Armies are used to protect your empire from military incursion by other factions, expand your empire by capturing new commanderies and counties, and defeat enemy armies in battle.
Other Total War Three Kingdoms Guides:
- Total War Three Kingdoms: Guide to Factions
- Total War Three Kingdoms: Guide to Siege
- Total War Three Kingdoms: Guide to Characters
- Total War Three Kingdoms: Buildings Guide
- Total War Three Kingdoms: Food Guide
- Total War Three Kingdoms: Diplomacy Guide
- Total War Three Kingdoms: Spies & Espionage Guide
Attrition
Attrition is a negative effect suffered by armies that causes damage over time to its units and reduces its unit morale should a battle ensue while the effect is active. The main factor that causes attrition is low military supplies. This can be remedied by returning the army to your own or allied territory where reserves are present, at which point it will automatically begin to resupply. Attrition is indicated by the shadows of soldiers falling away from the army on the campaign map.
Generals
Characters may be recruited into an army as generals. An army may contain up to three generals, each of whom brings his or her own retinue of units. Generals may have up to six units in their personal retinue, and grant bonuses to those units according to their skills, abilities, traits and attributes.
Each army has an appointed commanding general, whose portrait is always placed at the far left of the army panel when the army is selected. The commanding general gains greater experience than other generals in the army and may grant bonuses to the entire army according to his skills, abilities, traits and attributes. A new commander may be assigned by selecting their portrait and clicking the ‘assign commanding general’ button in the army panel.
Generals can be moved out of the army, at which point they will form a new army with their retinue.
An army represents a close-proximity working environment, so character relations are important to consider when choosing characters for these positions.