Equites

[vgroff]

Is it just me or are equites the single most useless cavalry in the game. Not only are they weak, but they dnt listen to orders and their troop count is low. How can we flank or hammer and anvil witg cavalry like this???? Also can u unlock better cavalry with the reforms(is it heavy cavalry???) becoz i heard that the legiobary cav is useless

[BiggBudd]

What you want the Roman's to be best at everything? In RL their Cav was crap, so its realistic, and there are lots of good merc Cav available, hire them and dismiss the Equites, lots of peeps do this, just like the Romans in Rl.

[Raglan]

na, the equites are some of my favorite cavalry in the game, they require good timing, but are more than capable of breaking the enemy. I love them because unlike the heavier cavalries they don't tire so quickly, this allows me to hurtle them about the battlefield as i like. Seriously, i prefer them because of their speed and stamina to heavier cavalry, they just require a slight bit more intelligence in using them.

[vgroff]

They really arent worth anything, they are easily outnumbered and outmatched+houserules say u cnt use mercs in replacement for normal troops

[Vespasian92]

Equites own. Exactly like Raglan said. Their speed and stamina more than make up for any weakness they have. Of course they will be outmatched if they go 1 on 1 with barbarian warlords or rushing into the thick of battle like the AI allies make them do. Just keep two of the units together like one, use them to go round, kill off the skirmishers, and a full charge from the rear will break the barbarians most of the time, especially if they are already being beaten by your infantry.

[Hesus de bodemloze]

Equites are still good cav units, you just need to know when and where to use them. The Gallic merc cav units are good replacements for them if you really want to change.

[Ciisar]

Hesus you are totaly right. They are not useless, you need to know how to use them and i know how to use them!

[Abmong]

Bit of a noob question but I haven't really found the best answer for this after playing SPQR for a good few months!!! does charging your cavalry through enemy units (without clicking attack) do any damage? I notices some get knocked over but they usually stand up again...

Reason I ask, is that when I try to engage my (full strength) Equites with enemy skirmishers or archers in normal melee the Equites lose more often than not! they seem to have even lesser chance against mounted skirmishers (like the Numidian Cavalry) I know Roman Cavalries are supposed to suck when compared with others, and can't really hold their own against melee troops 1-on-1 but to make them weaker than ranged units in melee, strikes me as a tad extreme. surely they weren't that bad in real life!

How am I suppose to kill those Numidian Cavalry when the only unit able to catch them on the move, gets slaughtered when they connect My only solution at the moment is to use my slingers against them...

The only uses I get out of Equites is running down fleeing enemies and as a flanking force, repeatedly charging up the rears of unsuspecting units of light infantry!...

Please can one of you veterans educate me on the art of Equites as I am completeluy at a loss on this one

[Hesus de bodemloze]

You need to use your Equites with support of triaria against numidian cavalry, use the Equites to hold the N C in place while your Triari are moving towards them.

Bit of a noob question but I haven't really found the best answer for this after playing SPQR for a good few months!!! does charging your cavalry through enemy units (without clicking attack) do any damage? I notices some get knocked over but they usually stand up again...

Yes they kill some of the routing men, but not as many as when you would click to attack.

If you are charging skirmishers you should use both units of Equites to attack them, because of there high experience level they have higher moral which will make them fight longer (the skirmishers), so use both of your cav units to rout them.

[Ejergard]

If you just double click on terrain to make cavalry charge somewhere, they won't do much damage to the enemy. However, this might still be useful to disrupt an enemy formation in order for your own infantry to fill in the gap. However, if you've charged halfway through a unit and click attack, they will start fighting obviously, but without the charge bonus. For killing archers and skirmishers, best is simply to doubleclick them and let your horsemen to their job, but especially with equites, using 2 units against the same target is prefered to make them route quick. And as always with cavalry, the secret is the actual charge, since most cavalry suck in hand to hand combat, so charge, let them fight for a few seconds, move them out and charge back in again. For best effect, use your cavalry from separate directions as this will lower the moral of the enemy unit.

[Vespasian92]

Always, always use both uits of equites in your armies together like one in battle. If you are chasing enemy cavalry or skrimishers, you can snd both equites after them with your infantry running after. Even if your equites engage for only a few seconds, the enemy cavalry will stop and fight back, giving your infantry time to do the actual killing.

[Ferdiad]

I actually find Equites to be a bit OP for the romans.

[Abmong]

Thanks for the tips guys , I went and did some 1-on-1 practice in custom battles. The Equites managed to beat Chosen Swordsmen and Gallic Heavy Infantry quite comfortably with repeated charges.

Hopefully I'll manage to defeat Theophanes with acceptable loss this time... since I'm starting again after SPQR 7.0 and Hannibal doesn't seem as cunning as Theophanes

Thanks again Hesus, now I can exterminate those Numidian Cavalry with extreme prejudice
I'd forgotten one of the golden rules of cavalry charges... (never charges without infantry support)
Thanks for reminding me

[Vespasian92]

Lol playing Medieval II makes me forget that sometimes, cause the cavalry is just so awesome in that.

[Hesus de bodemloze]

Lol playing Medieval II makes me forget that sometimes, cause the cavalry is just so awesome in that.

Battles in Roman times where focused on infantry while in medieval times the cavalry played the most important role on the battle field.

[Vespasian92]

hahaha of course. Im a roman and medieval history geek lol.

[abbews]

Equites are the force who wins the battle for me, especially against Gaul, they can cause some real havoc.

[Raglan]

abbews!!! i didn't know you were a SPQR player, good man

[Zel408]

Equites aren't meant to stand there and fight. Use them to flank an enemy unit thats already engaged in battle. I don't see equites losing to skirmishers or archers unless its chosen archers ( chosen archers are good at fighting hand to hand). Equites become more valuable as they gain experience. Remember to only use them when chasing down routed units or for flanking. When they gain more experience you can use them to hold enemy generals units untill help arrives. Sandwhiching a unit between two equites is good too. attacking from only one side with 2 equites is wasteful and takes much longer to do the job. Dont be lazy, use them to run around the flanks and the backside of the enemy.

[S u l l a]

Equites aren't meant to stand there and fight. Use them to flank an enemy unit thats already engaged in battle. I don't see equites losing to skirmishers or archers unless its chosen archers ( chosen archers are good at fighting hand to hand). Equites become more valuable as they gain experience. Remember to only use them when chasing down routed units or for flanking. When they gain more experience you can use them to hold enemy generals units untill help arrives. Sandwhiching a unit between two equites is good too. attacking from only one side with 2 equites is wasteful and takes much longer to do the job. Dont be lazy, use them to run around the flanks and the backside of the enemy.

Indeed.

I tend to use the missile cavalry auxilia more frequently than equites though, but I guess it comes down to playing style.