It would be really cool to see Rome as a playable pantheon; it has cool units like the Legionaries,Varangian Guard and the Cataphract, you could have a barracks for mercenary units, a barracks for gladiators.
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Romans already exist…As Atlanteans, since original AoM devs wanted to make Romans but ended with Atlanteans.
tbh if the devs ever considered a worthy pantheon then Celts would make sense as they have their distinct culture with a widespread blank area in the world.
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In Retold, the Atlanteans are even more Roman Looking than in the original.
Not to say the Atlanteans weren’t Roman in the origal game. But back then, it wasn’t every single human military unit being clearly, unarguably, and unmistakably Roman. It was the Destroyer, with his scutum shield, and the Murmillo, being a close match with the gladiator of the same name. With all the others, you could argue about them being Roman only in name.
You can’t do that anymore in Retold. For the Retold version of Atlantean Units, the devs made extensive use of the galea helmet, the lorica segmentata armor, and the scutum shield. The Murmillo, in the original a close match to the gladiator, now also has the asymetrical soulder armor and shield shape correct, which wasn’t the case in original AoM.
I’d like the devs to add Romans eventually, once they’ve done at least another two or three Pantheons after the Aztecs are released. Not before that.
But if they do want to add Romans, the Atlanteans need a visual overhaul. What the devs should have done in the first place is make them have their own coherent visual identity and vibe, distinct from any well-known culture they might add in the future. What they did instead was the exact opposite: Bring each thing within the atlanteans closer to what it’s based on. Killing every argument about the Atlanteans not being Romans or Incas.
And that would have to come with some effort, since the Atlanteans never had their own, coherent visual identity. Their balancing and gameplay has been improved quite a bit in Retold, with now oracles gathering favor, rather than being completely useless and favor being a thing you never have to think about.
Same, i’d like to see Romans eventually, but at the very least i’d like to see Mesopotamians, Slavs, and Celts first, and there’s probably some other options I could see at higher priority than Romans, but eventually yes.
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I guess Atlantans could be redesigned into a more Numenorean vibe if Romans are introduced at some point
(Was planning to attach images here but errors show up when I try to upload)
What the Atlanteans should be, and should have been made consistently if you ask me, is their own culture. Whatever it is inspired by should be masked enough to be unrecognizeable, so noone can say “this is X” like we can say “this is Roman” with the military units, or “this is Incan” with their buildings.
Like with their ships. I don’t know what kind of ship design has the forked front and those sails that are wider at the top, and I can’t find any historical ship designs looking like that. Maybe they do exist, and I just haven’t found them?
As long as that’s the case, those ships are atlantean, and nothing else. Which is what should be the case for the atlanteans as a whole.
Sure, I found a historical ship called Bireme, but it doesn’t look anything alike.
I don’t really agree, and I think a Roman pantheon would be a pretty awkward fit for Age of Mythology.
First of all, AoM is a mythology-driven game, not a historical one. Roman mythology is largely a heavily adapted version of Greek mythology, with most major gods being direct equivalents under different names. Because of that, a Roman pantheon wouldn’t really add a new mythological identity to the game, it would mostly feel like Greeks 2.0. If we’re getting new pantheons, I’d much rather see ones that introduce entirely new gods, myths, and worldviews instead of rebranded versions of what we already have.
Second, a lot of what people associate with “Roman” gameplay is already covered. The Atlanteans already lean into that disciplined, heavy-infantry, imperial feel while still being rooted in Greek myth. Adding Rome on top of that would mostly blur faction identities rather than meaningfully expand the roster.
The unit examples you mentioned are also a problem, in my opinion. Legionaries, Varangian Guard, and Cataphracts come from completely different periods and contexts:
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Legionaries fit ancient Rome.
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The Varangian Guard are medieval, tied to the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire, and were largely made up of Norse mercenaries.
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Cataphracts weren’t uniquely Roman at all; they were used by many cultures over centuries and are most commonly associated with Byzantine armies.
That’s mixing ancient Rome with medieval Byzantium and calling it one pantheon, which just doesn’t make much sense.
And while the Byzantines did consider themselves Roman, by the time units like the Varangian Guard and cataphracts existed, the empire was Greek-speaking, culturally Greek, and Christian. Using those units to justify a pagan Roman pantheon is a thematic mismatch.
At the end of the day, AoM works best when each faction has a clear and distinct mythological identity. Rome overlaps too much with the Greeks.
I like Roman history a lot; I just don’t think this is the right game for it. Age of Mythology shines when it adds pantheons that genuinely expand the mythological space, not when it tries to merge centuries of history into a single faction.
That said, if the devs somehow found a way to add ancient Rome as a truly unique pantheon without running into these issues, I’d be open to it, but I wouldn’t count on it, especially considering how many pantheons we’re realistically likely to get beyond something like the Aztecs.
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