Worth it without DLC?

[Zeabolos]

Alright, so having cut my teeth on the TW: Warhammer games (which, to my understanding, trade strategic complexity for faction variety) I'm ready to try out a more "traditional" Total War game, and everything I've found says that Rome 2 has been polished right up. However, I'm not exactly flush with cash, so the pile of DLC is quite intimidating, if it's any sort of barrier to entry.

So the question is this: is Total War: Rome 2 a complete and fun experience without the full suite of DLC? An if not, are there perhaps one or two pieces which are must-haves and the rest can come later?

[spicyboi74]

ive played the game with only the greek culture pack and its been fun with my friends playing new campaigns with them and dumb custom battles.....id recommend getting whatever faction pack you like (i bought greek because they my bois) and theres always a ton of mods to add to the game......it can get boring without people to play with though so if you do get it id be down to play :P

[Welsh Dragon]

Originally posted by Zeabolos:

Alright, so having cut my teeth on the TW: Warhammer games (which, to my understanding, trade strategic complexity for faction variety) I'm ready to try out a more "traditional" Total War game, and everything I've found says that Rome 2 has been polished right up. However, I'm not exactly flush with cash, so the pile of DLC is quite intimidating, if it's any sort of barrier to entry.

So the question is this: is Total War: Rome 2 a complete and fun experience without the full suite of DLC? An if not, are there perhaps one or two pieces which are must-haves and the rest can come later?

In my view the base game alone offers a lot, especially with the amount of free content they've added since. You basically have 14 factions to play in the main Grand Campaign, covering the major players of the era, as well as some minors. And the Imperator Augustus campaign is another large campaign with 10 playable factions. Plenty to keep you going till at least the next sale.

But it's really up to you.

If you're quick, you can still grab it in the Humble Bundle sale for 75% off: https://www.humblebundle.com/store/promo/total-war-weekend/?hmb_source=humble_home&hmb_medium=product_tile&hmb_campaign=mosaic_section_1_layout_index_1_layout_type_twos_tile_index_2_c_totalwarweekend_2019_storetile

But it's only for another 40 minutes or so.

EDIT: But even if you miss it, sales on Rome 2 are pretty regular on legitimate sites and Steam Store, so if you don't want to rush into things (very wise) then there'll be another sale in the next couple of months. Steam Summer Sale will be June, and before that they might do a Total War sale for when the new Warhammer DLC (April 17th) or Three Kingdoms (May 23rd) come out.

***

And I've included my quick guide below, as there's sometimes confusion about what's in Emperor Edition. Hope it helps.

Emperor Edition - A quick guide.

Emperor Edition contains the base game and all the free content, specifically:

•Rome II Base Game (8 playable factions, Rome, Carthage, Macedon, Iceni, Arverni, Suebi, Parthia, Egypt.)
•Patches 1 - 15 (including the Patch 15/Emperor Edition major overhaul.)
•Imperator Augustus Free Campaign (10 playable factions in that.)
•6 Free DLC factions ( Pontus, Seleucid, Baktria, Armenia, Getae, Massilia)
•Free Battle of Pydna Historical Battle.
•Many, many AI controlled factions in the Grand Campaign upgraded with their rosters from the paid DLC, so you get to fight against them and only need the DLC to play as them.

You'll also get Patches 16, 17, 18/Power & Politics, 19 and 20/Ancestral Update automatically downloaded when you install.

(Note: Mac users will only be updated to Patch 17, as 18, 19 and 20 haven't been released on Mac yet.)

Emperor Edition does not contain the paid additional content, specifically:

•5 Culture Packs (Greek States, Nomadic Tribes, Pirates & Raiders, Black Seas Colonies, Desert Kingdoms)
•5 Campaign Packs (Caesar in Gaul, Hannibal at the Gates, Wrath of Sparta, Empire Divided, Rise of the Republic)
•2 Unit Packs (Beasts of War, Daughters of Mars)
•Blood & Gore DLC.

(Note: Mac users can't use Desert Kingdoms, Empire Divided or Rise of the Republic because Mac users are still on Patch 17.)

Emperor Edition is a rerelease that accompanied the Patch 15 Major Overhaul, rather than a Game of the Year edition. (Also it's a free update for anyone who had Rome II, or whoever buys an old disc copy of Rome II even now. It functionally replaces Rome II, so everyone who plays Rome II has Emperor Edition these days.)

Hope that helps.

All the Best,

Welsh Dragon.

[Zeabolos]

Thanks a bunch Welsh Dragon! That answered all my questions... and rendered them moot. I managed to snag the humble sale, and with a discount that deep (and priced the way it was) I could grab the full monty for barely more than the price of Emperor Edition alone on steam. The timely advice and link helped me right out, so thanks again!

[BolzenHolz]

If you really want to buy the game, you should pick one of the boxed editions. I bought the Spartan-Edition for around 20€ (contained Rome 2 Emperor Edition, Greek States Culture Pack, Wrath of Sparta Campaign pack and a unit DLC).

[Welsh Dragon]

Originally posted by Zeabolos:

Thanks a bunch Welsh Dragon! That answered all my questions... and rendered them moot. I managed to snag the humble sale, and with a discount that deep (and priced the way it was) I could grab the full monty for barely more than the price of Emperor Edition alone on steam. The timely advice and link helped me right out, so thanks again!

Glad I could help. I hope you have fun, and any questions feel free to ask on here. One tip I would give is The Prologue isn't necessarily the best way to learn to play the game. Rome 2 has changed heavily since release, while The Prologue hasn't received all those changes, so balance can be a little off.

Basically Prologue can be fun, but if you find yourself stuck starting up a Grand Campaign as someone like Rome, Iceni or Egypt and learning that way is another option.

All the Best,

Welsh Dragon.

[The Last Monke]

I couldn't afford to purchase any DLC and I'm still having a lot of fun with the game.

[Multihog]

I would say it's worth it, specifically because the DLC factions will still be part of your game as AI factions. That's one good part about Total War DLCs: they still serve to enrich your game even if you don't own them. This, of course, doesn't apply to the campaign DLCs, but at least you get the DLC factions on the Grand Campaign map.

[The Last Monke]

Originally posted by Multihog:

I would say it's worth it, specifically because the DLC factions will still be part of your game as AI factions. That's one good part about Total War DLCs: they still serve to enrich your game even if you don't own them. This, of course, doesn't apply to the campaign DLCs, but at least you get the DLC factions on the Grand Campaign map.

With the base game, you don't just get the grand campaign but also another campaign as well. Not bad.

[Multihog]

Originally posted by BLAIN:

Originally posted by Multihog:

I would say it's worth it, specifically because the DLC factions will still be part of your game as AI factions. That's one good part about Total War DLCs: they still serve to enrich your game even if you don't own them. This, of course, doesn't apply to the campaign DLCs, but at least you get the DLC factions on the Grand Campaign map.

With the base game, you don't just get the grand campaign but also another campaign as well. Not bad.

Yeah, for -75% it's a steal.