Line #23 YMMV/TotalWarAttila


1	* AluminiumChristmasTrees: Yes, the crossbow was already being used in Europe at this time.
2	* {{SugarWiki/Awesome Music}}: You will fear the impending might of Attila the Hun [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dh9HI4eudR8 moments after you get into the game's main menu.]]
3	** If anything, the entire game is full of soundtrack pieces that are full of this trope, and it's the one area that players and fans generally agree that the game [[AlwaysSomeoneBetter still outdoes]] [[VideoGame/TotalWarRomeII its predecessor]] in, being a [[SurprisinglyImprovedSequel significant improvement]] in this regard compared to that game, and being a [[ImprovedSecondAttempt much better composition]] by Richard Beddow, the composer of both games. The game's "battle" themes in particular are excellent at bring the [[DarkerAndEdgier grittier tone shift]] compared to previous entries to the forefront by conveying the [[NightmareFuel fear and terror]] that the game's battles and wars can provide alongside the [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome awe]] that many of the other entries usually bring, and also that same fear and terror which the Romans and Germans felt and feel towards the [[TheDreaded Huns]]. The [[VillainSong Hunnic Battle Themes]], specifically "Scourge Of God", "A Thousand Arrows" and "The Will Of Tengri", are some of the best examples of this, though the Roman ("Legions Of The West", "The Red Horse", and "Champions Of God"), Eastern ("Riders Of The East", "Burning Crescent", and "Warriors Of Ahura"), and Barbarian ("Let's Kill Some Romans", "Assault By Sea", and "Fire And Ice") battle themes are not far behind in this regard, and neither are the "tension" or "mobilize" themes for any of the above faction groups.
4	* ComplacentGamingSyndrome:
5	** No matter which faction is chosen (except the two Hunnic factions, as they can never settle down), the player's first strategic goal is to make a break for the sea, and to secure a seazone. Securing a seazone dramatically reduces the monetary losses due to piracy within the zone to around 10%, and sea ports can be converted to fisheries [[note]]except ports where spices are traded; such ports are exclusive to the Gulf of Aden and the Arabian Sea[[/note]], which provide a steady source of food (which is not affected by climate change mechanics) ''and'' income. Securing seazones are also vital in the ''Last Roman'' campaign. [[note]]''Charlemagne'' presents a more complex situation for ports, as fisheries no longer provide income. On the other hand, it also did not feature climate change mechanics.[[/note]]
6	** On climate change, players who really dislike the mechanic will choose factions which start in or near deserts, where the mechanic has the least effect.[[note]]Desert factions also have the option of building camel farms, which are unaffected by climate change mechanics.[[/note]]
7	** Players who can afford it would almost always try to have a Food Trader at every provincial capital, because it provides another steady source of food (which is not affected by climate change mechanics).
8	** With the introduction of the White Huns, players who choose the Sassanid Empire will tend to make peace with the Ghassanids and focus on the war with the Huns, as they can do so much more damage.
9	** Artillery units in the game are rather overpowered for the time period it is set in. Get a few onagers and some units to hold a line, and the player can destroy entire armies by just whacking them repeatedly with burning or explosive ammunition.
10	* ContestedSequel: While delivering many features that were sought by long-time fans, ''Attila'' is nonetheless not as popular by the numbers compared to, say, ''Warhammer'' or even ''Rome II'' [[AuthorsSavingThrow after Creative Assembly eventually fixed it up]]. It's hard to place the primary reason exactly for this; possible factors include the fact that the setting is less evocative or well-known to most people, the art design can be regarded as drab and dull, the sanitation system can be seen as busywork instead of deepening building variety [[note]]compounded by the monotony ''Attila'' introduced to the provincial system. In ''Rome II'', provinces can have one to three sub-regions, apart from the provincial capital. ''Attila'' standardise ''every'' province to have two sub-regions.[[/note]], it could generally just be thought as [[SequelDifficultySpike a bit too difficult]] for many players coming from ''Rome II'' [[note]]The main difficulty from ''Rome II'' comes from the various penalties as the player faction expand. In ''Attila, the world itself'' is screwing every faction over with reduced fertility, along with the additional requirement that every province has to be self-sufficient, and let's not get started with the Huns once Attila comes into the picture. Even the Sassanid Empire, widely regarded as ''the'' easiest faction to play as, had the White Huns thrown at them, and the hordes can do extensive damage if the player doesn't know what they're doing.[[/note]], the game being not as effectively optimized as ''Rome II'' by this point in terms of performance, or it was just unfortunate enough to be released right after Creative's Assembly's public relations were at a low from ''Rome II''.
11	* DemonicSpiders: The Plague of Justinian in ''The Last Roman'' campaign. It historically ended Justinian I's ambitions of re-unifying the Empire. As ''any'' faction, players are likely to tear their hair out if their settlements or armies become infected.
12	* DifficultySpike: ''Attila'' is perhaps the hardest of the series, with its new mechanics that add complexity to the game and the oppressive nature of the time period.
13	** In a meta sense, the addition of the ''Empires of the Sands'' factions and the White Huns (Hephtalites) made things far more horrible for the Sassanid Empire than how it was at game launch.
14	* EnsembleDarkhorse: ''Good lord'', the '''Theme of Sicily'''. Despite being a minor, unplayable faction in the ''Age of Charlemagne'' DLC, they're ''insanely'' popular, with already several mods made solely to increase their rooster, and make them playable on the grand campaign. It helps that they have unique units (despite being unplayable without mods), and they're essentially part of the Byzantine Empire.
15	* GoodBadBugs: Occasionally, large attacking enemy armies on the outside during a siege assault on a capital will get very confused, and just walk around left and right in the same general area without getting closer to capital center until the time ticks to zero. While this is no doubt annoying if you wanted a climatic battle for the capital, it's pretty handy for when you fighting the battle [[LastStand with no assumed hope of winning it]].
16	** Pike formations attacking through another allied unit standing in front of them to protect them returns in ''Attila'' as in ''Rome II''. Pikemen aren't quite as powerful as they were before, as is this "tactic", but it will still pretty much ensure pikemen will punch above their weight in a siege battle if they don't get filled with projectiles first ([[ArtificialStupidity which the AI is unlikely to do]]).
17	* MemeticBadass: '''Attila'''. The game (and its promotional videos for that matter) hypes him up as an unstoppable, apocalyptic badass destined to annihilate the world. After beating him in open combat for the first time, you ''will'' feel like a badass.
18	* NightmareFuel:
19	** The announcement trailer. Attila's monologue and the accompanying visuals are chilling.
20	** ''Blood and Fire DLC'' significantly ramps up the amount of blood and general damage shown during battles.
21	** Units hit by [[KillItWithFire flaming arrows]] will sometimes catch fire, writhing in agony on the ground while screaming before perishing. It's a lot more gruesome than most death animations in the game because of how drawn-out it is. Flaming ammunition is generally more effective, but at what [[WarIsHell cost]]?
22	** [[VideoGameCrueltyPotential You can choose to raze a conquered province]], destroying the town there and presumably wiping out all the people that were living in it. From that point on, the settlement that was there will be [[SceneryGorn nothing but dilapidated ruins]] and the area where it was on the map will be scorched and vacant. When Attila invades Europe, vast swathes of the map become like this. Looking out over where the Huns have been and seeing the dozens of [[GhostCity abandoned cities]] is downright chilling. The landscape is so bleak that it makes you wonder if civilization isn't just going through a tough time, but [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt truly dying]]. Worse yet is that a good chunk of the factions have been eradicated by then, leaving just you and Attila. The Huns may still be lurking around somewhere, [[NothingIsScarier obscured by the fog of war and not immediately visible to you...]]
23	* SelfImposedChallenge: Playing as the Western Roman Empire; even the game tells you the starting challenge is "legendary"; it is the only faction with Legendary as the initial challenge in all Total War titles up until now.
24	* SurprisinglyImprovedSequel: ''Attila'' served as this trope after the disastrous release of ''Rome II''. Eventually, once Rome II's Emperor Edition came out, Attila became the inferior of the two; see ContestedSequel above.

Context YMMV / TotalWarAttila