how do you use peltasts?

[s0meguy]

Personally I hate them. They are weak and all the enemy has to do is throw some cavalry at them and... bye-bye peltasts. Not like there is time to use them during battles, since they have a short range and by the time they actually fired they are sent running because the enemy decided to attack them with cavalry or some cheap unit of infantry to send them running. I never use them. Anyway I was wondering if you guys found any good uses for them.

[Prince_of_Macedon]

Personally I hate them. They are weak and all the enemy has to do is throw some cavalry at them and... bye-bye peltasts. Not like there is time to use them during battles, since they have a short range and by the time they actually fired they are sent running because the enemy decided to attack them with cavalry or some cheap unit of infantry to send them running. I never use them. Anyway I was wondering if you guys found any good uses for them.

Well, they're good at killing elephants if you keep them protected by spearmen. But as you pointed out, they have to be awfully close to use their javelins. I'd rather stick with archers who can kill from a long-distance.

Sometimes, I'll post them on my flanks just to extent my line a bit but they're pretty useless in a fight (after they've spent their javelins).

[Oman]

i sometimes, very rarely mind you, use them when rules dictate that you can only have 6 archers. In low money battles, when archer battle are of ultimate importance, sending the pelasts in against enemy archers (if you can get close enough) can tip the battle in your favour. i.e using the pelasts to make the archers run and kill a few with the pelasts. Against a chariot nation, i might take less horses, as they get killed easy, and throw in a few pelasts. They are also not too bad against chariots, so have a double use of helping with archers and having a fighting chance against chariots.

Im confusing myself here, but essentially what im getting at is in a low money battle against a chariot strong nation, the archer war is of utmost importance.ie. once the archer war is won, put your fire arrows on the enemy chariots to try and rout them.
A few, cheap pelasts can help get rid of the archers for you, by hasseling them while they are on skirmish (running away they cant fire on you) or killing some with the pelasts, and possibly assist against those god dam chariots.

As Prince said, if rules were not a factor, id take archers every time as opposed to pelasts.

Hope im making sense, i need sleep.

[guyyug]

They make okay screening troops i find, most people generally leave fire at will on on their archers so they shoot the closest units to them, in this case the peltests protecting my infantry.

If they can get around the flanks and throw a few javalins into the back of an unit they can do quite a bit of damage and against lower quality troops they can flank them.

As oman i've used them against chariots and even stopped chariots once through them so they are cut down.

Most mods make peltests very strong against elephants, vanilla doesn't really have this and it's generally not worth it to take elephants down with them, too this date i've only seen a peltest take down one elephant most in any given elephant unit.

[Oman]

They can work pretty well against eles, the trick is to actually get close enough to actually throw them. If you leave your lines, your pelasts are easy prey to horses and/or archers. If you stay to close to your lines, the eles are in close and a real danger to the other, more valuable troops,which is what you are really trying to avoid at all cost, especially with rome and non spear based nations.
1 v 1 though, agreed, pelasts wont work against ele...thank god i say, a 190 - 300 denari unit taking down a 2800 denari unit by themself would be pretty annoying. When using 2 or 3 units together, they will take out ele fairly quickly, still good value if you can get them to work, 600 - 900 denari, taking down an expensive beast.
In campaign, pelasts may work really well ( i wouldnt know to be honest) as im sure that A1 sends in the ele stupidly, not protected...then you could venture out with your pelasts to attack dumbo.

[Archaon]

in early campaign you are stuck with these as the only ranged unit sometimes so i use them in close behind my infantry so that when i am charged i turn off skirmish so the peltasts don't flee (added bonus if the infantry use pilum) and turn on defense for the infantry. this way you get at least one volley of f,sometimes two, and your infantry are in defensive. i quickly turn off auto fire and move the peltasts to the flank and let loose the last of the ammo and charge the flank. minimum casualties and the enemy unit flees very quickly.

this only works with smaller scale battles and like i said early in the campaign.

[LeonidasOfSparta]

bahh I hate peltasts...I like only Velites.. I think all othe suck..ussueless

[Timmius]

Ever played a mod such as RTR? They're a lot more usefull there since archer do negligible damage from the front. Which is a lot more realistic than vanilla RTW where you could have the enemy down to 50% of his men by the time he reached you.

[Subrosa Florens]

I find peltasts essential in the early game, when they are the only missile troops you can recruit. Once I can I replace them with archers because I prefer their much longer range and vastly greater store of ammo. I am a very strong believer in missile troops. I feel naked without them. In the early game all my armies have peltasts, and in the later game archers.

I use peltasts as a screen in front of my army at the beginning of the battle. Not too far out mind you, they need to be close enough that the heavy infantry can support them.

What I do is look over the enemy for poorly armored units, and have the peltasts concentrate their fire on them. My hope is to weaken those points in the line so that they break when my heavy infantry later comes into contact. If I see the opportunity I will maneuver some or all of the peltasts to the enemy's right flank, where they can get a shot at them from open shields. In sieges where the town has only a wooden wall peltasts are awesome at clearing the streets while the ram does its work.

Often times the peltasts (and other light troops) are charged by enemy cavalry. I do not see this as a danger, but rather an opportunity. As soon as I see the cavalry coming I will run my peltasts back to my heavy infantry. At the same time I counter-charge with my own cavalry. The enemy horse must either break off their attack and withdraw, taking a load of pila in the rear as they do, or if I am lucky they press forward into my heavy infantry and are hit by my own cavalry in the flank at the same time. It is a wonderful way to deprive the enemy of their cavalry in the first moves of the battle.

[Kalos]

I love peltasts. Having them in forests especially is great. I once had an army with 6 units of Illryian (Sp?) Peltasts and 2 Mercenary peltasts. I had a couple units staggered at points well in front of my armies in the woods that sprung up and showered the enemy with javelins as they got close, then retreated and hid again. Then when the enemy got close to my main army, I had 4 or 5 units spring up and get them from all sides, and the first peltasts that rehid I get to have run in behind the enemy while they're engaged and decimate them.

[Gabriel A]

Ever played a mod such as RTR? They're a lot more usefull there since archer do negligible damage from the front. Which is a lot more realistic than vanilla RTW where you could have the enemy down to 50% of his men by the time he reached you.

RTR is all I play.

Against the Greeks (or any other that doesn't use cavalry in great deal) Peltasts/Velites and other javelin light infantry are useful either as a large screening force

I try to have at least 4 brigades of light infantry.

I use them in two ways - In front of my heavy body of infantry to wear down the enemy with javelins, then retreat them to the rear and use them as emergency reserve/flanking troops to chase down archers/routers. (almost like a slower light cavalry).

Secondly, I use them way out on the flanks, hidden if possible, and once the battle is joined I side them on a very wide flanking manuever to get at the enemy soft units. Javelins from the rear are at least 3x as effective as from the front.

[Archer of Sparta]

I also love peltasts. When defending put them right behind your line (infact do this with every archer/javalin unit [lol look at my sig]) and wait for the enemy they can do a lot of damage and even some shock damage if they really get the enemy.

I don't really use them much in attacking.

[Archaon]

@Archer of Sparta, nice sig and defensive.
if my units have pila i tend to stay away from peltast types and make use of archers or slingers instead but always in the early game peltast types are a must.

[Lucius Vorenus]

They definitely come in handy. They're really cheap, too. When I was playing a friend a while back, he was Carthage, I was Seleucid. He had a stacked, but small, army. I think it was 2 Armored Eles, 1 sacred band Cav, 2 sacred band inf, 1 libyan spearman. I think that was it. Anyway, I had 1 armored ele, 2 companions, 2 scythe chariots, 4 phalanx pikes and EIGHT skirmishers. The starting move I made was move my elephant out in front of his infantry line, since he had no missile fire to stop my elephants. Then he brought his two elephants out, I peppered them with javs, sent my pikes in right behind, and his eles went running. A lot of it was the javelins, since the pikes barely made it. Then the rest of my army chewed his up, but he might have won if I didn't beat all his elephants with the skirms, and rather took Archers to pepper his infantry.

[Incontinenta Buttox]

I love peltasts/velites. especially when I am outnumbered and defending. I line them up just behind my hastati/principes. Make sure the peltasts and the hastati/pricipes are on "fire at will". The incoming enemy gets hit by a hail of javelins and usually routs soon after entering melee. I keep chucking the spears aven after melee is joined. I don't mind a few casualties to "friendly fire".

[Roy Batty]

My primary use for Peltasts and Velites is as a screen for my infantry line in an attack. As my line marches forward, the skirmishers march in front and take the incoming missile fire (if any) from the defending army and dish out a little bit of their own. After their ammunition is spent or (more likely) the enemy charges them, I have them fall back while my own infantry charges forward.

Their final use is as a mop-up unit. Skirmishers run faster than most heavy and light infantry units and so can be used to chase them down. This gets them a lot of kills and experience, and diminishes the number of enemies you would potentially have to fight in the next battle.

As others have stated, they are quite effective against chariots and elephants as well.

[Archer of Sparta]

If you ever get EB ALWAYS get javalin men they are the soul of EB :p. Especially against eles.

[Severous]

Hi

RTW V1.5 Campaign play vh/vh Huge unit scale

Peltasts and velite types dont get recruited from my cities if there are archers available. Plus I need to be really short of missile troops before I touch them.

I have a lot of Peltast types in my army though. Mercenary hires.

Cheap and widely available they are often hired by a rapidly advancing all cavalry force. The mercenary hires join the town assaults. They rush spy opened gates or use ladders/towers. They make good wall top runners.

Once mercenary peltasts get behind the front line on the campaign map they are less efficient than peasants as garrisons. So they get disbanded in towns that need the extra population to reach the next level.

Peltast mercenary hire and disband is a more cost effective way to grow small town populations than low tax.

[Gabriel A]

As mentioned by everyone they are of course great because they are so cheap to field and maintain.

Fantastic way to utilize your population if you have large cities and people to spare, pump out cheap skirmishers. If playing a smaller nation I usually will only hire them as mercenaries and use my population for better armored (more survivable) units.

Great way to save on depleting your legions abroad as well. Maybe no in Vanilla where you can recruit legions everywhere, but in RTR for instance those Principes in Asia will be precious for a time, hiring lots of mercenary light infantry helps screen them and saves them for the real action.

[LuciusCato]

Never really use them, i tend to use archers or slingers. if i have any i put them "under" my phalanx units pikes in long lines mainly as a buffer but also to pick off the odd unit now and again. or i use them on the flanks.