Three fierce Celtic tribes-the Picts, Caledonians, and Ebdanians-rise in Total War: ATTILA as Western Rome's hold on the Britannic isles falters. These factions excel in strategy gameplay through ambush tactics and Guerrilla Deployment, letting armies position units anywhere on the battlefield, even behind enemy lines. Raiders profit from sacking and looting, bolstered by unique unit rosters like Pictish Berserkers, Caledonian Horse Whisperers, and Ebdani Gallowglass, plus prestige buildings unlocked via religious, trade, and warfare feats.
Picts strike at night with morale boosts and berserkers, Caledonians sabotage via superior agents, and Ebdanians maximize bloody plunder. The Cycle of the Ollam Ri narrative chain shapes a legendary general based on your choices, while raiding building chains and Celtic technologies fuel conquests. Seasoned commanders who master guerrilla raids and hit-and-run assaults will dominate these northern battlegrounds.
Total War™: ATTILA – Celts Culture Pack
About the DLC:
The Celts Culture Pack brings three new playable factions to Total War™: ATTILA. The Picts, the Caledonians and the Ebdanians may be used in Single or Multiplayer Campaign modes and Custom and Multiplayer battles.
As the grasp of Western Rome weakens on the Britannic isles, these fierce tribes stand ready to proclaim their independence and reclaim their ancestral lands. But even as the empire recedes, others are setting their sights on The Tin Islands. The warlords of Germania and the Nordic regions look to the northwest and see a prize worth fighting for…
• Celtic forces specialise in ambush tactics and ‘Guerrilla Deployment’.
• New Celtic roster with unique new units for each faction.
• New Prestige Buildings, requiring great feats to unlock.
• New unique raiding building chain and Celtic-themed technologies.
• Bespoke Celtic generals’ skill trees.
• Unique narrative event chain: Cycle of the Ollam Ri, and new Celtic missions for each faction.
Cultural traits (Celts)
Specialising in ambush tactics, all units in the Celtic faction rosters have the Guerrilla Deployment trait. This enables them to deploy every unit in their army almost anywhere on the battlefield – even behind enemy lines. As specialists, Celtic nations should not be expected to perform as all-rounders; an experienced commander will play to their strengths with deadly effect.
Befitting their skilful application of these traits, sacking, looting and raiding are key sources of income for the Celts and this is reflected in many aspects of their gameplay style and the additional bonuses they receive.
Ebdanians
Alongside the common Celtic traits for raiding, the Ebdanians also have a talent for sacking and looting that combined gives them a unique playstyle and unrivalled potential for profiting bloodily at their enemies’ expense.
Picts
As ‘Children of the Night’, the Picts rightfully earn their reputation as skilled nocturnal combatants at land and sea, and may always choose to attack at night. With bonuses to morale in the dark, and a reliance on heavy assault and berserker units, an ambushing Pict army is the literal stuff of nightmares.
Caledonians
Silver-tongued, wily and deadly in the arts of sabotage and assassination, the Caledonians breed individuals of incredible charm, menace and murderous skill. All Agents from this faction are eager to step forward for duty, more efficient in their assigned tasks and far more likely to succeed.
Unique narrative event-chain: Cycle of The Ollam Ri
Playing as these factions will present you with a new series of linked narrative events. The Cycle of The Ollam Ri draws much inspiration from Celtic mythology, and sees you direct the actions of a fabled hero through a series of branching narrative choices. As the tale draws to its conclusion, Ollam Ri himself becomes available as a general for your armies, imbued with traits that mirror the choices you made.
Celtic Units
All three factions share a Celtic unit roster consisting of a range of troop types across three tiers. Such as the Sighthound Spears heavy wardogs, Mormaer heavy cavalry and the elite light infantry, Scatha's Teachers.
In addition to this standard roster, each faction has its own unique units:
Ebdanians
• Gallowglass: Tier 2 very heavy sword infantry
• King's Warband: Tier 3 very heavy sword infantry
• Ebdani Raiders: Tier 2 light javelin skirmishers
• Kerns: Tier 2 light javelin skirmishers
• Righdamhna: Tier 3 light javelin skirmishers
• Ebdani Cavalry Raiders: Tier 2 light skirmisher cavalry
• Chosen Raiders: Tier 3 light skirmisher cavalry
• King's Fianna (General): Tier 3 very heavy melee cavalry
Caledonians
• Cateran Brigade: Tier 2 very heavy spear infantry
• Horse Whisperers: Tier 3 very heavy spear infantry
• Caledonian Axemen: Tier 2 very heavy axe infantry
• Highland Archers: Tier 2 light bow infantry
• Elite Highland Archers: Tier 3 light bow infantry
• Noble Archers (General): Tier 2 medium bow infantry
• Royal Archers (General): Tier 3 medium bow infantry
Picts
• Pictish Axemen: Tier 2 light axe infantry
• Pictish Swordsmen: Tier 2 medium sword infantry
• Black Blades: Tier 3 light sword infantry
• Pictish Berserkers: Tier 2 light axe berserkers infantry
• Followers Of Morigan (General): Tier 3 very heavy axe infantry
Unique buildings
The resourceful Celts benefit from a unique farming chain that is not reliant on fertility. Enclosures can be upgraded to Cattle Pounds and then a Booley, mobilising self-sufficient herds of livestock.
Characterful of their playstyle, a new raiding chain is also unique to Celtic factions. ‘Raiders’ Assembly Point’ can be enhanced to a ‘Raiders’ Gathering Place’, then a ‘Raiders’ Base’ and finally a Raiders’ Hall’. This quick-to-build chain, each tier of which takes a single turn to build, confers significant bonuses to raiding adjacent regions and offers public order and garrison bonuses, making it excellent for newly conquered regions.
New Mechanic: Prestige Buildings
The Celts Culture Pack introduces three new Tier 5 buildings, unlocked through a new game mechanic. The Bards’ Hall, the Temple of Belenus and the Central Market confer significant bonuses, and alongside the necessary technological requirements, these buildings require the player to meet specific gameplay conditions in the form of great feats in the fields of religion, trade and warfare.
Faction History
Ebdanians
The Ebdanians hold the seat of power at a tumultuous but opportune moment. Occupying the island called 'Hibernia' by the Greeks and Romans, they were first recorded in the Greco-Egyptian writer Ptolemy's 2nd century AD treatise on 'Geography'. Making their home on the eastern shores, the tribe settled between two river estuaries - the Buvinda and Oboca, approximately where the city of Dublin now lies.
Relationships between clans is what drove barbarian culture and society, as clans intermarried, traded and warred with one another. Tribal life in Gaelic Ireland revolved around the clan, an extended family built on kinship, loyalty and, generally, a common ancestry. Hibernian clans were supposed to have been descended from one man, the authority to rule passing down the male bloodline. This means that most clansmen were of the same blood, although fostering and adoption were as common as in other parts of the world. Clans were led by their chieftain, who sat at the top of a strict hierarchical social structure.
Much like the Picts of Caledonia, the tribes of Hibernia have never been conquered by the Roman Empire, though they have traded with it - as evidenced by the discovery of Roman coins across the island. From their well-positioned, defensible capital the Ebdanians control their own destiny; they could rise to rule over the Celtic world, and none on these fair isles - or beyond - will be able to deny them!
Caledonians
The Caledonians are northern Britannia's first line of defence against Imperial Rome, and bar the way north for any would-be invaders. Although their true heritage has been much debated, they are believed to be an amalgamation of Pictish tribes and those fleeing the Roman advance into Britannia, surviving mostly in a series of hillforts and farms stretching across the highlands of Scotland.
Unfortunately, most historical sources on the Caledonians are of Roman origin, with the usual Roman bias in the reporting; for instance, Tacitus refuses to use terms such as 'king' to describe the Caledonian leader Calgacus, although this may be because he was unsure of their internal hierarchy. They are first mentioned by Tacitus as fighting at the Battle of Mons Graupius, which they lost once the Legions forced them from the hills into an open field battle, as opposed to the guerrilla-style tactics naturally favoured by the rocky terrain. In mentioning the Caledonians, Tacitus also describes them as the stereotypical definition of red haired, long-limbed “northmen” - furious and barbaric to a man.
In the centuries following Mons Graupius, the Caledonians have remained a belligerent thorn in the Empire's side, constantly crossing into Britannia to raid - and often successfully. Despite dogged Imperial efforts, they steadfastly refuse to be cowed, and stand now against a darkening world, poised to take back what is rightfully theirs!
Picts
The Picts are resolute defenders of their homeland, which lies at the far north of the Britannic Isles. The Romans tried for many years to bring them under control - the Emperors Hadrian and Antoninus even resorting to building walls across the country in order to control the passage of, and trade between, Imperial subjects and the savage, tenacious "northmen". The general focus on defence during Hadrian's tenure has led some to the notion that his wall was more than a mere trade gateway - it was intended to keep the Picts and other Caledonian peoples out.
Broadly, the Picts remain an enigmatic people who left no written records behind. However, we know they fought hard and against the invaders because the Roman historian Tacitus made specific references to their defiance in his 'Histories'. It is also likely that 'Picti' (in Latin) was simply a general term used by the Romans for any number of northern tribes whom they considered "painted ones", in reference to the common Celtic tribal custom of tattooing and painting the body before battle.
The Picts were part of the ill-fated Great Conspiracy of AD367-368, when barbarian raids were co-ordinated with the desertion of the Roman garrison along Hadrian's Wall, and almost succeeded in wresting power from the Empire in Britannia and northern Gaul. Now, on the cusp of the 5th century AD, the Picts must rekindle old alliances if they wish to take their country back. Britannia, and indeed the Empire at-large, awaits the outcome - could this be the beginning of a unified Celtic empire in the north, one that will sweep away Roman oppression once and for all?
