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For other iterations of this faction in the Total War series, see England.
Britannia is a major playable barbarian faction in Rome: Total War.
Description[]
The Britons come from the same robust Celtic stock as the Gauls. They have a sophisticated culture, well-organised towns, a small but growing merchant class and age-old trade links with the world.
Britons are fierce fighters and terrifying in appearance. They dye themselves blue with woad, think nothing of danger, and often lime their hair into fantastical spikes. Their spirit is rarely broken by defeat or enslavement, they plot brutal revenge and their druidic religion appears savage, demanding of human sacrifice. Their fight from light, highly manoeuvrable chariots, the noise of which can cause enemies to panic.
From their island home, the Britons have much to feel confident about. They are a vibrant people, with a tradition of bravery in warfare and Gods who will aid and protect them. While the sea guards them from invasion, they gaze towards the mainland, and plan great conquests...
Overview[]
The Britons are very similar to the Gauls and other barbarian factions, sharing many of the same units. While their roster is not as expansive as some factions, such as the Romans, it has a good spread of all the units they may need. The warband is a decent if somewhat fragile spearman unit while swordsmen are good line-holding heavy infantry. The outstanding thing about the Britons is their usage of chariots, their exemplary units. They are the only faction in all of Europe to field them, preferring chariots to regular cavalry, which can prove useful in certain situations. Indeed, they're the only barbarian faction to field mounted archers in the shape of light chariots. Overall, the Britons have a powerful position at their disposal, safe from invasion on their island and if not checked their chariots could easily run circles, quite literally, around any army they face.
Tactics[]
When fighting against the Britons, they can be relatively difficult to dislodge and finally get rid of. Like in real life, the Britons have the natural protection of being on an island, something that can be difficult to get to if not prepared. While the Britons start with a hold on the mainland, they can easily lose it if the Gauls or Germans come for them, sending the remaining Britons back to the isles. From here, if lacking a proper, large navy, it can be hard just getting naval supremacy with which to land an army, especially if the Britons build up a large navy to protect their coastline with. Even if naval supremacy is gained, landing an army is not necessarily a guaranteed victory over the Britons, as if the Britons have large armies in their settlements, should the attacking army fails to take a settlement to replenish casualties they will be stranded on a foreign shore with nowhere to retreat to in order to replenish their losses, allowing the Britons to wipe out the weakened army, a great loss in manpower, time and money. The best way to take out the Britons is to not sail for Londinum directly, but instead sail up to towards Caledonia, marching down from the highlands. The Britons will likely have a smaller garrison here as it's not the most obvious choice for landing in Britannia. Once a settlement has been taken, either staying in the settlement and letting the Britons come or landing another army in the newly secured land will ultimately spell the end of the Britons once their island fortress has been broken.
When starting a campaign as the Britons, it is a wise idea to take control of Tara in Hibernia first with the British starting armies within the first few turns, as it will be poorly defended by rebels and is an extra (though minor) source of income. Building up Britannia and the British Isles into a mercantile hub is a good idea in order to get a solid economy, while using a diplomat to either secure an alliance with Gaul or Germania is also important. The Britons start with a settlement in Belgica, something which will anger Gaul in a short order if unchecked, with two victory condition variants depending on if it's a short campaign or a long one. If playing the short campaign, the Britons need to hold 15 settlements and outlast Gaul. For the long game, the Britons need to hold 50 settlements including Rome. The early game for the Britons after taking Hibernia should consist of moving all spare units to the settlement on the continent while also training up warband and getting the buildings to allow swordsmen and chariots.
If an alliance with Germania was favoured over an alliance with Gaul, the Gauls will declare war on the Britons to take the settlement they have on the mainland. If an alliance with the Gauls was pursued instead, this may not happen. Should the Gauls have declared war for the settlement, hopefully by now the garrisoning army in the settlement should be of a decent size, so the siege can either be fought or sallied out to meet the Gallic army. After they've been beaten back, the British army can push out either south or west for the Gallic capital (in the south) or a minor coastal settlement in the west. A second army should be in the process of being built during this time, as it will be needed soon enough. The Gauls may ask for peace after this, as the Julii will declare war on them for their settlements in Cisalpine Gaul. The Britons can either decide to continue pushing into Gaul or accept the peace for now, depending on the status of the British army on the continent.
If an alliance with the Gauls was taken over an alliance with the Germans, the early-mid game for the Britons will be quite different. With the Gauls on friendly terms, the settlement in Belgica will be safe for now, meaning the Britons can land their army (or build a second one) in Germania, declaring war on the German tribes there. Since the Gauls will be busy with the Julii, it's unlikely they will break the alliance and go for the settlement in Belgica, so all British resources can go into conquering Germania. After taking them over, the choice is now to head further east towards the rebels and eventually Scythia, or head south towards the Julii, declaring war on them while they're busy in Gaul or continue all the way down and meet the Brutii. By this point with either route, if done quick enough, the Britons will have taken or be close to 15 settlements. All that will be remaining is to take out Gaul, something which can easily be done as the Julii will be pushing hard into their territory.
For the late game (if playing the long campaign), war with the Romans is inevitable, whether the Britons initiate it or not. The Julii will want any land the Britons have taken while to get to 50 settlements, the Britons must push south, into the Romans. The Julii are the usual house to declare war on the Britons first, as some of the Gallic land will have fallen to the Britons. Having a good, ready amount of swordsmen and chosen swordsmen is necessary if the Britons want to have a chance of beating the Roman infantry on the battlefield, as warband aren't likely to win against tougher Roman infantry like Triarii or Principes. Having heavy chariots by now or at least mercenary cavalry is also important for combating the Roman mounted units.
Taking Gaul is the best plan of action, if not already done. The Julii will likely have taken some of it from the Gauls, so cutting them off in the west of Europe will make life easier. The Julii will likely start to expand towards Germania as well, so either conquering them first or securing an alliance with them to pass through their land is important to prevent the Julii expanding, effectively strangling them. The first Roman house to conquer and take out should be the Julii, as it will secure the rest of Gaul and Cisalpine Gaul, allowing a push into Italia. By now, there should be multiple British armies, as pushing into Hispania to secure the Gallic front is advised, since the Spanish are likely to take the opportunity to try and grab some land in Gaul if they haven't been taken out by Carthage. Italia and Hispania should be the focus rather than trying to push against the Brutii in Greece and Illyria. Having an army stationed in the area to stop their advances is a good idea rather than trying to push in. Securing Hispania and kicking out the Carthaginians if they haven't already been will free up an army or two, while taking out the SPQR in Rome and pushing back the Scipii and Brutii in Italia and Magna Graecia before taking Sicilia to secure Italia.
After taking over all of Western Europe and Italia, there should be around 30 settlements under control of Britannia. The British armies should be freed up now, though leaving one army in Hispania and one in Italia is good for garrisoning in case someone tries to land. The best place to push is into Illyria and Greece, finally kicking out the Brutii and allowing further conquests into Asia Minor and towards the Near East. If the Germans have not been taken out by now as well, this is a good point to do so, securing the threat they pose to the east. A punitive expedition into North Africa is also good, as the Scipii will have likely taken out Carthage and Numidia. Eliminating the Scipii will secure the entirety of Africa and effectively ending any threat from the western half of the map (bar rebellions), so taking out the Scipii is something that should be focussed, as well as chasing down the Brutii, finally eliminating the Romans. Dacia may become a threat, or Scythia if they have tried to push down south, while contact with the eastern civilisations will become more prominent.
The ending stages of a Britannia campaign will just be conquering the few remaining Roman settlements while also securing the flanks in the east towards the steppes. Taking out the barbarian tribes like Dacia, Scythia and Thrace will secure the flanks and push ever closer towards 50 settlements. War with the eastern powers such as Parthia will not be necessary unless provoked, as there's enough settlements in the north-east of the map to get over 50 settlements if the entire west of the map is taken.
Units[]
- Peasants
- Slingers
- Head Hurlers
- Warband
- Swordsmen
- Chosen Swordsmen
- Woad Warriors
- Druids
- Warhounds
- British Light Chariots
- British Heavy Chariots
- Barbarian Warlord
- Barbarian Cavalry Mercenaries (skirmish only)
Trivia[]
- If you push fast enough against the Gauls, it's possible to reach their two settlements bordering the Julii before the two of them go to war. What this means is that instead of the Julii fighting the Gauls, they will instead be fight you, the player. By getting here early, the Julii will be considerably weaker than they usually are if you sat back and slowly took over Gaul, making fighting the three Roman houses and pushing into Italia far easier than it otherwise would be, since the Julii will have just three or so settlements.
- The Britons are the only barbarian faction to not be able to recruit horsemen in the campaign other than mercenaries.
- As a faction, Britannia is somewhat infamous in Rome: Total War's community for being slightly exaggerated in the Imperial Campaign, much like Egypt. For example, if the player were to command a pre-reformist Roman Army of 800 men against a British Army of only 400 troops with a few chariots, an autoresolved defeat is nearly guaranteed. This usually allows chariot-rich factions like Egypt and Britannia to dominate the known world for the remainder of the campaign, making life miserable for nations such as Gaul, Germania, and the Seleucid Empire. To fix this oddity, most players choose to engage British chariot units on an open battle map.
Gallery[]
