Total War: Pharaoh Troy

Total War: Pharaoh Troy
Name:	Troy
From Game:	Total War: Pharaoh
Culture:	Trojan
Playable:	Yes

Troy is a major Aegean faction in Total War Pharaoh, led by Priam. This faction was added by the Dynasties update, and you need to have Total War: Pharaoh Dynasties installed to play this faction. (You don't need to have the original game installed as well, unless you want to be able to play campaigns without the expanded campaign map and features of Dynasties).

Priam, king of Troy

Overview

Priam is king of Troy, and the people of his city are in danger from enemies to the east and the west of his famous city. Troy's roster includes cheap sword infantry, good melee infantry (with club, spear or sword), and very good skirmishers (including Exemplary Slingers and two types of archers with composite bows - Renowned Archers and Trojan Nobles), as well as melee chariots. In his home regions, he can recruit native club and spear infantry and archers with a native barracks, as well as melee and bow chariots.

Starting Position

As well as the major city of Troy itself, Troy starts with Percote and Zeleia, two of the remaining three cities in its home province of Wilusa. All three cities provide food (and can provide wood, if you construct the right building), however you begin with no regions which can supply stone, bronze or gold. At the start of the campaign, Troy is at war with Apaesos, owner of Adresteia, the remaining city in Wilusa province. Adresteia provides stone.

Troy begins with two starting armies, one led by Priam and the other by Hector. Both of the starting armies include one elite unit (Priam's army includes Champions of Troy, who are spear infantry, and Hector's army includes an elite sword infantry unit).

Troy's starting position is similar to Carthage, in Rome Total War and Rome II. Like Carthage, Troy faces an expansionist power across the sea - Mycenae. Like Carthage, Troy's capital can be reached quickly by an enemy travelling by sea. Like Carthage, Troy's army has strengths, but its units are not well-suited to the enemy it now faces. Troy is likely to be a good choice for an experienced Total War player who wants a challenging campaign.

Strategies for Troy

Troy's roster lacks axe units and tends to rely skirmishers, so Trojan armies may struggle against units which are well-armoured and carry a large shield. The kingdom of Mycenae and their allies have axe infantry who are well-armoured and carry a shield, and their axe infantry are likely to be a serious threat to Troy.

Your first goal is likely to be to defeat your initial enemy, and to take the remaining city in your home province. Some factions can achieve both goals (destroy the initial enemy army and take an enemy city) in the first turn, but taking the city may be difficult for Hector's army. You might need to use the armies of Hector and Priam together to take the city. After consolidating your home province, Troy is likely to face declarations of war from Mycenaean factions to the west. Diplomacy is likely to be useful for survival, to provide resources as well as potential allies.

Upgrading your barracks is likely to be necessary, to defend against invading armies, but your faction lacks a city which supplies bronze or gold at the start. Troy's tier 2 sword infantry are relatively cheap, and only require food, so they can be very useful in the early campaign. The elite units in Troy's two starting armies requires gold for upkeep - and, at the start of the campaign, Troy has no city which provides gold. You could disband the elite units, or trade other resources for gold, or capture a gold settlement - for example, the city of Volissos to the south of Troy provides gold.

Troy's home province is on the west coast of Anatolia, so Troy is likely to need to prepare for the invasions of the Sea Peoples. Forts, as well as buildings in cities which provides additional garrison, can be useful. Maintaining public order is not likely to be too difficult. Your starting god is Apollo, and shrines to Apollo provide happiness to the province, as well as boosting the missile damage of your archers.

At the start of the campaign, Priam holds the position of Wanax, the supreme ruler in the Aegean royal court. As long as Troy's faction leader holds this positiom, Troy can recruit elite Aegean units in special recruitment - however, recruiting these units is expensive, so this may be an additional reason for getting a settlement which provides gold as soon as you can. If Priam is killed in battle, his heir will inherit the title - however, the Wanax could be challenged for this position in a civil war, if rival faction(s) acquire enough Legitimacy. The position of Wanax also allows the ruler to choose from a set of unique shields, including one which provides bonuses to diplomacy with Aegean factions and the evaluation of diplomatic agreements (except barters). Bonuses to diplomacy could be useful for helping Troy to avoid being overwhelmed by declarations of war from multiple factions in the early campaign, and could combine well with the Perseus legacy (see below).

Legacies

You can choose between the legacy of Atreus the First Wanax, and Perseus the Hero. The Atreus Legacy is about completing objectives to gain Dominance, which you can use to swing diplomatic deals in your favour, for court actions and to boost your Legitimacy during civil wars. The Perseus Legacy is about building your strength through Unity, acquiring allies and vassals, and having access to global recruitment in which you can recruit units from the rosters of your allies and vassals.

Troy seems intended to be a diplomatic and defensive faction, so the legacy of Perseus is the obvious choice.