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The SPQR are a minor non-playable Roman faction in Rome: Total War and Total War: Rome Remastered.
Overview[]
This faction is unique, as it only occupies one region (Rome) and does not try to conquer others. It sends the other Roman families on missions instead, to increase the power of the Roman Republic, and is the eventual target for all factions. However, despite this, they have no other unique features. They have the same unit roster as the playable Roman factions of the House of Julii, House of Brutii and House of Scipii, just with a purple unit colour. As such, the same care and precaution should be taken when dealing with them to take them out as least painfully as possible. Due to having no desire to expand past their sole city, and not moving their units through the territory of the other Roman factions, any armies they create will remain within their borders, necessitating a concentrated assault of multiple armies to wipe out their defences. The faction is powerful, despite their one settlement, but if it can be taken, the entire power of the Senate is wiped out.
Tactics[]
As a non-playable faction, they are unable to be controlled without editing the playable factions file or using external mods. However, due to their identical unit roster, starting position and culture, should you get your hands in control of the SPQR, they will play like any other Roman faction but with minor differences. Their units have no special buffs, altered stats or any other differences that makes them any better or worse than the other Roman units on offer to the other Romans.
Taking on the SPQR is a whole other issue. If playing a non-Roman faction, until their late game objective is achieved and a civil war forced, all Roman factions will be allied together permanently, meaning declaring war on one will make you at war with all of them, including SPQR. However, for the case of SPQR, as their armies never stay outside their own borders, they are a non-issue until you start pushing into Italia and taking settlements. From whatever direction you come from, pushing in results in having to deal with the SPQR sooner or later, and the later in the game you leave it, the stronger their armies will be. At any point, they will have between 1-3 armies, possibly even more, and they will all be within their own single territory. Being prepared for this with numerous of your own armies is critical to not suffering a crushing defeat at their hands and a stalling of your advance on the Romans. Having several, well equipped armies with strong units is crucial to destroying the armies of SPQR, as they can easily stack them together in one pitch battle, overwhelming you with numbers. Having several of your own armies to counter this is good, as is having good melee units to deal with the Roman troops, and a good general to boot. Alternatively, a more tricky strategy is to attempt to assassinate the SPQR generals before the battle. If done successfully, their armies will have far lower morale, no leading general and thus no heavy cavalry unit or good bonuses that the general bestows on them. This will make any battle easier for you to win. Once their armies are on the run, a swift siege of Rome with your armies and subsequently taking it over will result in the destruction of the faction, once all faction heirs are dead, ending the faction and giving you one less enemy to deal with.
If playing as a Roman faction, SPQR is quite different. For the early and mid game, SPQR is your ally, along with the other Roman houses, and will give you missions to complete in order to get bonuses such as reputation in the senate or extra units. You are allied to the other Romans and SPQR, so will be joined in any wars by them. However, once you get to the late game, this all changes. When one Roman faction accomplishes their goals, a civil war is forced between all Roman factions, including SPQR. As with the other scenario, SPQR will remain within their borders, however now you also have the same units as they do, making it easier to deal with them. They will still have the same number of armies, but this time the other Roman factions will be fighting them as well, which can lend itself as both a distraction for them but also a help, as their armies can be whittled down in fights with the other Roman factions. Using this to your advantage, you can either find a lone SPQR army and deal with it, or you can march straight to Rome and besiege it. If you manage to successfully siege down Rome and take it, it's an excellent jump off place to hunt down the remaining SPQR legions or take on the other Roman factions. Either way, once Rome is taken, if their other faction heirs are dead, SPQR will cease to exist.
Trivia[]
- SPQR stands for the Latin "Senatus Populusque Romanus", which is the "Senate and People of Rome".
- They are featured in the historical Battle of Asculum, where they repel an invading Seleucid army from Roman territory.
- The SPQR seems not to be able to produce any post-Gaius Marius event units except for the First Legionary Cohorts. Additionally, SPQR is unable to construct religious buildings.
Gallery[]
