I saw another post asking about Sauromatæ in western Europe (southern Gaul, I think) and thought I'd draw up a reply. Sauromatæ is one of my favorite factions, and it turned out that a simple answer really can't do them justice. I ended up throwing together a reference guide on Sauromatæ in northern Europe. As you might guess, it really makes the most sense for Sauromatæ to travel eastward and conquer their Pahlavan or Sakan brothers—after all, their cultures are similar, their recruitment will be very consistent, and destroying Pahlava is one of the win conditions for this faction. Although it is somewhat unintuitive, expanding west as an alternative can be a fun change of pace, and more importantly is feasible in the Sauromatian campaign. Despite this being one of my favorite factions, I can't claim to be an expert, so I will gladly correct any mistakes I've made. I'm also looking forward to changes made in future versions, so there's a fair chance I will update this as needed. Let's get started, then.
A Quick Overview of Sauromatian Government StructuresSauromatæ has access to four government structures, not including the Allied governments. If two free upkeep slots are listed, the second is the winter value.
Æfsadai Khsaran (Military Occupation)Law +5%, Farming +1, Free upkeep x2, Income bonus (based on province resources)
This is more of a prerequisite government than an end-goal, although it is notable in that five of them are required in order to get the Sauromatian Settled reform. Please note that the five settlements in question must be cities, and they must not have the hinterland_pastoral_city tag (which means pastoral provinces, regardless of whether they've been converted, don't count towards your reform).
Khsayaga Ubastra (Royal Land); [sauro_rcl requires factions { f_Sauromatæ, } and building_present hinterland_pastoral_city and not building_present govallied and hidden_resource royal_core and hidden_resource sarmatian or hidden_resource skythian or hidden_resource saka]Law +10%, Happiness +5% (req 50% Steppe Nomadism), Recruitment slot x6, Free upkeep x3/x6
Because of the (fairly specific) requirements for this government, there are really only three provinces which qualify: Khsaitai Zakhtæ (the Sarmatian capital), Skythiapolis, and Rudhtadaræ (the Sakan capital). Note that this government does not have a culture requirement like Kinsmen's Land does. This government yields more elite cavalry troops than Kinsmen's Land, and ultimately provides less public order. Because it isn't as laissez-faire, this government also has one less free upkeep slot.
Ærbadaltai Ubastra (Kinsmen's Land); [sauro_acl requires factions { f_Sauromatæ, } and building_present hinterland_pastoral_city and not building_present govallied and region_religion rel_b 20]Happiness +15%, Law +10% (req 50% Steppe Nomadism), Recruitment slot x4, Free upkeep x4/x8 (in forested, Pahlavan, Skythian, Sarmatian, or Sakan lands) or x2/x4
The hinterland_pastoral_city tag applies to not just camps, but also pastoral towns. This government is going to be one of your best (and only) options for said regions. In some provinces, the culture requirement is going to be a problem, but we'll get to that later. Recruitment is really just going to be local troops, although many provinces will yield a good number of cavalry.
Sauromatai Kantaga Ubastra (Urban Land of the Sauromatæ); [sauro_admin requires factions { f_Sauromatæ, } and building_present core_building and not building_present hinterland_pastoral_city and not building_present govallied and event_counter ecSauro_Settled 1]Happiness +5%, Law +5%, Culture Conversion up to 30%, Free upkeep x1/x4
Before your reform, cities you control will be stuck with Æfsadai Khsaran, so Sauromatian Settled Administration is a pretty big deal. It is also the most robust of the current governments available to Sauromatæ, allowing for the construction of pretty much all the higher level buildings that will be available to you. Recruitment will largely be locals (including local professionals), plus a warlord's retinue (which most commonly will be Sauromatian nobles). The cultural conversion is incredibly useful, since cities won't have the option of building either Nikhasa or Tarkhandana.
Allied Oligarchic StateFirst Level: Law +10%, Recruitment slot x2, Farming -2, Culture Conversion (Eleutheroi) up to 25%
Second Level: Law +15%, Recruitment slot x3, Farming -2, Culture Conversion (Eleutheroi) up to 25%
This government (and its second iteration) does deserve being mentioned for several reasons. First, you may well need it in order to occupy and later colonize barbarian provinces with low steppe nomadism. Second, it does (as of 2.3) allow for the construction of some of the buildings which Kinsmen's Land for some reason doesn't (this is especially the case in pastoral provinces). It may also be a worthy alternative to Kinsmen's Land in Swebic homelands where Sauromatian recruitment can otherwise be somewhat strange or inconsistent.
As far as I can see, camps (and to a lesser extent, pastoral towns) are easily some of the best targets for the Sauromatæ. I've noticed a few quirks regarding camps and pastoral settlements in 2.3, but despite this you can see Sauromatæ was crafted to excel in nomadic regions. The first thing that makes camps very good for them is that camps do not accrue a public order penalty for being far from your capital (or—more likely—it is either capped, or it increases incredibly slowly). I have never seen the penalty on one of these camps going above -5%. Although I am unsure if this decreases corruption, it does generally make occupation much easier and turns public order into a nonissue most of the time. The second big selling point for camps is that they allow for you to construct a few unique buildings...
Sauromatian Buildings of Note
Nikhasa (Assembly); [nikhaes requires factions { f_Sauromatæ, } and not building_present govslave and building_present_min_level herds horse_one]Happiness +5%, Trade Goods +1, Culture Conversion up to 30%
This building not only provides a boost to happiness and trade, it will slowly increase steppe nomadism, which is huge. It requires 2nd-level herds, which means you can't build it in small camps. I am fairly sure that the horse_one herd is on the same tree (and at a lower level) than the livestock branch, so which one you pick doesn't strictly matter in this case—they will both allow for the construction of Nikhasa.
Tarkhandana (Place of the Decision); [taerkhondana requires factions { f_Sauromatæ, } and not building_present govslave and not building_present govallied and building_present core_castle_building and not building_present_min_level govsauro sauro_admin]Law +10%, Culture Conversion up to 50%
Although this building doesn't provide a trade bonus like its little brother, it yields +10 law (which greatly helps you deal with corruption, especially if you later decide to convert a pastoral camp into a town) and even more cultural conversion. Also note that this building cannot be built in proper cities—that means you must build it before converting a province, while it's still a camp. Pastoral provinces that start out as towns (like Klepidava, for instance) miss out on this building entirely. Although you cannot build Tarkhandana from an allied government, you can always build it from Kinsmen's Land and then switch back, if necessary.
Local ColoniesAlthough these are not unique to Sauromatæ (and can't be built in camps), they do deserve to be mentioned in a Sauromatian gameplay guide. After your reform, the Local Colony building is one of your best bets for increasing recruitment. Unlike Eastern Imperial factions, Sauromatæ does not receive a public order bonus from these buildings. They do, however, receive two free upkeep slots and one extra recruitment slot from the highest level of local colony (at the expense of two points of farming income). Keep in mind that (especially in portions of central, western, and northwestern Europe) certain provinces simply can't recruit anything from their local colonies. Most of these are such because Eastern Imperial factions did not or would not have feasibly colonized these areas, or they're simply out in the boonies. Because this reference guide is intended primarily for Sauromatæ in northern Europe, I won't go into detail about local colonies, but suffice to say that you can and should build these around the black sea. Khersonesos, Olbia, and Histrie will all be excellent recruitment hubs, providing peltenai, hoplitai, and peltastai logades.
Nomadic EnclavesFirst Level: Free upkeep x2, Happiness -5%
Second Level: Recruitment slot x1, Happiness -5%, Law -5%, and clan-specific recruitment
Again, these are not unique to Sauromatæ, but deserve to be mentioned. Broadly speaking, this is the camp's version of the local colony. This building tree represents the forced immigration of a subjugated nomadic clan into a pastoral or nomadic region, and thus has a few limitations in our case. First, Sauromatæ cannot install Sauromatian enclaves, because that would involve subjugating themselves, so to speak. They do not seem to be able to outright colonize, although you could make the case that installing Chieftan's Court, Nikhasa, and Tarkhandana in a barbarian region is effectively a form of Sauromatian colonization. Second, there is a geographical limit on where you can install nomadic enclaves. In this case, you may build nomadic enclaves all the way up to Scurgum. In northern Europe, you will not be able to install Sakan enclaves—instead, you'll be limited to the much closer Skythian tribe. The first level of nomadic enclave is decent, yielding two free upkeep slots in exchange for -5% happiness. The second level trades the two upkeep slots for an extra recruitment slot, plus bonus recruitment based on the tribe and the distance from its homeland. This level also provides a -5% hit to law, which makes it somewhat difficult to justify building in my opinion.
Aladarai Bala (Chieftan's Court)These are worth noting mainly because they can provide bonus recruitment, particularly in the Swebic and Lougione homelands. The primary sticking point is that most of these provinces will require a certain level of either Pastoral Tribalism or Western Tribal States in order to provide recruitment.
The Actual RegionsI included both Kinsmen's Land and allied governments, for the sake of comparison. I listed Closely Allied Oligarchy's recruitment for pastoral settlements. As of 2.3, nomadic camps are limited to Allied Oligarchic States.
The Swebic homelands—Himbroburgz, Hleifþoz, and Leufana.These camps, while feasibly assimilated into your burgeoning Sauromatian empire... really don't seem to be intended to. This is the geographical point at which the recruitment from Kinsmen's Land just seems to drop off, and produces default Sauromatian troops. The horse herds will allow for the recruitment of Ridandiz, but these are dependent on Pastoral Tribalism, which your Nikhasa and Tarkhandana will be actively fighting. At the very least, conquering the Sweboz and urbanizing their pastoral camps may be a fun goal for you. If you prefer your provinces to have historically accurate recruitment, I would potentially suggest switching to an allied government at some point (preferably after building a Tarkhandana). Both Himbroburgz and Leufana can be converted into pastoral towns, but Hleifþoz can't.
Recruitment in Himbroburgz & Leufana |
Kinsmen's Land Sauroma Wazdatæ +1
Sauroma Baragatæ +4
Sauroma Drunabaratæ +3
Chieftan's CourtRidandiz +3 (req 20% Pastoral Tribalism)
Ridandiz +3 (req 50% Pastoral Tribalism)
Closely Allied OligarchyRidandiz +2
Slahandiz +1
Warjoz +3
Knehtoz +2
Skeutandiz +1
Slingwandiz +1 |
Recruitment in Hleifþoz |
Kinsmen's Land Sauroma Wazdatæ +1
Sauroma Baragatæ +4
Sauroma Drunabaratæ +3
Chieftan's CourtRidandiz +3 (req 20% Pastoral Tribalism)
Ridandiz +3 (req 50% Pastoral Tribalism)
Allied Oligarchic StateRidandiz +1
Slahandiz +1
Warjoz +2
Knehtoz +2
Skeutandiz +1
Slingwandiz +1 |
The Lougione homelands—Scurgum, Kalisia, Waldawa, and Lugidunon.This is about as good as it gets for Sauromatæ in Northern Europe. Kinsmen's Land provides historically accurate recruitment, and nomadic enclaves are available, if so desired. Horse herds produce barbarian riders, although (like with the Swebic homelands) these depend on the culture of the province in question. Note that Lugidunon is the only one of these provinces which can be converted into a pastoral town.
Recruitment in Scurgum |
Kinsmen's Land Aswiniai +1
Markaridai +2
Toutaginoi +1
Perkwunas +2
Mekidraugai +1
Kareus +3
Moldoi +2
Skeutandiz +2
Slingwandiz +2
Chieftan's CourtMarkaridai +3 (req 20% Pastoral Tribalism)
Aswiniai +3 (req 50% Pastoral Tribalism)
Skythian EnclaveSkuda Aspabarata +3
Skuda Drunabarata +1
Allied Oligarchic StateAswiniai +1
Markaridai +1
Kareus +2
Moldoi +2
Skeutandiz +1
Slingwandiz +1 |
Recruitment in Kalisia & Waldawa |
Kinsmen's Land Aswiniai +1
Markaridai +2
Toutaginoi +1
Perkwunas +2
Kareus +3
Moldoi +2
Skeutandiz +2
Slingwandiz +2
Chieftan's CourtMarkaridai +3 (req 20% Pastoral Tribalism)
Aswiniai +3 (req 50% Pastoral Tribalism)
Skythian EnclaveSkuda Aspabarata +3
Skuda Drunabarata +1
Allied Oligarchic StateAswiniai +1
Markaridai +1
Kareus +2
Moldoi +2
Skeutandiz +1
Slingwandiz +1 |
Recruitment in Lugidunon |
Kinsmen's Land Londo Epatoi +2
Eporedoi Donnoi Boion +1
Kombaragoues +2
Gargokladioi +3
Kareus +3
Moldoi +2
Skeutandiz +1
Slingwandiz +1
Chieftan's CourtMarkaridai +3 (req 20% Pastoral Tribalism)
Aswiniai +3 (req 50% Pastoral Tribalism)
Londo Epatoi +3 (req 20% Western Tribal States)
Londo Epatoi +3 (req 50% Western Tribal States)
Skythian EnclaveSkuda Aspabarata +3
Skuda Drunabarata +1
Closely Allied OligarchyLondo Epatoi +1
Eporedoi Donnoi Boion +1
Gargokladioi +2
Kareus +2
Moldoi +2
Skeutandiz +1
Slingwandiz +1 |
The Northeastern European Gap—Descaims, Zemegordah, and Jukelitna.These camps start out with a bit more steppe nomadism, which makes the construction of Kinsmen's Land and long-term occupation much easier. However, because these are rather out in the boonies, horse herds do not yield any recruitment. I suggest skipping out on horse herds because of this. These are all nomadic regions, meaning none of them may be converted into pastoral towns.
Recruitment in Descaims |
Kinsmen's Land Perkwunas +3
Voini +4
Moldoi +5
Slingwandiz +3
Skythian EnclaveSkuda Aspabarata +3
Skuda Drunabarata +2
Thureopherontes Hippotoxotai +1 (after Thorakitai reform)
Allied Oligarchic StatePerkwunas +1
Voini +3
Moldoi +2
Slingwandiz +2 |
Recruitment in Zemegordah |
Kinsmen's Land Mezenai +3
Voini +4
Moldoi +5
Skuda Drunabarata +3
Skythian EnclaveSkuda Aspabarata +3
Skuda Drunabarata +2
Thureopherontes Hippotoxotai +1 (after Thorakitai reform)
Allied Oligarchic StateMezenai +1
Voini +3
Moldoi +2
Skuda Drunabarata +2 |
Recruitment in Jukelitna |
Kinsmen's Land Kareus +5
Skeutandiz +5
Moldoi +5
Skythian EnclaveSkuda Aspabarata +3
Skuda Drunabarata +2
Thureopherontes Hippotoxotai +1 (after Thorakitai reform)
Allied Oligarchic StateKareus +3
Skeutandiz +3
Moldoi +2 |
Miscellaneous tips for the Sauromatian Campaign
- Depending on the regions you aim for, you may end up needing to bootstrap your culture up to 20% (the requirement for Kinsmen's Land) so that you can continue to develop the province in question. The best option for this is usually to build an Allied Oligarchy, which allows for normal construction, including both 2nd-level herds and Nikhasa. Once the Nikhasa has finally done its job pushing culture, you should be able to switch over to Kinsmen's Land and (once your camp is large) eventually build a Tarkhandana.
- After the Thorakitai reform, Skythian enclaves closest to Skythiapolis will start yielding Thureopherontes Hippotoxotai (Bosphoran Horse Archers). These provinces include Descaims, Zemegordah, Jukelitna, Klepidava, Paniardis, Alantai Zakhtæ, Khersonesos (if you keep the Skythian enclave which it starts with), and the Sauromatian homeland provinces. This really does make the Skythian Enclave in these regions a fair bit more attractive, especially in barbarian lands (think Descaims, Zemegordah, and Alantai Zakhtæ) where hellenized troops will be otherwise nonexistent.
- In order to make longterm occupation of Greek colonies (namely Pantikapaion and Khersonesos) easier, I highly suggest grooming two or more governors for the job. FMs with the just trait (gained by having a happy population paying normal taxes) have a bonus to law and influence in the province they govern. They can earn the Philhellenos trait by governing a province with a hellenistic polis (Khersonesos or Pantikapaion) with a happy population. Not only does this trait yield +1 influence (which in turn means more culture conversion), it eventually leads to the Happy People trait, which significantly helps occupation of these provinces.
- Skythiapolis and Paniardis have relatively high steppe nomadism culture. The primary problem with this is it is very easy to boost their culture high enough that you won't be able to build the nomadic farms which will eventually lead to converting these provinces into towns. Choosing not to leave governors inside these provinces will help keep culture from rising too high. Khsiragatai may also be a struggle to convert—the only way I have been able to push culture low enough to build the requisite farms is by first building an Allied Oligarchic State. Since this pushes Eleutheroi culture, it in turn drops steppe nomadism.
- Chances are that either Pontos or Hayastan will end up conquering Kutatisi, which will start a war with you. It actually behooves you in one respect, because the Maiotis-Egrisi border is a great place to raid. The Caucasus Mountains produce a natural barrier that will make it very reliable and safe. Not only does this fill up your coffers, it is an essential activity for completing the Bala (which in many cases, can be more important than education for Sauromatian FMs).
That about sums up the Sauromatæ in northern Europe. I also highly suggest checking out Cohors_Evocata's guide to the Sauromatian Bala. If used properly, the bala is an incredibly powerful and very fun gameplay mechanic.