This game has been ignored by many wargamers because it has a fantasy theme and it lacks a realistic looking map. That is too bad, because Titan is the best of games. The decision making has move levels to it then any other game that comes to mind. This game has major tactical, strategic and diplomatic parts to it.
1) Splitting
Proper splitting is 50% following some very easy basic rules and 50% analyzing your specific tactical situation on the master board. The worst mistakes are to split and give your enemy an easy attack the very next turn, or to split and LOSE an easy attack that your legion could have made. In the great race to recruit and dominate the board, it is a major sin to lose your legions or to fail to make the enemy lose his.
My basic rules for splitting are mostly designed to make it possible to quickly recruit better units, and to help increase the odds of your legions' continued survival. My first rule will be the most argued about.
I. Don't mix bramble native creatures with non-bramble native creatures. Nothing is better then fighting in the Brush/Jungle with native creatures and nothing is worse then fighting in the Brush/Jungle with non-native creatures. If your stacks have both kinds of troops, you will never be completely native, and you will always be vulnerable to a stack that is completely native.
II. Don't split apart creatures that can recruit a higher creature if they are together. This rule prevents you from recruiting lots of junk, that will just end up as points for your enemies. Never split apart a pair of Ogres (for example). It does not increase your recruiting chances, it just makes you even farther away from recruiting a Colossus.
III. Do split apart creatures that cannot recruit anything higher. If you split a stack that has two or more Rangers in it, it does help your recruiting if each stack has a Ranger. An exception is when a creature has almost ran out. Don't break up a stack of Gorgons if there are no more Gorgons to recruit.
IV. In general, it is best to have six or seven units before splitting. This helps both to make sure your legions survive, and to better threaten enemy legions. You want your enemies to feel they must stay out of your way. This makes them sometimes miss out on good recruits because they would be moving near to you. It also makes it easier for you to move (since they are not in front of you) and recruit.
V. Be extra careful when splitting the Titan legion.
VI. Know the difference between splitting so that both stacks will grow and survive, and splitting off junk so that the one main stack has room to improve and the junk stack will not survive. Both actions have their moments! It is nice to hope that ALL your legions will prosper and survive, but do not delude yourself into a bad split when it is unlikely that both pieces can survive. It is okay to split off two Ogres and leave them to die, and hopefully block an enemy or force them into a bad location. Likewise it is wonderful when a three-four split is possible because no enemy is close and the recruitment prospects are almost certain. Increasing your number of VIABLE legions is always wonderful but risky, since for a time the subdivided legion can be very weak.
Two of my favorite splits for growing from a beginning legion into two legions are as follows:
First is splitting off a Gorgon and two Gargoyles from a legion with two Cyclops (and two other pieces). The Gorgon/Gargoyle stack will attempt to recruit more Gorgons and become a stack slated for attacking and blocking in the Brush and Jungle. The Gargoyles work well with the Gorgons, and will eventually be killed in a battle, but you have a great chance of the stack quickly recruiting and thriving. The seemingly 'obsolete' Gargoyle pieces actually help this stack survive long enough to become solid.
My other favorite split is similar, and is to split a Ranger and two Centaurs off from a stack that has two Lions (and two other pieces). The Ranger/Centaur stack attempts to quickly fill up with Rangers and when it gets into battles, the Centaurs are useful as 'junior' Rangers that get the most exposed positions. They ultimately die, but the stack should grow quickly, and be very effective in the early-to-mid game. Ranger stacks and Gorgon stacks are effective blockers and protectors for your slower growing stacks that are working towards Colossi or Hydras.
2) Recruiting
A basic choice must be immediately made between recruiting the largest creature possible or instead recruiting a third small creature in hopes of quickly reaching Warbears or Minotaurs. In general, if the board is crowded and enemies are near, it is better to recruit the Lion or Troll instead of the third tower creature. This might slow your progression to the Warbear/Minotaur level, but it will speed the acquisition of Rangers, which is important for self preservation in a crowded board. If the board is not crowded, (it is a two or three player game) then I have no doubt that the best move is to get the three identical creatures and try to win the race for building the ultimate Titan stack.
The recruitment of Warlocks is not something I would recommend in the early game. Usually I would rather recruit the tower creature I need for three of a kind. Then (depending on the tower) it probably is possible to land in the Woods/Hills spot of my dreams with either a roll of 4 (walking) or 6 (teleporting). The Warlock piece will only be powerful for the early game, but a leg up on recruiting is powerful for the entire game. I would recommend picking up a Warlock when the tower creatures are no longer wanted, but even then I would split out the Warlock pretty soon.
3) Movement on the master board
Movement is regulated by a random die roll. That does NOT mean that YOUR movement should be random! Each legion should have a specific goal in mind. Every turn, it is up to you to pick which move (or non-move) of those available best suits each legion's goal. If a movement option would not help your legion's goal, don't pick it! An example is a legion with three Lions sitting in an interior Desert space, waiting for a six so they can go in a circle and recruit a Griffon. Suppose the stack also has a Ranger in it, and your roll is a one. Do not move to the Marsh space and recruit a Ranger! Although it is a good unit, that is not the goal for that legion. A better move (if it is safe) is to move to the Woods! Then on a future turn both a roll of 'one' and a roll of 'five' will let you reach the Desert space as planned!
In addition to recruiting goals, your legions should have goals such as catching the enemy, blocking the enemy, or threatening the enemy that wants to split. It is wonderful to be able to make your enemy put off splitting because you might easily kill a smaller legion. You can slow or stop enemy recruitment this way!
4) Combat
Movement and placement of forces in combat is the area that beginners have the most trouble with. This is also the area that is hardest to quantify with simple rules. And yet, a master player can always pick the correct play in any given situation, even if he can't easily tell WHY it is the correct move to make.
Despite the difficulty, we will try to quantify and analyze proper battle technique.
The most surprising truth to learn, is that MOST battles are not worth fighting! If the defender is going to lose, usually he should give up so the attacker gets less points. The temptation is always to fight, and take as many enemy with you as possible. This misses two hugely important points, one: that the only piece that counts is the Titan piece, and full points will make him stronger; and two: the pieces you DO kill will be the 'obsolete' pieces that the attacker WANTS to get rid of. They will be the weak pieces that he would otherwise have to split off and make an easy target for YOU to attack later.
The only times that defending makes sense is: A) When you might win. B) When you have a Lord present and can't surrender for half points. C) When the enemy has his Titan present. Many players unwisely attack with their Titans, and can sometimes be eliminated with a lucky handful of dice. OR they can have their Titan legion's recruiting ability crippled by a defense that goes after a key creature or two.
5) The other players
I. In a game with many beginners, it is wise to attack more often. Beginners will recruit more in the way of junk, and they will not fight well. If YOU don't wipe these weak legions off the board, someone ELSE will, and the points they earn will make it hard for you to win. Having a weak player in the game is the biggest threat of all to a careful and methodical "good" player. You cannot stick to a conservative "master plan" for victory in this situation.
II. In a game with ALL veteran players, it is imperative to stick to a very conservative "master plan." Avoid early battles where your legions will suffer losses. Especially avoid early battles with your Titan legion, so as to avoid having its recruiting progress impeded.
Titan is a game that has been played via e-mail with much success. It
is best played with a moderator that verifies each player's stack contents and
recruitment. Dice rolling does not need to be handled by a moderator as there
are MANY dice servers out there. There are even Titan map generating servers in
use. Generally the moderator would generate the main map, but the 'battle board'
maps can be updated by the two players fighting a battle. Since nothing is
'hidden' during battles, it is not necessary to have the moderator involved with
every part of a battle.
Many people have been working (slowly) towards the ultimate goal of having a completely server moderated, play by e-mail, Titan program. As of yet, these efforts have resulted in some nice tools (like the map generators), but have not been pursued with enough zeal to lead to even a trial stage yet. Frankly, even a (running) program that lacks in error checking would be an okay start. Building in the line of sight rules for a battle in the mountains can be tricky, and I would not shun a computer moderator that that did not have that feature yet. More information on e-mail Titan can be found at the link below.
A link to a good website about Titan is http://www.uwm.edu/~bruno/titan.shtml
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johng2000@juno.com