Rome Total War - Roleplaying campaign-ish thing

PFC Streamhill [Ret.]

Ave.

I've been playing alot of the original Rome Total War lately, and came upon a thought that made my eagerness to interact with the lovely 29th community on a larger basis than I already do, overflow.

As someone who thoroughly enjoys both history and roleplaying, as well as them both mixed together, I figured I might find atleast a few likeminded individuals amongst the 29th. This is, after all, a realism unit, and it would not surprise me that those who enjoy the experience of being in the 29th also have a good opinion of roleplaying.

I therefore consider it not such a bad idea to suggest the organisation of a sort of campaign, or cup of sorts, between a few interested 29th members in the original RTW.

Now I know that many may not own the game, and that there would be other games prefered, but in order to convince my computer to go above 10 fps and not to kick everyone, should I host, it might be the only option. Besides, RTW is, atleast in my opinion, the best total war-game released so far.

I'll change after I know how much interest there actually is in this thing, but if we can get atleast 4 people who want to play the game, that'd be sufficient. I'd also need someone to make the job of planning and organising just a little bit easier.

Important note:

The person that will be assisting me, and myself, will not acutally be commanding units / taking part in the battles, as that might lend itself to favorism and bias. Optimally we'd therefore need 4 people who actually want to play, as well as someone interested in assisting me.

How this is going to be done

Now, I have allready had a thought as to how we're going to do this, but feedback is indeed appreciated, and changes can be made.

This is going to be a tournament of sorts, with roleplaying and backstory. There will be two teams of actors, one on the side of the romans and their potential allies, and one on the opposing side. (Which, I suppose, would be barbarians.)

Each team will consist of atleast 2 people, altough I can imagine up to 4 people per team if there's enough interest shown in this, and will elect from amongst themselves a team leader.

A day before the battle / event takes place, my assistant and I will be picking a map, story background, restrictions, etc. and plan out that specific event's details. On the day of the event, my assistant and I will brief the team leaders on their individual objectives on the map, and let the teams know the background info and restrictions. It is, however, up to the team leaders to brief their subordinates on the mission and how they're going about it, on their own.

When either team has achieved a victory, or the event has been ended, a epilogue, or follow-up bit of story will be sent to all participants, and all will be informed on the progress of their faction in the campaign. After a certain set number of scenarios and stories have been carried out, and enough events have been achieved, whichever team has achieved their victory conditions will be deemed victorious in the campaign. Generally, I imagine there will be a few "regular" events or battles, which will be there to determine advantages, and also which party is going to be subject to a siege, which will determine the taking, losing, and retaking of actual provinces. This however, can still be subject to further planning, as with most other things here.

Victory conditions for Rome and her allies:

• Roman provinces are not subjects to vile barbarians.
• Roman borders are expanded by a sufficient margin, and their safety is ensured.
• The Roman people are not in revolt.
• The Roman Legio XX Valeria Victrix is still able to withstand assault, and is not too damaged for use.

Special rules for the Romans:

• To simulate the lack of knowledge about the terrain, the romans won't be allowed to know which map will be chosen. Occasionally.
• The Romans will recieve reinforcements every other event, and can choose a total of 3 units per player each time, to replenish and refill their ranks.
• Roman players are subjects to their leader, and not allowed to act independently from him. They must obey his orders, or be subject to crucifixion.
• Due to Roman technological superiority, roman troops are allowed the bronze upgrades of their weapons and armor. They are also allowed to give a bronze upgrade for experience for ONE of their units. (That is, one stack of 160 or so Hastati, for example.)

Victory conditions for the tribes opposing the romans:

• The Romans have not achieved more than one of their victory conditions.
• The confederation of tribes must all have atleast one settlement and be independent.
• The roman legionnaires are not a threat to the safety of the tribes.
• There must either be peace between the Roman powers and the tribes, or the roman settlements must be subject to raid regularly or be paying tribute to the tribes.
• All Roman expansion into the ancestral lands must be stopped.

Special rules for the tribes opposing the Romans:

• The tribes are all independent, and can act according to their own whims. Each tribe leader will also be given special victory conditions known only to him, which he must attempt to achieve to win. The tribes can thus win not only as a group, but also individually. The tribes will still elect a leader from amongst them, but must elect a new one each event.
• The tribes know the lands like the back of their hands, and will almost always get to know / look at the maps beforehand.
• Each individual tribe will receive two units PER EVENT as reinforcements.
• The tribesmen are hardy, and experienced warriors, and can all recieve the best bronze-grade experience upgrade, and one unit can recieve the lowest silver experience upgrade from the start. Only one unit can recieve the silver upgrade, and if it dies, it cannot be re-awarded.

Between the events, the leaders of both teams will get to negotiate between each other for their needs/wishes.
Optimally, I would love for this to continue until either the barbarians or the romans have won as a group. But, as previously stated, each tribe can win individually, and does not have to strive for common victory with their friends. (Altough this is recommended, as the Romans will have the upper hand in the start). The game can also be ended when an individiual tribe has achieved their personal victory conditions, and depending on the tribe, the romans also have / haven't achieved theirs.

So yeah, this might sound very ambitious and/or very boring, depending on how you look at it, I know. But I really think this could be a fun experience, and I hope you guys think the same. Please report interest if there is any in this thread, and we can organise this whole happening, and adjust accordingly, after I see how many people want to join.
In my opinion, we need atleast 4 interested players, and someone who would be kind enough to assist me with the organising, just to make things easier. I can imagine up to 4 players per team, however, if the interest is there.

I also realise being my assistant in this endeavour might not be a very attractive offer, but if you like storytelling, writing, or just watching battles unfold, it should still be fun.

I've looked at the calendar, and wednesdays seem to be a good event day, but I still need to know interest and the time schedules/availabilty of the people that will be joining.

Any feedback, criticisms and opinions are much appreciated, and I would really love to hear them. Also, remember, CHANGES CAN BE MADE!

Edit:

I have been informed this might be slightly confusing. To put it simply, RTW has no co-op campaign, so me and my assistant will keep track of who owns what, and the "events" each week would decided the progress of the campaign, with a narrative made by me and the assistant. Sort of like fantasy football, if that makes any sense.

PFC Tyson [Ret.]

This sounds... interesting. A big mouthful but it does sound quite fun.

PFC Streamhill [Ret.]

@PFC Tyson said:
This sounds... interesting. A big mouthful but it does sound quite fun.

Great to hear!
So, can I notch you down as interested in joining? Anyone else who's interested, just make sure you report your interest here or to me through a PM or on steam!

Corporal David A. Baker

Very big load of information. However this might be a bit to complex for some. For more casual players im sure they wouldnt mind fighting some battles perhaps in a tournament. I would be happy to take part in these battles!