Tips on who to play

Macedonia has a start with varying difficulty and a mission tree iirc

Anshan/Parsumash - they are sorta small Persian vassal tribes under Media and have mission trees, specifically a mission tree about founding Achaemenid Persia. They are pretty difficult, being vassal under a powerful country, with bad economy and very strong enemies such as Elamite high king based in Susun(they have a vassal-swarm), Babylonia, Media, and eventually Assyria and Egypt.

they also have huge swathes of land to conquer - in the center - all of modern day Iran and more, Elamite countries. in the east: modern day central Asia, Pakistan, Afghanistan and more. In the west - all of middle east, Caucasus, Greece, so their game will be very long.

Still though I can’t recommend it - it takes too much luck, is very tedious sometimes, the economy won’t be good until Elamite countries ar fully conquered and Persian gulf trade node fully occupied, much of the land in the east and Persia are mountains, desert and other bad things.

In terms of the campaign it is instrumental that Media doesn’t reduce your autonomy- you want to make a lot of alliances with tribes east of you, i got roughly 8, so you want to switch to Zoroastrianism and set the attitude to Media to hostile. Assyria also needs to win the war against Media and Babylonia. As far as i have seen the war has three outcomes: 1.Medo-Babylonian coalition wins the war and the country is divided between them. This happens if Assyria loses all of its land if i am correct. 2.Assyria manages to gain an alliance with Egypt using an event and they win together- Assyria keeps all of Mesopotamia but loses everything west of it, although keeps the provinces as cores. 3 Assyria wins alone and keeps everything while getting alot of bonuses. 2 and 1 outcome are most probable and will happen the most - you want to get ending 2. You can help Assyrians by doing somethings - mothballing all the forts that Allies give you, don’t engage them in combat and just keep army in your country with no maintenance. War will still be close - Assyria will usually get succession crisis or civil war.

After the war improve relations with Assyria and ask them support in an independence war. After you get it, just declare independence and win the war. In peace deal take all of Anshan/Parsumash and leftover ducats. Using the missions form Persia which will give claims on southern and eastern Iran. Attack them, annex and take all of the ducats.

At this point you should have a lot of ducats, so build forum, fire temple and a road in Parsa-garda and with missions move the capital to it.

I the next wars whittle down Media and take full warscore, but don’t take sagartia and Parthia. After Media annexes them and few other countries they will get over 300 pop and you will get invasion cb to take all of their land, so do it. Try to whittle down elam - attack non-elamite countries who have alliances with non highking of Elam and take their country and ducats. After fall of Media, centralize your rule over Media and complete eastern expansion. With Assyria use invasion cb on Babylonia and take their land, finally then invade Elam by attacking Susun. Then just follow the focus tree

Well Judah is really difficult in the beginning plus it also has a mission tree.

You can try rome and build its glory orrrrrrr create A trade empire as carthage, you can also Play as one french celts and form celtia (although it sadly doesnt have A custom mission tree) or if want you try out one of chinese nation but these are sometimes buggy and dont have custom mission tree

All countries with missions (from the discord bot):

-Anatolian: Anatolian culture group OR Pontic primary culture

-Armenian: Urartu OR Armenia

-Assyria

-Athens

-Avanti: Indian culture group, capital in Saurashtra/Avantirattha/Konkana regions

-Babylon

-Carthage

-Egypt

-Elamite: Elamite culture group

-Epirote: Epirus OR Thesprotians OR Molossians OR Chaonians

-Gandhara: Indian culture group, capital in Sindhu/Saptah Sindhavah regions

-Greek: Hellenic culture group, capital in Macedonia/Greek/Mare Aegaeum Islands/Ionia regions

-Jewish: Judea OR Israel

-Kalinga: Indian culture group, capital in Kalinga region

-Macedonia

-Magadha: Indian culture group, capital in Madhyadesa/Kamarupa regions

-Media

-Panchala: Indian culture group, capital in Kururattha regions

-Parthia

-Persis: Persia OR Persis OR Anshan

-Philistia

-Phoenicia: (future)

-Roman: Rome OR Roman Empire

-Sparta

-Vanga: Indian culture group, capital in Vanga region

I hope this is helpful.