Grand Strategy So, Rome: Total War

[The Brazilian Slaughter]

Guys, I'm getting Rome Total War right now, I've been in the mood for some Grand Strategy but my current comp is crap, so Imma gonna download this and give it a spin.

Any recommended mods?
Does it work with netbook resolutions (1024x600)?
Suggesiton for a beginner's nation?

 

[Emily]

You can't really lose,AI is braindead. But i think you can only play as Roman at start.

 

[Tigranes]

If you've never played a Total War game, just start with a Enable All Nations mod or something (there should be plenty out there in Googleland) and then see what you like and don't like, so you can choose your own mods.

If you have, or you want to mod up anyway, Europa Barbarorum.

 

[G.O.D]

To unlock the factions you can also:

- Go to folder: rome total war gold\data\world\maps\campaign\imperial_campaign
- Open descr_strat.txt
- Copy-Paste the nations you want to play into the 'playable' section.

 

[Ashery]

Or just get Europa Barbarorum and be done with it.

The game's engine doesn't handle large empires that well, though, so it breaks down more into Rome:Total Logistics towards the end.

 

[Kattze]

EB is all you need. Historically accurate factions and beautifully rendered units, what more can you ask for?

 

[Ranselknulf]

You can't really lose,AI is braindead. But i think you can only play as Roman at start.

I've played some mod's where it's plenty possible to lose. Try Byg's Grim Reality mod if you want to feel like a super star just surviving. Diplomacy and such required. For veterans only, even experienced total war players have a hard time with how heavily scripted and complex the mod is.

 

[Malakal]

EB is all you need. Historically accurate factions and beautifully rendered units, what more can you ask for?

Roman units look like shit unlike the vanilla ones that were more aesthetically pleasing despite being inaccurate. When I play Rome I want my legions not dudes with spears.

 

[Jick Magger]

Everyone knows that Pontus is the best non-Roman faction to start with, so give them a go.

Spoiler

 

[Kattze]

Everyone knows that Pontus is the best non-Roman faction to start with, so give them a go.

Spoiler

Nah, as long as you blitz/sack all the cities in Seleucid Anatolia you're good to go. Armenia is much more harder.

 

[Commissar Draco]

Check The this Side for Mods Comrade The Brazilian Slaughter as Vanila Game is Kwan History Channel style with flaming pigs and assorted lunacy:

http://www.twcenter.net/forums/forumdisplay.php?214-Rome-Total-War-Hosted-Modifications

I like Europa Barbarorum its a superb mob but since Greek Heathen Faggots period is not my favorite:

Mods about III-VII century Rome that can be found here:

http://www.twcenter.net/forums/forumdisplay.php?113-INVASIO-BARBARORVM-(IBFD)-(BI)

http://www.twcenter.net/forums/forumdisplay.php?107-Arthurian-Total-War-(BI)

http://www.twcenter.net/forums/forumdisplay.php?112-Ages-of-Darkness-II

Might be worth checking.

 

[Nutmeg]

I actually had the most fun playing the game without mods. Playing as Carthage on the hardest difficulty was particularly challenging.

Nevertheless two mods I enjoyed were Europa Barbarorum and Rome Total Realism.

 

[JarlFrank]

http://www.twcenter.net/forums/forumdisplay.php?113-INVASIO-BARBARORVM-(IBFD)-(BI)

These mods are awesome if you're into late antiquity. Somnium Apostatae Iuliani is my favourite cause I'm a fanboy of Iulianus, and it has very varied factions and a hard campaign.

 

[Storyfag]

EB is all you need. Historically accurate factions and beautifully rendered units, what more can you ask for?

Pretty much this.

 

[Trash]

Game really doesn't need mods for a first playthrough. Do however unlock all factions the way G.O.D. said. Rome and Carthage are both good fun to have a playthrough with. After that try Egypt and then go and check out the myriads of mods.

Or play the Barbarian Invasion expansion next. It's probably included in the Rome version you got? It's good fun to play as a struggling West or East Roman empires or to knock on their doors as one of the many barbarian tribes. Huns are good fun, but I also always enjoyed one of the more Germanic tribes.

 

[Turisas]

You can't really lose,AI is braindead. But i think you can only play as Roman at start.

Why would you ever want to play anything other than the glorious Empire, though?

 

[1eyedking]

As always I'll go against the Codex majority and advise you, my dear macaco friend, to totally avoid Europa Barbarorum like the plague. It replaces the campaign map music (as well as the battle music which is still p. good) - this in itself is enough to void it completely, has terribly bad voice-acting with very low quality homemade microphone recordings, and removes all the tasteful flavor descriptions about buildings, troops, gods, etc., thus killing all the really good things RTW actually had.

Also, walls of text that mostly give you data. Nowhere will you find an actual philosophical or inspirational remark about architecture, human behavior, and whatnot; it's just copy paste from boring academic texts.

You're playing a goddamn videogame; it's like wanting to read a novel and going for a history book.

PS: The game is easy as goblin pie. You can't lose. Seriously.

 

[Declinator]

As always I'll go against the Codex majority and advise you, my dear macaco friend, to totally avoid Europa Barbarorum like the plague. It replaces the campaign map music (as well as the battle music which is still p. good) - this in itself is enough to void it completely, has terribly bad voice-acting with very low quality homemade microphone recordings, and removes all the tasteful flavor descriptions about buildings, troops, gods, etc., thus killing all the really good things RTW actually had.

Also, walls of text that mostly give you data. Nowhere will you find an actual philosophical or inspirational remark about architecture, human behavior, and whatnot; it's just copy paste from boring academic texts.

You're playing a goddamn videogame; it's like wanting to read a novel and going for a history book.

PS: The game is easy as goblin pie. You can't lose. Seriously.

This is true. EB is probably godsend to those who like history in a very intimate manner and battles that are truly slow. Don't get me wrong, the slow battles are a refreshing change after the vanilla but ultimately the vanilla battles simply flow better and use the exact same tactics. Charging at a single unit up to some ten times with cavalry gets old real fast.

Roma Surrectum is better in my opinion. It too has somewhat slower battles if I remember correctly but are not to the level of EB. The 0-turn recruiting can be turned off if it's not your thing (and it wasn't my thing.) The interesting start with Hannibal attacking is also very nice (if you play as Rome obviously.)

The battle AI doesn't seem really improved in either mod from the vanilla though. Many exaggerate the greatness of the Rome mods (SS in MTW2 is a different thing altogether)

 

[1eyedking]

Honestly there's nothing wrong with EB, as long as you understand what you're getting into.

 

[titus]

There are pretty much 3 mods that are considered to be the best: Europa Barbarorum, Roma Surrectum 2(they just released 2.6) and Rome Total Realism.
EB is ok, but I think the other two are better. Lots of stuff added that allow roleplaying. Also it's not historically accurate lol
RS2 has probably the best graphics and a well thought economy system/building tree
RTR has some campaign improvements like zones of recruitment(CA got this directly from RTR for Rome 2 btw) and "provincial capitals". Also some roleplaying elements.

My conclusion? PLAY THEM ALL!!!

 

[Deakul]

EB's too spergy for me, RS2 is fantastic in every way.

 

[JarlFrank]

Somnium Apostatae Iuliani is my personal favourite mod, the other mods in the IB series are also good (and I'm really looking forward to Restitutor Orbis). Those are late antiquity, and this is one of my favourite historical periods, so I might be biased.

 

[A user named cat]

I have better advice; don't play any Total War game beyond Medieval 1 because they're all horseshit. I recently played some Medieval II Gold and Stainless Steel - couldn't have grown more bored and uninterested if I tried before uninstalling and throwing it back on the shelf. They ruined this series with the 3D campaign maps and focusing on the wrong areas, killed all imagination and life-sucking atmosphere that the first games had.

Since you have an old laptop, get Medi 1 or Shogun 1 and fuck the rest. All they've done is add bloated load times, larger installs and decline. No mods make them enjoyable gameplay experiences.

 

[Kattze]

Somnium Apostatae Iuliani is my personal favourite mod, the other mods in the IB series are also good (and I'm really looking forward to Restitutor Orbis). Those are late antiquity, and this is one of my favourite historical periods, so I might be biased.

Are the IB mods in Med2 all finished?

 

[JarlFrank]

The IB2 mods are less finished than the Rome ones, and for both Rome and Med2, not ALL of the IB mods are finished yet. The Med2 ones all still have medieval cities, I have no idea when they will change the city models. Africa Vandalorum and Conquestus Britanniae have solid releases already, the rest aren't released yet.
For Rome, all are released except for Restitutor Mundi, and Somnium Apostatae Iuliani is the most polished (and most recent) of them.