The Turks (faction colour light green) are a Muslim faction representing the Seljuk and Ottoman Turks. The Spanish also have good siege weapons. Their special crusade unit are the Knights of Santiago. The Spanish are also the faction who launches the most crusades. They have access to high quality cavalry units, such as javelin-armed jinetes and lancers, which are among the most powerful assault cavalry in the game. The Castilian Spanish (faction colour bright yellow) are a Catholic faction. Their royal unit, the Boyars, are one of only two royal units in the game that are mounted and armed with both bows and swords. This represents the historical decline of the Kievan Rus', centred on Novgorod, after the fall of Constantinople to the Fourth Crusade (which marks the start of the High period), and the rise to dominance of the Russian people of the north and northeast of that realm. The Orthodox Russians (faction colour light blue) only become available in the High and Late periods, developing from the non-playable people of Novgorod in the Early game. Polish Retainers are on a par with Feudal Knights, and have much lower building requirements, but they are unavailable in the Early era if the game has been patched to v1.1 or later. The Polish (faction colour maroon) are a Catholic faction. The Italians are one of the easier factions to play. Their special crusade unit are the Knights Hospitaler. They have access to Gothic Knights (which they share with the Holy Roman Empire), as well as early access to high quality Italian spearmen. The Italians (faction colour dark green) are a Catholic faction representing the city states of northern Italy, such as Venice and Genoa. Their special crusade units are the Teutonic Knights. However, local lords have little loyalty to the Emperor, so civil war is more likely. Unlike the other faction leaders, the Holy Roman Emperor is elected, which can be useful - usually the death of an heir-less leader spells disaster, but the Germans simply elect a new one. They have access to some unique and special units, including the supremely heavy Gothic Knights (which they share with the Italians). The Germans (faction colour black), who represent the Holy Roman Empire, are a large Catholic faction. All their unit types are shared with at least one other faction, however several French provinces have rich farmland and give a bonus to particular unit types trained there, such as Chivalric Knights and crossbowmen. The French (faction colour blue) are a Catholic faction. Their special crusade unit are the Knights Templar which they share with the French. The game begins in 1087, marking the death of England's Norman king William the Conqueror.

The English (faction colour red) are a Catholic faction with good provinces, the advantage of an island heartland, as well as continental strongholds and two unique unit types ( longbowmen and billmen), as well as sharing hobilars (early light cavalry) with the French, giving a small image of medieval English army. Egypt can marshal some unique Mamluk and other desert-dwelling units, giving them an advantage when fighting in the Middle East and North Africa. The Egyptians (faction colour dark yellow) are a Muslim faction, representing the Fatimid and successive dynasties in Egypt and other Near Eastern provinces that number among the wealthiest and most profitable lands on the MTW map. While they are in a rather weak standing early on they have the ability to become strong further in the game, with expansion in northern Germany.

They are well suited for an early trading strategy (thanks to their unique Viking longboat units), while aided in battle by their unique Viking infantry units.

The Danes (faction colour white) are a Catholic faction. Several of these unique units, such as Kataphraktoi, Trebizond Archers, and Varangian Guard, give this faction a significant advantage early on, but as time advances to the High and Late periods these units become increasingly outdated, with some units becoming unavailable. The Byzantines have a greater number of unique units available to them than any other faction except the Turks. Events in Byzantine history are also used to divide the periods covered in the game: the historical sack of Constantinople by the Venetians during the Fourth Crusade marks the end of the Early period in 1204, and the fall of the same city to the Ottoman Turks in 1453 marks the end of the game. The Byzantines (faction colour purple) are the major Orthodox faction. They have strong units early, and have access to Berber Camels and Almohad Urban Militia, which are useful in combating horse cavalry. The Almohads (faction colour orange) are the Berbers of Iberia and North Africa, one of the three Muslim major factions in Medieval.

Medieval total war 1