Accounts of this week's Creative Assembly mod summit have been hitting Total War community forums, with word of Steam Workshop support for Total War: Shogun 2 and plans for an upgraded set of CA-developed mod tools that will let modders tweak campaign and model files.

The creator of The Great War mod, "Mitch," posted a detailed account of the meeting, in which some of the most prolific Total War modders in the world got to meet top CA talent like Shogun 2 lead designer Jamie Ferguson. According to Mitch, the presentation revealed that "there will be Steam Workshop intergration" for Shogun 2. "People will be able to create and upload their own historical battles and have others download them."

There's also mention of new model conversion software and a "campaign reprocessor" that will let tweakers "edit the most desired areas of modding, the campaign and the models."

You can read the full account of the day at the TWCenter forums. The Creative Assembly kickstarted their program to support modders earlier this year with the release of the free Shogun 2 map editor.

Ouch! I've never seen someone get crushed with the head of a massive statue before, but this is WAR. The new Rome 2 trailer shows the first in-engine footage of the siege of Carthage. Legions of troops pour onto the beaches, wash into the streets and break against the grey, craggy fury of an elephant charge. It's a short teaser for a longer fly-through video of the siege that The Creative Assembly are keeping locked safely away in their trailer Trireme, but it offers a heady glimpse of the updated engine. Don't let me keep you. The video is right here ready to go.

Nick "Darth Vader" Thomadis has announced that there won't be any more follow ups to the popular Darthmod series of mods for Total War after receiving no invite to The Creative Assembly's upcoming modders' summit. "There will be some support for older games, if needed, as all my mods are complete now but there will be not a new DarthMod for new Total War games and of course not for the upcoming RTW2," said Thomadis on Facebook.

"Do not worry about the future of the current DarthMods. They will stay and will be probably somewhat more improved. Maybe now I will have more time to play them."

The Empire, Napoleon and Shogun 2 versions of Darthmod offer some of the most comprehensive player-made updates to Total War games in recent years. They've gained a reputation for being ruthless, difficult and beautiful. Dozens of collaborators have updated each edition with layers of audio, visual and AI updates, making Darthmod a go-to choice for players looking for extra challenge from Total War. Thomadis mentions that Darthmod for Shogun 2 has amassed quarter of a million downloads since its release in March.

If you fancy trying Darthmod out, Moddb has the latest versions of the Darthmod updates for Shogun 2, Empire: Total War and Napoleon.

If you don't have an iOS device, you may not have heard of The Creative Assembly's mobile take on Total War. How on Earth do you fit the scale and spectacle of a Total War campaign onto a smartphone? Well, you can't, so Total War Battles tries to offer an entirely different take. It merges building and combat onto battlefields overlaid by grids of hexes. You can channel your troops down lanes drawn across the map and harvest resources with structures placed nearby. It's designed to be quick and easy to jump into, two qualities that Total War titles have traditionally lacked.

Sega's blurb boasts a ten hour campaign with bonus challenge missions. The visuals have been spruced up for the big screen and the PC version will come with bonus concept art showing off TWB's loud, colourful style.

Total War Battles is available now on Steam for $7.99 / £4.99 / EUR 9.99. Find out more on the Total War Battles site, and get a feel for how it plays in this here trailer:

Shakespeare knew what he was doing, which is why, when he penned the first lines of Mark Antony's most famous speech from Julius Ceaser, he didn't write "friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your eyeballs," which leaves it to me to make that demand. Come on now, your eyeballs, please. All of them.

I'll use them well, I promise. Let me just gather them all up in arms, like so, and saunter into the depths of this post, where four new screenshots for the tremendously exciting Total War: Rome 2 await, showing a bit of close combat and some epic snapshots of the Battle of Carthage.

For more on Rome 2, here are our video interviews with Creative Assembly with details on Rome 2's battles and campaign game, and here's lead designer James Russell on ancient warfare, modding, DLC and the importance of building community. You may also want to check out the live action announcement trailer, which sets the scene quite nicely, except hang on a minute, let me give you these eyeballs back.

If you reckon there simply aren't enough spiked war clubs in Total War: Shogun 2, the Saints and Heroes DLC pack might be for you. It adds nine new elite units including Tadakatsu's Tetsubo warriors, owners of said spiked clubs, the mounted Spears of Shizugatake, a bold new form of cavalry, and elite ninja warriors, Hanzo's Shadows. They're masterful murderers, and pretty good at climbing walls, too. Take a closer look in the DLC announcement trailer and screenshots below.

The DLC is available now for £1.99 / $3.25 through Steam. Here's the list of new units contained in the DLC.

Kiyomasa’s Katana Cavalry
Katana cavalry hero
These heavily-armoured cavalry wield their blades with a brutal expertise.
Excellent in melee
Slower than other cavalry
Excellent morale
Vulnerable to Yari, Naginata and Matchlock

Yoritomo’s Yabusame Cavalry
Bow cavalry hero
Precise and quick, these men can snipe at enemies, and hold their own if cornered.
Fast moving
Can move and fire
Excellent accuracy and range
Excellent morale
Weak against massed foot missile-units
Average in melee

The Spears of Shizugatake
Yari cavalry hero
Masters of the spear, these expert horsemen boast a devastating charge, and resolute morale in the face of counter-attack.
Fast and very powerful charge
Excellent against other cavalry
Excellent morale
Vulnerable to Yari and Naginata

Benkei’s Blades
Naginata Hero
The long-bladed Naginata is effective against all-comers – doubly so in the hands of an expert.
Versatile: very good against cavalry and other infantry
Excellent armour high resistance to arrows
Excellent morale
Weak against Matchlock

Gozen’s Hime Heroines
Naginata Heroine
In the hands of a great heroine, the Naginata becomes a graceful whirl of steel and bloody death.
Versatile: very good against cavalry and other infantry
Excellent armour high resistance to arrows
Excellent morale
Weak against Matchlock

Tokitaka’s Tanegashima
Matchlock Hero
Armed with a beautifully crafted rifle, these heroes put their marksmanship to deadly use.
Good range
Devastating damage
Very good accuracy and reload
Excellent morale
Vulnerable to cavalry
Good in melee against infantry

Seigen’s Swordmasters
Nodachi Hero
Carrying the fearsome two-handed Nodachi, these heroes strike terror into the hearts of those they charge.
Devastating charge
Excellent morale
Average in prolonged melee
Vulnerable to cavalry and missiles

Tadakatsu’s Tetsubo Warriors
Tetsubo Hero
As strong as Oni, these mighty warriors are masters of the brutal Tetsubo, or war club.
Excellent in melee
Excellent morale
Vulnerable to missiles and massed enemy units

Hanzo’s Shadows
Ninja Hero
Masters of stealth, Ninja heroes are the ultimate dealers of swift and silent death.
Excellent at hiding
Can climb walls very fast
Devastating ranged attack
Very limited ammunition