Dinarii, you can get rid of your origional cities. The way I do it is disband the military completely and set the taxes to very high. That pisses off people quite fast.
You're alone now on Kydonia, and you're probably deep in the hole, losing about 900-1100 Dinarii each turn. That is normal. Don't panic, you just need to upgrade your city as soon as possible. Once you reach the "Large Town" stage, take every economic opportunity possible. Build a port to make trade with the Greeks, roads, etc... Just no military, I cannot stress that enough. You should be in relative safety unless the Greeks just don't like you. If they don't like you, they might sent a welcoming party consisting of a stack of hoplites, since your entire army should now be your Royal Family, which is very strong early on.
Just stay the course, grow your city, make friends, and eventualy you should be in a position to where you have a Huge City/Minor City depending on if your faction is Barbarian or not, and you should be rolling in cash (1000-2000 every turn). I did this with the Julii, and I was making 1500 Dinarii each turn, and my Royal Family controlled all but 1 of the Senate Offices.
Chance of success: 75-85%
Strategy 2: Britannia
Recommended Factions: Germania, Gaul, Dacia, Spain (Britannia is the obvious Exception)
So, what have we learned from part 1? A 3 step system...
1. Build some boats!
2. Put all your family members on the boats!
3. Conquer ALL the cities!!!
The same basic rules apply here. The only difference this time is you have 3 cities to qonquer (I would start with Londinia or whatever it's called, as the brunt of the forces are there), and you will be dependant on Germania and Gaul for trade. The city of Dava or whatever it's called is key because it has... Gold! Lots and lots of gold!!! Conquering that city is paramount towards your economy so that you can build a large army to invate northern Eurpoe with.
You can also conquer Ireland, a small rebel city lies there, not much opposition at all, easy battle. Lots of land to own.
If you want to expand from there, make sure you don't do it too late! If you wait long enough to get huge cities, chances are the Romans will have experienced the Marian Reforms, and then the Julii Urban Cohorts become a pain in the ass to fight.
Chance of success: 65-80% depending on how early you take their Capitol.
So, the 2nd part wasn't much compared to the first, but overall, these are the 2 places you want to control for your Faction. It's not a bad strategy, but I wouldn't recommend it sence most of you like to conquer and control vast portions of the world. 'Tis not bad for a first strategy, no? Oh well, have fun trying this.
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Originally Posted by LegendXVI
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