Introducing Medieval 2: Total war

Now we "know" up to a certain extent what is the art of war... but as mortal and common human beings, that usually don't really take many risks... where to apply then THAT knowledge? thanks to Sega and The Creative Assembly (and many others) we have the chance to experience war and command an army without leaving the comfort of our own house, and sparing all the horrors that REAL war means. What I am talking about is the strategy game Medieval 2: Total War. This game, and all the total war series, enables the player to  be in charge of a whole nation, of a whole empire if you want. The game places you in the Middle Ages, between 1080 - 1530, and it has two modalities to play it. The first one is the campaign map. In the campaign map you have a perspective of the medieval world, you can see settlements, castles, armies on the move, ships, ports and several geographic characteristics of the region you observe. and the battlefield map, which is where the player leads his/her battles.


The Campaign Map

In the campaign map, as mentioned before, is where all the rest of the activities which are not fighting take place. In the campaign map you can:

1. Manage your settlements: settlements are the major source of income for the player, there is where you train diplomats, merchants, spies, assassins, priests and troops of a lower kind. markets and ports enable the player to open trade routes and to increase your incomes. Buildings in settlements are meant to be for "peace". therefore you can build churches, cathedrals, palaces, inns, etc. the payer has to keep the population happy if he/she does not want to face a riot.
•  Diplomats are what connects your kingdom in terms of politics with the rest of the factions, they can negotiate trade rights, map information, peace, request tributes, make payements, establish alliances, ask for military assistance (or offer it) etc.
• Spies give you the chance to "predict" more or less what the enemy pretends to do. If we connect it to what Sun Tzu says in his book, the use of spies is really important. you can know where the enemy army stands,what kind of troops they have, how many they are, their strength and the kind of general that leads them. also the spy gives you information about the map, and the buildings that are in a certain settlement. their garrison and also there is the possibility that during a siege, the spy might open the gates for you to invade the city.
• Priests play an important role in converting the population of a certain region. This is very important because within the historical context, religion...Catholicism was really important. During the game the player constantly receives orders, missions or requests from the pope himself!!! and lacking of pious governors and population might end up being the target of inquisitors and probably your faction might be excommunicated. Having good relations with the Papal state is imperative. You can be asked too to join a crusade, or be the object of one, depending on which side you stand on. Priests also are in charge of denouncing heretics and witches that provoke religious unrest on your population. 
2. Manage your Castles: castles don't provide you with a large amount of income, but they are the centres for the training of elite troops. Here is where knights, swordsmen, infantry and archers are trained. The player has to be careful of keeping a balance between the amount of castles and settlements, for the army's upkeep can lead to bankruptcy. Also, it is important to have castles in regions where enemies are likely to invade, in that way you prevent your income to be lowered by invasions or sieges. also castles have fortified walls that help the player to locate the troops in a more advantegeous positions when attacked.
3. Move Armies: Moving armies through the map might be a bit complicated sometimes. The game works by turns, in each turn a certain unit is capable of moving a specific distance, then it has to wait until the next turn to move again. If the place where your troops are counts with paved roads, the distance they can move is increased. They can move through forests, mountains, deserts and plains without many inconvenients. Your army can lay siege, blockade a port, prepare an ambush or simply confront an army. It is important to remark that, wherever your army attacks or is attacked, that is how is going to be in the battlefield map; so avoid attacking in mountains, or if the enemy is on a bridge...it is really difficult to get your troops to the other side without being massacred during the attempt.