Command nomadic tribes in Total War: ROME II with the Nomadic Tribes Culture Pack. Lead three playable factions-Roxolani, Massagetae, and Royal Scythians-across single-player campaigns, multiplayer modes, and custom battles. These steppe warriors excel in hit-and-run tactics and mounted combat, drawing on unique cultural abilities like extra recruitment slots in home provinces, heightened raiding spoils, and the Nomad Hordes military tradition that boosts army movement, enemy-territory morale, and cavalry recruitment costs.
Master faction-specific strengths: Roxolani thrive on nomadic trade and fierce invasions, Massagetae defend territories with animal husbandry revenues and heavy armored cataphracts, while Royal Scythians dominate with mounted archery and craftsmanship wealth. Build tent-based settlements, herds, and shrines reflecting their mobile lifestyle, tackling custom victory conditions and events. Strategy fans who crave cavalry-focused conquests and rapid army mobilization will find fresh replayability here.
Total War™: ROME II – Nomadic Tribes Culture Pack
About the DLC:
The Nomadic Tribes Culture Pack adds a new playable culture comprising three new playable Factions to Total War: ROME II, for use in Single or Multiplayer Campaign modes and Custom and Multiplayer battles.
The Nomadic Tribes Culture Pack enables ROME II players to take on the ancient world as the ruthless Roxolani, the independent Massagetae and the proud Royal Scythians. Accomplished raiders and legendary horsemen, the Nomadic Tribes are poised to sweep from the steppes and strike at the soft, sedentary targets of more established empires.
Defined by their independence, their excellence on horseback and their ability to swiftly assemble large armies, The Nomadic Tribes bring an entirely new cultural flavour to ROME II.
New Features:
New Playable Factions – The Roxolani, Massagetae and Royal Scythians each offer a unique new way to experience the campaign, with their own rosters of powerful military units, distinct traits and play styles.
The Roxolani gain wealth from their skills as migrant traders, and as committed conquerors, fight harder when in enemy territory; the Royal Scythians are experts with the bow, and enjoy increased wealth through their high degree of craftsmanship; and the fierce independence of the Massagetae leads them to fight harder when defending their territory, while their expertise in animal husbandry means increased income from livestock.
New Cultural Traits – All Nomadic Tribes benefit from extra recruitment slots in their home provinces, enabling them to raise armies swiftly. They have also refined raiding and looting to an art-form, and their forces gather greater wealth through raiding than other factions.
New Cultural Objectives – The Nomadic Tribes have their own new set of military, economic and cultural victory conditions, as well as sharing a unique set of bonus objectives drawn from the history of The Steppes. Additionally, each faction will have to contend with its unique events and dilemmas.
New Military Tradition – The armies of the Nomadic Tribes can benefit from a unique new military tradition: Nomadic Horde. This tradition increases the movement range of the army, increases its unit morale when fighting in enemy territory and, commensurate with the tribes’ heavy use of horse and rider, reduces the recruitment costs of cavalry units.
New Units:
Peerless horsemen and skilled archers, The Nomadic Tribes Culture Pack offers factions which rely heavily on cavalry for the backbone of their fighting horses. Among the numerous melee, bow, javelin and spear-armed riders of the steppes, the Nomadic Tribes Culture Pack also introduces a variety of unique and deadly mounted units.
MASSAGETAE: armour focussed
Saka Noble Armoured Lancers
Few can withstand a charge by these skilled and heavily-armoured noblemen.
Saka Cataphracts
Armoured from head to toe, these heavy cavalry are capable of flattening anyone in their path.
Saka Cataphract Horse Archers
Heavy armour and excellent bow-skills guide these natural riders to victory.
ROXOLANI: melee focussed
Sarmatian Royal Lancers
Deadly lances make these heavy cavalrymen a frightening – and deadly – force.
Sarmatian Riders
Born to the saddle, these spear-wielding riders like to get up-close and brutal with their enemies.
Sarmatian Horsemen
With the right man in the saddle, a horse and a spear make for a deadly combination.
ROYAL SCYTHIANS: ranged-weapon focussed
Royal Horse Archers
There are few more terrifying sights than Scythian horse-archers preparing to fire.
Scythian Royal Skirmishers
The enemies of Scythia rightly fear these natural riders’ javelins – and the swift swords which follow.
New Buildings:
The Nomadic Tribes are fiercely independent and make lives for themselves under canvas. You’ll see this reflected in their settlements and cities on the campaign map, which favour tents and yurts over brick and stone structures. In addition, their building chains are unique among the factions of ROME II; they reflect the nomadic lifestyle and bring bonuses which play to the nomads’ strengths as shepherds, horsemen and archers.
Food:
Given their itinerant lifestyle, the Nomadic Tribes’ food supply – and to a greater degree than other factions, their income – begins with animal herding. As such, their food-production building chain begins with Sheep Pens, which advances to the Weaver, then the Yurt Maker.
A second Camp chain replaces farms in the standard building chains, and offers increasing benefits to the income that livestock bring. The Camp chain begins with the Nomad Camp, which upgrades to the Wagon Camp, then the Royal Camp.
Research
The wisest of the tribe gather with the soothsayers to devise ways of improving tribal society. The Nomadic Tribes’ Research chain consists of the Enaree Tent, which upgrades to the Enaree Conclave, and ultimately the Royal Enarees, and brings boosts to the rate at which new technologies are developed.
Stables
The people of the Nomadic Tribes make great use of horses for trade, travel and war, and breed their stock on the wide-open steppe. The Stables chain begins with Wild Horses, which upgrades to Large Herd and finally to the Royal Herd.
Religion
The tribes of the great steppe pray to their own gods, and these are reflected in the unique groves, shrines and sanctuaries they build. The building chains relating to each god bring bonuses to many aspects of nomadic development, such as research, livestock income, agent levels and public order. Certain chains also bring bonuses to two of the nomads’ key military units: melee cavalry and horse archers.
In addition, the apex of the religious chain brings access to a unique new wonder: The Kurgan Field. This giant burial mound boosts the cultural influence of the tribe, and brings a considerable boost to income through livestock.
Faction History:
The Royal Scythians
The Royal Scythians are the social and tribal elite of nomad society, their skills in war matched only by their love of gold and ostentatious personal finery. Any who mistake this golden luxury for decadence usually die on the points of Royal Scythian spears well before they can change their misguided opinion.
The Massagetae
The Massagetae are a confederation of tribes, and fierce steppe warriors all. Cyrus the Great, the founder of the Achaemenid Empire, fell in battle against them while leading a Persian army deep into the steppes. They have remained a dangerous people ever since, feared and respected by their neighbours.
The Roxolani
Every man has his day in the sun, and the same is true of entire tribes. As the Scythians grow weak, the Roxolani are ready to take up the sword in their place. From astride their hardy steppe horses, they are right to see the whole of the ‘civilized’ world as being filled with riches. What glorious battles await?
