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Well, what do you know? It's Legacy of Rome dev diary day again! Today's topics are Liege Levies and Retinues.

In patch v1.07, you raise fewer, larger levies from your direct vassals (we call these "Liege Levies" for lack of a better term.) These levies are now handled separately from actual Holding levies; you only get regular holding levies from your own Demesne. The opinions of vassals of vassals are thus now mostly irrelevant; you only need to worry about the opinions of your direct vassals. Another benefit is that you don't get tiny little armies all over the place when you mobilize your realm. Liege levies also fix a fundamental balancing flaw in that you can no longer just keep raising little levies from all vassals as a war drags on (due to the portion of holding levies that was reserved for the liege.) The new Liege Levies do not reinforce at home while raised.

LoR_02_Liege_Levies.jpg

That's it for Liege Levies. Now, the concept of Retinues should be familiar to those of you who have played Sengoku. Basically, Retinues are your household guard; your elite core of professional soldiers. At the start of the game, most rulers are not able to employ Retinues, but it becomes possible as their total manpower (based on all the levies in their realm) and average Military Organization (a new technology) level increase. Over time, the Retinues turn into proper standing armies. The downside is that, as your Retinue capacity increases, your normal levies decrease in size. However, even at max tech, levies will still account for the majority of your armies.

There are many types of Retinues available for hire - including several unique cultural variants - though they always come in 500-man regiments with a commander of your own culture. Retinues reinforce in the field, like mercenaries, and when you first hire them, they start with 1 man. Unlike armies in other games, for example Europa Universalis, Retinues only cost maintenance while they reinforce. You are of course allowed to declare war even if you have Retinues (which are always standing on the map.)

LoR_02_Cataphract_Retinue.jpg

So, why did we choose to add the Retinue system to the DLC? Why should you spend $6 on Legacy of Rome rather than a Latte and a slice of cake? There are many reasons, including these:

  • Retinues make arranging your flanks and balancing your armies far more tactical
  • Having a dependable standing army ready is strategically preferable
  • They fit nicely into the overall military system in patch v1.07 with Liege Levies, etc
  • History saw levy based militaries transform gradually into more professional forces

LoR_02_New_Retinue.jpg

I should mention again that the whole Retinue mechanic requires that you own the DLC; if you don't, the new Retinue tab will be grayed out in the military view and the AI will not use Retinues either. However, if the host in a multiplayer game owns the DLC, all players will be able to use Retinues.

I think that will do it for today. Next week, I plan to talk about the new Leader traits and cultural buildings. Until then!
 
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Awesome can't wait I will definitely buy the DLC :D
 
This is something I've honestly always wanted. TBH it's even something I sometimes mod my game to have. Large nations with over X amount of troops getting a small 500-1000 troop mercenary force that is incredibly cheap to maintain and permanently available.

Looking forward to retinue's a VERY great deal.
 
Will the changes from 1.07 and Legacy of Rome apply to saved games started with 1.06?
 
Great!
 
Sounds interesting and looking forward to it.

So I guess the liege levies now not replenishing means that all wars will tend to be shorter and you'll get less of the AI-AI wars that drag on for 20 years?
 
I will celebrate the Legacy of Rome DLC with a Breton/neo-Arthurian AAR with the Round Table knights as my retinue.

Is it possible to rename armies at the moment? I am not sure. If not, it should be DEFINITELY allowed, at least for retinues.
 
Sounds interesting and looking forward to it.

So I guess the liege levies now not replenishing means that all wars will tend to be shorter and you'll get less of the AI-AI wars that drag on for 20 years?

In general, yes.
 
I don't suppose the Retinue system will have a "Hunt for Rebels" button, right? :p

Also, does everyone get a Retinue or will it just be the overall ruler of a nation?

Edit: And I guess that the Heavy Cavalry sprite at the last picture is apart of the new Portrait pack or is it part of the Rome DLC?
 
I don't suppose the Retinue system will have a "Hunt for Rebels" button, right? :p

Also, does everyone get a Retinue or will it just be the overall ruler of a nation?

Everyone who has enough total manpower under them.
 
"Banner Hosts" sounds like a more medieval-y alternative to "Liege Levies", minus the alliteration (though I know it's a dev diary term only anyway :laugh:)
 
Any chance of us modders getting some extra love in 1.07? I'd like to be able to use specific dynasties in my triggers for events, please. Thanks. I'd also really love it if we could change de jure borders with events or decisions too.
 
What happens with the retinue army if it's disbanded or obliterated in battle? Will it simply regrow again or is it lost forever unless bought again?

If it's in an army with surviving troops, it will survive, but if the whole army is slaughtered, it's gone.
 
I'd also really love it if we could change de jure borders with events or decisions too.

You already can, use 'de_jure_liege = <title>' in any title scope