Mighty Duck Formation

[Kahn]

Does anyone actually use the triangle formation with calvary?

What is the point? I suppose it's used to drive into a line of infantry, but what is the point? I've tried this before and they just get sucked into doing battle with the line they just charged into, they don't bust through to attack the soft archer meats on the other side.

[Smileyforall220]

Ive always used the normal formation in TW, but thats just because the unit pathfinding is terrible! Ill charge a group of units with my units and sometimes only part of my first line fights while the others just sit there....

[Zeno of Citum]

Its really good if you don't charge into anyone. Just run between the enemy formations and they won't catch you as easy as they would otherwise...and I mean between not into any enemy.
Just good for messing with the enemy and their formations perhaps, I guess.

I don't know what else it would be usefull for...

[Evolution]

It causes confusion and makes that unit route.

And you need hockey sticks.

[Kahn]

...And you need hockey sticks.

+rep x 1million.


But seriously, nobody can give me a solid answer on this one. Nobody finds it strange that they gave us a totally useless formation? Hell, they even make it their "special ability" and try to pass it off as a unit selling point.

What gives?

[Zeeky_Bomb]

It actually lets each individual cavalryman trample more units before stopping - but, because of how the cavalry don't come in all at once, it's only useful for flanking/rear attacks.

[kaleus Khron]

I use it for the shitrolom formation that spearmen use. Only need two or three charges and losses are small.

[Kahn]

I'm sure that guy in the front of the Mighty Duck formation charging into a shitrolom won't consider the losses "small".

But I do see your ... point.

GET IT?!@#!

[ETG]

I use it when fighting in cities on narrow streets.

And when flanking.

[Captain Spanky]

The thing with the triangle formation, as far as I can see, is that it lets you go deeper into the enemy line, which is handy for engaging in a protracted melee. If you want to charge, pull back, then charge again, its kinda messy in triangle formation, because the front horses can get bogged down as they pull back.

If you want to use cavalry as a hammer, slam the enemy with a charge, pull out then hit em again, normal formation is far better. Plus, the normal formation allows you to hit the entire unit head on, which stops the enemy enveloping the almost always outnumbered cavalry.

[Vaxholm]

There has only been one time that I've found the triangle formation to be useful, and that was when fighting Genoese Crossbowmen. You know, the ones with really good defense. For some reason, if I charged them in regular formation, I would take a lot of losses. However, if I charged the center of their line with the triangle, it sort of split them down them middle and I was able to tear them apart. I don't know why this worked with crossbowmen and no other unit, but it did.

[Kahn]

I guess one thing it might be good for is to avoid:

How you set your calvary up to flank attack an infantry line and as they charge in (forming a 'T' with the enemy line because your calvary is a line as well) your calvary wraps around the infantry line and becomes entangled in combat, making it impossible to pull out with severe "withdrawal casualties"

If you've got the mighty duck formation going, only a few knights will hit, penetrate a little deeper than they might otherwise, and then be able to withdraw with more ease/safety. Might make fewer kills, but will preserve more knights for a faster and more powerful secind charge.


Eh?
Anyone?
Ya think?

[Mythre]

Possibly... but you can make your reg formations hit harder and get out easily if you don't make them as wide... so it might work but i think there are better ways of doing it.:hmmm:

[nosjo78]

Maybe for in town fighting. Narrow streets? I have used it before to force my cavalry out of the gate when their is 1 stack or so left at the gate and I need to have my cavalry out there to run down the routers. It seems like they penetrate a little deeper in the v formation.

[gogis]

Nobody ever uses that formation, historically, because it is uneffective. Probably CA left this formation for cool "Mighty Duck" style when you observing your troops from ahead

[Zeno of Citum]

I remember in multiplayer, in rtw, only having one pretorian cavalry unit left and the guy left keept chasing me for maybe 10 minutes without catching it (I was surrounded). Kept running between the enemy. Well not so much worth in that, easier to retreat the ****ing units or do a last death-charge in normal formation and not in the stupid wedge.

[Sarlvarian]

ive use it alot because i like makeing armys wiht nothing but calvalry and when u charge the center of an enemy formation with 600 heavy calvary in the triangle formation it completley obliterates 3 or 4 different enemy units and pushes very far into the enemy lines

[Lord Gothmog]

It is used to breach BETWEEN not THROUGH enemy units.I do it like this:

GENERAL
UNIT UNIT UNIT UNIT

c
ccc
ccccc
cccccccc
ccccccccccc

Select cav unit an charge the GENERAL,it will go through their lines and hack thm apart

Razbojnik is correct, the wedge formation is used to break through the lines and create holes your infantry can exploit. The game mechanics are not very good with the wedge and your calvary will stop to fight at the point of contact making this formation almost worthless. BUT if you use the wedge as Razbojnik has indicated, to break through a line by attacking a unit behind the line it can be effective with infantry support.

Example:

1) Attack with infantry
---------------------GG

-----------AAAA----AAAA----AAAA

-SSSSSS--SSSSSS--HIHIHI--SSSSSS--HIHIHI
-SSSSSS--SSSSSS-----------SSSSSS--SSSSSS
------------HIHIHI
-------------------------c
------------------------ccc
-----------------------ccccc
---------------------cccccccc


2) Breack through with wedge
---------------------GG
----------------------c
-------------------A-ccc-A
----------AAAA-----ccccc----AAAA
--------------HI---ccccccc---HI
-SSSSSS--SSSSSS----------SSSSSS--HIHIHI
-SSSSSS--SSSSSS----------SSSSSS--SSSSSS
--------------------HIHIHI


3) Exploit the opening

----------------------cc-GG-cc
-----------------------cc-cc-cc
-------------------A-------------A
--------------AAAA------------AAAA
------------------HI---------HI--HI-
-SSSSSS--SSSSSS-------HI-SSSSSS--HIHIHI
-SSSSSS--SSSSSS----------SSSSSS--SSSSSS

Nobody ever uses that formation, historically, because it is uneffective. Probably CA left this formation for cool "Mighty Duck" style when you observing your troops from ahead

:hmmm:

This is inaccurate, the wedge formation was use extensively by all military elites across the world. It is vital for breaking through lines and allowing the infantry to breach the opening. The wedge was also used to break the square infantry formations, by slicing into the corners and attacking the soldiers from the inside. The cavalrymen would "ride a square into red ruin" by breaching a corner and charging into the backs of the other line.

[King Yngvar]

The formation should have been available to several infantry units, especially dismounted huscarls, norse swordsmen, norse axemen, etc. Anyway, I don't use it to pick archers and rear attack them. I just flank and go around.

[Roman Knight]

I've used it and seen it used, namely to pile up your units(generally infantry), into 2 groups and make them attack the two sides of the enemy line. When they see that they have 3 or 4 units being decimated and the rest of their line doing nothing they will do the first thing that springs to mind, pour those idle units into seperate melees. That will open up a gap in the middle, large enough to send in some cavalry in wedge formation, allowing your cavalry a quick route to do what they wish, flank, attack archers, generals or arty, or just cut the enemy into two defined pieces.