Rome 2 : Total War

[Cavallino]

I'll be honest, its been years since I played through it but generally as your empire expands you step up levels which allows you to recruit more generals/agents. so have you tried conquering a few cities? A signal is the "imperium" bar when your looking at your family/council page. I cant remember if its restricted in the prologue or not though.



I'm not trying to win you over, like I said previously and we've both agreed on. that's your opinion.
It was how you presented it and how it was framed in response to another poster I took issue with.

Likewise I'm not saying the game is perfect so trying to insinuate that's my position is also "dribble".

All your post has done is reinstate a position which I've already answered in the previous post and then try and paint my position as something its not whilst trying to look like a reconciliation with your first line completely betraying the rest of the post.
As you say "spin".

Thanks bud.

Thing is. In some OLDER YouTube videos it shows 3 generals can be recruited.

However Newer YouTube clips of the same part in the prologue shows 2 generals can be only trained.

I'm not sure why it's different like that since the prologue is conducted in exactly the same way up until that point.

Had there been any changes in the general limits?

Also how do I access this imprrium bar?

 

[KingDazza]

@nutella, best we move on. Life's too short.

Anyway I was giving this another look this weekend as its been patched more since I last looked. Runs a bit better (my 980 sli drivers have also seen improvements). Which is nice. However I noticed there's still problems at times with animation skipping when units charge sometimes. But I'm having a little bit of fun with it.

 

[JulioH]

Folks, bit of a noodle scratcher.

Im playing the prologue, and come to the last bit of the prologue.

HOWEVER I have noticed that I am only able to raise a maximum of 2 general.

Youtube videos of people doing the prologue more than a year ago, shows that they can have THREE generals.

Is this a bug? Has the limits changed in a patch?

Any clarification appreciated folks, thanks.

Probably changed in a patch, there's been a lot of changes. I wouldn't worry at all either way seeing as it's just the prologue/tutorial.

 

[Cavallino]

@Nutella, best we move on. Life's too short.

Anyway I was giving this another look this weekend as its been patched more since I last looked. Runs a bit better (my 980 sli drivers have also seen improvements). Which is nice. However I noticed there's still problems at times with animation skipping when units charge sometimes. But I'm having a little bit of fun with it.

Good to hear you guys agree to disagree and the discussion has brought you back to visit the game

Incidentlly, I was contemplating getting another 780 TI to SLI with my current one as Im playing this across 3 monitors (I swear playing this across one monitor pales in comparison to 3... I know its not necessary but the extra visual area does make a difference, having an SLI may help with this also).

You reckon this runs in SLI pretty well?

Probably changed in a patch, there's been a lot of changes. I wouldn't worry at all either way seeing as it's just the prologue/tutorial.

Yea I was trying to find some information about this but I couldn't. Thing is in the tutorial, I don't know how you can complete it without having 3 generals...

I don't suppose you have come across this patch change note bud?

 

[KingDazza]

@Cavillino

yes there is that, it made me revisit it.

For me it runs well in sli. However I don't think its adding much to the experience i.e when the engine struggles in certain circumstances, the extra horse power doesn't improve it. I had a 780 previously and also tried it with a single 980. And any improvements I'm getting to my experience now I'd think most likely due to patches not the extra graphical power I'm chucking at it.

Having said that and this may come across a little contradictory. Napoleon and Empire most definitely benefit from my two 980's.

 

[Nutella33]

Thanks bud.

Thing is. In some OLDER YouTube videos it shows 3 generals can be recruited.

However Newer YouTube clips of the same part in the prologue shows 2 generals can be only trained.

I'm not sure why it's different like that since the prologue is conducted in exactly the same way up until that point.

Had there been any changes in the general limits?

Also how do I access this imprrium bar?

If you click the icon at the centre bottom of the screen which shows your faction "shield" it should pop up then there's a bar that has notches in and various stats.

I honestly cant remember any changes in patches (there's been over 16 patches, some of them quite long) but even if there was, it should still be achievable.

forgive me if these are daft questions.
Do you know you don't have to have a general in the city at all times? so if you have 2 generals that's two offensive armies you can have.
Are you playing the battles or just auto resolving? (playing them usually means you have a better chance of winning so you can do more with the armies you do have)

For me it runs well in sli. However I don't think its adding much to the experience i.e when the engine struggles in certain circumstances, the extra horse power doesn't improve it. I had a 780 previously and also tried it with a single 980. And any improvements I'm getting to my experience now I'd think most likely due to patches not the extra graphical power I'm chucking at it.

Just to add to that, the CPU makes a big difference as well. Although if you are playing across 3 screens it might be a VRAM issue? I use 2.3GB VRAM on one screen at 1080p, if that's the case SLI might not help you.
Have you tried performance on one monitor to see if you get the same performance drops?

 

[Cavallino]

If you click the icon at the centre bottom of the screen which shows your faction "shield" it should pop up then there's a bar that has notches in and various stats.

I honestly cant remember any changes in patches (there's been over 16 patches, some of them quite long) but even if there was, it should still be achievable.

forgive me if these are daft questions.
Do you know you don't have to have a general in the city at all times? so if you have 2 generals that's two offensive armies you can have.
Are you playing the battles or just auto resolving? (playing them usually means you have a better chance of winning so you can do more with the armies you do have)

Not daft at all bud.
Yes I understand that 2 generals are two armies, but the youtube clips which I saw, basically the players would train a THIRD general so they can take that general, recruit units, and go to attack another city whilst keep the other generals in Rome and another city which I forgot the name of.

Sometimes, autoresolving, sometimes playing the battles (depending on whether I am the underdog or whether its a clear cut win.

If nots not clear cut or Im the underdog, I take charge. But if it clearly is a win for me, then more often than not I just autoresolve.

What I don't get is, as I mentioned above, in some players youtube clips, it shows the "raise generals" as 2/3 i.e. they can raise one more general.

But in recent youtube clips of the same prologue, and when I am playing, it shows 2/2 i.e. I cant recruit another general.

 

[Nutella33]

Yeah, I wouldn't get hung up on it, they must have changed it. Just make sure the cities can cope with the military presence being removed (hover over the smiley face when the city is selected and it breaks happiness down) and get conquering

 

[KingDazza]

Just to add to that, the CPU makes a big difference as well. Although if you are playing across 3 screens it might be a VRAM issue? I use 2.3GB VRAM on one screen at 1080p, if that's the case SLI might not help you.
Have you tried performance on one monitor to see if you get the same performance drops?

At the moment I only game on 1 screen at 1080P. I think some of these hitches are only in special circumstances (when frames are still high) but there's the odd stutter and may be linked with path finding ai etc. Other times are due to specific lighting on certain maps. Please note though this is me being a little bit perfectionist. Many wouldn't even notice, but I do. For a large part and the biggest part the game is very smooth. Its just there are times when the game stutters a little and I believe its engine related. Bear in mind I play most of the game from a generals view point so everything is zoomed in and I then take the camera and strafe around like its a first person shooter almost.

Anyway good news is its running better now for me, not perfect, but better. The campaign map is now far smoother too at the moment, but I'm at the beginning of a campaign so most of it is fogged. But I'm cautiously warming a little to it as a whole.

 

[Nutella33]

At the moment I only game on 1 screen at 1080P. I think some of these hitches are only in special circumstances (when frames are still high) but there's the odd stutter and may be linked with path finding ai etc. Other times are due to specific lighting on certain maps.

sorry, that's me just having a poor layout, I was continuing on with cavallino's issues using your input as well (he's on 3 screens)

Anyway good news is its running better now for me, not perfect, but better. The campaign map is now far smoother too at the moment, but I'm at the beginning of a campaign so most of it is fogged. But I'm cautiously warming a little to it as a whole.

Sounds good! Divide Et Imperia is worth checking out as well if you haven't seen it yet and fancy a challenge.

 

[KingDazza]

Thanks, might well do. I'm really hoping I can get into it now. Not sure whats changed since I last played (patch 15 iirc), but finally after trying every month for over a year I'm at least finding it playable at last. Perhaps if I stay a year behind every release now, that might be be the solution

 

[Nutella33]

A more than legit strategy good luck.

 

[Cavallino]

From past experience concerning Total war games, Ive decided never to play them on release, wait for them to come down in price and for them to get patched up to a good standard.

Patched up/lesser bugs + cheaper game (purchased for £6 I think?) = Happy days.

Thanks for your input Nutella and KD as above

 

[Doggie2k]

As in patches it took them a year before the game was acceptable. I do play Rome but I find myself going back to the older games more frequently as it just lacks Soul.

Will not pre-order Atilla that's for sure even though it will end up like Napolean in regards to Empire. CA is one strange company.

 

[KingDazza]

Yep fully concur with that.

 

[Boycey0211]

Fully agree too, im just reintalling rome 2 now, first time in about 6-8 months I think due to sheer boredom

 

[Fanatic]

This is the only game I've seen that makes my bottom GTX970 run hotter than my top one . 63° for the bottom and 62° for the top. Neither card going over 75% usage, probably CPU/engine limiting.

 

[Nutella33]

As in patches it took them a year before the game was acceptable. I do play Rome but I find myself going back to the older games more frequently as it just lacks Soul.

Honestly if you ever feel like it, give Divide Et Imperia a go. its a full mod like Stainless steel for M2 or a gameplay lighter version of Europa barbaroum for RTW and a fair bit more involving.

probably CPU/engine limiting.

more than likely. it doesnt need that much GPU grunt really.

 

[Doggie2k]

Honestly if you ever feel like it, give Divide Et Imperia a go. its a full mod like Stainless steel for M2 or a gameplay lighter version of Europa barbaroum for RTW and a fair bit more involving.


more than likely. it doesnt need that much GPU grunt really.

I am keeping a close eye on mods just waiting for CA to stop coming out with major patches before I get stuck into that stuff

 

[KingDazza]

Alas I've just uninstalled Rome II. Again.

Something just isn't right with it performance wise. The campaign map starts to chug at times scrolling with keys (minor stutters) when the game starts to get heavily under way. And the battles are like a mix of great smoothness but with kinks mixed in. I actually thought the gameplay was OK though. I believe all my woes are totally warscape engine based and it's cracks just show through at odd, but too frequent moments.

All the warscape engined Total Wars can show strain at times, but I dont know. They just seem to offer far more comparatively. Like Napoleon I can have massive 40 unit battles with 160 men units, all maxed with 4 x AA. And it runs very smoothly with far greater consistency. Occasionally in the midst of a smoke drenched massive melee you might get the game struggling a little, but damn its sense of scale at those odd moments is far more overwhelming than what I'm seeing here in Rome II.

Funny thing is there were major performance/animation probs at launch and its like they're far more minimised now and nearly sorted, but just not fully and for me it still falls short. Theres just something not right here with Rome II. Shogun II had some quirks in it but I think ran better and often looked better than Rome II. Yet both are DX11 variants of warscape, so whats wrong with Rome II? I dont know and guess I never will.

Such a shame I think Rome II has come a massive way since release in its almost alpha state 16+ months ago. But for me it just doesn't quite get there. Oh well, back to Medieval II, Empire and Napoleon for me. My hearts really in Medieval and Napoleonic era's anyway so not the end of the world.

Of course everyone's mileage differs and expectations vary too.