Part 4

Unlock all playable factions in Total War: Three Kingdoms' Imperial Campaign. Learn how to edit game files and avoid crashes with this guide.

This section of the guide focuses on making all factions playable in the Imperial Campaign of Medieval II: Total War. It also provides general tips for new players.

Important Notes:

• Do not play as the Aztecs, Mongols, or Timurids, as the game will crash immediately.
• Playing as the Papal States is buggy and likely to crash, removing the Papacy from gameplay.
• Press F1 during gameplay to view a list of available shortcuts.
• Consider playing the tutorials or reading the guidebook to familiarize yourself with the game's menus and functions.
• To test factions, set up a Custom Battle. For example, test anti-infantry capabilities against England/Venice and anti-cavalry/missile capabilities against France.
• The game is not historically accurate. Mods may exist to address this, but historical inaccuracies will not be discussed.
• Most game options are self-explanatory. However, advice levels, difficulty levels, and unit scale are important.
• Set the advice level to 'none' as the in-game advice is considered inferior to the guide's advice.
• Campaign difficulty affects the AI's ability to manage its empire, raise armies, and build its economy.
• Battle difficulty makes enemy units smarter, not stronger, unlike in Rome: Total War.

Battle Mechanics and Terms:

• Effective Against Armor/Armor Piercing: Attacks that ignore 50% of a target's armor bonus, effective against heavy units. Units like the Egyptian Naffatun have this trait.
• Bonus Fighting Cavalry: Units gain an attack bonus against cavalry (+4 or +8), useful for defending against charges. Typically spear/pikemen.
• Can form Wedge: A special cavalry formation that forms a triangle, intended to break infantry lines. Its effectiveness is debated.
• Can do Schiltrom: A circular phalanx formation where men form a tight circle with spears extended. Useful for defense from multiple sides, like in city squares or choke points, or for holding out for reinforcements. Vulnerable to missile units if unsupported.
• Can deploy stakes: A limited ability allowing archers to defend against frontal assaults. Useful when low on spearmen. Requires support or advantageous terrain against cavalry flanking. Particularly useful near rivers and mountains where flanking is limited.
• Can form Cantabrian Circle: A formation for ranged units to maintain a constant stream of fire. Can deter AI advances but is not widely used.