I spent some time playing Total War: EMPIRE this week, and managed to make some real progress this time. I’m slowly learning how to play this game properly, but at the same time I’m learning about some of its flaws. EMPIRE isn’t a perfect game, but it can still be a fun game.
Since I screwed up so bad the last time, I restarted Episode II of the Road to Independence campaign. I had learned the hard way that if I just keep producing troops then eventually my economy would collapse and I would lose my armies and territories very quickly.
One of the first things I did in this playthrough was to form an alliance with the Iroquois. I knew that being able to move through their territory would be vital, so I planned to slowly get them on my side so I could get military access. To my surprise, one turn after making an alliance they offered me permanent access as well as a trade agreement, in exchange for an upfront payment.
This was already going better than the last time, as now I could move around the map more freely. Now I could focus on gaining territory. My first mission was to capture Fort Duquesne to the north. I gathered up my full army, led by George Washington, and began my siege.
After a couple of turns the troops at the fort surrendered and I was able to take the fort. The French retreated further north, to Fort Niagara; and I sent my army chasing after them. Fort Niagara is the capital of Algonquin Territory, so by capturing it I would be able to expand my domain.
After another siege, the French forces laid down their final resistance. It was a short battle, and the French forces were forced to retreat. Fort Niagara was mine, and now I had more control over the region. Our next target would be Louisberg to the east.
The game wants you to build up a fleet to capture this city, but I had other plans. I knew how strong the French fleet was, so I would take Washington and his army through Iroquois and British territory and capture the city on foot.
Before I could do that, however, I had problems at home. French armies were still wandering around, sabotaging plantations and threatening my cities. This meant I would lose valuable income and possibly even territory to the French. Before I could proceed with my plan, I would have to dismantle this army.
I chased down the army, and after a prolonged battle most of them were wiped out. A single unit remained, which was still enough to be a threat to my supply lines. I would have to run them down and wipe them out completely.
Before I could do that, however, I had to worry about my new territory. The citizens there clearly were not happy under new management. I decided the best way to manage the situation would be to cut taxes. As long as I could keep paying my army we could maintain power.
After this Washington attacked the French, wiping out the army for good. They would be no threat anymore, but the French still had a fort to the east where they could raise more troops: Fort Carillon in Iroquois Territory. I’m sure our native allies would appreciate us capturing this fort.
I had Washington march his army around the forest to the fort. They held the siege for a couple of turns before closing in for the final battle. Our troops were able to surround the fort, holding formation as the French attempted to break out. We slowly closed in as cannon-fire blew the fort to pieces.
Eventually the French were routed. Another territory was ours. We built plantations and mines in the area, supplementing our tax income. With the Iroquois territory captured, the French were no longer a direct threat. Our British and Iroquois allies lay between us and Louisberg.
As I marched the army toward Louisberg, the Iroquois Territory started a revolt. This time I exempted them from taxes completely, in the hopes that would keep them happy for a while. Eventually I would reintroduce taxation once they were more subdued.
Moving through Acadia our army began its siege of Louisberg. After a couple of turns the city surrendered, without even a need for battle. The French may have a strong Navy, but on land we rule. It was time to go for our final targets: Quebec and Montreal.
These territories were back to the west, so it would take some time to get my armies over there. Montreal, as it turns out, was occupied by the Huron-Wyandot, a native tribe that had allied themselves with the French. Knowing of our recent battles, they moved into our land and started sabotaging our plantations.
I sent Washington to intercept the natives. Thankfully their army was small and they were easily defeated. I knew, however, that Montreal wouldn’t be taken easily. We had raised a lot of money through taxation up until now, and I knew we would need support if we were to take Montreal and Quebec, so I ordered all our territories to begin raising troops.
To avoid any real bloodshed, I tried to get the Huron-Wyandot to betray the French. Unfortunately diplomacy didn’t work1, but it was an unlikely scenario anyway. War it must be then. Washington’s army, with the help of a second army, lay siege to the territory, all but wiping out the Huron-Wyandot. The city was ours.
After this, the Huron-Wyandot asked for a peace treaty. I wanted to turn them down, but we still had to take Quebec. With a peace treaty we could focus our efforts on the French and wouldn’t have to worry about the Huron-Wyandot again.
Quebec proved difficult to capture. Even with three armies we struggled in the fight. The fort was placed atop a cliff, and the only path up funnelled our troops into a kill zone. Even with the support of our cannons we couldn’t get close.
I want to pause the narrative here to point out a flaw in the game’s design. Part of the reason this siege was difficult was in the way that reinforcements work. Each army can have up to 20 units. You can lay siege with multiple armies, but you will only ever have 20 units at any given time. When you attack with multiple armies, one army runs the battle, and the reinforcements will arrive to replace troops that have been routed.
The problem comes when the game decides to start the battle with one of your smaller armies. I had an army with three units, and the game decided that army would lead the battle. This meant that despite having 43 units sieging the city, I could only have 3 units deployed for the entire battle. Now I know how this works, I can prevent it happening again, but it was frustrating when I realised I had no chance of winning a siege due to this strange mechanic.
Eventually the siege lasted long enough that the French troops were worn out and tired. We marched into the city with minimal resistance2. Quebec was ours. North America was ours. The British would be pleased.
