Is it just me, or did assaulting stone walls just get a lot worse?

[Nameless92145]

Well, before I begin, I must say that this is an EXCELLENT mod. The first battle against Pyrrhus definitely drew me in.

However, I have this weird feeling that stone walls are becoming a lot harder to assault for two reasons:

1. The outcome when fighting on walls is completely unpredictable.

Something is definitely weird about this... I mean, back in vanilla my hastati pretty much always won against peltasts, archers, and the like, but in this game I've lost many high quality heavy infantry as I attempted to storm the walls.

For example: the other day, one of my units of polis hoplitai got annihilated by osci skirmishers. And the oscis weren't even throwing javelins either.

Another example: My triarii lost against something like ligurian swordsmen or some low quality cisalpine gaul unit.

Not to mention, I usually keep my general rooting right next to them, using the rally horn every so often.

2. Taking mini regions with stone walls always results in fairly heavy casualties.

This one kinda sucks. The stone walls are in a square formation, and there is no stretch of wall where you can advance without taking fire from 2 towers at once... that's 4 ballistas firing into my troops' face as they steady their ladder.

So, I'm wondering: are there any viable solutions to these problems other than waiting out the siege (which I don't want to do, since I prefer playing on VH campaign, and I have to move quickly or the AI will mass produce millions of soldiers?).

[Maurits]

Maybe you should play at Medium, for the game's balanced on those settings. Because of the crazy AI bonusses with VH it's kinda logical that your troops get slaughtered

And, look at the Realism aspect. With some defenders, would men at 200 BC be able to walk to a wall and take it without cassualties?

[Carados]

Very simple solution this.

Bring a couple of cheap skirmish units and put them in loose formation and advance them in front of your seige equipment. The towers and defenders will focus fire on the expendable skirmishers leaving your heavy infantry largely intact. Once your siege equipment are at the walls, pull the skirmishers back.

[Alavaria]

Easiest way is to put your army in front as normal, then walk (or you can place) a unit with ladders directly on the opposite side of the settlement from the bulk of the army.

The AI doesn't move its wall defenders, so you can easily grab 2 or 3 gates then just march your whole army around and walk in. You can also make use of the wall towers to kill the enemy by getting them to chase something (especially your general) around the inside of the walls, getting shot up as you go.

[Border Patrol]

I don't take walls, I starve em out. But then again I'm playing as Gaul so time is on my side. =D

[HouseOfHam]

Don't use pikemen/phallangites to fight on walls - they might be high quality heavy infantry, but they switch to their secondary weapon which is a lot weaker.

[Hrobatos]

well i destroy walls, and then i send one unit to go and take every tower infronf of my army