Battle Field!!

[karamazovmm]

Let's post some of you're strategies/ battles here!

I have noticed a pattern in the AI when sieging, they usually concentrate the attack in one gate (unless it's dwarves, then that's 2) and so 1 ram and 1 siege tower.

the defensive units should be about 3 archers, 1 spearmen, 1 heavy infantry (you have one to spare be creative!)

I usually focus my archer in the unit that has the siege tower, then when they're about half, I focus on wathever cavalry and spearmen that the enemy has. There is already a unit of infantry waiting for the siege tower in place, and another of spearmen in shield wal or spear wall at the gates, using defensive mode (could hold two full stacks of dwarves and dale with this one turn after another)

kill the troops in the siege tower, get one of my archers to use it to reach the ground behind enemy lines! (so it shoots in the backs of the enemy decreasing morale) if needed use the heavy infantry in the other side!

Once the heavy infatry hits the backs, I have won! no matter what they have if ap or wathever, even a full dreaded general can't resist it for more than 2 minutes! (if you're spearmen could resist fall the 2 units of archers to your town center, one of then will be holding, while the other shoots, send the heavy and the other archer to make a good sandwich, you nailed those bastards!

[Swanny777]

This works unless you are the Elves. Then you have to make due with many less units.

I usually hold my Silvan towns with one unit of Spearmen in front of the gate, and my Archers along whichever wall the tower/ladders are not on. I just have them target the biggest groups of enemies, along with the general and other cavalry, and their ranks are scattered up once they finally breach the gates with my Spearmen. Then they hold them back inside of a semi-circle, and my Archers slaughter everything inside of it. My Spearmen usually take 1/2 - 3/4 of their men in casualties, my Archers take about 1/5 from enemy archers, and the enemy loses up to half of a stack (When it is Mordor without trolls or OotMM without trolls).

[karamazovmm]

those battles with dwarves and dale were using high elves the secret is guard mode and a few oiling oils doesn't hurt

[stocker]

yeah if once they break the gates, you charge out but stop your units in the middle of your gate opening, then they will hold all the enemy in perfect position for the oil ^^

[HAL-9000]

How about tips for Silvan elves against trolls in a seige? At the moment I am dumbfounded as to how to protect myself - around half a stack of generic arrow-fodder mixed with 2 units of Olag-Hai and 1 of Mountain Trolls - First Olog-Hai unit takes ladders and runs with them to the walls, second waits patiently behing the ram which takes around 1 minute to get through my gates. I managed to take down all the mountain trolls and a grand total of 1 of the 24 olag-hai. I lost half a stack. My units - 3 spearmen, 2 forest wardens, 2 sentinels, 1 light archer and 1 Legolas unit... well now they're 0 of any unit but you ge my point. How would you counter this effectively? It didn't seem to matter what I did, those trolls decimated me and all I could do was sit back and despair!

[stdulf]

I notice that when we sally out right after the enemy besiege us , AI would be in passive defence, they won't really attack us or use siege machine

So about silvan elves, I just sally out and crush them with my superior archer range and their speed when running away Of course if they got full stack then after shooting all my arrows, just get back in town and exit battle

[karamazovmm]

How about tips for Silvan elves against trolls in a seige? At the moment I am dumbfounded as to how to protect myself - around half a stack of generic arrow-fodder mixed with 2 units of Olag-Hai and 1 of Mountain Trolls - First Olog-Hai unit takes ladders and runs with them to the walls, second waits patiently behing the ram which takes around 1 minute to get through my gates. I managed to take down all the mountain trolls and a grand total of 1 of the 24 olag-hai. I lost half a stack. My units - 3 spearmen, 2 forest wardens, 2 sentinels, 1 light archer and 1 Legolas unit... well now they're 0 of any unit but you ge my point. How would you counter this effectively? It didn't seem to matter what I did, those trolls decimated me and all I could do was sit back and despair!

Try this:

put the two unit of speamen at the gates, the usual mode (guard, shield wall aka put then in what defensive stance that you might have), put the forest wardens (usual also) in the wall that the trolls will be breaching, and ALL THE ARCHERS AT THE WALLS.

When the trolls are about to arrive at the walls put the archers that are in harms way on the ground behind the wall! you now can pin then down and kill those trolls at the walls. See if there is need to put both the forest warden at the walls, if don't let then be at the gates.

Once the trolls at the walls are dead, get some archers to shoot from the walls, on the ground behind your lines, and on the ground behind the enemy lines. out of ammo? see if there is need to run to the town center and hold there, the tip in siege battle is to always have someone kicking literally there ass, since the olog hai won't falter you have to make sure all the others do.

if this didn't help, have you tried the retreating options? Fall back every time they reach your lines. The point is that you have to hold for little time, when charge at a enemy that is in defensive mode, you will make them have some casualties at the charge, then YOU WILL SUFFER A LOT CASUALTIES. that's the point to hold for a little time. than make the sandwich attack, archers in the back and in the front, and retreat all the way to the town hall, there YOU LOSE THE BATTLE, BUT SINCE THE AI DON'T KNOW ANY BETTER THEY USUALLY STAND THERE, this your chance to kill the remaining trolls, if you do, try to win with multiple directions attacks, if there is no time to retake, then LOSE THE BATTLE, THE IMPORTANT THING HERE IS YOUR TROOPS, YOU MUST TAKE CARE OF THEM! Then you can attack and retake the city, with the same garrison troops since the probability of the AI retraining the troops in one turn is remote let then have a LONG SIEGE, if there is still trolls in there, you must see that a LONG SIEGE is not going to be possible, then you can attack again when you have the necessary siege equipment, and shoot those bastards trolls to death!, if they are dead, and you still have enough arrows, you can take the town, if there isn't then well, retreat and siege the city again. the point is there are no troops that are cannon fodder, such thing doesn't exist! those light archers won't kill a mountain troll, but they can kill the other units. treat then well, and by the end of this battle they sall be ALL gold chevrons! with possibly a 1/3 stack loss.

btw I have modded the elven arrow, to more precise thing, so my arrows are .225

[Dava2710]

How about tips for Silvan elves against trolls in a seige? At the moment I am dumbfounded as to how to protect myself - around half a stack of generic arrow-fodder mixed with 2 units of Olag-Hai and 1 of Mountain Trolls - First Olog-Hai unit takes ladders and runs with them to the walls, second waits patiently behing the ram which takes around 1 minute to get through my gates. I managed to take down all the mountain trolls and a grand total of 1 of the 24 olag-hai. I lost half a stack. My units - 3 spearmen, 2 forest wardens, 2 sentinels, 1 light archer and 1 Legolas unit... well now they're 0 of any unit but you ge my point. How would you counter this effectively? It didn't seem to matter what I did, those trolls decimated me and all I could do was sit back and despair!

create an army mounted archers and try some guerilla tactics. You need about 8 - 10 units, anything less isn't very effective, anything more is just too much and you get too many FF and of course you cant maneuvre that effectively. Use hit and run tactics - just fire upon the enemy and if you are out of arrows, just withdraw. Don't charge or anything, you would lost your firepower in next battle, you just want to weaken the enemy, not to destroy him - foot army is here to do the rest. With this tactics you can hold enemy unless he comes with 2 full armies or if he uses trolls - they are just as fast as horses.

also, because trolls are too fast, archers will concentrate fire to them, and if you have enough arrows you can kill them all, or at least some off them - you will finnish them later.

And when enemy attacks YOU, dont run, just fight, empty your guivers and then run away. You should take out about 40% of enemy forces (if its full or 3/4 army of mordor - 3000 enemies vs 700 horse archers = 1200 dead orks + next round another 800 = 2000 dead orks = army is no threat anymore)

[Daergar]

What I've found to work very well when defending against a siege, especially where you don't have the dubious benefit of stone walls, is to pile units in and around the city square.

Form a wall just outside and partway inside the square with expendable troops, abusing the fact that the units won't rout no matter what. Pile ranged units right behind and or with clean sightlines and just rain javelins and fire arrows onto the attacking melee troops.

Any enemy missile troops can be outflanked as they take up position inside the city walls and fire on your troops in the square. Which also lets you hit the enemy melee troops attacking the square from behind, most likely routing them.

It all depends on your quality and quantity of troops, naturally. The above works well for all of the orc factions, at least with rc/rr but I assume the same for vanilla. Massive amounts of cheap fodder has its uses.

[Dava2710]

well defending a sqeuare is lame tactic - its not even a tactic. Your troops wont run away so its kinda lame, you just pile everybody in the center and quicken a time, then you just wait until somebody wins. You cant even comand your units.
Yes, sometimes when I have absolutly no chance of winning, I do it just to cause as many damage I can but I am not proud of it.

btw: my last post should begin with create an army OF mounted archers