Total War: Pharaoh Royal Courts
Overview: Royal Courts
Many factions in Total War: Pharaoh can choose to participate in one of the royal courts. In the original game, there were two (Egyptian and Hittite). In Total War: Pharaoh Dynasties campaigns, there are four royal courts - Aegean, Egyptian, Hittite and Mesopotamian.
Each royal court has a supreme ruler (such as the Pharaoh of Egypt and the Great King of the Hittites) and a number of office holders. You do not need to hold an office to participate in the royal court - you can still take political actions and make requests of office holders. For example, Ramesses does not have an office in the court (at least, he doesn't start with one), but he can use the gossip action to build up Regard with office holders. Making requests can allow you to recruit a few units in special recruitment, or provide resources - for example, a 'reap the profits of the mines' request to the Viceroy of Kush provides gold.
Most factions can use one political action in a royal court per turn, although you can spend gold for another action (Ramesses can use two political actions per turn, without needing to spend gold). You don't have to use a political action every turn - if you don't hold a political office, you can ignore the royal court if you want to. (If you hold a political office, ignoring the court may mean that another faction successfully plots against you, which can cause you to lose your office).
If you have an office in a royal court, this provides advantages. For example you may be able to recruit units in special recruitment (Egypt's First Commander can recruit elite Royal units), you may get extra resources (Egypt's Viceroy of Kush has a gold income), or have extra abilities (Egypt's Vizier has the ability to assassinate). Some factions have offices in royal courts at the start of the campaign, such as Amenmesse, who starts as Viceroy of Kush in Egypt's court. However, if you have an office, you aren't guaranteed to keep it - another faction might remove your character from office using a plot.
How to join a royal court
After the first few turns of the campaign, most factions are invited to either join a royal court or to forge your own path. (If your faction already participates in a royal court at the start of the campaign, such as Suppiluliuma who is the Great King of the Hittites, you may not be given this choice). To join a royal court, you need to own at least one region which is a sacred land for that court (the sacred lands are shown on the Path to Power graphic on the right).
Your faction does not have to belong to a culture to participate in their court, for example a Canaanite faction leader can participate in the Egyptian royal court, if they hold an Egyptian sacred land. When you are offered the chance to join a royal court or forge your own path, you don't have to choose immediately - you can wait until you have conquered a region which is a sacred land in the court you want to join.
How to avoid participating in a royal court
When you are invited to join a royal court or forge your own path, select the forge your own path option. Most factions only have one forge your own path option - the Path of the Marauder. However, the Sea Peoples - the Sherden and the Peleset - can also choose the Path of the Sea Peoples, which provides benefits to resources, raiding and combat (the benefits vary, depending on your choices, for example if you recruit more horde units or settled units).
How to get an office in a royal court
- Wait for a court position to become vacant and claim it.
- Use a Threaten plot to remove the current officer holder, then claim it.
- Win a civil war, and your faction leader becomes the supreme ruler. To start a civil war, you need three-quarters of the current supreme ruler's Legitimacy. To win it, you'll need a strong military (and a plan for how to use them to win).
Claiming a court position costs gold.
Some offices have additional requirements. In the Mesopotamian royal court, the holders of court positions are kings, and you need to own specific territory to claim a position. For example, the faction leaders of Hanigalbat and Babylon are kings in the Mesopotamian court, and you need to take specific regions to claim those titles if you don't already have them.
How to keep an office in a royal court
When you have a court position, other factions may plot against you (and could remove your position if they succeed). You can counter plots against you, for example by using the gossip action on office holders to identify the plotter, and then using the 'counter intrigue' button. Countering a plot costs gold, so this is easier to manage if you have plentiful supplies of gold.
Strategies for dealing with the royal court
- You can ignore the court if you want to. If you don't hold a court position, the only downside is that you miss out on advantages such as being able to recruit elite units in special recruitment. If you hold a court position, another faction might remove you from office with a plot, or even assassinate your character.
- You can participate in a court without holding a court position. This is usually a cheaper option, because you don't need to spend gold to counter plots. One way to do this is to use the gossip action to build up Regard with an office holder, so that you can make a request. For example, building up Regard with Egypt's First Commander allows you to make a request to recruit some Royal units.
- You can hold a court position. This has advantages, for example you gain Legitimacy (which is helpful if you want to participate in a civil war), but countering plots can cost a lot of gold.
