Ok, so I had figured out a few things this weekend that opened this game back up to me. I was ready to uninstall it and be done with Rome.
My problems entailed the following:
-Not being able to find my saved game files (campaigns)
-Not being able to unlock the unplayable factions

After doing a little poking around the internets, I found a little Q and A site that gave me a revalation.
I wanted to unlock the factions at this particular time but Windows kept telling me I did not have permission to alter the files. Even though I am the only user and Admin on my laptop. So this little Q and A said that Windows does not like people messing around in program files. (for good reason: these contain critical system files that could be detrimental to your cpu if altered/deleted/etc.)
So it dawned on me. I had the game installed in program files (x86). Could it be that; by simply reinstalling the game in it's very own folder on the C:/ drive I could then change the Desc_strat file to my liking.
Behold, I was right!
Now my saved games are right there in the Save folder and I can now play any faction I like!
____________________________________________
In Short
If you have Windows 7 and cannot find your save games or change the Desc_strat file to unlock all factions, simply reinstall the game in its own folder on the hard drive.
Hope this helps.