14 DAY TRIAL // My current campaign with Lepidus was first focused on bringing order to my provinces and on the development of North Africa as a solid money maker and troop producing province as I looked across the sea towards the Pompey-dominated areas.
I launched an invasion as soon as I could, even if I was feeling somewhat unprepared, taking two towns in quick succession and relying on my sole major fleet to keep any enemy transports away from Carthage.
The success was followed by some strong counterattacks from Pompey, which I managed to barely repulse using some contingents of mercenaries, which thankfully are plentiful in that area, and I then waited a little for my troops to recover before launching an assault on Syracuse.
At that point, my Spanish army also seemed ready for a little push against Octavian and I tried to move into Gaul, where I was met by two armies that were both more numerous and more varied than my own, which resulted in a quite decisive defeat and made me question my own plan.
Moving into Italy
The Spanish provinces can mount a defense in depth if Octavian decides to come in there strongly and tries to take out my second best staging ground.
With the toe of the boot secure and producing legionnaires as fast as my limited treasury allows, I move my main army, under Lepidus himself, into Italy in order to try and see how the enemy reacts and whether it will help relieve pressure from other fronts.
In three turns Octavian reacted in force and crushed my main army after a long and tough defensive battle, and my main general himself was wounded, forced to stay out of the game for a couple of turns.
A future focused on struggle
Fortunately, my North African and Sicilian holdings were not invaded, as Pompey himself attacked Italy somewhere near the Alps and attracted the attention of some big enemy armies.
I will abandon this campaign soon in order to see what the other factions have to offer, but it is interesting to see how The Creative Assembly has managed to create an engaging and balanced early game situation where quick breakthroughs are hard to achieve.
Octavian, who has thwarted my attacks so far in the Imperator Augustus campaign, is the leader that I will try out next and I have a feeling that his starting position makes it easier to get good results quickly.