TWC forum reader since 2005
Author of Royal Artillery School,guide for artillery in ETW.
RAS Chapter 1 released.
RAS Chapter 2 released.
RAS Chapter 3 cancelled
"Choose your stoker!"
A couple units of rifles can tear an enemy to shreds. Once the main battle has been joined, I usually seem to place my light infantry in support of my artillery. I try to move my artillery so they can enfilade the enemy, and the light infantry combined with the canister can almost always beat back whatever the enemy sends at them.
And I'll echo what's been said about howitzers. I don't get the obsession with them. If you can properly protect them, 3 or 4 cannon batteries can be absolutely devastating. (The addition
EDIT: Also, unless I'm mistaken, don't most rifle units have a range of 120 or 125?
Last edited by Mummer; March 15, 2009 at 09:40 PM.
Light infantry does not mean rifle infantry.
Mine is
For an exspected siege battle for fortifications,
General
6 Line Infantry
2 field guns, foot and horse respectivly soon as I can upgrade
2 lt Cav
2 med or hvy cav
2 dragoons
1 grenadier
2 morter
2 howitzer
For open engagments,
I will tweek the cavelry down to two lt or medium, 3 if you include the generals bodyguard, to make room for 2 more line infantry and drop the morters for 2 more grenadiers.
I generally only use skirmishers or rangers for small size engagements or when I exspect to be way outnumbered but still outclass the enemy in tech. I succsesfully routed 8 native foot mixed archer and melee and 2 native hourse with only 2 ranger units by deploing them in a scrubby wooded and broken terrain. Deployed the one designated as leader against an outcrop protecting there flank as he will never get to hide, and the second one deployed behind him in a diagonel to the first with fire at will off and hidden in the scrub. Then waited for them to flank, turned the second on, controlled thier skirmish withdraw to make sure they withdrew toward each others back and not apart. Took Heavy casualties but still won the day. I also use this tactic to bleed off defenders of a town befor my main army attacks.
The way this game is scaled, thats thier best use, as traditionally used to harrass and attrit an enemy befor a main assault. You have to use a two turn assault to simulate this even tho it would only be 2 days or an eavening and a day, in game scale it takes 6 months lol as the time scale dosnt allow for multiple day battles where two armys face off and dance befor one finds a weakness or mistake and exploits.
For a single day battle I prefer dragoons for my skirmish role. Takes more micro managment but better dividends with increased mobility and flexability to act as light cav for runing down routers.
Last edited by VVILHELM DUX; March 16, 2009 at 01:00 AM.
Well mostly I was talking about Light Infantry / Ranger that only have 80 range. And even some of the elite ones are aweful the load time on a Green Jacket is as slow as a canon. The only useful one is Ferguson, but you've had to research everything in the game to get it. So the games already won by that point anyways.
A Ferguson can dish out 100+ kills a battle. The problem is so can any reg Line Infantry or better. I've actually have regular Line Infantry do upwards of 180 kills per battle. I haven't seen a Ferguson do that, I'm sure they are capable, but only the Fergusons and those that kill as fast as them can come close to matching the power of Line Infantry.
There is one spot that I'll put a Ferguson at. It is at the hinge of my formation between the flanking group and the front line. It is in that corner that needs the most range. And since a Ferg can build stakes, I'll place the arty there so its well protected. Also, the Ferg comes really late so I have no 100+ range infantry units, so a Puckel gun usually goes there.
But for Skirmishing all my Light Infantry barely skirmish at all when I have them selected to skirmish. They'll move away in some random direction about 50 range max then re-engage the enemy and never move. So they get one pot shot off, retreat 50 range, stop and act like line infantry for the remainder of the time.
I'll just use Light Dragoons for any skirmishing I need. If I have to micro LI to skirmish, the LD are quicker so I'll use them instead.
Well, the units you posted are for the campaign, no? However, if you play a quick game and you have, for example only medium or small funds you have to choose different units.
As for units, I always choose units I need to micro if I can get achievements with them as that is the another good way how to be better in something than your opponent.