battle strategies

[Ubernotnoob]

i'm playing as thrace right now, i need some help with strategies against both phalanx based armies and non phalanxed based armies. since the majority of my cities are barbarian, i do not have much access to the western side of thracian unit roster.

of the many battles that i have played, i ahve lost none, but my armies were always chewed up fairly badly, sometimes so bad that it was a phyrric victory. if people can post their strategies here, it would be greatly appreciated

awesome mod btw

[Zarax]

Playing difficulty?

Anyway:
Thracian light cavalry is your life saver, they can take on most things and get out on top provided you pin them down properly.

Other than that, once you have thorakitai and nobles you're set with a meat grinder army that you can supplement with horse archers from the bosphoran area and hoplites from the south...

[Stilgar CG]

My early Thracian army: general + 4-6 spearmen (S) + 4-6 thracian peltatst (TP) + 2-4 units of Thracian light cavalry (LC) (would be nice to add 1-2 units of falxmen/merc hoplites, if money allows).

In defence:

1 - LC LC...............LC LC
2 - .......S S S S S S
3 - ......TPTP... TPTP
..................G

First line: LCs on flanks: soften enemy flank with missiles; hunting enemy general and cavlary. LCs can be merged in a group and moved to any flank if necessary. After LCs exhaust their ammo, move them behind the enmy line. Often, certain units (spearmen, in particular) will follow LCs away from the battle. Nice way to lure those nasty triarii away from the main battle .

Second line: Spearmen in guard mod (in 5-6 ranks) with some space between them (half length of the unit, perhaps). Spearmen's only task is to hold the line and pin enemy down. Keep your general behind the spearmen line to boost their morale: they will fight longer.

Third line. Two groups of TPs on flanks behind the line of spearmen with fire at will (unless you want them to focus fire on certain units). When the enemy approach, TPs have time and opportunity to throw all their missiles. Then, move them right or left, advance a bit forward and flank the enemy or hit them in the rear. Use them to surround the enemy and kill them all.

Use LCs to charge pinned down and weakened enemy units. Better group them all and charge at the same time a sigle unit for the maximum effect. (Use alt + attack, they are skirmishers, after all). In groups of 3-4 they can kill heavy cavalry pretty well. (Think of piranas )

Would be nice to have a unit or two of heavier infantry (merc hoplites, falxmen) to counter enemy heavy infantry.

Attacking is a different story, but in principle you could march towards the enemy in the same formation, use your LCs on flanks, and invite enemy to engage your line of spearmen. (could be a bad idea if enemy is on a high ground and have plenty of missile units).

[pwnerx]

Try to get quick massive routs. Heavy cavalry and a mediocre army of infantry will let you achieve this. My army consists of 5-6 units of cavalry led by family members, and at least 5 units of any type of infantry that can hold the line for a short while. Engage the phalanx 'lightly' from the front with your infantry and then have your generals' cavalry swoop in from the back and shock them into a rout. The more experienced your generals’ are, the easier it will be to get a rout on the initial charge. I like to use my generals’ bodyguard exclusively as my only cavalry because they can replenish their numbers without retraining, and because they are simply the best cavalry I can get.

What I like to do is form a cohesive group of generals and their bodyguards that will fight together for life. When I have 5-6 family members in a tight age range like 16-20 years old, I stick em' in blacksmiths, schools, and shrines for a few years. Based on the traits present from birth, I appoint one general to be 1st in command of the army and another to be 2nd in command. I shuffle retinues around so as to maximize the command stars and influence of the 1st in command, and then 2nd in command.

If this group of 5-6 generals can survive the first few years of fighting then they will likely survive the next 30-40 years fighting together. As your generals gain experience beyond the first silver chevron, I find that their ability to survive drastically increases, as well as their ability to rout a unit with a single charge from behind. I have a group of 6 generals that had their first battle with 2 chevrons and a single weapon/shield upgrade. These generals were 18-23 years old. 25 years later, my commanding general has 3 gold chevrons, two have a gold chevron, and the others have 3 silver chevrons. This cavalry is a force to be reckoned with. They can rout any unit and they can even stand their own against spearmen.

It’s nearly impossible to beat a phalanx without flanking if you’re using non-phalanx armies. Long sustained battles against a phalanx army is not a good idea To win the battle while losing as few men as possible, you need to flank quickly and get in the first few routs. After you get the first few routs, other nearby units will instantly lose morale and will be more easily routed. It’s like a domino effect, you just need to start it. It will be a lot easier to start this domino effect with a group of generals’ bodyguard cavalry than with any other unit.

If you're laying siege to a phalanx army, then good luck cause you're going to lose a lot of men

[Barend]

What I sometimes do when fighting against phalangites (any type) and don't have superior units or cavalry to defeat them, I use one group of weak units to keep them occupied and try to move a group of missile units to attack them from the rear. Very efficient. I defeated a unit of Argyraspides (Silver shields) with two units of thureophoroi. I read that slingers are very effective too.

Good luck !

[Scutarii]

If you can get your hands on some Greek areas, start building AOR barracks and get some phalangites and slingers, they'll cut your losses. Otherwise, pin + flank as well as liberal use of peltasts and Thracian Cav will take care of phalanx heavy armies.

[Ubernotnoob]

ah. ok, i'll try out some of these.
i generally dont use the thracian light cavalry as one time, i had two units chewed up by greek peltasts

and i play on hard


EDIT: i've tried ME's tactics, worked quite well, though the thracian light cavalry took more casulties than expected. i suppose that will change after they've gathered a few chevrons

thanks for the help guys

[Stilgar CG]

... EDIT: i've tried ME's tactics, worked quite well, though the thracian light cavalry took more casulties than expected. i suppose that will change after they've gathered a few chevrons thanks for the help guys

Ubernotnoob, LCs have no much defence and armour. Therefore, casualties could be high. Then, with accuracy modifiers they will need a bit more time to get experience. Also, to perform at high standards they (and all Thracian units!) need weapon and armor as soon as possible.

After they used their missiles, keep them away from the thick of the battle for a while. Wait till enemy (i) is engaged and (ii) weakened. Move them around to find a good starting position for a charge. Charges in the flank/rear and avoid engaging full-strength units, even pinned down. LCs are still light cavalry.