A discussion group I found did indeed say it was similar to King of Dragon Pass. I've never played that, so I couldn't say.

Anyway, I just "liberated" a copy of Vikingbyen 2, and it was pretty much as I remember it... I thought maybe I'd do decently at the game now that I'm no longer a kid and stupid, but no.

-The game starts in autumn 852 AD, not at an unspecified time as I said.
-The very first thing that happens is that you have to make a decision with three choices - two of which will lead to an instant game over. Good design there. To be fair, while the wrong options vary, the correct option is always the same.
-Trading is stupidly broken. There are six trade goods, and all chieftains need something and have a surplus of something else. Now, if you can offer them a single thing of anything they need, you can take absolutely all their surplus goods. So I come home from market with more of everything than we had when we left, but the villagers are still not happy with my trading skills.
-The game has a streak of Oregon Trail, in that it will randomly fuck you over, and there is nothing you can do about it. Harvest failed! Half your men and all your animals die!
-In summer of year three, for reasons unknown to me, everyone suddenly died. I assume it was a tantrum spiral initiated by someone losing their cat to a rampaging skeletal elephant. I was promptly sacked as chieftain (although I'm not sure by whom).

It's probably a subtle consequence of eurocentrism. In that period the "interesting" stuff revolves around Islam, Byzantium and Mongols. Sure it was the birth of modern Europe, but births are messy...

At the Gates is coming though... not sure how much fantasy that will have...

There's Darklands
yes it does has some fantasy elements such as obscure satanic cults and demons but those are very very scarce in the game and most of the time you're dealing with actual medieval stuff like bandits, robber barons and such + it's set in the real central europe.

I see what you did there. :D

The Viking invasion Medieval:Total War expansion is set in the late part of that timeframe. Total War: Attila and the Rome:Total War: Barbarian Invasion expansion are set in the early part of that timeframe. However, there is still nothing between about 476 AD to 793 AD though and also nothing from 300-363 AD.

Total War series.

It's not released yet, but http://www.atthegatesgame.com/ is from that time.

Vikings: The Strategy of Ultimate Conquest is something like that.

You guys are forgetting the most obvious one - Dark Ages. Granted, it definitely fits into the fantasy category, but if Chrono Trigger is okay, I suppose this is too...

Nifty! I don't remember it terribly well, but I do recall that it had a fair historical bent and included a mix of religious beliefs of the time. My brother and I enjoyed it, certainly. Pity it isn't as attractive as Conquests of the Longbow, though!

Check out the mod called Brytenwalda for Mount & Blade Warband.
http://www.moddb.com/mods/brytenwalda.

NEVER MIND, I just found out you already know about this mod.

Centurion: Defender of Rome.
I quote Wikipedia, "The game begins in Ancient Rome in the year 275 BC, placing the player in the sandals of a centurion in the Roman army, at first leading a single legion. The player's ultimate goal is to become a Caesar through a mix of successful military conquests and internal politics of "Bread and Circuses."

I remember playing this through way back in the amiga-era, it was a pretty good experience.

https://www.mobygames.com/game/centurion-defender-of-rome

There's another Rome-titled game Rome: Pathway to power. Never played that one. It's said to be in Ancient Rome.

https://www.mobygames.com/game/rome-pathway-to-power

When does Battle Realms take place?

Trade Empires has many scenarios in that time period. You always get historical context and trade goods of the time/countries. I think it creates a pretty good atmosphere.

WIthout fantasy? I guess that rules out Darklands.

Try Caesar 3 and Pharaoh.

A bit out of range:
Genghis Khan II — Clan of the Grey Wolf (around 1100AD).

A bit further out of range:
Machiavelli the Prince (14th century).