Creative Assembly released Attila on 17 February 2015 and set the Grand Campaign in 395 AD, the year Theodosius died and the Roman Empire split permanently in two. Ten factions are playable in the base Grand Campaign, and the Western Roman Empire opens with more provinces than it can garrison, more armies than it can pay and a treasury already sliding. A cooling climate drives fertility down across the north while the Huns arrive from the east. This is the Total War where burning your own city is frequently the right decision.
This walkthrough takes you from your first session to endgame content. Each phase has specific goals, priorities, and milestones. New to the game? Start with our beginner's guide first.
Quick Progression Summary
| Phase | Area | Focus | Build | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Start | Roma | Razing, sacking and occupying settlements basics | Eastern Roman Empire | 1-2 hours |
| 2. Early | Constantinopolis | The migration and horde mechanic mastery | Eastern Roman Empire | 3-5 hours |
| 3. Mid | Ravenna | Climate cooling and fertility + gear | Western Roman Empire or Eastern Roman Empire | 5-10 hours |
| 4. Late | Carthago | Build optimization | Western Roman Empire | 5-10 hours |
| 5. Endgame | Ctesiphon | Min-max | Western Roman Empire or Visigoths | Ongoing |
See our maps guide for detailed area breakdowns.
Phase 1: Getting Started (Roma)
The old capital, still enormously valuable and no longer the seat of the Western court. Holding Roma is a public order and prestige question as much as a military one, and losing it to a horde is one of the fastest ways a Western campaign unravels.
Level/Difficulty: Turns 1 to 40 as the Western Roman Empire, a mid campaign target for anyone else Key Rewards: High income, large population, strong building slots, and the political weight that keeps Western public order from collapsing
What to Do in Roma
- Learn Razing, sacking and occupying settlements. Capturing a settlement gives three answers. Spend your first session getting comfortable with this.
- Pick Eastern Roman Empire as your starting build. See our builds guide for why.
- Ten factions are playable in the base Grand Campaign: Western Roman Empire, Eastern Roman Empire, Sassanid Empire, Huns, Visigoths, Ostrogoths, Vandals, Alans, Franks and Saxons. Everything else on the playable list comes from a culture pack, so check what you actually own before planning a Langobard campaign.
- Acquire your first equipment upgrade: Limitanei or whatever's available.
- Clear all main content before moving on.
Phase 1 Checklist
- Understand Razing, sacking and occupying settlements fundamentals
- Eastern Roman Empire selected and functional
- Roma main content cleared
- Ready for Constantinopolis
Phase 2: Early Game (Constantinopolis)
The Eastern capital and the strongest defensive position on the map, sitting on the strait between Europe and Asia. Its walls and its position mean a competent Eastern player can lose most of the Balkans and still be entirely secure behind them.
Level/Difficulty: Turns 1 onward as the Eastern Roman Empire, a late campaign objective for the Huns Key Rewards: Exceptional defensive value, high trade income from the strait, and the Eastern Empire's main recruitment centre
What to Do in Constantinopolis
- Work on The migration and horde mechanic. Migratory factions including the Visigoths, Ostrogoths, Vandals and Alans can abandon their settlements entirely and travel as hordes carrying their population inside their armies. This system becomes critical from here on.
- Farm for Limitanei if you haven't already. It's the key upgrade for this phase.
- Razing is not a punishment mechanic, it is an economic tool. A ruined settlement denies the enemy a target, removes the garrison cost, and can be recolonised later, which is why the standard Western Roman opening involves burning provinces you technically still own.
- Complete all objectives before pushing to Ravenna.
- Consider whether Western Roman Empire might suit your playstyle better than Eastern Roman Empire.
Phase 2 Checklist
- The migration and horde mechanic integrated into gameplay
- Limitanei acquired
- Constantinopolis fully cleared
- Ready for Ravenna
Phase 3: Mid Game (Ravenna)
The Western court's seat in this period, chosen historically for its marshes and defensibility rather than its size. In campaign terms it is the settlement that keeps a shrinking Western Empire administratively alive after the outer provinces are gone.
Level/Difficulty: Turns 1 to 60 as the Western Roman Empire Key Rewards: Defensible Italian position, court and administration buildings, and a fallback capital when Roma is threatened
What to Do in Ravenna
- Master Climate cooling and fertility. The campaign models a cooling period across its hundred year span. This unlocks a new layer of gameplay.
- Start working toward Legio Comitatenses. It's the best equipment and becomes accessible around now.
- Sanitation is per-province, not per-settlement, so a single filthy minor settlement will spread plague through the province capital. Check the province summary rather than each town individually when you queue construction.
- This area is the main skill check. If you can clear it, you're ready for late game.
- Start investing in Sanitation, squalor and plague for the tactical depth you'll need going forward.
Phase 3 Checklist
- Climate cooling and fertility mastered
- Legio Comitatenses acquired or in progress
- Ravenna fully cleared
- Ready for Carthago
Phase 4: Late Game (Carthago)
The centre of Roman Africa and the grain supply the Western Empire cannot survive without. This is also exactly why the Vandals go for it, and why a Western player who has already abandoned the north must hold Africa at almost any cost.
Level/Difficulty: Turns 10 to 70, contested by the Vandals in most campaigns Key Rewards: Grain production that feeds Italia, strong trade income, and denial of the Vandal migration's historical destination
What to Do in Carthago
- Finalize your build. You should be running Western Roman Empire or Eastern Roman Empire with optimized gear.
- Legio Comitatenses should be your primary. If you don't have it yet, prioritize getting it.
- Fertility falls over the campaign in the north and the effect is severe. Any faction starting in Scandinavia or northern Germania should have a plan for moving south, and Attila's own migratory pressure arrives on top of a food problem you already have.
- The family tree, gravitas and civil war optimization starts here. Small improvements compound into massive advantages.
- Farm this area for the resources needed to push into Ctesiphon.
Phase 4 Checklist
- Build fully optimized
- Legio Comitatenses upgraded to max
- Carthago fully cleared
- Ready for Ctesiphon
Phase 5: Endgame (Ctesiphon)
The Sassanid capital on the Tigris and the anchor of the eastern half of the map. Unlike almost everywhere else, this region is barely touched by the cooling climate, which makes the Sassanid economy the most stable in the game across a long campaign.
Level/Difficulty: Turns 1 onward as the Sassanid Empire, a very late objective for Rome Key Rewards: Stable fertility, Zoroastrian religious centre, and the Sassanid heavy cavalry recruitment chain
What to Do in Ctesiphon
- Ctesiphon tests everything. Come prepared with your best build and gear.
- Armies carry plague between provinces and across borders. When an infected army returns from a campaign, park it away from your best province until the infection clears rather than marching it straight into your capital's garrison.
- The endgame loop: run Ctesiphon, optimize gear, push harder content.
- Experiment with Visigoths for a fresh take once you've mastered the standard builds.
- This is where The family tree, gravitas and civil war mastery separates good players from great ones. See our tips guide for advanced strategies.
Phase 5 Checklist
- Endgame content on farm
- Best-in-slot gear acquired
- Ctesiphon fully cleared
- Ready for challenge content
Common Progression Mistakes
- Trying to hold the entire Western Roman Empire. The starting provinces cost more in garrison and administration than they generate, and a player who defends everything is bankrupt by turn 20 with no army left to defend anything.
- Building economy structures without checking sanitation. Squalor accumulates quietly, plague arrives suddenly, and a province that looked prosperous for thirty turns loses growth and public order in three.
- Settling a horde too early. The horde state gives mobility and recruitment while you look for good ground, and factions that settle at the first opportunity often end up in the north where fertility is about to collapse.
- Ignoring the family tree until the civil war notification appears. Gravitas accumulates over many turns, so by the time the warning arrives the rival family is already stronger than yours and the war is largely decided.
- Fighting the Huns in a set piece battle on open ground. They are horse archer heavy, they will not close, and an infantry army with no cavalry screen will be shot to pieces while it walks. Fight them in terrain that limits their movement or do not fight them at all.
Key Tips for Smooth Progression
- Ten factions are playable in the base Grand Campaign: Western Roman Empire, Eastern Roman Empire, Sassanid Empire, Huns, Visigoths, Ostrogoths, Vandals, Alans, Franks and Saxons. Everything else on the playable list comes from a culture pack, so check what you actually own before planning a Langobard campaign.
- Razing is not a punishment mechanic, it is an economic tool. A ruined settlement denies the enemy a target, removes the garrison cost, and can be recolonised later, which is why the standard Western Roman opening involves burning provinces you technically still own.
- Sanitation is per-province, not per-settlement, so a single filthy minor settlement will spread plague through the province capital. Check the province summary rather than each town individually when you queue construction.
- Fertility falls over the campaign in the north and the effect is severe. Any faction starting in Scandinavia or northern Germania should have a plan for moving south, and Attila's own migratory pressure arrives on top of a food problem you already have.
- Armies carry plague between provinces and across borders. When an infected army returns from a campaign, park it away from your best province until the infection clears rather than marching it straight into your capital's garrison.
For more advanced strategies, see our tips & tricks guide.
More Total War: ATTILA Guides
- Total War: ATTILA Total War: ATTILA Overview
- Total War: ATTILA Best Builds
- Total War: ATTILA Tier List
- Total War: ATTILA Beginner's Guide
- Total War: ATTILA Tips & Tricks
- Total War: ATTILA Weapons Guide
- Total War: ATTILA Combat Guide
- Total War: ATTILA Boss Guide
- Total War: ATTILA Maps & Locations
- Total War: ATTILA Crafting Guide
- Total War: ATTILA Classes & Characters
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