Regimental Stories: Swiss Guard
"HELVETIORUM FIDEI AC VIRTUTI ("To the loyalty and bravery of the Swiss")" - Inscription on the Lion Monument
Everything can be bought, even loyalty. Imagine you are a French king and subsequently you are in the middle of a whirlwind of intrigues, conspiracies and schemes. You can not trust your fellow Frenchmen as every Frenchman could take part in a plot against you. What can you do? Turn to somebody foreign, someone who is not stained by French treachery. The Swiss had a long and reputable background in the field of mercenarism, dating back to the middle ages. The thing that made them the most famous and reliable mercenaries during the XVI and XVII centuries was their professionalism, loyalty and discipline.
To be continued...
Regimental Stories: Pikemen
"Marshal Maurice de Saxe, whose Reveries on the Art of War was a curious mixture of conservative and progressive ideas, was reluctant to abandon the pike"
To be continued...
The in game model of the Pikemen seems to resemble the appearance of the 1st Foot Guards during the Battle of Sedgemoor.
- http://legatuswargamesarmies.blogspot.co.uk/2009/05/1st-foote-guardes.html
- http://themetalmountain.blogspot.bg/2012/10/foot-guards-1685-in-action.html
- http://themetalmountain.blogspot.bg/2012/03/1st-foot-guards-2nd-battalion-1685.html
- http://www.britishempire.co.uk/forces/armyunits/britishinfantry/buffsgeorgeregiment.htm
- http://warsoflouisxiv.blogspot.bg/2012/12/duke-of-york-and-albanys-maritime.html
- http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?487997-V1650…
Ordnance & Equipment: 1650-1720 Dutch Musket
The "1650-1720 Dutch musket" is a flintlock, smoothbore musket. Probably it was used during the Nine Years' War and the War of the Spanish Succession.
- http://gentlemenoffortune.com/arms-old.htm
- http://www.musketmart.com/flintlocks.html
How to win historical battles
There are several guides online on how to win the various historical battles.
The Battle of Brandywine Creek (1777)
The Battle of Rossbach (1757)
The Battle of Lagos (1759)
The Battle of Fontenoy (1745)
The Battle of Porto Novo (1759)
Apparently there are also mods for battles, as the first video shows the Battle of Poltava (1709) and the Battle of Lesnaya (1709).
The Ferguson Riflemen
Before writing this the regimental stories original idea was by Nanomat. Please read his before mine as it was his idea in the first place. Since he hasn't been active since April, I would like to make one.
Major Patrick Ferguson was a Scottish Officer in the British Army, an officer in the light infantry and the designer of the Ferguson Rifle and leader of the Ferguson Riflemen . He develops the Ferguson Breech loading rifle, a breech-loading Flintlock rifle. He and his band of experimental rifle corps were sent to the colonies to fight in the American War of Independence. He first fought in the Battle of Brandywine (This is a playable historical battle in ETW) on the 11th September 1777 in Pennsylvania after being shot through the right e…
Regimental Stories: Blue Guard
Every respectable blue-blooded nobleman needs a personal bodyguard or kind of private army. In addition, the blue color was always one of the national symbols of the Netherlands along the orange. These were the reasons why William III of Orange created "de Blauwe Garde" or the Blue Guard (their official designation was "Infantry Regiment number 4 Nassau-Saarbrucken").
From 1688 to 1699 the regiment served in England as personal guard to William. At the time of their arrival in England they numbered 2000 men and took over the duties of guarding the St. James's Palace. It was during this period when the Blue Guard distinguished itself especially at the Battle of the Boyne in which they led the attack at the main ford of the river, the regimen…
Regimental Stories: 33rd Foot
The 33rd Regiment of Foot was one of the most prominent regiments of the British Army during the XVIII century. The regiment earned its nickname "The Pattern" because of the professionalism and discipline displayed during the American Revolutionary War, they also became the model of soldiering and discipline which other regiments should follow. In 1702 Colonel George Hastings, 8th Earl of Huntingdon, was authorised by Queen Anne to raise a new regiment, which he did in and around the city of Gloucester. As was the custom in those days the regiment was named "Huntingdon's Regiment" after its Colonel. The regiment changed its name according to its current colonel until July 1 1751, when a Royal warrant reorganised the British infantry units…
Regimental Stories: Prussian Jaegers
There is a long tradition of huntsmanship in the German lands. The first Jäger or "Hunter" corps were formed in 1631-1632 in Hesse-Kassel under the rule of Wilhelm V. This term was used to describe elite light infantry, especially skirmishers, sharpshooters and marksmen. These men were recruited from professional gamekeepers, huntsmen and foresters employed on crown estates or those of noble landowners, and were armed with their own special rifles custom built for precision shooting. The purpose of these special units was to harass the enemy from a great distance, screening bodies of heavier troops and reconnaissance. Their background associated with hunting skills mixed with their ability to handle and maintain delicate, accurate rifles …
Regimental Stories: Infanterie Petit-Vieux
The Petit-Vieux or "little old" were a prestigious group of regiments serving to the Ancien Régime during the XVII and XVIII centuries. They had special status among the French infantry regiments with privileges such as not being disbanded after a war.
Their origin can be traced back to the period after 1601 when all regiments except the four oldest of the Vieux Corps were disbanded. When Louis XIII became king most of the existing troops were disbanded again except for the four oldest regiments and some others. These became known as the Petit-Vieux and were constituted of the following six regiments:
- Regiment de Leuville (known as Béarn from 1762)
- Regiment Bourbonnais
- Regiment Auvergne
- Regiment de Sault (known…
Poland-Lithuania Playthrough
Contrary to historical events, Poland-Lithuania begins the Grand Campaign in an excellent position geographically and economically, with rich lands and great opportunities for expansion. Poland-Lithuania’s eastern borders are secure—Russia will never declare war on it as long as they’re allied. This leaves Poland-Lithuania’s troubles to be (broadly) Sweden, Prussia, and Austria. Sweden’s lands are rich and it is diplomatically isolated; Prussia is small, but dangerous if allowed to build up and expand; Austria has an interesting unit lineup, a fairly large empire, and many allies.
Although it is mostly thoroughly average, the Polish-Lithuanian army has some unusual characteristics. It is one of the two major factions that may recruit Kalmuk…
Rant about Rome 2
I know this is technically the wrong place to write about Rome 2 seeing as this wiki is focused on Empire, but I felt that this needed to be said.
You see, I was playing as the Iceni and was carving through Rome with a butcher knife, my forces ripped and tore their way through the pitiful Roman Legions and burned their cities with cleansing fire, then stole their gold to add to the burgeoning empire. Until I came upon their last city of Cicily... which they deserted to conquer some random village in Egyptian territory. Do you see the problem here?
Think about it, they abandoned the last bastion of the Roman Empire proper, left their women, children, elderly and infirm defenseless... so they could conquer a foreign town and stay alive as a fac…
Great Britain Playthrough
Treasured for its necessarily broad scope as well as general anglophilism in the TW community, Great Britain is probably one of the most played factions in the Grand Campaign. It's undeniably a great deal of fun: not only does it have the most unique units in its roster by default, it also benefits by far the most from the DLCs, with numerous special infantry and cavalry regiments, and even a unique ship.
Great Britain has probably the most ambitious Grand Campaign. Not only does it have to acquire large tracts of the Americas, it also needs to take a sizable portion of India, as well as random spots in Europe such as Gibraltar and Egypt. This leads it to conflict with nations from France to the Cherokee Nations to the Maratha Confederacy.
G…
Sweden Playthrough
Sweden begins with the Grand Campaign surrounded by an alliance that is de facto organized against it: Denmark, Poland-Lithuania, and Russia. In addition to these enemies, Prussia is historically unfriendly (although thankfully it cannot do much in the beginning to actually cause Sweden harm), and Courland tends to declare war on Sweden within the first few turns. Those who like Sweden—namely Great Britain, France, and the Ottoman Empire—are too far away to be of much assistance. Therefore, Sweden is largely on its own from the get-go.
Sweden’s advantage is the relative quality of its armies over those of its rivals. Most of Poland-Lithuania’s army in 1700 consists of pikemen and militia, which aren’t of much threat against Sweden’s capabil…
Prussia Playthrough
Prussia is probably the most battle-intensive campaign in ETW. A small Protestant nation surrounded by angry Catholics (and angry Protestants), Prussia has few historical friends and far more historical enemies. However, this is offset by Prussia's superlative line infantry and its generally excellent roster of units to draw from, as well as great bonuses at the beginning such as a decent monarch, an excellent cabinet, plug bayonet already researched, an upgraded school, and a great gentleman.
- 1 Unit Overview
- 1.1 Line Infantry
- 1.2 Grenadiers
- 1.3 Cavalry
- 1.4 Skirmishers
- 1.5 Artillery
- 1.6 Ships
- 2 Strategy
Prussia has arguably the game's best line infantry, with reloading skill and accuracy most other nations can only dream of. They have slightly inferior mel…
Ottoman Empire Playthrough
At first glance, the Ottoman Empire's campaign in Empire: Total War might seem to be the most difficult. With poor lands, an awful cabinet, a very poor selection of early game units, and powerful enemies on nearly every side, the first few turns of the Ottoman Empire are probably the most challenging experience a player can have in the Grand Campaign. So here's a playthrough I've been doing. I'll keep the blog posted on experiences and what I could have done better. This is played on VH/H, with DLCs purchased.
- 1 Early Unit Overview
- 1.1 Isarelys/Palestinian Auxiliaries
- 1.2 Beylik Janissary Musketeers
- 1.3 Azzars, Haydut Irregulars, Bosnian Panduks, Afghan/Kurdish Hillmen
- 1.4 Deli Horsemen
- 1.5 Other Cavalry
- 1.6 Cemaat Janissaries
- 1.7 Armenian Archers
- 1.8 Organ…
Future plans for this wiki
I'm going to lay what I'm going to do, in case anyone is interested. Help me out with my stuff, and I'll be able to move onto the next project more quickly, and when I'm done with the list, I'll gladly accept any requests for help.
I am currently going to complete all Empire: Total War unit pages. This includes having a complete infobox, unit portrait, unit icon, full in-game description, and proper categorization. I have created all the pages (although they certainly vary in quality and quantity) save some artillery pieces. I will also create (or revise) all unit type pages.
After I have done this. I am going to create and complete all upgrade and research pages, including descriptions, effect, and proper categorization. Inevitably this wil…