Which DLC should i get?

[Bona «СПАРТА»]

I'm thinking about buying this game, are the DLCs really worth it? What i need to buy to get most of it? How can i have the best possible experience playing the game? I saw that there is a Blood DLC, they are charging people more money for some red textures?

[Boii Fan]

You should get medieval 2 and ignore this game

[CRISTIANO RONALDO]

I have almost all the DLC (all except the newer ones; Desert Kingdoms and Rise of the Republic) and I can say that all the DLC's add something interesting to the game. If you don't want to buy all the DLC's at once, I recommend Hannibal at the Gates and Empire Divided myself. And you should only buy any of the DLC that add new playable factions if you wish to play as a faction that specific DLC adds to the game.

[rincewind]

Here's Welsh Dragon explanation on DLC. Missing the latest one Rise of the Republic, which add a new campaign from the time when Rome was sacked by the Gauls.

Originally posted by "Welsh Dragon:

Rome II DLCs: A Quick Guide

I have all the DLCs (except Blood & Gore, as it doesn't interest me.) Really they depend on what you're after. I personally feel that they are all value for money based on the enjoyment I've got out of them, and when they're on sale even better.

As for the DLCs I'll split them into categories:

Culture Packs:

These generally* each add 3 new factions that you can play. Different people will rate them differently. They each have different starting positions in campaign, unique traits and units, some have their own culture. Some also offer different playstyles (Nomadic Tribes are basically all Cavalry, Black Seas have hybrid rosters so a mix of units, Pirates & Raiders can hire mercenaries a lot cheaper, but their upkeep is also increased, and Greek States use Hoplites a lot.)

*Desert Kingdoms is the latest Culture Pack and adds 4 new factions, who offer a mix of playstyles.

Campaign Packs:

These cost a little more, generally you get 3 new playable factions for Grand Campaign AND a campaign that can have it's own mechanics and challenges. The Campaigns are each fought on new maps, which provide a much more detailed environment and allows for all sorts of options you can't do in the main campaign. They can be played in single-player or two player multiplayer (either coop or head to head.)

CAESAR IN GAUL and HANNIBAL AT THE GATES both have focused campaigns in a shorter time span (so each turn is only a few weeks, rather than a year as is the case with Rome II.)

Each offer 3 new factions for the main game, some of which also feature in the DLC campaign, including two of my personal favourites Nervii (in Caesar, Belgian warriors who like to ambush) and Lusitani (in Hannibal, a faction that's low on armour, but high on javelins and guerilla warfare.)

WRATH OF SPARTA is set much earlier than even Rome II's start, and is played out across a more detailed map of Greece. If you really like Hoplite warfare and Greek history then it's meant to be a lot of fun. But some people really don't like it, so it's really up to you. NOTE: This DLC doesn't add any factions to the Grand Campaign (the main Rome II campaign.)

EMPIRE DIVIDED is the latest campaign pack and is set over 500 years after the start date of the Grand Campaign. It covers the Crisis of the Third Century, a less well known but important event in Roman history. It's a little different to the other three, as it's played out on a full Grand Campaign size map, covering the same area as the Grand Campaign and Imperator Augustus. It also has 10 playable factions, many of which only appear in this campaign, as well as new rosters fitting the 3rd Century setting, a new themed UI, and new gameplay mechanics such as squalor, plagues and banditry, which haven't featured in Rome 2 before. So whilst it doesn't add anything to the Grand Campaign, in my view it does offer a lot of new content and replayability. Even the three Roman factions are quite different, with Rome, Gallic Rome and Palmyra each using different units and tactics to achieve victory in battle.

Unit Packs:

Add units funnily enough. Beasts of War adds animal based units, which can be fun and I believe Suebi players specifically like the Wolf Warriors I think it adds. Daughters of Mars adds female units to the battlefield for some factions, which can fill some niches in those factions (Lusitani Swordswomen are one of my favourite units.)

Conclusion:

The Steam store pages for the different DLCs give you a good overview of what's in each DLC, and if you want an idea of the history/feel of the factions (and a useful guide to which factions are in which DLC) try here: http://wiki.totalwar.com/w/Factions

(Or for more recent content, try the Total War Blog: https://www.totalwar.com/blog?catname=total-war-rome-ii&topic=All+topics&orderby=post_date

But really it depends how much you want to invest in your game. I personally don't feel any of them are essential for single-player (I don't play multi) but at the same time I don't regret buying any of them because of the added variety and hours of enjoyment I've got out of them.

Hope that helps. Any questions please feel free to ask and I will try to answer them.

All the Best,

Welsh Dragon.

P.S. An Important Note On DLC:

All of the content from Rome 2's DLC is added to the game in accompanying patches (e.g. The Desert Kingdoms in Patch 19,) whether they buy the DLC or not. This has three effects:

Multiplayer Compatibility: Any player on a particular Patch and OS-type (Windows or Mac, but there's no cross-platform multiplayer) can play with any other player on the same patch and OS-type, even if they have different DLC. Each player has access to their “toy box” of factions, units and campaigns which they own. e.g. If Player A owns “Greek States,” and player B owns “Black Seas Colonies,” Player A can play Sparta (even though B can't,) and B can play Cimmeria (even though A can't.) Both can play Rome (as they have the base game) and Pontus, (as they both own the FLC.)

The AI controlled factions in campaigns have access to their full rosters, even if you don't own the DLC.

You can't use a DLC with a patch from earlier than the DLC's release. e.g. If you choose to opt back into Patch 17 as some have, you won't be able to play Empire Divided (added Patch 18) or Desert Kingdoms (added Patch 19.) Also note that while Windows Users are on Patch 19, MAC users are still on Patch 17. Meaning at present MAC gamers don't have access to Empire Divided DLC, Desert Kingdoms DLC, Power & Politics FLC, Female Leaders FLC or Patches 18 or 19.

Hope that helps.

[Sunzero]

I say wrath of sparta is pretty fun even more so after the update.

[Berserk Slayer]

Greek States is about the closest to an "essential" dlc for this. It's a bit anachronistic really but the Greeks are a firm favourite for many since the first game. Really though there are no needed DLC, the base game gets updates and new mechanics free so it's not like Civ or the paradox games etc in that regard.

Blood and Gore many people like but it makes no difference to the game really, it's just fun.

Wrath of Sparta is good, and so is Empire Divided.