[RTW] Question about Rome itself.

knob · Post by **knob** » Sat Oct 16, 2004 4:04 pm

I just recently got the notice that I'm popular enough to go after Rome. So I'm wondering, should I go straight for it? Or hold off?

I mean, are there advantages to becoming emperor? Or is it just like the same old game before? I mean, it'd be nice because I can rid myself of the Julii and the Scipii, but other than that, is there an advantage to going for it as soon as possible? Or does it not really matter?

(I mean, besides from the fact that the longer I wait, the stronger they get)

Grifman · Post by **Grifman** » Sat Oct 16, 2004 9:25 pm

There's no advantage to going for it earlier. And you still have to take 50 provinces to win the game so taking Rome earlier really doesn't do much for you when you have only 30 provinces.

You also need to plan for your takeover. A smart emperor to be isn't just going to jump for it just because the plebs are calling for him. You need to be in a position to take the empire - that means ending any other wars you are engaged in, building up armies, getting them to where you are going to have to fight, etc. It also means building up a substantial treasury because you can't trade with the other Roman factions when you go to war with them and your income goes to hell quickly, especially when you are building and supporting a large number of armies.

However, alot depends on your popularity with the Senate as to how long you have to get ready. If you are still popular then you can take your time and build up. And you need to continue to complete Senate missions to stay popular. But at some point, the Senate may turn against you and you need to be ready for this.

So my point is, you have to prepare for this - it's not just something you do on the spur of the moment. Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither is your empire.

Grifman

Daveman · Post by **Daveman** » Sat Oct 16, 2004 10:26 pm

I took the cheesy way out as the Julii on Hard/Hard. I had conquered 42 provinces before striking Rome. I had noticed the Scipii (who had floundered the whole game) were paper-thin in their home provinces as well as the Brutii (who were doing better overall but had most of their army on their frontier) so I planned on a "Blitzkreig" assault on all of Italy. I had 4 armies ready to go, each with Onagers... so I figured I could take the 8 provinces I needed (including Rome) in Italy and Sicily in just a few turns, before the increasing Brutii juggernaught could be recalled home.

It all went according to plan, but I was shocked when I took Rome (my first target) and checked the victory condition... it said I only needed 3 more provinces! Suffice to say, the game ended that turn when the other 3 armies struck their targets. I suppose the 50 province target is a little variable? Based on time, size of provinces taken, popularity? I dunno. My Senate approval peaked at 7 (out of 10) but dropped to 4 by the time I rebelled. My popular approval took awhile to build, but was at 9 at the end.

I was disappointed to see there's no score, and no option to keep playing. They do let you keep playing when you win the short campaign if you so choose. I didn't doubt I could have defeated the Brutii and was looking forward to some epic all-Roman battles...

Ronin · Post by **Ronin** » Sat Oct 16, 2004 11:04 pm

Your popularity with the senate will decrease and your plebe popularity will increase as you move closer to being able to march on Rome. This reflects the Senates resentment of you for being so powerful. Taking Rome and becoming emperor will also simplifies things in the fact that you don't have to worry about missions anymore.

And you can play beyond the victory conditions. The way I did it was that I saved the game after I got the victory banner, then I went to the main menu and loaded my save game. Its currently about 25 years after I won and I'm still trying to conquer the world. While mainting my holdings.

I believe though if you finish the game and exit to the main menu, then click on Continue Campaign it will pick up right where you left off.

knob · Post by **knob** » Sat Oct 16, 2004 11:56 pm

Well, no one responded so I went and took it.

Of course, I'm not doing Hard/Hard, just playing on the default difficulty.

Rome wasn't a problem, but they kept rioting, then eventually revolted. So, being the asshole I am, I took it back and exterminated the population (I believe it was around 24,000 people who ended up dying in that one).

And now I've nearly finished off the Julii, as they only have 2 or 3 more provinces left. Scipii managed to get some foot hold and took all of North Africa, so I'll probably be leaving them alone for a while, since I absolutely *hate* the naval system in this game. That's probably my weakest point: I have absolutely nothing close to naval superiority over anyone. But does that really matter? I've never seen an AI try to blockade my ports, except maybe once.

The Egyptians are the only faction strong enough to pose much of a challenge (We've been swapping between "Most Advanced" the entire game). So, being the coward I am, I think I'll just worth Northeast and take out Europe and leave the Egyptians alone, even though we're at war. Diplomats are so nice, even if they seem excessively powerful at times.

Grifman · Post by **Grifman** » Sun Oct 17, 2004 12:25 am

Sure you can keep playing - just don't take Rome until you are ready to end the game

Grifman

Grifman · Post by **Grifman** » Sun Oct 17, 2004 12:26 am

Valael wrote:Well, no one responded so I went and took it.

I think a better description is that no one responded in time, since I did take time to respond

Grifman

Ronin · Post by **Ronin** » Sun Oct 17, 2004 12:37 am

You can keep playing after you take Rome and win the game.

$iljanus · Post by **$iljanus** » Sun Oct 17, 2004 1:00 am

Finished my first R:TW game in a long campaign as the Julii last night. As soon as I had the support of the people I was as giddy as a little schoolgirl and launched my attack on Rome. Was a bit insecure since I didn't know if I was jumping the gun but it all worked out well in the end. But at that point of the game I had already conquered all of Gaul, Germania, Spain, and most of Britannia. More importantly I built two forts near the beginning of the game bordering the province where Rome was and kept shuffling troops there every so often since I knew the day would come where I would march on Rome. I then parked some halfway decent generals in each of the forts after some time and I planted a spy in Rome later in the game. When the time came I was well-poised to seize Rome. I also started moving advanced units here and there to provinces close to the other Roman factions after the mainland was solidly under my control. This took place after the Marius reforms.

knob · Post by **knob** » Sun Oct 17, 2004 1:27 am

Grifman wrote:
Valael wrote:Well, no one responded so I went and took it.
I think a better description is that no one responded in time, since I did take time to respond

Grifman

Yeah, sorry, that's what I meant.

I had kind of waited for a while to see if anyone would respond and decided to just go for it. After putting in 3 - 4 hours, I came back and people had responded.

Even though I had already taken it, the posts still contained useful information for future games. I'm playing pretty sloppy, I think.

Daveman · Post by **Daveman** » Sun Oct 17, 2004 10:11 am

Ronin wrote:You can keep playing after you take Rome and win the game.

Can you elaborate on this? I understand not conquering Rome to prolong the game, but didn't see an option to keep playing when I did, unlike playing the short campaign.

Asharak · Post by **Asharak** » Sun Oct 17, 2004 10:14 am

Daveman wrote:I was shocked when I took Rome (my first target) and checked the victory condition... it said I only needed 3 more provinces! Suffice to say, the game ended that turn when the other 3 armies struck their targets. I suppose the 50 province target is a little variable? Based on time, size of provinces taken, popularity? I dunno.

The only thing I can contribute to that question is my observation that the "Provinces Gained" (or whatever it's called) tab on the Faction menu does not include the two territories you started with (i.e, it literally is territory gained, not owned). So while the math still doesn't quite add up with what you posted, it makes it closer.

I am also quite interesting to learn from this thread that it's not necessary to defeat the other Roman factions: I had assumed "Conquering Rome" meant taking every territory owned by all the Roman factions... so I could conceivably just conquer 49 other provinces not owned by Romans, then take Rome itself in a single turn, and win without ever facing an army from another Roman family?

Another question, this one more trivial: how does the game judge "most advanced faction"? I understand Richest and Strongest, but what are the criteria for Most Advanced?

- Ash

knob · Post by **knob** » Sun Oct 17, 2004 10:59 am

This isn't much help to your questions, but this is what I *assumed*:

I always thought Most Advanced was the most advanced in terms of the tech tree (Building all of your buildings, getting all of the units to be available). But I could be wrong. I admit, I've barely even touched the manual.

As for the whole Rome thing: The reason I took it is because even though the chances were slim, I was assuming it was possible for one of the other roman factions to go on a rampage and suddenly pass me up in terms of provinces owned, and then go for Rome. With all of the time invested into this campaign (God, it's been so long...), I wanted to make sure Rome would be mine and stay mine.

Lord Percy · Post by **Lord Percy** » Sun Oct 17, 2004 12:08 pm

A cheesy tactic to win is to capture a bunch of territories, say 30-35, save up a lot of cash, then buy away all the roman armies with diplomats. Since you have military access, they won't demand that you leave their territories. Also, for some reason, the AI likes to have troops outside of its cities, so if you wait a little you can buy away most of the garrisons as well. Now you just have to put one army next to each 'enemy' roman city, declare war on Rome itself, and you can win the game in a round or two capturing every single one of them.

Grifman · Post by **Grifman** » Sun Oct 17, 2004 12:43 pm

Asharak wrote:
I am also quite interesting to learn from this thread that it's not necessary to defeat the other Roman factions: I had assumed "Conquering Rome" meant taking every territory owned by all the Roman factions... so I could conceivably just conquer 49 other provinces not owned by Romans, then take Rome itself in a single turn, and win without ever facing an army from another Roman family?

Yes, I just won that way. As the Scipi I controlled Spain, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia Minor. I declared war on Rome when the Senate ordered me to commit suicide. I then conquered southern Italy, part of Greece, and then Rome. The Julii still held out in northern Italy, and the Brutii still held northern Greece and the northern Balkans.

But fact of the matter, this just keeps the game from being prolonged. If you have 50 provinces, the other factions can't realistically stop you if you wanted to conquer the rest of the map.

Grifman

Asharak · Post by **Asharak** » Sun Oct 17, 2004 5:13 pm

Lord Percy wrote:A cheesy tactic to win is to capture a bunch of territories, say 30-35, save up a lot of cash, then buy away all the roman armies with diplomats. Since you have military access, they won't demand that you leave their territories. Also, for some reason, the AI likes to have troops outside of its cities, so if you wait a little you can buy away most of the garrisons as well. Now you just have to put one army next to each 'enemy' roman city, declare war on Rome itself, and you can win the game in a round or two capturing every single one of them.

I'm pretty sure I've been doing that to my allies in Civilization since sometime around 1990.

- Ash