Considering buying Rome

[ncm]

Hey. I'm a regular player of EU3 and V2, though I've noticed Rome and it interests me. It's ludicrously cheap to buy - about £6 from Amazon - and therefore money is no issue. However, is EU Rome good? How similar is it to EU3 and where does it differ? Additionally, what is the technology path tree like and what calendar system is used (I saw AVC and I'm wondering what it means)?

 

[loki100]

yes, its sort of a hybrid CK-EU, so you have more characters than EU but less interaction with them than CK, tech is equally a hybrid, you have more control than CK but its less clearcut than EU

AVC - Ab Urbe Conditum (apols if my Latin is ropey) ... ie Roman calender dates from the founding of the city .. but it has nil impact on game play

I like it when I fancy a change of pace, and you can have fun as a Hellenistic style monarchy, a republic or a tribe ... & by picking different start dates. So the later ones plunge you straight into the Roman civil wars at the end of the Republic and the early ones into the wars for dominance with Carthage

 

[Wave]

I personally like EUR more than EU3, in every sector.

Technology is less important than in EU3, it isn't impossible to win wars even if you're several levels behind in tech if you just have other things working. As an example if you play as a tribe your tech will improve very slowly as you don't gain almost any bonuses unlike republics and monarchies but your tribal laws can help this and you can i.e. not allow your troops to retreat from battle so they fight until they either die or win.

You don't invest money into techs unlike in EU3 (where you can't save your money, only mint more or waste it all to research, which is the thing I hate the most in the game) , instead you appoint a guy to research the technology and advancement depends on his abilities.

Important thing to remember when buying Rome is that you "need" Vae Victis expansion pack (included in Rome Gold) to get anything out of it. Without it Rome is really boring EU3-lite-game.

 

[Cheexsta]

Do it. It's cheap as chips, and even without mods it's still pretty interesting. I'd highly recommend that you have a look through some of the major mods and give them a try, though.

It helps to have an interest in the time period, though. This is my favourite period of history, so it has racked up hundreds of hours of my gaming time...

 

[ncm]

yes, its sort of a hybrid CK-EU, so you have more characters than EU but less interaction with them than CK, tech is equally a hybrid, you have more control than CK but its less clearcut than EU

AVC - Ab Urbe Conditum (apols if my Latin is ropey) ... ie Roman calender dates from the founding of the city .. but it has nil impact on game play

I like it when I fancy a change of pace, and you can have fun as a Hellenistic style monarchy, a republic or a tribe ... & by picking different start dates. So the later ones plunge you straight into the Roman civil wars at the end of the Republic and the early ones into the wars for dominance with Carthage

EU:R could accustom me to CK's Character system, though nonetheless it seems a good game in its own right. It seems the game is Rome-centric, or is this a misconception?

I personally like EUR more than EU3, in every sector.

Technology is less important than in EU3, it isn't impossible to win wars even if you're several levels behind in tech if you just have other things working. As an example if you play as a tribe your tech will improve very slowly as you don't gain almost any bonuses unlike republics and monarchies but your tribal laws can help this and you can i.e. not allow your troops to retreat from battle so they fight until they either die or win.

You don't invest money into techs unlike in EU3 (where you can't save your money, only mint more or waste it all to research, which is the thing I hate the most in the game) , instead you appoint a guy to research the technology and advancement depends on his abilities.

Important thing to remember when buying Rome is that you "need" Vae Victis expansion pack (included in Rome Gold) to get anything out of it. Without it Rome is really boring EU3-lite-game.

I suppose technology's lesser importance descends from historical factors, with EU3 covering the Renaissance whilst scientific achievements in EU:R's select period of Antiquity remained relatively static. I'll be sure to get Rome Gold to acquire Vae Victis; all Paradox games are mundane without the expansion packs.

Do it. It's cheap as chips, and even without mods it's still pretty interesting. I'd highly recommend that you have a look through some of the major mods and give them a try, though.

It helps to have an interest in the time period, though. This is my favourite period of history, so it has racked up hundreds of hours of my gaming time...

I'm interested in Antiquity, though know little about it beyond the fundamentals and the story of Arminius - which intrigues me due to its many parallels to Vlad Dracul's life. Mods don't interest me as much, though I'll certainly try them.

 

[loki100]

It seems the game is Rome-centric, or is this a misconception?

its debateable, certainly Rome is great fun and the state the game sort of revolves around, but there is great fun to be had all over the map. The big Hellenistic kingdoms (Seluecid and Ptolemaic) give the option to go on a rampage, the smaller states around the Black Sea have all sorts of dynamics that are interesting and the conventional barbarians offer a very different game play experience. Carthate has real potential but you're always one bad war from a major manpower problem.

 

[SA_Avenger]

It seems the game is Rome-centric, or is this a misconception?

Actually almost never played Rome itself since beta, loved the smaller states and trying to get bigger, imho that's where most of the fun lies. Rome has a different mechanic that made it interesting as well (and basically that's what I love about EU:R it's the vey different experience depending the area you start with)

 

[Praetorian44]

I just bought it a week or two ago and I'm thoroughly enjoying it. I've played a little bit of the first Crusader Kings, but most of my time with Paradox's games has been with EU3. The combat is similiar but in my opinion it seems to be a lot better. The character system isn't as Good as CK's but it still really interesting, so far I have really enjoy playing as a republic. Rome Gold is really cheap and I would definitely consider purchasing it if I was you.

 

[Sam L]

It's a great game. You should just get Rome Gold.

 

[ncm]

Just bought Rome Gold, time for some Pax Ptolemaei.

 

[Poor Student84]

Just bought this off GG for around €9. Have just gotten into Paradox through Vicky 2 and I'm looking for something to get me used to playing with characters before I progress onto Sengoku and CK II. Can't wait to try and build up a Greek city state into an empire.

 

[Namm]

I can't recommend Rome. It was years since I played it, and it disappointed me back then. Visiting the forums now ... and what I see is inactive mods, scarce patching and the game is in the classic section. Meh.

 

[Poor Student84]

I can't recommend Rome. It was years since I played it, and it disappointed me back then. Visiting the forums now ... and what I see is inactive mods, scarce patching and the game is in the classic section. Meh.

Have to say I'm very much enjoying the game and have been playing addictively since purchase. It has its flaws (damn cascading alliances!) but it's a very playable and enjoyable game in my opinion. It is a couple of expansions away from being a great game. Personally I would love to see Paradox have another crack at this in the next couple of years.

 

[Comontorios]

It has its flaws (damn cascading alliances!) but it's a very playable and enjoyable game in my opinion.

Have you tried the 2.35 beta patch which fixes cascading alliances?

 

[Poor Student84]

Have you tried the 2.35 beta patch which fixes cascading alliances?

I thought I read that the beta is unstable and tends to crash. What's your experience with it?

 

[Cheexsta]

I thought I read that the beta is unstable and tends to crash. What's your experience with it?

Only consistent crash I've encountered has been with the annoying interface bug, but there is a workaround fix for that which makes it playable.

 

[AndrewT]

I thought I read that the beta is unstable and tends to crash. What's your experience with it?

Just copy your whole 2.32 installation to a new place and apply the beta to that only. Then you can always switch back if you find a problem with the beta.

 

[Comontorios]

I thought I read that the beta is unstable and tends to crash. What's your experience with it?

The aforementioned workaround can be found here: http://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum/showthread.php?567308-Fix-for-2.35-character-selection-crash.