Rome

“Strength, honour, duty.”

“[…] young Romulus
Will take the leadership, build walls of Mars,
And call by his own name his people Romans.
For these I set no limits, world or time,
But make the gift of empire without end.”

Jupiter, Virgil’s The Aeneid, 1.371-375

Rome. Once, it was little more than a collection of villages and hills on the banks of the Tiber, but after a series of wars, absorption and set backs (most notably the Gauls under a chieften called Brennus sacking the city) the Roman Republic now finds itself the new pre-eminent force in Italia. Over the years, Etruscans, Samnites and even the great Pyrrhus of Epirus have all failed to stop the march of the Legions, and Rome is now at a turning point in history- to the north, a league of Etruscan peoples, a shadow of what they once were. Beyond them, at the foothills of the mighty Alps, the descendants of Brennus lie in wait. To the east, the land of Alexander and his successors, but to the west lies the great trade empire of Carthage. Many decisions await the Romans, but where should the Eagles fly next?

Gameplay Articles on Rome

The backbone of Roman success is the Legion. Every Roman citizen must undertake military service, seen as one of the greatest contributions a citizen can make to society. Well-drilled, well-equipped heavy infantry are the mainstay of the army, and they are divided up into troop types according to their wealth and experience. Hastati were the lightest of the regular infantry- young but often lightly equipped, they engaged the enemy under the cover of skirmishers. Should they fail to break the enemy, the more experienced, chainmail-clad Principes were in the lines behind to take up the fight. The oldest and most experienced warriors – the triarii – hold the rear, and were usually only committed in a critical moment in battle. The Roman saying “Going to the Triarii” derived from this practice, meaning to carry on to the bitter end.

Around the Heavy Infantry, the Equites or Equestrian classes rode as cavalry to drive of skirmishers or light infantry, and Roman Allies often provided additional manpower in similar formations, but command of the army usually went to a high ranking Patrician, most often one of the Consuls of the Roman Senate.

In Total War: Rome 2, the player will choose to be the head of one of three great Roman houses: The Julia, The Cornelia, and the Junia, each of which have distinct economic, military and cultural benefits. Furthermore, Rome benefits economically from its excellence in metalwork, enjoys enhanced military development, and can maintain public order at the expense of the masses.

Historically, the Romans founded one of the greatest empires the world has ever seen. Its famed Republican system giving way to Emperors, its Pagan gods gave way to Christianity, and it absorbed barbarian migrants into its borders in order to survive. Eventually, the empire split into two halves, with the Western half falling to barbarian warlords in 476 AD, and the East based in Constantinople managing to survive with variable fortunes all the way to 1453 AD.