Unstoppable cataphract archers

**mikoli** · November 25, 2008, 05:07 PM

I have just finished Armenian campaign and if horse archers are pain in the ass than cataphract archers are the scourge of God. Cataphract archers are unstoppable!If we properly combine and use them with cataphracts and Armenian pikemen and legionares who can hold the line against them!?Late Romans or Seleucids since they have best troops?I think nobody! Cataphract archers are TOO powerfull,don’t you think?

**Lord Dakier** · November 25, 2008, 05:18 PM

Only if you dont know how to fight them. Fight fire with fire... use anything that pierces armour. Javelineers for example... Romans could use Pilum and shield wall to defeat them.

**Legio** · November 25, 2008, 05:26 PM

A horde of militia hoplites does well.

On a serious note, Roman auxilia archers and scorpions do well against them.
Seleucid Legionaries or just hire a horde of merc eastern spearmen and sacrifice them -it will work!
Parthians are kind of screwed- I heard Hillmen have a bonus against cav?

**Erzin** · November 25, 2008, 08:25 PM

The problem with catapracts in general is that they tire easy and move slower than normal horse archers. Because of this it is possible to outrun them with lighter cavalry until they are tired and then hit them with fresh infantry.

**HeroSK** · November 27, 2008, 04:41 AM

I had some multiplayer matches aganist a guy who is great fan of thase cat archers and tooks them more than 6 units. The good tactic aganist them is use your own foot missiles aganist them. While missle exchange continues they to catch engage them in melee since they are not good melee fighters. If enemy uses cantabrian circile wait a bit since Cataphract Horse archers are heavly armoured they get tired pretty quickly and they become easy tagets for your fresh cavalry. I was able to beat this guy several times with this tactic.

Originally Posted by Legio Caesar

A horde of militia hoplites does well.

Aganist AI, a horde of milita cavalry would be much better I think.

Btw, what happened to your meow Legio ?

**darthbane7** · November 27, 2008, 06:47 AM

Hmmm, I guess you guys make a good point. LC is usually very expendable, except in the early game, and I doubt the AI will have cata archer early.

How about masses of javelin cav? Plus light cav to swarm the enemy with.

**Legio** · November 27, 2008, 03:41 PM

Originally Posted by darthbane7

Hmmm, I guess you guys make a good point. LC is usually very expendable, except in the early game, and I doubt the AI will have cata archer early.

How about masses of javelin cav? Plus light cav to swarm the enemy with.

Well, I would not just throw them in.

Harass them and surround them, and then use that cheap eastern infantry to tire the cats. Finally, deliver the coup de grace with your general (be careful, though) or your cav.

Btw, what happened to your meow Legio ?

It will be back, I like to change avatars every so often.

**Yojimbo** · December 05, 2008, 02:47 PM

Originally Posted by Lord Dakier

Only if you dont know how to fight them. Fight fire with fire... use anything that pierces armour. Javelineers for example... Romans could use Pilum and shield wall to defeat them.

javelins do not pierce armor in RTW, even tho they did in MTW, only some like pila does. Normal skirmisher type javelins or javelin cavalry javelins don't.

**Selifator** · November 26, 2008, 04:11 AM

Heavy archers, Gaul foresters. Cretans protected by pikes. Scythian maidens, or egyptian desert cavalry. Cataphracts combined with horse archers. Really, cataphract archers are good, but not without support. A whole army of cataphract archers is very easy to defeat.

**darthbane7** · November 26, 2008, 02:17 PM

I'd go with egyptian desert cav or javelin cav (mass those guys, because the superior range and armor of the cata archer will slaughter them). And I don't believe Cataphract Archers have maces as their secondary weapon, so infantry with fodder is a viable option.

And Erzin, these are cataphract archers we are talking about here. Yes, they do tire easily, but they won't chase LC, they'll shoot 'em in the back

, or get close enough to do that. Although on MP, that might work, just staying out of range. Assuming the opposition isn't just going to stay put and wait for you, or if they're attackers.

**Erzin** · November 26, 2008, 03:23 PM

I know that their Cataphract Archers, but a unit of Equites or so isn't all that valuable to be used as a sacrifice.

**Erzin** · November 26, 2008, 03:23 PM

Sorry double posted.

**aznflea** · November 27, 2008, 02:36 AM

on BI i had my whole horde of HAs fire at 1 unit of cataphract arcehrs and the bastards won. my arrows killed them at a stupidly slow rate

**MABUS2012** · December 06, 2008, 10:22 PM

arnt they expensive though i rather have a few stacks full of caverly archers than cataphrats archers and support anyday u can out run them as u chop them up in a storm of arrows this is way atila and ghangis khan used just caverly archers not cataphrats it doesnt have to do with tech or anythin

**aznflea** · December 11, 2008, 03:48 PM

id rather not use HAs they are seriously disgusting unfair

**darthbane7** · December 13, 2008, 08:51 AM

Lol, the computer on H/H doesn't seem to care much about "fairness".

On the more serious note, I would use swarms of light, throwaway cav, and simply use their charge value (ie. Macedonian Lancers, with that value of 9!) repeatedly to kill the cata archers. I might do what Erzin said before, using LC to tire em out, then hit em with infantry, but that's only with spear units, or strong sword infantry.

OR, if this is AI we're talking about, just get town watch or peasants, and use em as fodder! And wait til the cata archers are out of ammo!