Conquer Iberia & Europe in Total War: Three Kingdoms

AntMag.NET

Alright, let's talk about getting started in the Iberian Peninsula with the Spanish factions in Total War: Three Kingdoms. This is a crucial early-game push that sets you up for the rest of your campaign. You'll want to focus on Portugal first. Trust me, taking them out early prevents a long, drawn-out war that can really hurt your standing with the Pope, which is super important in this region.

Once Portugal is dealt with, turn your attention to the Moors. You'll find yourself needing more Priests than you might with other factions like France or England, mainly because many settlements in Iberia have a significant Muslim population. Bringing Priests along helps with conversion and keeping the peace. After you've pushed the Moors out of Iberia, it's time to think about where to go next. You've got some solid options: France and Northern Italy are prime targets.

Both regions offer great lands to rule. France might not be quite as profitable as Italy, but it's got well-developed Castles that have been around since the start of the game. Italy, on the other hand, offers much greater monetary rewards. Conquering France might seem easier since you'd only be facing one faction, but Italy's smaller states can be conquered one at a time, which can be a more manageable approach.

Personally, I lean towards France because it's right next to Spain, meaning you don't have to deal with the hassle of exporting soldiers by sea. But hey, it's your campaign, your choice! Pick your next target once you've finished cleaning up Iberia, and from there, you're on your own to forge your empire.

The Holy Roman Empire (HRE)

Let's switch gears and talk about the Holy Roman Empire. They've got some clear objectives to aim for:

Short-Term Goals: Hold 20 Regions and eliminate Milan and Denmark.
Long-Term Goals: Hold 45 Regions, including Rome.

Your starting provinces are Nuremburg, Staufen, Vienna, Innsbruck, and Bologna, with Frankfurt as your Capital.

The HRE gets access to Banks and Jousting Lists. Banks are great for boosting your tradeable goods and come in two levels. Jousting Lists are similar to France's, offering:

Level 1 Jousting List: Grants +1 Experience for Knights recruited there.
Level 2 Jousting List: Grants +2 Experience for Knights recruited there, provides 1 free upkeep unit, and adds +5% public order from happiness.

HRE Units

Early on, the HRE's units are pretty standard compared to other European factions, but they do fall a bit behind later in the game, especially since they don't get Pikes or Muskets. However, they do have access to the really powerful Reiters (20 Attack). These are mounted gunmen, and their only real drawback is their poor range, which is worse than javelins. Despite this, the HRE starts with a strong faction, controlling more territories than most others right out of the gate.

You'll also have access to Standard Knights, Zweihanders, and Gothic Knights. While Dismounted Feudal Knights are generally better than both Zweihander and Gothic Knights. Forlorn Hope units (17 Attack, 12 Defense) could be useful, but they're limited by a small unit size. Dismounted Imperial Knights also have armor-piercing capabilities, but again, Dismounted Feudal Knights often come out on top.

For missile units, you'll have Arquebusiers and Pavise Crossbowmen, but no Muskets. You do get mounted Crossbowmen, though. In terms of artillery, you have access to the Basilisk and Serpentine cannons, but you'll be missing out on mortars.

A neat bonus for Holy Roman Cavalry is that they often use armor-piercing weapons like axes as secondary weapons, which gives Imperial Knights an edge over Feudal Knights, and Gothic/Teutonic Knights an advantage over Chivalric/Templar Knights.

HRE Strategy

There are quite a few rebel settlements scattered across Germany, France, and Eastern Europe. Your first move should be to grab as many of these as you can, while keeping an eye on containing Denmark. Once that's done, focus on eliminating Denmark. If you've played well and had some luck, they might be down to just Arhus. If not, still push to defeat them.

Be quick about it! You don't want a long war with another Catholic faction, as it'll strain your already tricky relationship with the Pope. The HRE starts with the worst relations with the Pope out of all the factions, so tread carefully.

After dealing with Denmark, your next target should ideally be Italy. However, if France, England, Poland, or Hungary are at war with you, try to make peace with them first so you can concentrate on Milan, Venice, and Sicily instead of getting bogged down elsewhere.

As always, if you find yourself excommunicated, don't hesitate to take over Rome. You'll need it for the Long campaign anyway, so conquering it is inevitable. And, you know the drill – be sure to deal with the Pope!

Once Italy is secured, you'll have a ton of options: France, England, Iberia, Hungary/Poland, the Byzantines, Africa... the list goes on. You'll need to assess the situation on the map at that point and make your choice based on how your campaign is unfolding.

Venice

Now, let's look at Venice. Their goals are pretty straightforward:

Short-Term Goals: Hold 15 Regions and eliminate Milan and the Byzantine Empire.
Long-Term Goals: Hold 45 Regions, including Constantinople.

You'll start with Ragusa, Iraklion, and Venice itself as your Capital.

Venice has access to Banks, which boost trade, and Art Houses. Art Houses offer:

Level 1 Art House: Provides +5% Public Order from happiness.
Level 2 Art House: Provides +10% Public Order from happiness and +5% Public Health.

Venetian Units

Venice boasts a very strong military, though their cavalry isn't anything to write home about unless you get access to Hospitaller/Templar Knights to match Chivalric Knights. Their navy, however, is absolutely excellent, and they have plenty of high-tech units. The Venetian Galleass is a standout naval unit; with 26 Attack and 20 Defense, it's arguably the best naval unit available until the Carrack and Grand Carrack appear, and it can likely defeat the Islamic Baghlah despite being a generation older.

Venetian infantry is generally solid, with the Venetian Heavy Infantry unit being a notable exception (16 Attack + AP, 16 Defense). As an Italian faction, Venice gets access to the easily recruited Italian Militia and Italian Spear Militia, which are significantly better than the standard Town/Spear militia found in other factions. Cities can also recruit these units with ease, making Venetian cities much easier to defend. Plus, it gives you a good reason to invest in city barracks so you can field gunpowder units as soon as they become available.

Venetian missile units are pretty standard until you reach the gunpowder era. However, units like the Pavise Crossbowmen and Venetian archers are still quality troops – not quite on par with English Longbows or Genoese Crossbows, but close.

Venice unfortunately does not get access to the Basilisk or Serpentine cannons.