Penguin_Factory said:
The Total War games use RTS combat, don't they? I actually tried playing Napoleon and couldn't get past the tutorial battle (I'm *really* not good with RTS combat).
They do. The Total War games are not turn based strategy. There is a TBS overlay mode, but it tends to be fairly rudimentary. The meat is the RTS combat. Notably, Crusader Kings is also technically a RTS.
XCOM, although very different from Civilization, would be an obvious starting point if you were looking for a modern TBS. It also has the military flavor you're looking for.
Galactic Civilizations 2 or Endless Space are relatively solid 4X games, which are also turn based. MOO2 is still the undisputed heavyweight champion of this sub genre, but it is starting to feel its age.
If you enjoy the tactical shooting of a game like XCOM, you might also enjoy Jagged Alliance 2 (also aging), or the original XCOM (extremely aged). Both are classics and amongst the best strategy games ever made. Avoid the modern JA remake, it's dreadful.
As you enjoyed Civilization, you might like Alpha Centauri, which is basically sci-fi Civilization. It's a very good game, but also a little long in the tooth (noticing a trend here yet?)
Heroes of Might and Magic is a solid series, although earlier entries (2 and 3 in particular) are easily the best it had to offer. King's Bounty fuses the turn based combat with an ultra-lite RPG overlay.
Frozen Synapse is a newer game (that looks like an older game) that is technically phased real time but has many of the same game play elements that make TBS appealing.
Games like Panzer General and Fantasy General were "war gaming lite", combining simple, intuitive UI with a fairly stiff challenge to make for a popular series of TBS games back in the day. You can probably find them as abandonware, or for cheap off a site like GOG. As wargames are notoriously ugly anyway, their advanced age doesn't really hold them back too much.
Alas, turn based strategy has been an under-serviced genre the last decade or so, and most of the essential titles are really showing their age. Some like, the original XCOM, are coming up on 20 years old. Fortunately, TBS games tend to age like fine wine. A few might have interface quirks, but most of them maintain the charm and quality that made them popular. JA2, for example, is still eminently playable, and as excellent today as it was at release. Moreso, even, thanks to the fantastic 1.13 mod.
