Also, let me tell you of my adventures in Rome II. Patch 4 has been released, making the game significantly better, but at the same time making all campaigns from the earlier versions stop working for me, so I've lost all my progress with my Carthage, Parthia and Iceni campaigns, which totally sucks. But eh, might as well move on. Patch 4 also added the Seleucid faction, which I'm currently playing as. Now as for my experience with Patch 4 Rome II.
HOLY excrement THIS GAME IS HARD NOW! It was easy as hell with Carthage once I had proper armies, but now the enemy is actually very competent. My economy was quite large and very stable at first, but then half my satrapies revolted at the same time, which cut my income in half, and then those satrapies destroyed the rest, which decreased my income from 3500 talents per turn to 500. And at the same time, almost every nation bordering me has declared war on me, and I now have to fight on four fronts with three armies, since my fourth and fifth had been completely destroyed because I don't know how to use the Seleucid units effectively yet. I also can't afford any more armies, since my income is too low.
I have recently somehow managed to fight back two full armies from my former satrapy Parthava in one of my larger cities, Seleucia, and now my army there is severely weakened, and Parthava still have two full armies marching towards Seleucia. I can't push any offensives, and I can't send reinforcements because I have to defend against Egypt, Galatia and Media Atropatene as well, whom all have armies massing at my borders. Although I have allied with Pontus, Trapezios, Sparta, Athens, Macedon, and Knossos, I made those alliances after all these wars started, and now they refuse to help me.
The only thing working in my favour is that I have dominance of the sea, and can freely raid enemy trade routes and intercept enemy armies travelling by water, but my empire is slowly crumbling, with Egyptian forces pushing through the south, having already taken back Jerusalem and threatening Petra, and with my forces locked in defence of my other borders. If I can just complete building my fourth army in Tarsus, I will be able to push back the Egyptians and take back Jerusalem, which will buy me some time if nothing else.
Also, how do you use pikemen effectively in battle? I never manage to get them where I want since they are so slow in phalanx formation, and they always end up fighting infantry rather than cavalry.