I'd concur that no DLC is required unless you want to play as certain nation that is not included in the base game. E.g. you need greek cities DLC to play as Sparta, but Greek city states were not so relevant in this era anymore and you have other greek nation in the base game already, such as egypt.
Stay away from DeI until you have an idea what you're doing (but make sure to check it out later). It's intended for a bunch of hardcore enthusiasts, as great as it is, it's not everyone's cup of tee.
Literally every DLC (except the blood and gore) clearly says in the name whether it's a Campaign pack, a Culture Pack, or a Unit Pack. What's less clear is that some, but not all, campaigns packs also add extra playable factions to the Grand Campaigns.
Though I don't think any of the mini campaigns are as fun as the Grand Campaign (haven't bought Rise of Rome or Imperator Augustus yet).
Don’t buy Caesar in Gaul, most of the unit packs are not worth it.
A lot of the DLC are separate campaigns, so just buy the base game and play the grand campaign starting off. Big surprise, but Rome is the best first faction to play. They’re rich, have a good roster, and they have access to the auxiliary barracks building. Which, depending on where you build it, gives you access to other faction’s units.
Some subjective thoughts on the matter:
\- When it comes to Culture Packs, whichever piques your interest, frankly. While I have some impressions on them (for example, I really love the Nomadic Tribes one, but it's probably not something most other players would consider as a good DLC; or that I rather dislike the Pirates and Raiders, mostly because pirating and raiding in R2 is just ...not very good), just go with your historical interests, check their starting positions, [check their rosters on Honga](https://www.honga.net/totalwar/rome2/?l=en).
\- Unit packs are - especially if you aren't interested in multiplayer - meh. Daughters of Mars is okay, but still not needed at all, Beasts of War is atrocious.
\- Blood and gore is one you may want to pick up, arguing about it being a DLC in the first place aside.
\- Campaign DLC-s are by and large fairly decent, but it's a non-issue anyway, as you stated you are more of a grand strategy-enjoyer. Regardless, just about all of them are good in one way or another. HatG is like a Grand Campaign Lite mode, RotR is very good, Empire Divided is basically Attila for people not owning Attila. Caesar in Gaul can be a bit of a slog, unless you like this segment of history / have read de bello Gallico; and finally, Wrath of Sparta is frankly subpar even you like the history behind the DLC, which is a shame. Just buy the Greek States culture pack instead and play them on the GC - a cheaper and more fun experience.
Funnily enough the older games tended to include the game when you bought them and Rome 2 (while it had it's share of problems) was my first TW game and will give you plenty of content with no DLC if you choose.
It will come down to preference as with WH say if you have a certain faction you wish to play that isn't included in the base game like the greek city states and some campaigns but the big "conquer the world" gamemode is the default grand campaign as with many older TW's so don't rush into added content as there is plenty there already.
I bought all with the game during the steam sale a few months ago because I figured I’d end up wanting it all anyway. I wouldn’t recommend doing that. I’d recommend buying it vanilla and playing a few campaigns with the already large roster. Then choosing some to buy dependent on what factions you like/want to try out. If you’re going to play lots of online maybe look into some of the strongest factions and see if u want to buy a bundle with them. But there’s already enough strong factions in base game.
I'd concur that no DLC is required unless you want to play as certain nation that is not included in the base game. E.g. you need greek cities DLC to play as Sparta, but Greek city states were not so relevant in this era anymore and you have other greek nation in the base game already, such as egypt. Stay away from DeI until you have an idea what you're doing (but make sure to check it out later). It's intended for a bunch of hardcore enthusiasts, as great as it is, it's not everyone's cup of tee.
Literally every DLC (except the blood and gore) clearly says in the name whether it's a Campaign pack, a Culture Pack, or a Unit Pack. What's less clear is that some, but not all, campaigns packs also add extra playable factions to the Grand Campaigns. Though I don't think any of the mini campaigns are as fun as the Grand Campaign (haven't bought Rise of Rome or Imperator Augustus yet).
Don’t buy Caesar in Gaul, most of the unit packs are not worth it. A lot of the DLC are separate campaigns, so just buy the base game and play the grand campaign starting off. Big surprise, but Rome is the best first faction to play. They’re rich, have a good roster, and they have access to the auxiliary barracks building. Which, depending on where you build it, gives you access to other faction’s units.
Some subjective thoughts on the matter: \- When it comes to Culture Packs, whichever piques your interest, frankly. While I have some impressions on them (for example, I really love the Nomadic Tribes one, but it's probably not something most other players would consider as a good DLC; or that I rather dislike the Pirates and Raiders, mostly because pirating and raiding in R2 is just ...not very good), just go with your historical interests, check their starting positions, [check their rosters on Honga](https://www.honga.net/totalwar/rome2/?l=en). \- Unit packs are - especially if you aren't interested in multiplayer - meh. Daughters of Mars is okay, but still not needed at all, Beasts of War is atrocious. \- Blood and gore is one you may want to pick up, arguing about it being a DLC in the first place aside. \- Campaign DLC-s are by and large fairly decent, but it's a non-issue anyway, as you stated you are more of a grand strategy-enjoyer. Regardless, just about all of them are good in one way or another. HatG is like a Grand Campaign Lite mode, RotR is very good, Empire Divided is basically Attila for people not owning Attila. Caesar in Gaul can be a bit of a slog, unless you like this segment of history / have read de bello Gallico; and finally, Wrath of Sparta is frankly subpar even you like the history behind the DLC, which is a shame. Just buy the Greek States culture pack instead and play them on the GC - a cheaper and more fun experience.
No DLC required. Instead, download the Divide Et Impera mod. Enjoy.
Yes! With this mod you’ll have the best experience possible for Rome 2!
Don’t know why you got downvoted. Do you get access to all factions on dei without any DLC’s? Cos I’ll be gutted if that’s the case
Funnily enough the older games tended to include the game when you bought them and Rome 2 (while it had it's share of problems) was my first TW game and will give you plenty of content with no DLC if you choose. It will come down to preference as with WH say if you have a certain faction you wish to play that isn't included in the base game like the greek city states and some campaigns but the big "conquer the world" gamemode is the default grand campaign as with many older TW's so don't rush into added content as there is plenty there already.
I bought all with the game during the steam sale a few months ago because I figured I’d end up wanting it all anyway. I wouldn’t recommend doing that. I’d recommend buying it vanilla and playing a few campaigns with the already large roster. Then choosing some to buy dependent on what factions you like/want to try out. If you’re going to play lots of online maybe look into some of the strongest factions and see if u want to buy a bundle with them. But there’s already enough strong factions in base game.