Russia - Information & Discussion

[Lazy Knight]

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Lead Developers

oleg2242 wangrin

Unit List

Building Chain

Building Chain

Technology Tree

Technology Tree

Graphics Development

Graphics Development

Faction Philosophy

Russia's artillery is a masterpiece of this mod, and the core of every russian army.

Infantry has only one use on the battlefield, and that is to hold the line until those great bears, the Russian guns, can have sufficient time to maul the enemy. In addition to a greater preponderance of guns in each battery, Russia also possesses several unique pieces:

A Licorne/Unicorn/Capricorn is a long-barrelled howitzer. It was a weapon that was ahead of its time, as 100 years later, in the American Civil War, one of the most-used weapons was the M1857 12-lber Napoleon Gun-Howitzer, which was essentially a French version of the same thing. Shuvalov's Secret Howitzer was a weapon expressly designed for scattering canister shot everywhere. The Russians loved this weapon, and equipped damn near all of their artillery batteries with at least one of them. Bliznyatki is basically an array of 4 "Baby Coehorn" mortars mounted on a single bed.

Russia's infantry are weak at shooting and only marginally better at melee. They cannot, on a man-to-man basis, stand up to any other faction's line, with the possible exception of Poland. But who's talking about a man-to-man basis? What the Russians lack in ability and morale, they more than make up for in numbers.

The bullet is a mad thing, only the bayonet knows what it is about.

Truthfully, however, Russia's infantry is not entirely without merit: the nation, beginning with the military reforms of Peter the Great and continuing into the Germanification of Empress Anna, has instituted a proud Guards tradition, and its three Imperial Guard Infantry units (the Preobrazhinski, the Siemenovski, and the Ismailovski, in order of precedence) are without peer. If only the same could be said of the Cavalry formation, the Garde à Cheval. This unit, instituted by Empress Anna, is purely for ceremonial functions; its soldiers are, without exception, officers, and it has been observed that rank was gained more for a man's ability in the Empress' bed than for any other consideration, which tradition was extended into the reigns of Empress Elizabeth and Catherine.

Russia's state cavalry has proven several times that it cannot keep up with its neighbours. Its horses are too light and the army's morale too low to compete with either the Swedes or the Poles. The abandonment of the field upon first sighting the enemy at Narva by the entire Russian noble-born cavalry has caused Peter the Great to begin one of his first great reforms: the replacement of the entire cavalry arm with Western-style Dragoons. These Dragoons, as it would later be proved, were hardly an improvement, and it wasn't until Empress Anna and the reforms of her German military advisor Munnich that Russia would benefit from heavy German horses, and the sure charge that such beasts provide. Until those heady days prior to the Seven Year's War, Russia must rely on their many Cossack hosts to field any kind of capable cavalry; Russia can call upon the Don Cossacks, with their incredible horse-mounted skirmishing ability, and the Zaporozhian Cossacks, whose lances can break a unit on the first charge. If all else fails, the Emperor may choose to send forth the Tatars, descendents of the Khans, still living on the great Asian Steppes, and still fighting like their grandfathers did, using bows from the saddle.

Late campaign faction description by CroHunger_999:

Catherine II's meddling in Sweden's internal affairs and the support to the political opposition have not gone unnoticed by Gustav III and have made war in the north inevitable. Do not expect much from the Danes as a new pro-British political current will soon replace the old pro-Russian one. The joint attack on Sweden is impossible due to their tactical and desirable alliance with France. Any attack on Sweden would automatically involve Russia in a war with France and would worsen relations with other nations and cause sanctions.

To the south, the slow decline of the Ottoman Empire has become the centre of international politics. However, their demise will not come that quickly as the Ottomans still have the support of France, and are soon to gain new supporters. The annexation of the Crimean Khanate can be a start and will enable you to build a Black Sea fleet to counter the Ottoman navy. This would open your ports to new trade routes in the Mediterranean. With the crisis caused by the civil war, Crimea will be an easy target, the people have already decided.

Persia is close to an end to civil war and a new dynasty will arise, one not so willing to let Russian interests expand southward into Dagestan. Georgia has awaited Russian protection with fervour, but Russia currently does not have the opportunity nor resources to assert its influence there.

To the west lies Poland, a once powerful kingdom but now a petty servant of the Empire waiting to be partitioned. Be careful your interests do not clash with those of Prussia as it could trigger a new global war.

Tensions are high and resources are low so good relations with central powers are crucial if you want to keep your new territorial gains. Catherine's dream of creating a Greek kingdom will have to wait.