Denmark vs. Spain

[JMSlayer]

Topic says it all. I'd like opinions on the main differences between these two factions, for the goal of making a new campaign. My main questions are:

1. Strengths? Weaknesses?
2. Pre-Battle Speeches?
3. Gameplay?
4. Fun?

[Clibby]

Just a thougt to consider; Spain can visit the New World. I haven't played as either yet so I won't give you a suggestion.

[Sniper]

Just a thougt to consider; Spain can visit the New World. I haven't played as either yet so I won't give you a suggestion.

Cant other fractions visit the New World?

[PooFoo]

Yeah, all factions can go to the new world. As Spain or Portugal though you don't need to wait 6 (or 7?) turns to build a naval drydock, since caravels don't require it to be built.

Plus you can build great heavy inf. and cavalry once you take a settlement there (helps tons in dealing with the aztecs quickly plus no need to ship over so many troops from the old world).

[Sniper]

Yeah, all factions can go to the new world. As Spain or Portugal though you don't need to wait 6 (or 7?) turns to build a naval drydock, since caravels don't require it to be built.

Plus you can build great heavy inf. and cavalry once you take a settlement there (helps tons in dealing with the aztecs quickly plus no need to ship over so many troops from the old world).

Hehe... so i make the azteks extinct there and take all the money

[Felixion]

Haha, both the campaigns I played were with these two factions.

I played my first campaign as Spain, and It is very fun. One, there's a great variety of units you can field, and two, you can fight on two drastically different fronts. The first, the Moors to the west, and south. This provides for a very intense crusade-esque kind of play, while you can also fight France, to your immediate eastern border, which is more classic European medieval warfare.

Denmark is fun because you can play the viking raider, and have fun with the whole Norse berserker battle tactic thing. It's a lot of forest fighting, at least that's what I've noticed. And contending with the Holy Roman Empire isn't easy, but it's overall more challenging than Spain - I think.

[JMSlayer]

Hah, that is funny. Out of curiosity, which did you prefer? Which did you find more enjoyable? And which faction had a better look to it through the ages.

[Felixion]

Spain definitely. It felt more sweeping and epic, and the variety of gameplay locations was nice. Go with Spain. Denmark is difficult as well, although the war against the Holy Roman Empire can be pretty grand as well. But - I have to say Spain.

[Zhou]

One of the elements that makes early-game hard for Denmark is that they lack heavy cavalry and HRE armies tend to come with plenty of mailed/feudal knights. A couple of good charges (which the AI doesn't seem to have a problem getting) = byebye Danish army.

On the other hand, the early Spanish campaign can be fought with basically all cavalry (Jinetes and Mailed Knights) as you totally lack in infantry. Spear militia will probably be your best unit for a while before you get your barracks upgraded so you can make almugahvars.

Also, I think Spain offers a better location. Denmark is kinda constrained in how you would like to expand as you will likely being a war with the HRE, the Poles, and maybe the English/French if you decide to go after Antwerp and Bruges. Rampant rebel spawns in Norway and Sweden will hamper your military as well as you will have to keep a sizable force up there to keep the area clear for commerce. Spain, on the other hand, can easily forge an alliance with Portugal and begin attacking the Moors. After consolidation of the Iberian peninsula, you can consider turning on your Portugese allies or taking the fight to the French.

[DreadedCharger]

One of the elements that makes early-game hard for Denmark is that they lack heavy cavalry and HRE armies tend to come with plenty of mailed/feudal knights. A couple of good charges (which the AI doesn't seem to have a problem getting) = byebye Danish army.

On the other hand, the early Spanish campaign can be fought with basically all cavalry (Jinetes and Mailed Knights) as you totally lack in infantry. Spear militia will probably be your best unit for a while before you get your barracks upgraded so you can make almugahvars.

Also, I think Spain offers a better location. Denmark is kinda constrained in how you would like to expand as you will likely being a war with the HRE, the Poles, and maybe the English/French if you decide to go after Antwerp and Bruges. Rampant rebel spawns in Norway and Sweden will hamper your military as well as you will have to keep a sizable force up there to keep the area clear for commerce. Spain, on the other hand, can easily forge an alliance with Portugal and begin attacking the Moors. After consolidation of the Iberian peninsula, you can consider turning on your Portugese allies or taking the fight to the French.

That part is not completely true. I got a danish campaign going at the moment and I really had fun so far by first taking England, then I sent a Crusade Army through southern France(pass Toulouse) to the med and on to the Holy Lands and after I took Gaza and Jerusalem I roamed all around the Med seeking cities to raid.
When the Russia attacked Birka(Stockholm - changed the name) I replied by sending 2 armies from Scandinavia to face them while the Med Raiding Party was sent by the Black Sea and on to the Russians Cities.
Current Status:
England Conquered
Russia Conquered
Poland Conquered
Some parts of HRE Conquered
Fighting the Mongol Horde in Sarkel Region
So as Denmark you can be bored and go with the normal plan to eradicate the HRE with a landwar or you can do like me and roam like your ancestors!!

[PooFoo]

Tough choice. Spain and Denmark are two of my three favorite factions (Scotland being the other).

Overall I'd have to agree with the above posts, Spain has much more variety in its campaign. You can stay in Europe and advance into France, or you could funnel your way down into north Africa and take on the Moors and eventually the Egyptians if you choose (getting you easy access to Jerusalem). You also have Corsica and Sardinia right off the east coast, which you can take if Sicily doesn't beat you to them.

Unitwise they are both really good IMO (for me, that means any army that isn't saturated with horse archers ).

[zerathule]

Spain
1. Strengths and Weaknesses
There are quite a few guides on spain and its strengths and weaknesses, but to sum it all, i'd say that spain's main strength is his ability to field awesome light cavalry at early stages of the game, and later on some of the best late game units (especialy firearms).
As for weakness, they lack any kind of decent line infantry until the lata game.

2. Pre-Battle Speeches?
I have the game in french, all battle speech sucks (and mostly the french ones, the voice acting is terrible).

3. Gameplay
At first it will be hit and run tactics with lots of skirmishers (mounted and on foot) with some heavy cavalry to break the lines.
Later on it will be "classical" warfare with pikes, swords, muskets and cavalry.
For the campaign, you can easyly own the whole iberian peninsula and all of northern africa without much troubles while you develop your settlements. Then you have the option of expanding into france, italy and of course the middle east.

4. Fun?
I find the early game tiring as you'll have to constantly be on the move with your skirmishers, and sometimes it'll take you ten turns to get a settlement because north africa has very few settlements.
Once you hit the later game and gunpowder, it becomes boring as you'll crush any oponent easyly with your uber units.

Danemark
1. Strengths and weaknesses
Danemark has awesome early units, at least from an offensive point of view : high attack fast moving armour piercing infantry is really nice. In the late game you get excelent heavy cavalry (norse priest and chivalric knights) and probably the second best infantry unit in the game (the Obushaders, second to the Swiss papal guard). Your base of operations is easyly defended, and you're in a very good position to take over england.
On the other side, you lack heavy defensive troops until the late game, and you wont get true knights unti quite some time and a lot of buildings. Fighting the HRE isnt fun.

2. Battle speeches
Same as spain.

3. Gameplay.
Hold scandinavia and Hambourg, transform oslo into a city, it'll make you 3 cities + 1 castle. Take england, keep one castle (nottingham) to retrain your troops during your conquest of the british islands and turn all other settlements to towns.
You have now an uber economy (9 cities) and 2 castles from witch you're going to build your armies.
As Danemark i never felt necessary to field full stack armies : better have 2 10 units armies than 1 of 20 since you wont produce the best troops, only basic ones (vikings, norse archers, scout cavalry) but with the best armour possible, and a fast growing castle.
Hit and run from now on and in less than 10 turns you could crush any powerfull nation, viking style : raiding undefended settlements, avoiding uber armies on the field.

4. Fun
Danemark is realy fun to play, at least according to my tastes. Battles will be challenging but on your terms. In fact, after playing danemark i completely changed my way of playing :usualy i went for the best troops, with a perfect compositioned army.
As this took years to build, i always nursed my troops extensively, always planning my battles so that i could loos the less troops possible since i could not retrain afterwards.
With the danes exceptional early troops i could sacrifce armies with no worries. Actualy i often loose battles intentionaly, i mean sending a 10 unit armies into 3 full stacks, just to make some kills.