Facing Cavalry with Modern Armies

[♔Noif de Bodemloze♔]

I keep finding this frustrating to face cavalry without my old bayonets and square formation. How do you guys combat cavalry?

I've been attempting to use some spear units or other cavalry to engage the cavalry, but generally it is too late or I lose these units, not to mention I'm trying to build full-modern armies and samurai in these armies next to European-style troops looks strange.

Levy men stand behind your Line Infantry > Deadly combinate against Cavalry easily

[Civilopedian]

My question is how to counter the obvious counter to spears.

What I mean is, the enemy can use cav to charge at your front line and you have to retreat and bring the spears forward, so the enemy counter is to simply back off. But at the same time he is bringing the rest of his army forward, and in a way has executed a successful harrass by disorganising your lines. So how do you stop him doing that?

[windsupernova]

I usually use my own cav to deal with enemy cav. No need for Spears

[BubbaLou]

I usually use my own cav to deal with enemy cav. No need for Spears

There's truth in this - Yari Ki will stomp any cav not named Yari Ki in a melee.

[Elitewolf]

Use the bayonet mod!

[Ceorl84]

Other posters have suggested this, but I'll repeat them since its so effective. Just have another rifle/musket unit behind/nearby the unit being attacked. Force fire into the horses if the 2nd unit isn't doing it automatically. Sure you'll take charge damage but 1/3 dead verus an entire unit shattered is a price I'll easily pay.

This has been my counter since Empire and works just fine. I believe the horse unit has a greater height, making them easy to gun down even when engaged in a melee with another of your units.

[Elitewolf]

Other posters have suggested this, but I'll repeat them since its so effective. Just have another rifle/musket unit behind/nearby the unit being attacked. Force fire into the horses if the 2nd unit isn't doing it automatically. Sure you'll take charge damage but 1/3 dead verus an entire unit shattered is a price I'll easily pay.

This has been my counter since Empire and works just fine. I believe the horse unit has a greater height, making them easy to gun down even when engaged in a melee with another of your units.

Yup, plus since a patch a while ago units will try to avoid friendly fire (IE when there's a unit in melee and a second one firing into the melee, only those who actually have a chance to hit something will shoot. Friendly fire still happens, but not as much as before that patch since there's no longer the pointlessly trying to shoot through ten of your own men)

It's also reasonably effective against melee infantry. It is a lot more dangerous though, and your soldiers are very prone to routing if they are tied up in melee, outmatched AND getting shot in the back by friendlies. still, katana kachi and cavalry WILL ruin your day, so I usually try to shoot them at any price

[Lokgar]

Stick your rifles on a hill (not the top just enough so your spears are below them on the incline). Then your rifles can shoot over head, cannons at the top of the hill will pound the AI as he does his stupid walk of death and the spears out in front will deter any melee / cav. Also have 1 or 2 rifle troops facing away from where the enemy is coming from and focused on the sides so wehn the flank comes it gets owned.

[CTD_or_Bust]

DarthMod has both square formation and bayonets.

Why aren't you using DarthMod?

[IGdood]

Use the bayonet mod!

Sorry my mod only creates a cosmetic change.

[♘Top Hat Zebra]

Sorry my mod only creates a cosmetic change.

Wha.... Really?

[Lazarus]

My question is how to counter the obvious counter to spears.

What I mean is, the enemy can use cav to charge at your front line and you have to retreat and bring the spears forward, so the enemy counter is to simply back off. But at the same time he is bringing the rest of his army forward, and in a way has executed a successful harrass by disorganising your lines. So how do you stop him doing that?

This one is an easy one. Consider this.

Your line is 3 ranks deep, and only the first rank fires. That means that you can have Yari Kachi standing so close they are actually mixing in with the rear 2 ranks (SUPER close support).

If you retreat your riflemen and charge your spearmen at the same time, you only need a couple of seconds before the spear charge will completely block the incoming cavalry. This in mind, you just wait and wait and wait, and cut it extremely close. You wait for the cavalry to get so close that they are committed to the charge. If they turn around, just turn your rifles back at them and shoot them in the back.

As for the bayonet thing, yeah. It's purely cosmetic. If you want the bayonet effect you have to give the soldiers "bonus vs cavalry"

[Sir Bum]

Kyoto police. They're the Yari Ashigaru of FotS. It's also possible to manually form a cav square. It is formed as such: Line infantry (preferably 4 or more) in a square formation, all facing outward, reinforced with melee infantry (preferably Kyoto police). Disperse other Infantry units and the general amongst the square as needed. Be warned: This makes you a brilliant target for Artillery, choose your time and terrain wisely. You may catch some abuse for using a "noob square", I doubt the abusers have played ETW or NTW.

[Ecthelion]

I'm surpised so many of you haven't tried the obvious solution of using revolver cavalry.

Once the cavalry engage your infantry in melee, run the revolvers right behind the melee, literally within 2-3 meters of the enemy cavalry. You can even hold fire till you get there and then open fire at that range.

At point blank range, revolvers are pure murder. The enemy cavalry flees in a few vollies usually. You can use this for any gun unit really. I use this tactic in siege battles as defender (in siege I use infantry as the shooting unit, not revolved cavalry) and the results are devastating.

[DarthShizNit]

Don't even wait for them to make contact before moving revolver cav up. Put them right behind the infantry, have both hold fire till their cav is in range and the BAM MOTHER ER!!! Anything that is still alive will instantly rout once they hit your line and a second volley from the Revolvers may very well kill the entire unit

[Ecthelion]

Yeah, indeed, if you know there will be melee contact then you ride them up in advance.

Also the additional benefit of using revolver cavalry is that they have less friendly fire than an infantry unit doing the same thing.

The absolute devastation of close range firepower in this game makes high tier melee units useless except in defending for sieges.

[IGdood]

Wha.... Really?

I did say so in my thread. XD

[♘Top Hat Zebra]

I did say so in my thread. XD

Yeah, I found that out.


Might have to mod that in myself...