ROMANS // PLAYBOOK

PHASE 00 Doctrine // The Three Laws READ ONCE

LAW 01 — BRING THE BASE TO THEM

The Military Camp is your civ's signature. *Don't fight from home — fight from a forward camp.* Production where the action is.

LAW 02 — PRESSURE BEATS COMPOUNDING

You can't out-boom Medium AI. *Don't try.* Disrupt their eco at minute 7-10 with cav harass and forward towers. Slow their snowball below your line.

LAW 03 — COMBINED ARMS, NEVER PURE

Hastati + Velites + Equites together. Never spam one. *Romans win by stacking advantages*, not by maxing a single unit.

REF.01 Unit Legend // Roman Roster /

Hastati

Basic swordsman

Velites

Skirmisher

Equites

Cavalry

Camp

Forward prod.

Scorpio

Bolt siege

Full unit table

Unit	Role	Counters	Loses to
Hastati	Cheap melee front line	Pikes, Skirmishers	Cavalry, Champions
Principes	Heavier melee, Phase II	Pikes, Other melee	Cavalry, Ranged mass
Triarii	Phase III elite swordsman	Almost everything melee	Mass ranged
Velites	Skirmisher — mobile harass + ranged DPS	Swordsmen, Pikes (kited)	Cavalry, Other ranged
Equites	Cavalry — raid, flank, snipe siege	Ranged, Workers, Siege	Pikes, Spearmen
Praetorian Guard	Champion infantry — elite line	Most citizen units	Cost, mass ranged
Scorpio / Onager	Siege — anti-building	Walls, Towers, CCs	Cavalry charges

PHASE 01 Foundation // Boom + Scout 00:00 — 06:00

Objective

Modest boom. *Don't try to match Medium's eco.* Just get to 25 villagers and Phase II with enough resources to start aggressive plays at minute 7.

00:00 queue 5 villagers 00:00 scout cav circles 00:30 4 food / 2 wood 02:00 barracks @ choke 03:00 3 houses preempt pop cap 06:00 phase II at 25 vil

// Roman-Specific Pitfall

Don't fall in love with Roman Legionaries yet — they're Phase III via Marian Reforms. In Phase I-II you fight with citizen Hastati. They're decent but not elite. *Pressure the enemy, don't try to win head-on yet.*

PHASE 02 Forward Camp // The Roman Signature 06:00 — 12:00

Objective

Establish forward presence with a *Military Camp*. This is THE Roman play — production at the front line. Disrupt their eco before it snowballs.

Outposts

×2

Both flanks covered. AI scouts walls — uncovered flanks become highways.

Military Camp

×1

Halfway between you and them. Trains Roman line troops. Forward production line.

Harass Squad

3-5

Equites cycling on their workers every 90s. Kill 6-8 villagers per loop.

The Military Camp build sequence

At minute 8, send 1 villager + 3-4 Hastati to a midpoint between bases
Drop Military Camp under cover of your escort troops
The escorts garrison the camp briefly while it builds (~45s)
Once up, queue 5 Hastati + 3 Velites on loop
Camp is now a *forward fortress AND barracks*. Reinforcements spawn 10s from the fight, not 60.

WHY THIS WINS

The Military Camp is *built* for the human meta. It's a forward base that comes with production. You don't need a second CC + barracks far from home — *one building is both*. Romans cheat the forward-base play.

PHASE 03 Pressure // Active Disruption 12:00 — 20:00

Army composition // 40 units

Romans are *combined arms*. No single unit dominates — the mix is the strength.

30% Hastati/Principes — front line, ~12 units
30% Velites — ranged DPS, ~12 units. *Your match against Roman skirmishers if facing one yourself; also great vs pikes.*
20% Equites — flank + raid + siege killer, ~8 units
15% Slingers — anti-pike, anti-building, ~6 units
5% Scorpio — 2 bolt shooters for wall cracking

The Disruption Loop

EVERY 90s
→ 4 Equites to enemy woodline

KILL 6-8
→ workers, retreat

SLOW THEIR ECO
→ delay their snowball

YOU OUT-TEMPO
→ not out-boom

The Marian Reforms moment

When Phase III hits, *research Marian Reforms* immediately. This converts your citizen-soldiers (Hastati/Principes/Velites) into *Legionaries* — heavily armored elite infantry that crush almost anything in melee.

This is the Roman win condition: *get to Marian Reforms, convert your existing army into Legionaries in one click, and push.* Your minute-20 army instantly becomes ~30% stronger.

PHASE 04 Strike // The Legionary Push 20:00 — END

Pre-push checklist

□ *MARIAN REFORMS DONE*
Legionaries online

□ *40+ UNITS*
at composition ratio

□ *2 SCORPIO*
for walls

□ *FORWARD CAMP UP*
reinforce pipeline

□ *HERO POSITIONED*
center of formation

□ *RETREAT PLAN*
in and out

Order of operations

March *whole army* to ONE target — usually their secondary base or military camp
Scorpio softens walls/towers from range while Legionaries hold the line
Equites flank around to kill their ranged units and any siege they bring
Velites kite their pikes if any
Kill the buildings, retreat
Wait 3 min, repeat at their main base

ROM.01 Military Camp // Civ Signature CORE FEATURE

What it actually does

*Trains all standard Roman units anywhere on the map* (Hastati, Velites, Equites, Principes)
*Garrisons units for healing + arrow fire* — like a fort, but cheaper
*Buildable forward* — the explicit purpose
*Counts as territory* — extends your influence outward

When to build

Camp #1: Minute 8-10, halfway to the enemy
Camp #2: Minute 14-16, on the other side of the map (denial / second front)
Camp #3+: As you push deep, drop camps as you go

The 'fortified advance' play

March a small army forward. When you reach a new piece of ground, drop a Military Camp. Reinforcements from the camp spawn at the new front. You repeat — march, drop, reinforce, march. *You're slowly walking your base toward theirs.*

SIGNATURE PRINCIPLE

The Roman Empire didn't expand by long marches. *It expanded by walking forward and building castra (forts) wherever it stopped.* The Military Camp is the same idea, gameplay version. Use it that way.

ROM.02 Tier Unlocks // When to Build What TIMINGS

Tier	Unlocks	Target time
Phase I	Hastati, Velites, Equites, Scout cav, Towers	0-6 min
Phase II	Principes, Military Camp, blacksmith, 2nd CC	6-7 min (25 vil)
Phase III	Triarii, Marian Reforms, Praetorians, Scorpio, Heroes	14-16 min (50-60 vil)
Marian Reforms	Converts Hastati→Legionary across your whole army	≈ 16-17 min (immediately after Phase III)
First Champion	Praetorian Guard — elite infantry	≈ 17-18 min
First Scorpio	Bolt shooter for wall cracking	≈ 16-18 min

PRIORITY

Marian Reforms is your most important Phase III research. It transforms your existing army for free. Don't queue champions before researching this.

ROM.03 Heroes // The Aura PHASE III · ONE OF EACH

Roman heroes are trained from the *Fortress*. One of each at a time. The aura buffs nearby units in a ~30 tile radius. *Keep them alive.*

Hero	Buffs	Pick when
🦅 Scipio Africanus	Infantry attack / armor — your line gets stronger	Standard combined-arms push
⚔️ Gaius Marius	Marian Reforms accelerator; Legionary bonus	Going hard on Marian Reforms strategy
🛡️ Fabius Maximus	Defensive buffs; armor + repair speed	You're behind and need to stall + rebuild

Aura radius varies by patch. Position the hero in the *center* of your formation — not the front (he dies), not the rear (aura doesn't reach).

// Common Mistake

Sending the hero alone to scout. He dies to 3 spearmen. Aura gone, ~15-20% army strength gone instantly. *Always escort.*

REF.02 Roman vs Ptolemies // Quick Translation /

Concept	Ptolemies	Romans
Forward production	Mercenary Camp	Military Camp (better — full Roman line, not mercs)
Frontline melee	Pikemen (cheap)	Hastati → Legionaries (after Marian Reforms)
Ranged DPS	Slingers + Iberian skirmishers	Velites (native, no embassy needed)
Anti-cav	Pikemen	Hastati with spear formation / Velites kite
Elite frontline	Sacred Band pikes + War Elephants	Praetorians + Triarii
Win condition	Boom into Phase III champion stack	Marian Reforms moment → free army upgrade
Style	Defensive turtle then crush	Forward pressure, combined arms

REF.03 Roman Bad Habits // Fix Table /

Mistake	Fix
Spamming Hastati alone	Combined arms. 30/30/20/15/5 mix. Hastati without Velites support gets shredded.
Skipping Marian Reforms	Research it the moment Phase III lands. Free army upgrade.
Building Military Camp at home	It's a FORWARD building. Half the value disappears if it's behind your CC.
No Velites in army	Velites are top-tier — high mobility, dual mode. Always include.
Treating cav like main army	Equites are FLANKERS and RAIDERS. Not your front line. Front is Hastati/Legionaries.
Hero alone scouting	Always escort with 5+ units.

ENDPLATE Every Game // In Order MEMORIZE

01
SCOUT
Both flanks by min 4

02
BOOM
25 vil before phase

03
CAMP FORWARD
Military Camp at min 8

04
HARASS
Equites every 90s

05
COMPOSE
30/30/20/15/5

06
MARIAN
Reforms = free upgrade

07
SCORPIO
2 bolt shooters before push

08
STRIKE
Limbs first, then heart