Desert Factions

[Miria]

Not sure if a thread has already been done about this but.....which desert factions do you like the best so far?

Also which desert faction do you think is the easiest and which one has the hardest initial challenge?

I've played as all 4 so far, i've had the best luck with Aksum and Himyar so far. Their starting locations are good, their only threat is each other although Himyar sometimes has the unfortunate luck of having the Sassanids declare war. They also have a good economy early game.

Currently playing a Tanukhids campaign, i like their units. I was originally going to try and take all over North Africa for myself but by the time i took Libya and Aegyptus, Garamantia had already taken Central North-Africa so i had to change that strategy, not to mention they happily asked for trade and an alliance since i was attacking the ERE. So far the Sassanids are not at war with the ERE so i have more breathing room as far as conquering the ERE goes, they have lost all of Greece/Thrace and some of Anotalia but Syria remains untouched and i have already taken the province with Aila in it.

Lakhmids are ok but it's such a hassle because you either have to remain a puppet state which limits your diplomacy, or break away from the Sassanids which may anger them which is not a good thing early game. The first time i tried i just remained a puppet state, took out the Ghassanids then went and settled the desolate Yathrib city but after a while i noticed that i was at war with the ERE and their puppet states plus i was at war with the Sabirs and Arran. I never got any messages asking me to join the wars it's like i was automatically involved. As for Arran, they were allied with the Sassanids so i don't even know how i was at war with them.
The second time around i abandoned my settlement, causing my puppet state status to end, then i resettled as soon as i could. The Sassanids were a bit unhappy but still liked me enough to accept trade and a NAP seeing as i was still at war with their enemy the Ghassanids. I took out the Ghassanids then just as i was about to take Yathrib, Himyar beat me to it and then declared war on me. Unfortunately since i was no longer a puppet state i had no backup so i had to deal with Himyar on my own. It wook a while but i managed to take them out however i ended up in a difficult position because my expansion became limited as the only logical choice was the ERE but the Sassanids and the other puppets had already been chipping away at the ERE so i was running out of choices fast.

So how much experience does anyone have with the 4 desert factions? what strategies did you use? where did you expand ect.

I am also planning a co-op with a friend, he is going to be playing as the Sassanids and i am going to probably play as the Tanukhids or Lakhmids but i am not sure which of those two would work best with the Sassanids.

[ThorHa]

A Co Op with the Sassanids is like bonding with Wladimir Klitschko to challenge 15 year old schoolgirls.

[User29]

As Himyar and Aksum I had a blast playing off the two empires until fully committing to war with either one, in my Himyarite Campaign I early on blitzed into Egypt and then into the rest of North Africa, as well as taking the Islands in the East, I was well established with a defensible border and could declare war on the Sassanids at my leisure when ready

With Aksum things didn't go so well, The sassanids got sick of my shenanigans and ended our trade agreement, I bankrupted that turn and to keep myself afloat I went balls to the wall against them, seized the entire indian coastline and fought a real total war against them, unfortunately Rome was beaten and I had to take on the great power by myself, it was a slow and agonizing defeat

[Miria]

I concur to both of those statements regarding the Sassanids.

It kinda sucks playing as any faction on the eastern side of the map because it's a case of you're either with the Sassanids or you are against them....and all their puppets. Whenever i play as one such faction, first priority is 'do not anger the Sassanids, make peace with them whenever possible'. On another note, as a faction in the west by the time you make it to the east the Sassanids and their puppets have taken over everything so it's almost impossible to beat them because all of them just keep sending stack after stack.

On the bright side, playing as them is easy because you barely have to do anything, just declare war and sit back as stacks and stacks of units charge in from each puppet state, even at the start of the game each of them has at least 1 big army to send in.

One good thing though is like i did in my recent WRE campaign, befriend as many barbarians as possible as well as the african factions, subjugate any who resist if possible, then by the time i clash with the Sassanids i will have my own friends to back me up....including the Huns who i made an alliance with

[User29]

I've tried multiple Sassanid weakening mods, they still dominate the ERE way over the top, but it's less glaring when most of the puppets are absorbed into the superblob

[Miria]

I've tried multiple Sassanid weakening mods, they still dominate the ERE way over the top, but it's less glaring when most of the puppets are absorbed into the superblob

It's not so much that the Sassanids themselves are OP, in a battle between two 20/20 armies, one as ERE one as Sassanids with the same unit buildup (eg 4-5 ranged units, a few cavalry ect) ERE wins quite easily provided the player knows how to play a battle well. ERE units just have such good defense, those spearmen are great in fortify stance or in a settlement battle. The Sassanids have good cavalry and archers but in an even numbers battle ERE has a slight advantage.

The Sassanids themselves are pretty easy to deal with, at least while playing as the ERE or maybe WRE if they make it that far. The problem is just all those puppet states, they start off with like 6 or 7 puppets plus 2 military allies. Again, playing as someone like the ERE, they may have slightly superior units but it doesn't mean anything when there is just stack after stack from all these puppets coming to attack and there is no breathing room. So you basically have to focus all of your armies on that front, leaving Thrace and Africa open to attack. I have beaten the Sassanids before as the ERE, i just focused on them until i took their last settlement and subjugated them which made all their puppets at peace with me, then i was able to just pick them off one by one.

For me, the easiest by far was Aksum. The hardest: probably Lakhmids.

Tanukhids are stated as "very hard" in the game, but they're not. Once you realize how to play the army stances (in particular that you can go straight into camping mode after you raze a city while being in raiding mode); cycle looting to maintain food and that you get zero upkeep units from the raiding stance there is no stopping that faction.

Lakhmids are definitely the hardest out of the 4, it's great having the Sassanids as backup while being their puppet but at the same time it means getting dragged into all their wars and there is no telling if they will come to your aid if someone declares war on you directly, just luck if they do.

Aksum is great, the few times i've played as them i didn't even have to touch Himyar, they foolishly declared war on Mazun in a few and Lakhmids in the others therefore also going to war with every other puppet state and the Sassanids themselves. Just let them duke it out while Aksum can just expand north and attack the ERE/Nobatia. Himyar is kinda similar but in reverse, instead of going to war with the Sassanids just make them friendly then go after Aksum then after the ERE.

Tanukhids are the best out of the 4 factions because they have the ability to migrate, so they don't HAVE to stay and fight the ERE, they could instead go north and take a desolate region in Scythia or somewhere. It's also handy to be able to just sack ERE settlements along the way then go to west Africa instead and attack an easier WRE who would be spread thin by the time you get there.
I also like the Tanukhids units, they seem more diverse and unique compared to the others.

Still, it's a lot of work to defend against them and their puppets let alone attack them. At least it means there will always be a big challenge besides the huns in the campaign as any faction

[Slaists]

For me, the easiest by far was Aksum. The hardest: probably Lakhmids.

Tanukhids are stated as "very hard" in the game, but they're not. Once you realize how to play the army stances (in particular that you can go straight into camping mode after you raze a city while being in raiding mode); cycle looting to maintain food and that you get zero upkeep units from the raiding stance there is no stopping that faction.