One of the little pleasures I get from the use of the TROM Mod is that the low trajectory of the guns makes their placement on the battlefield a challenge in itself. Poorly, placed artillery becomes useless using TROM, whilst well placed artillery is literally a battle winner.
Consequently, during the deployment stage of every battle it is the placement of the guns that takes up most of my time and which in turn dictates the placement of my infantry, and the infantry the placement of my cavalry.
In order to place the guns for maximum effect it is necessary quite literally to get down the their level. I lower the camera and to the lowerest angle I can get and peer out across the battlefield from any location which looks remotely suitable.
What I am looking for is something quite specific and also quite rare - The perfect battery position.
The perfect battery position is quite explicit, but quite difficult to find as it has a number of demanding criteria. In its most simplistic form it would be nothing more than a 'billard table', a completely flat and unobstructed piece of ground, but battlefields are rarely that accommodating.
So, what I am looking for is a relatively level stretch of ground, or at worse a stretch of ground which falls away gently in front of the battery with no obvious large obstructions (like woods/walls/houses) close to the gun line. Why I need to get down to eye level to check the likely candidates is that often the details of the ground are difficult to see from a high angle, what i am looking for are imperceptible rises and hillocks just in front of the gun line.
What must be avoided at all costs is the placing of your guns on ground which slopes or rises in front of its position. If you do this then either the batteries fire will bury itself into the slope and not reach the enemy, or it will richocet at a high angle and simply pass over their heads. The only way of being sure of this is to get down level with the battery and look, if you have a clear line of sight then so does the battery.
Of lesser, but still important significance is the placing of batteries on ground which falls away steeply before it. The guns of this period have every limited abilities to depress their barrells, and if the ground before them slopes too steeply away they simply will not be able to engage the enemy advancing on them and one ends up with an area of 'dead ground' in front of the battery where the enemy can gather and perhaps even engage to guns. This is actually a bigger problem in ETW than in real life simply because of the way CA has modelled cannister fire. In real life cannister expanded from the muzzle of the gun in a cone, which mean't that troops on a slope would still be hit by the balls which would otherwise have hit the ground close to the gun. But CA modelled cannister using the same trajectory as a ball and so it flies from the barrell in a low arc and then lands in an area fire effect around the target. Consequently, in ETW cannister can and does fly over the heads of troops deployed in dead ground and so its important not to place your guns at the top of steep slopes, or cliffs.
Finally, one needs to consider the area of effect that a battery in the position being assessed can impose.
Can it reach the key target area's you may want it to engage? (e.g. those pesky buildings the AI loves to garrison)
Is its line of sight, and thus fire, blocked by hills, woods, buildings in the middle distance, behind which the enemy might shelter?
Can your batteries support each other, preferably with enfilading fire?
Will the planned movements of your own troops mask the batteries fire?
Only once my batteries are placed, do I begin to think about the placement of my infantry, and their positions are not so much dictated by the terrain as they are by the locations of the batteries. Some will be placed to provide close support to the guns, whilst others will be deliberately placed so that they can operate against the enemy without masking the batteries fire.
[A Swedish battery engages a Polish infantry brigade from a good battery position, note how the Swedish Infantry have refused their left flank to avoid masking the batteries fire.]
Once the infantry are in place the final troops to be deployed are the cavalry. These are placed to protect the flanks and gaps in the infantry line, but with the special requirement that whenever possible the area to their front (over which they are expected to charge) is free of obstructions.
Only once as many of these criteria as possible have been met do I press the 'Start' button.
My deployment process (step by Step)
1. Initial Deployment
The initial position of the Swedish Army showing the large sparsely wooded hill which is obscuring the field of fire. This hill is a major problem and must be avoided if my artillery are to be able to contribute fully to the forthcoming battle and so an alternative starting position must be found.
2. The Left Flank
The situation on the left does not provide much more benefit. The wooded ridge extends almost to the edge of the deployment zone and even beyond that point the ground is sloping upwards which will reduce the effect of my artillery fire.
3. The Right Flank
The right flank offers more potential. The wooded hill has receded and the low ridge offers a commanding view over a relatively uncluttered valley.
4. Initial Battery Positions.
Initially battery positions are selected as close to the crest of the ridge as the start lines will allow, and with the two batteries seperated so that they can provide each other with fire support whilst not being overrun by a single assault unit.
5. The Right Hand Battery.
The view from the right hand battery is then checked in more detail to ensure its acceptable. Note, that whilst it has a clear line of sight to the enemy deployment zone opposite, the position is not ideal, there is substantial 'dead ground' to the batteries front. Ideally I would have liked to move the battery further forward onto the lip of the forward slope to eliminate this area but the start line prevents is and as the battery is 'fixed' I shall just have to live with any problems that arise.
6. The Left Hand Battery.
The left hand battery has a similar problem though not quite as pronounced as the ridge is not as high at this point and the battery is close to the ridhe line. Nevertheless, I decided to move this battery even further to the left so that it had an even clearly view and less 'dead ground' to deal with.
7. Left Hand Battery Relocation
The revised location of the left hand battery, now to the left of tree and only just on the foot of the slope up the side of the ridge. The lower slope and giving the battery a better field of fire.
8. View from the new battery position.
As you can see the field of fire from this battery is now virtually perfect with only the slightest element of 'dead ground' to its right front and an almost unobstructed line of fire to its left front. The only slight obstical being the fence which in ETW does block some shot.
9. The infantry are dropped into position.
The infantry are now dropped into position as a battle line extending the full length of the ridge behind the gun positions. The three battalions on the extreme left will form any manoeuvring division as they are not required to support the guns.
10. The Right Flank Cavalry.
The cavalry on the right flank are placed behind the infantry line as they could not be properly located due to the restrictions of the deployment box. As soon as the battle starts they will be moved to the area indicated so that they have clear ground to their front and will be able to threaten the flanks of any infantry attacking the right flank of the ridge.
11. The Left Flank Cavalry
The left flank cavalry, again not a very good position at the moment. The open ground to its front is obstructed by its own infantry and by the wooded enclosure to its left front but it can advance into the open ground and reform if needed. Much will depend on where the enemy appear.
12. Left Flank Refused.
The enemy have chosen to deploy on the high ground in their centre and so their main strength threaten my left. To counter this I have withdrawn the three left-hand battalions into a refused position. This move has also given the left-hand battery a much wider field of fire to their left.
12. Revised Cavalry Position.
The left flank cavalry have also been withdrawn to conform to the infantry movement and no have much more room to manoeuvre, either to attack any enemy attempting to debouch from the wooded enclosure or to move against the flanks of any troops attacking the infantry.
13. The Enemy Advance.
The battle lines having been drawn the enemy now begin their initial advance on my left with four battalions in two lines. Both batteries open fire.