How to play as Hector in A Total War Saga: Troy – Strategies, tips, mechanics

Hector will always stand by his brother, Paris, regardless of the choices he makes. Even if that choice brings potential destruction to Troy and her people. Paris returns from across the seas with his new wife, Helen, who had previously been with the Spartan King Menelaus. It’s up to Hector to bind the warring tribes together to work against the impending threat and ensure Troy’s walls never fall. It will take diplomatic patience and guile to save it. You also have to prove to your father that you are a better choice over Paris to lead your family’s future.

The Assuwan League and Priam’s Heir

There are two unique mechanics you have to monitor while playing Hector. The first is The Assuwan League, the primary mechanic driving Hector to work with the other tribes surrounding Troy, uniting them under a single banner. To do this, you have to reach out to the various tribes to create defensive and military alliances. The more alliances you make, the larger the Assuwan League becomes. Because you want to give Hector plenty of allies to call to his aid, you don’t focus on expanding your territories unless you have little choice. The others go to your allies to grow, making you more robust in the process.

Here are the alliance requirements for each tier of the Assuwan League, and the bonuses you receive:

• Ilios: This alliance is active with less than 4 allied regions.
• Friends of Ilios: This alliance is active with more than 4 allied regions, giving your units a 10 percent morale boost while defending.
• Pact of Strength: This alliance level is active with more than 10 allied regions, giving your units an eight percent campaign movement range, and increasing morale by 15 while defending.
• Growing league: This alliance is active when 20 or more allied regions work with you, granting you five percent less recruitment costs for sword units, 12 percent campaign movement range, and increasing morale by 20 while defending.
• Mighty Alliance: This alliance is active when 40 or more allied regions work with you, granting you 10 percent less recruitment cost for sword units, 16 percent campaign movement range, increasing morale by 25 while defending, and decreasing upkeep for all troops by 10 percent.
• Assuwa: The final bonus is active when 60 or more allied regions work with you, decreasing recruitment costs of sword units by 15 percent, granting a 20 percent bonus to campaign movement, increasing morale by 30 when defending, and decreasing upkeep for all troops by 20 percent.

The second mechanic you have to watch is Priam’s Whims. You are one of Priam’s two heirs, and you are competing with your brother for your father’s influence. There are various tasks available to win over Priam’s favor, and there are three bonuses available. A bonus can only go out once, so you have to beat your brother to that approval rating to receive it. By reaching the Heir of Troy marker at the end, you receive all of Troy’s, and your brother’s, provinces in a confederate.

Hector’s Playstyle

With Hector, despite being the superior combatant to Paris, you spend quite a bit of time playing the diplomat. It would be easy to expand his territory and defend it from the oncoming hordes from across the sea. Still, it’s also much more useful to work with your surrounding estates to garner allies. While these allies work together, attempting to build one another, you can create allies and trades between each other to give your resources the required boost you need. It’s time-consuming and challenging, but if you lean on The Assuwan League Hector is building, you can be unbeatable when the horde of troops arrive.

Even though you may spend a lot of time finding Hector in the political realm, he is no stranger to the battlefield. He adopts a more defensive battle strategy, preferring to have his recruited heroes be defenders and sentries. You can move your armies around to support your allies when they come under attack, gobbling up smaller territories that do not plan to work with you. Recruit the Trojan defenders and Hector’s Chosen, the best units he has available. Most of Hector’s preferred units are heavy or medium classes, so throw in a few archers to support them, and look for chokepoints on the battlefield to use.

Homeric Victory

The Homeric victory is the special victory path the faction leader can choose to follow. It is not a requirement for your faction to play this path. Alternatively, you can complete the objectives of the Total War victory, and win the game.

You must meet these requirements to achieve Hector’s Homeric Victory:

• Complete the 12 epic quests tied to Hector
• Destroy Mycenae, Sparta, Ithaca, and Phthia

Hector’s playstyle reflects that of a leader willing to let others receive the credit for having done something but ties all the strings together. You work with your allies, barter with them, assist them when they ask for it, and make friends everywhere. For those who wish to spend time waiting for battles to approach them and making friends, Hector is a solid choice.