Sega PC GAMES ROME: TOTAL WAR (1 OF 3) User Manual
1
IGNITED MINDS
4499 Glencoe Avenue
Marina del Rey, California 90292
T
310.754.3210 F310.754.3204
www.ignitedminds.com
CLIENT PROJECT TITLE
DATE % OF SIZE SHOWN
FILE NAME JOB CODE
SIZE CONCEPT NUMBER
Activision
08.09.04 100%
RTW_PC ACT-ROME-MN1
4.5” x 6.875” R7 section 1 FINAL
Rome Total War
PC Manual
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Ave! Welcome to Rome: Total War™ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
How to Install Rome: Total War . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
CD Keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
So You Don’t Want to Read the Manual? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Experienced Total War™ Players Start Here! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Starting Play . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
The Main Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
The Single Player Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Multiplayer Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Load Game Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Options Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
The Prologue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Advisors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Asking for Advice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10
Campaigns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
How to Get Started with the Imperial Campaign . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10
How to Get Started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11
How to Play a Turn in the Campaign Game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14
How to Deal with Messages and Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16
The Marius Event . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16
How to Use Armies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Moving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17
Selecting the Next Piece . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Terrain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18
Ambushes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Attacking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Attacking with Supporting Armies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Multiple Attacks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Merging Armies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Splitting Armies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Merging Units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Unit Experience . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Generals and Governors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22
Captains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Recruiting Mercenaries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23
Building Forts and Watchtowers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23
How to Run Settlements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Settlements and the Control Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
The Settlement Scroll . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Who Gets to be Governor? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Building Construction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Repairing Buildings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29
The Building Information Scroll . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29
The Settlement Details Scroll . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
The Trade Scroll and Province Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
The Building Browser and the Technology Tree . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31
Wonders of the World . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31
Trouble in Settlements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
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Changing Your Mind . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
How to Train Units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32
The Recruitment Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32
How to Besiege a Settlement or Fort . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Conquering Settlements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
How to Break a Siege . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
How to Use Fleets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37
How to Use Spies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
How to Use Diplomats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
How to Use Assassins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
How to Auto-Manage Settlements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
How Not to Go Broke . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
How to Manage Your Faction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Retinues: Ancillary Characters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
How to Deal with the Senate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
How to Get Help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
How to Change Game Options During Play . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47
Battles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
The Battle Deployment Scroll . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Attackers and Defenders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
How to Deploy Your Troops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
How to Use the Battlefield Control Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .50
How to Control the Battlefield Camera . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
How to Move and Attack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
Changing Unit Formation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .57
Changing Unit Facing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
Waypoints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .57
Unit Activity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Orders for Artillery Units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
How to Use More Than One Unit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Grouping Units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .60
How to Get the Most from Unit Abilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
How to Assault a Settlement or Fort . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .64
How to Deal with Ambushes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
How to Use Reinforcements and Allies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .68
Custom Battles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .70
Choosing Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .70
Customize Battle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Customize Army . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Multiplayer Games . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .75
Setting Up a Multiplayer Battle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Hosting a Game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Joining a Game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .77
After a Battle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Limited Warranty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .78
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2
AVE! WELCOME TO
ROME: TOTAL WAR
™
Rome: Total War is a game of epic real-time warfare, empire building, politics
and treachery covering hundreds of years from the Punic Wars to the rise of the
Roman Emperors—from 270 BC to around 14 AD. It was during this period that
Rome conquered the Mediterranean world and much of Europe, and established an
empire that was to last for centuries, one that has echoes even today. This is the
world of Hannibal, Julius Caesar, Cleopatra and a thousand others. This is a world
of soldiers, gladiators, emperors, tyrants, monsters and fools. It’s a rich, exciting
world, awaiting a conqueror—you!
INSTALLATION
Please make sure your computer system uses Windows®98SE or a later Windows
version.
Rome: Total War is not compatible with Windows 98 or earlier or
other operating systems.
Rome: Total War also requires the latest DirectX
®
9.0b-compatible drivers for your CD-ROM drive, sound card and video card, as
well as any other peripherals. If you have problems running the program, old
drivers are the most likely cause.
How to Install Rome: Total War
1. Before installing, close all other applications.
2. Insert the
Rome: Total War CD 1 into your CD-ROM drive. If you have
Autoplay enabled, the title screen will be displayed. If Autoplay is
not enabled, simply double-click on
My Computer and then double-click
on your
CD-ROM drive to launch the game installer. On the title
screen, click the
Install button to begin and then follow the
on-screen instructions.
3. After Rome: Total War is installed, your computer will install
Microsoft DirectX 9.0b if needed. When DirectX installation is
complete, you may need to restart your computer. For more
information on DirectX 9.0b, see the relevant Help file.
4. Now you can run Rome: Total War from the Start menu or by clicking
Play on the CD title screen. Please note that you must have a Rome:
Total War
CD in your CD-ROM drive at all times to play the game.
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4
The most important changes in Rome: Total War are:
•
Left-click on a unit to select it and then right-click on where you want
it to go. This is true on the campaign map and in battle.
• On the campaign map, every agent, army and fleet has a movement
allowance. When selected, these pieces are surrounded by a highlighted area
that shows how far they can move.
• Family members can hire mercenaries when they’re out in the field. They can
also build watchtowers and forts. Both of these cost money.
• Armies, agents and fleets are no longer simply “in” a province or sea area.
Instead, each army, agent and fleet occupies a specific place on the map.
Just standing in the same province isn’t enough to start a battle. You’ll need
to move into an enemy army or settlement to attack. Likewise, you’ll need
to move an agent onto another piece to use its special abilities.
• Fleets now carry armies and agents. Move onto a fleet to board it; order the
fleet onto a coastal square to disembark passengers.
• An advisor pops up from time to time with hints and tips about the game
and what’s going on. We recommend paying attention!
• What can be produced at a settlement is closely tied to the size of the
settlement and the level of government. Units can only be trained when
there are men in a settlement to fill the ranks.
• When you’re playing as a Roman faction, you have allies (the Senate and
two other families) at the start of the game. Sooner or later, other Romans
will turn on you in a struggle for ultimate power in Rome. Of course, you
can get your “retaliation” in first!
• The Senate will give you missions from time to time if you’re playing
as a Roman faction. It’s usually worth finishing these missions for potential
rewards and to keep the goodwill of the Senate.
• Clicking on the
Help (question mark) button on information scrolls brings
up in-game help. The
Help button and the advisors are of great use when
learning the game.
OK, you’ve resisted the urge for conquest and plunder long enough! Now go play
the game! Good luck with your conquests! Put not your trust in Greeks, Gauls or
Carthaginians! And when facing elephants in battle…try not to panic!
CD Keys
Your copy of the game came with a CD key, which is located inside the CD case.
When you install the game, you’ll need to type in this key. Your CD key is unique
and without it, you won’t be able to play the game. Please enter the key exactly as
it appears on the CD case.
Keep your CD key safe and private in case you need to reinstall the game. Do not
give your CD key to anyone else because it may impair your ability to play
multiplayer games. If you lose your CD key, you will not be issued another one.
SO YOU DON’T WANT TO
READ THE MANUAL?
We think reading the manual is probably a good idea. If you’ve never played a
Total War
™
game before, then the manual is full of information you’ll find helpful.
But perhaps none of that is for you, Mighty Caesar!
So instead of reading the manual—but before you begin conquering the world—
we’d like you to do one thing: play through the
Prologue. We also recommend
that you read the Prologue section of the manual and the section on
Advisors
as well.
When the game starts, left-click on
SINGLE PLAYER and then left-click on
PROLOGUE. Just read the introductory screen, click on the arrow in the lower-
right corner and follow the instructions and advice you’re given. In no time at all,
your enemies will quiver in fear!
The Prologue introduces the basics of gameplay. You can go back to it later for more
information. Good luck—and may the goddesses Fortuna and Victoria
favor you!
EXPERIENCED TOTAL WAR
PLAYERS START HERE!
If you’ve already played Medieval: Total War™or Shogun: Total War™,
you’ll be tempted to jump straight into playing
Rome: Total War. After all, you
know how all this works! It’s a
Total War game! It’s going to be
easy-peasy!
If you jump straight into
Rome: Total War, you’ll find things have changed since
Medieval: Total War. Shortly afterward, you may find that a barbarian is
drinking from your skull, and laughing.
5
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STARTING PLAY
The Main Menu
• Single Player – Takes you to the
single player menu discussed in detail in
the next section of this manual.
•
Continue Campaign –
Automatically loads the newest saved
campaign game and lets you continue
with your conquests!
•
Multiplayer – See the Multiplayer
Games
section of the manual for multiplayer details.
•
Load Game – Gives you a choice of saved games to continue.
•
Options – Adjust the video, sound and gameplay settings of
Rome: Total War. See the Gameplay Options for more information.
•
Quit – Leave Rome: Total War and return to Windows
®
.
Here—as with all the menu screens—any options that are unavailable are “grayed
out” so you can’t click on them to bring up a new menu.
The Single Player Menu
This is where you choose the style of single
player game you want to play.
•
Prologue – Start playing Rome:
Total War
right here! This tutorial
introduces you to gameplay quickly and
painlessly—well, not so painlessly for
your foes!
•
Imperial Campaign – This is the
full
Rome: Total War experience, and your chance to conquer the
ancient world! Build an empire and fight your battles on the way to
world domination.
•
Historical Battle – This option brings up a choice of famous battles from
the historical period of
Rome: Total War. In some of the battles, you can
choose the army you want to command.
•
Custom Battle – Create a battle between two armies on the field
of your choice, then fight it out. This is a great way to try out new tactics
and practice your battlefield command skills!
6
• Quick Battle – The fastest way of fighting a battle in Rome: Total
War
. You’re given command of an army and must drive your enemy from
the field—a true test of command ability!
Clicking on the
U-shaped arrow in the lower left corner returns you to the
previous menu. This return arrow appears on many screens in the game and always
takes you back to the previous screen. The
Backspace key also takes you back to
the previous menu wherever you see the U-shaped “go back” arrow on-screen.
Options that are unavailable appear in gray.
Multiplayer Menu
• Online Battles – Fight against
opponents anywhere in the world
using GameSpy. You’ll need a
broadband Internet connection
to use this service.
•
LAN Battles – Fight battles across
your LAN (Local Area Network). Each
player will need
Rome: Total
War
installed.
•
Change CD Key – Click here to change the CD key used for multiplayer
battles. You may want to do this so two (or more) people can use the same
PC, each with their own unique CD key.
Options that are unavailable appear in gray. You’ll find much more information
on all these topics in the
How To Play Multiplayer Games section of
the manual.
Load Game Menu
The options on this screen allow you to load a previously saved game.
•
Load Campaign Game – Reload a campaign. The auto-saved game is
the one that was played most recently on your PC.
•
Load Custom Battle – Replay your favorite custom battles as often as
you like. The custom battle system allows you to save your battles for
repeated playing.
•
Load Battle Replay – Relive your greatest triumphs! At the end of every
custom battle, you can save the action for later replay. You’ll have control of
an independent camera view of the battlefield.
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Options Menu
This menu allows you to adjust the game for best performance on your PC and to
choose your own personal preferences for the game’s look. Based on your PC’s set
up,
Rome: Total War adjusts itself for optimum performance when installed, but
this may not match your preferences precisely. Clicking on any item takes you to
the appropriate submenu:
•
Video Settings – Click on the downward pointing arrows to bring up a
list of options in any of the dialog boxes. Select the option you want from a
list by left-clicking on it. Left-click on a check box to toggle the relevant
graphics feature on and off.
•
Audio Settings – Click on the sliders to adjust each element of game
sound to suit your personal tastes. The Master Volume slider affects the
overall volume. The other sliders adjust the mix of sounds in the game.
Again, you can left-click on any of the
check boxes in the lower part of
the screen to toggle individual options.
Note: EAX
®
ADVANCED HD™provides realistic sonic effects to accurately
simulate the sound properties of different acoustic environments in Rome:
Total War. The EAX ADVANCED HD acoustic models are dynamically
updated as you move around in the game experience. For example, the
sounds created in a forest have a different sound and reverberation trail than
the sounds created in a flat plains region, which would have less
reverberation and be more direct. Only the Creative
®
Sound Blaster
®
Audigy®series sound card would be able to deliver great audio experience
with EAX ADVANCED HD.
•
Control Settings – You can modify the keyboard shortcuts to suit your
playing style. Double-click on any item in the key list and then press the
key(s) you want to use for that function. You can press the
SHIFT, CTRL
and ALT keys in combination with another key to create a shortcut. You can
revert to the original assignments at any time.
■ Left-click on the icon in the lower-right corner to load and save
key assignments. If you find a particular combination you like, we
recommend saving it. Click on the dialog box in the lower part of the
screen and then type in a name for your settings file.
•
View the Credits – A list of the gods, emperors, governors and
wretched slaves responsible for bringing you this fine product!
Clicking on the
U-shaped arrow at the bottom left of each screen returns you to
the previous menu, as always.
8
THE PROLOGUE
The “Sons of Mars” campaign is an introduction to the world of Rome: Total
War
. It’s your task to lead the Julii family to a position of power by conquering
Rome’s neighbors. This is the way to greatness in
Rome: Total War—attack
external enemies and gain credit for doing so.
When you’re ready, click on the arrow in the lower-right corner of the screen to
begin. You’ll start the game with one of your advisors, Victoria, telling you a little
about herself and her tasks in the game. All you need to do to start playing is
follow her instructions and advice.
If you decide you don’t want to play the Prologue through to its conclusion, you
can press the
ESC key to bring up the Campaign Exit Menu scroll, but we
recommend playing the Prologue through at least once.
ADVISORS
The advisors are your most useful aid when learning to play Rome: Total War
(as you already know if you’ve played the Prologue).
The advisors in the game are your first place to go for help when playing, and
they’re watching what’s going on so they can pop up at appropriate times and
give you helpful hints, tips and general information.
Victoria (named after the Roman goddess of victory) is the
campaign advisor. She can advise you about production,
recruitment, managing your empire, diplomacy, dealing with the
Senate, trade and so on.
Centurion Marcus is the battlefield advisor. Apart from
offering his opinion about enemy tactics, he’ll keep an eye out for
potential problems such as putting units into dangerous situations:
he doesn’t like it when cavalry are ordered straight onto
spear points!
When an advisor has something important to tell you, their portrait will glow. Click
on the
advisor to see their comments.
The
Speech button toggles the on-screen text of the current piece of
advice. In some cases, you can ask the advisor not to repeat a
particular piece of advice by clicking on the check box below the text.
Click on the
Show Me How button to have the advisor demonstrate
how to carry out an action in the game.
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The magnifying glass button shows you the location that is relevant
to the advice being offered.
The
X button dismisses an advisor. Pressing the ESC key also
dismisses them.
Buttons that are not appropriate for the advice being offered are always grayed
out and cannot be selected. Sometimes, for example, there isn’t anything that you
need to be shown how to do.
Asking For Advice
There are several panels in the campaign game that include an advisor
button. You can click on this button to get relevant advice on what you
can do next in the game. For example, you’ll be told what Victoria
considers to be the best unit to train if you click on the
advisor
button on the Recruitment Panel.
■ Advice Preferences
After you’ve been playing for a while, you may feel you don’t need any more
advice. Go to the
Options menu at the start of play or press ESC when on the
campaign map and select
Options from the Game End menu. You’ll have the
ability to alter the level of advice.
Change the level of advice you get by going to the
Game Settings menu and
choosing an appropriate level of advice from
high to none. Your advisors
remember what they’ve already told you, so if you want to hear advice again,
click on the
Reset Advisor check box on the same menu. Once you’ve done
that, the advisors will assume you’re a new player and offer information and
hints accordingly.
CAMPAIGNS
Gameplay in Rome: Total War divides neatly into Campaigns and Battles.
These two parts of the game are closely linked, so actions you take in the
campaign game such as constructing buildings, training units or appointing
generals have major effects on the battlefield. This part of the manual concerns
itself with
Campaigns. Later, we’ll discuss Battles and how to get the most out
of them.
How to Get Started with the Imperial Campaign
The Imperial Campaign menu allows you to select and set all the options you
might want in a campaign game: who you’re controlling, how hard the game is to
play and how you want to win. This screen allows you to do the following:
• Select your
Advice Level for the coming campaign from the dropdown
list that’s displayed when you click on the down arrow in the text box.
We recommend you leave this on
High until you’re comfortable playing
the game.
• Select
Campaign Difficulty and Battle Difficulty from the appropriate
dropdown lists. You can pick the level of challenge in each
part of the game, and the two don’t have to be set the same.
• Click on the
Arcade Style Battles check box if you want battles to be
simplified and action-oriented. Many realism settings are turned off
automatically if you choose this option.
• Click on the
Short Campaign check box if you only want to focus on
destroying or outliving certain factions rather than conquering the entire map.
• Click on one of the
Faction Shield icons on the right to choose the people
you’ll lead to greatness, glory and a mighty empire! The map changes to
show where they start, and the text gives you a quick overview of their
strengths and foibles. When you first start to play, you can only select one of
the Roman factions, but others will become available in later games.
• Click on the
arrow in the lower-right corner to start play.
■ How to Win
If you’re playing as one of the Roman factions, the Brutii, Julli or Scipii, the basic
victory condition for the game is to conquer Rome and much of the world. This isn’t
as easy as it sounds. You’ll find yourself fighting against the forces of the Senate
and the other Roman factions.
If you’re playing as any other non-Roman faction, the basic victory condition is very
simple: conquer the world!
If you don’t want to play the game for quite so long, click on the
Short
Campaign
check box.
Once you’ve made up your mind, start playing! When you win, peasants cheer,
trumpets sound and (probably) an angel gets his wings. And you have the
inestimable pleasure of having crushed your enemies, seen them driven before you
and heard the lamentations of their women. Cool, huh?
How to Get Started
When you start a Rome: Total War campaign, there’s a lot to take in. The
Advisors built into the game are there to help, but there’s still a wealth of
information to think about. So, where to start?
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