What is New in Total War Saga: Thrones of Britannia?

by Falagar / Articles, Total War / 29 Apr 2018

FACTION MECHANICS

Each of the 5 playable cultures has a unique mechanic and all 10 factions have an additional, subsequent mechanic unique to them. Each one gives its faction a unique flavour and should help guide you along the path to glory!

VICTORY CONDITIONS & KINGDOM FORMATION

This time, there are multiple routes to victory. You can go pursue the traditional Total War Conquest victory, pursue recognition through a Fame victory, or the Kingdom victory, comprising of objectives unique to your chosen faction and culture. Completing a Kingdom victory creates a new, greater kingdom, with renamed factions and an upgraded faction trait with new bonuses. Note that the AI factions can do the same!

CAMPAIGN NARRATIVE

In A Total War Saga: Thrones of Britannia the old chapter objectives have been replaced with a system whereby each playable faction receives unique events based on their campaign status, neighbours, and the ongoing diplomatic climate. These events help guide your progress through a unique gameplay experience – no two campaigns will be the same, even when playing as the same faction. The AI will also experience narrative events in the same manner – kings will be assassinated, thrones will be usurped, and cultures will be annexed. War is very much an inevitability!

RECRUITMENT

Units are no longer tied to provincial buildings, instead being recruited from a global pool of manpower within your faction. There are significantly more levy (low tier) units than elite (top tier) ones, so elites become a resource to protect and levies always remain relevant – effectively modelling the typical military structure of the age. These units start small and take many turns to muster to full strength. Factions with depleted manpower pools will struggle to raise new armies.

FOLLOWERS & TRAITS

Characters can develop and upgrade their retinue of followers as they progress through a campaign. Followers give increasing powerful bonuses to their liege, and level 5 followers have unique playstyle-defining effects. Traits are dynamically created for characters based on their history, as well as their accomplishments (and failures) throughout a campaign.

TECHNOLOGY

All technology is locked at the start of the game, each branch requiring the player to perform a task or achieve something in order to unlock it. Technology is now organised as a series of small, thematically-linked groups rather than being structured as a single tree.

MINOR SETTLEMENTS

Small villages no longer have garrisons or permanent defensive structures. Each provincial capital now serves as the economic and military hub of a province, whilst its minor settlements are the farms, mines, and resource-production buildings vital to your faction’s progression.

AUTOMATIC TRADE AGREEMENTS

This time, there is no fog of war – all factions have knowledge of the entire campaign map, and all factions know of each other’s existence. Those at peace automatically begin trading with each other from the start of your campaign. Factions who are at war will cease trading until hostilities have ended. Of course, this means that the Vikings also know exactly where to target their aggression!

VIKING RAIDS

Extremely aggressive Viking factions will invade Britannia and either attempt to raid or settle there. Although not hordes in the traditional Total War-sense, they do begin each campaign without a home province as their base. Be wary, and never rest on your laurels – greater threats also regard this green and pleasant land with envy, waiting for an opportune moment to capture Britannia for themselves…

Falagar

He is the founder and editor of Magic Game World. He loved gaming from the moment he got a PlayStation 1 with Gran Turismo on his 7th birthday.
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