Cav based / Cav only - Game

[molls]

Hello,
ive got a simple question:
Is it possible to play a game with the attacking armies consisting only of cavalry? In Vanilla this was very easy, cav armies beat almost everything, but RTR is a different thing..
Cav is expensive, has got fewer men and most likely fails in hand-to-hand combat, except being either extremly experienced or the Generals unit.

I thought about playing at M/M maximum, with low lvl infantry as garrisons.
So i would like to know which factions EXCEPT the Sarmatians + Eastern Factions ( i want it to be western civilisations) would suit this type of game best, considering the starting provinces, culture , enemies , income and available cavalry unit roster.

[Tiberius Nero]

Only if you mean horse archer cavalry armies, which can be very effective. An army consisting simply of melee cavalry would be pretty ineffective in RTR (not to mention incredibly costly).

[molls]

And exactly this "melee cav army" is my quest. I thought of a mixture of Light/Heavy and Javelin cavalry, whereas the Javelins would play the important role of weakening those units, who are very hard to break - even with a perfect charge, like spearmen or particular phalangites.
Then Javelin Cav fights with swords right?
Does anybody know the difference in efficiency against infantry between spear and sword armed cavaly? I happen to read that the sword tends to be better against infantry while the spear kills other cavalry..
So if collecting some experience etc. maybe they'd put up a reasonable melee fight?

[Mikail Mengsk]

Spears cavalry had HUGE charge bonus; sword cavalry doesn't have.

And it's quite impossible to win with a cavalry-only western faction. Maybe with the Carthaginians: sacred bands, numidians, punic cavalry, mercenary cavalry (like Iberian Caetrati cavalry). A good mix, but the sacred band is TOO expensive.

MMMMMh,

[Tony83]

I've never tried it but, if you were defending and could secure your flanks, and your infantry had sufficient armour to outlast the quivers of the horse archers, I wouldn't have thought that that a balanced army would have that much to fear from an all-horse lineup.

[molls]

Btw I'm talking about singleplayer campaign, not multiplayer games.

Maybe with the Carthaginians: sacred bands, numidians, punic cavalry, mercenary cavalry (like Iberian Caetrati cavalry). A good mix, but the sacred band is TOO expensive.

hm sounds good + carthages starting position isn't bad at all -> money -> sacred bands etc. They are ridicously expensive but one charge just blows ones trumpet!

i just played around with the thracians and they have a nice roster too:
Javelin Cav, Medium/Heavy Cav WITH Javelins (Aor Thracian Heavy Cav) , and the Noble Cav. + Sarmatian Heavy Cav Mercenaries if i ever had to much money..

[Pat89]

I think Macedon is th best for you...

It has strong (melee) cav. and it has the money to pay them

[AqD]

Hello,
ive got a simple question:
Is it possible to play a game with the attacking armies consisting only of cavalry? In Vanilla this was very easy, cav armies beat almost everything, but RTR is a different thing..
Cav is expensive, has got fewer men and most likely fails in hand-to-hand combat, except being either extremly experienced or the Generals unit.

I thought about playing at M/M maximum, with low lvl infantry as garrisons.
So i would like to know which factions EXCEPT the Sarmatians + Eastern Factions ( i want it to be western civilisations) would suit this type of game best, considering the starting provinces, culture , enemies , income and available cavalry unit roster.

Numidians. Their basic cavalry are cheap and effective, and the camels can be used to fight against enemy heavy cavalry.

But they don't have any capable heavy infantry until the marian reform (the desert infantry is a joke...)
________
Dansel4U live

[MasterOfThessus]

Iberians have decent cavalry as well.

[Pat89]

Iberians are fun to play with (especially in TIC)
They look like stupid barbarians, but they are far more interesting than that.

[AqD]

They're the only one with good looking
________
Club Royal Condos Pattaya

[Mikail Mengsk]

But Carthage seems to have the best mix: heavy, light, and javelin cavalry. And sure, it has the money to pay them!

I forgot: elephants! XD

[Pat89]

So it seems there is more than enough choose for you mollsomg

- Macedon
- Iberia
- Carthage

[AqD]

For cavalry-only, Numidian is the only other faction you could use.

Build stacks of numidian cavalry and use hit-and-run tactics. You can always win after repeating it 2-3 times, unless the enemy is a HA faction
________
How To Roll A Joint

[molls]

For cavalry-only, Numidian is the only other faction you could use.

Build stacks of numidian cavalry and use hit-and-run tactics. You can always win after repeating it 2-3 times, unless the enemy is a HA faction

or you use the option "Arcade Battles" - gets quite messy with Jav Cav like numidians