Different Tactics?

[fritsje5]

Anyone who figured out any tactic beyond the usual:

1: Own more guns than the enemy
2: flank with cavalry

Well and I don't mean tricking the AI or anything...

Please give me some feedback because every single battle has been somewhat the same for me

[django333]

Unfortunately all battles are mostly the same. Sometime terrain forces you to use different tactics but thats about it. I try to use different unit composition for different armies to force myself to use different tactics. I'll have one army with no artillary and lots of cavalry or one army with lots of skirmishers etc.

[cpt_acid]

3. Shower with artillery munition?

[HawkDreams]

Unfortunately all battles are mostly the same. Sometime terrain forces you to use different tactics but thats about it. I try to use different unit composition for different armies to force myself to use different tactics. I'll have one army with no artillary and lots of cavalry or one army with lots of skirmishers etc.

Very very true! Unfortunately, there are only so many combinations of tactics you can use. In the real world, generals usually developed only a few scenarios that worked for them and did not change much except as they learned something new through mistakes in the choreography that just kind of happen once a battle commences. Hence the saying "Do not fight an enemy too often less he learn all of your art of war!" Also, in the real world, troops only had to learn and practice what their generals taught them. Many times, battles are won for no other reason than confidence in the general Even today, battles are won simply by troops doing what they need to do and are supposed to do no matter what the overall picture might show.

Find what works for you, but pay attention to your mistakes. Sometimes even mistakes work out for the best and what works for you evolves.

[Nastyvale]

I haven't tried Poland yet and I'm thinking of trying all-cavalry armies with horse artillery. Dismounted dragoons as infantry, winged hussars and massed lancer charges with the artillery galloping in the flanks. Once this is done I'm considering full-melee Ottomans or Marathians -spelling?-.

The Line Infantry center-cavalry flank 'dance' is starting to get repetitive...

[HawkDreams]

I haven't tried Poland yet and I'm thinking of trying all-cavalry armies with horse artillery. Dismounted dragoons as infantry, winged hussars and massed lancer charges with the artillery galloping in the flanks. Once this is done I'm considering full-melee Ottomans or Marathians -spelling?-.

The Line Infantry center-cavalry flank 'dance' is starting to get repetitive...

If you are looking for a challenge, try Morocco. Well, if you have all factions enabled. You can only recruit in the middle east and africa which means keeping a parade going for garrison duty. I dont know about recruiting in India as I only took north Africa, Middle East, and all of Europe except for England and Russia before the fatal crash caught me. Morocco has no line units or cannon, but they are very good!

Money is a bit tight at first so you actually have to make some hard choices. You can take the Barbary States so you have more than one country to recruit from in the beginning, but this also leaves you at war with Ottomans. I went slower and started by asking Barbary for Trade agreement which they gave freely and inched forward until I have Spain, France, Portugal, and Italian States in hand. After this, Barbary and Ottoman went down without causing me financial troubles!

[Mooncabbage]

If you are looking for a challenge, try Morocco. Well, if you have all factions enabled. You can only recruit in the middle east and africa which means keeping a parade going for garrison duty. I dont know about recruiting in India as I only took north Africa, Middle East, and all of Europe except for England and Russia before the fatal crash caught me. Morocco has no line units or cannon, but they are very good!

Money is a bit tight at first so you actually have to make some hard choices. You can take the Barbary States so you have more than one country to recruit from in the beginning, but this also leaves you at war with Ottomans. I went slower and started by asking Barbary for Trade agreement which they gave freely and inched forward until I have Spain, France, Portugal, and Italian States in hand. After this, Barbary and Ottoman went down without causing me financial troubles!

Everyone starts at war with the barbary states don't they? Since this is the case, you can take their territories with impunity

I found this out playing as the british, having captured moroco (which i later traded for gibraltar with the spanish, that was a bum deal, don't do it)

[HawkDreams]

No, not everyone. Morocco is not at war with the Barbary States and the Barbary States are protectorate of Ottomans. As most nations are at war with Barbary States and not Ottomans, then you dont have to worry about aggravating the Ottomans unless you are Morocco and attack the Barbary States starting a new war in which Ottomans will jump in to protect their protectorate.

[Varaaki]

I'm not sure what you mean by 1 - are you referring to muskets, or artillery?

In regards to artillery, I find that I have fallen into the no-artillery camp. Particularly in the early phases of the game when better artillery ammunition is not available, fielding a set of guns instead of another regiment of musketmen or light infantry is just a waste.

If you're referring instead to muskets... then I don't agree there either. Fielding more men than the AI is not the path to victory. Drills, morale, experience, terrain, and tactics are far more important. As Clausewitz said, manpower is only a quarter of the fight.

[HawkDreams]

I'm not sure what you mean by 1 - are you referring to muskets, or artillery?

In regards to artillery, I find that I have fallen into the no-artillery camp. Particularly in the early phases of the game when better artillery ammunition is not available, fielding a set of guns instead of another regiment of musketmen or light infantry is just a waste.

If you're referring instead to muskets... then I don't agree there either. Fielding more men than the AI is not the path to victory. Drills, morale, experience, terrain, and tactics are far more important. As Clausewitz said, manpower is only a quarter of the fight.

fritsje5 hasnt come back to comment thus far...

But, in regards to your post... Manpower is very much ONLY 1/4 of the fight! I have 2 armies running around taking over the world comprised of 2 Puckle Guns, 2 Horse drawn Artillery, 3 Elite Guard, 3 Household Cavalry, 2 Pike units, 2 Basic Line Units, and a general. My tech is researched and one of each army is currently in Americas and India as I control Europe. At level 3 to 5 each they are invincible even against 2 full stacks.
EDIT:

By the way, Puckle Guns are so very devastatingly cool! They the enemy in style!

[Deathofjams]

Well, there's always the alternative "build 20 mortars and carpet bomb them" tactic. I find that works quite well.

[HawkDreams]

Well, there's always the alternative "build 20 mortars and carpet bomb them" tactic. I find that works quite well.

Hmmmmmmmmmmm... Havent tried that yet...

[Mooncabbage]

I don't know if i mentioned this before, but grouping my army into battallions of 3 or 4 units helps organisation, and putting them in denser formations allows you to make better use of available cover in the terrain, such as gullies, the reverse side of ridges, forests etc. I personally think that once foot artillery is available it should be a key part of any land army. I generally attach a unit of 12lbers to each "battallion" of foot. The infantry give it protection and it can when properly used cause a great deal more casualties and morale damage than any infantry unit alone.

[kokonut666]

- artillery is a key weapon of that historical setting so you shoud include a good variety of them and have a lot of fun. and the AI is programmed to attack your artillery in priority so you can expect a fair amount of actions.
- be the aggressor if want to experience different type of battle. send your line infantries charging right up the middle coverd by your artillery. fight them out like a man regardless of losses. this should make you sweat a bit.
- massive calvary flank charge. use up to 4 - 5 unit of heavy stuff and charge from the flank when your line infantry engage them in the center. this is a tactic used at the time which produced some dramatic victories.

i think if you want to change the dynamics of the battles, you have to change your own mind set first and let it play out.

[Lord Gothmog]

Try playing against real people online. You will be tested to your tactical limits.