Total War: Medieval 3 Confirms First Six Playable Factions
Creative Assembly has officially confirmed the first six playable factions for the highly anticipated Total War: Medieval III. The announcement was made in a detailed blog post from the developer, outlining the core powers players can lead at launch.
The confirmed starting factions are the Kingdoms of France and England, the Kingdom of Jerusalem, the Sultanate of Rum, the Byzantine Empire, and the Holy Roman Empire. According to Creative Assembly, this selection is based on criteria including brand familiarity, the uniqueness of each faction's starting situation, and distinct mechanical identities.
Creative Director Lief Walter provided rationale for the choices. England and France were selected for their iconic status and intertwined history, notably the Hundred Years' War. The Holy Roman Empire is described as a "stereotypical feudal giant" facing internal strife, while the Byzantine Empire is portrayed as a sophisticated realm fighting for survival.
The Sultanate of Rum represents the nascent Ottoman Empire, poised for ascendancy in the Middle East. The Kingdom of Jerusalem rounds out the list as the quintessential Crusader state, central to the era's defining conflicts. These six factions establish the initial political landscape for the grand campaign.
A Grand Campaign Map: From Iberia to Baghdad
Total War: Medieval III will feature a grand campaign map stretching from Iberia in the west to Baghdad in the east, and from southern Scandinavia in the north to northern Africa in the south. Creative Assembly confirmed the geographical scope mirrors that of Medieval 2: Total War, providing a vast sandbox for the game's conflicts.
The campaign begins in 1140 AD, a pivotal era chosen for its rich historical tapestry. This date precedes major events like the Hundred Years' War between England and France, setting the stage for players to shape those iconic rivalries and other emerging conflicts. Creative Director Lief Walter noted the starting date and map were selected to frame the launch factions' unique starting positions and potential narratives.
This expansive terrain encompasses the heartlands of the six confirmed launch factions and the 23 additional realms under consideration for the playable roster. It is designed to host a complex web of feudal, imperial, and religious powers across Europe, the Near East, and the Mediterranean coast.
Core Mechanics and Strategic Identity
Core Mechanics and Strategic Identity
Total War: Medieval III will build its strategic gameplay on a foundation of resource management, a diverse roster of unit types, and distinct win conditions, with the Catholic Church playing a central role as a powerful non-playable entity. According to Creative Assembly, these pillars are being tailored to give each confirmed faction a unique mechanical and strategic identity.
Resource management will extend beyond simple gold and food, incorporating feudal obligations, religious influence, and control of trade nodes across the vast campaign map. The developers stated that faction selection was based partly on the "variety of potential paths to victory," indicating that resource strategies for a mercantile Italian city-state will differ fundamentally from those of a sprawling feudal monarchy like the Holy Roman Empire.
Unit rosters and military composition will be a key differentiator. The factions announced cover a wide spectrum, from the sophisticated heavy infantry of the Byzantine Empire to the emerging horse archer traditions of the Sultanate of Rum. This ensures that battlefield tactics and army building will vary significantly between factions, impacting both early-game conflicts and late-game army compositions.
Win conditions are being designed to reflect historical and faction-specific ambitions. While universal objectives like territorial control will exist, the developers hinted at unique victory paths. For example, the Kingdom of Jerusalem's goals would be intrinsically tied to the Crusades, whereas the Holy Roman Empire might face objectives related to managing its internal princely states.
The Catholic Church will function as a major strategic power, directly influencing diplomacy, legitimacy, and casus belli. Creative Director Lief Walter noted the Holy Roman Empire's "long-standing power conflict with the Catholic Church," confirming the Church's active role in European politics. Players will need to navigate Papal relations, potentially facing excommunication or earning the right to call for Crusades, adding a complex layer to medieval statecraft.
Community Vote: Shaping the Future Roster
Community Vote: Shaping the Future Roster
Creative Assembly is inviting the Total War community to directly influence the future playable faction roster for Total War: Medieval III. According to a blog post from the developer, players are being asked to vote on a shortlist of 23 potential factions for possible inclusion. The developers stated that this player feedback will "directly influence our research and discussions during pre-production" and will be considered when balancing the final roster.
The extensive list of 23 potential factions includes a diverse array of medieval powers that fit within the game's 1140 AD start date and campaign map. Among them are the Italian medieval city-states and republics, described by Creative Assembly as "champions of mercantile and communal tradition" and a counterpoint to Imperial power. Also on the list are the Duchy of Greater Poland, noted as a "budding kingdom[] between worlds," and the Kingdom of Norway, an "aspiring young realm[]" from Scandinavia.
The shortlist also includes major powers from other regions, such as the Almohad Caliphate, one of the "great dynasties with even greater ambition that forged lasting empires." Other notable factions under consideration include various Iberian kingdoms and Balkan realms. Creative Assembly emphasized that while community votes will be heavily weighted, the studio retains creative control to ensure choices align with design and production needs.
The Papal States and Non-Playable Entities
Total War: Medieval III will feature several significant historical powers as non-playable entities, including the Papal States, the Mongols, and the Great Seljuks, according to Creative Assembly. The developers have explained the specific reasoning behind excluding these factions from the initial playable roster.
The Papal States are a notable omission, despite strong community interest. Creative Assembly stated that this faction's unique political and religious mechanics would require a "disproportionate amount of development focus," which would come at the expense of other core game systems and factions. The team decided against dedicating the necessary resources to realize a fully-fledged Papal States campaign at launch.
Furthermore, factions like the Mongols and the Great Seljuks are not included as starting playable factions because their historical power bases during the game's 1140 AD starting period extend beyond the edges of the announced campaign map. The developers confirmed these empires "may still appear as non-playable entities" within the game world, suggesting they could function as late-game threats or diplomatic powers, but their heartlands are outside the playable area stretching from Iberia to Baghdad.
This approach allows Creative Assembly to maintain a focused and balanced launch roster centered on the six confirmed playable factions, while still populating the medieval world with influential powers that players will have to contend with strategically. The status of these entities reinforces the developers' criteria for playability, which heavily weighs a faction's starting position and mechanical uniqueness within the defined campaign scope.