Army composition/deployment strategy?

[rsog2000]

Going out of lurk mode, just wanted to hear what others were doing for this particular mod...and while we're on the topic, any advice for the first battle as Epiros? I've played both RTR and EB as SPQR and Carthage (and Carthage on TIC) but I've never played as a successor state with any of these mods, and I seem to have major difficulties fighting the Battle of Heraklea, even while following my history books to the letter on the composition and deployment of successor armies.

[Freshmaker]

Welcome to TWC and the RTR Forums!

I am no expert, but these few tips keep me from getting totally annihalated. Keep trying at it, a handful of people have won as Rome.

-I find that spreading your infantry lines out as wide as possible will help you manage the flanks.
-If you are playing as Rome, keep your skirmishers in reserve to counter the elephants.
-If you are playing as Epeiros let the infantry clash then use your many cavalry to clear out the skirmishers and then get your elephants in (I found them most useful as a terror unit to scare tired units).

[Maurits]

Freshmaker, I think he wants an Epiros advice.

Here's my tactic:

Try to form a line thats as long as possible. Let the Romans attack. Kill their cavalry and flanking units with your cavalry, destroy the consul and the Romans will rout when they see an elephant. This sounds too easy, but be aware that these elephants can really destroy troops that are pinned to the ground by phalangites!

[Freshmaker]

He sure was, my bad.

I put the 4 bodyguard units in a group and used them on one side to flank and get that side to collapse. The other two large groups of cavalry I threw on the other flank and used as security for the light cavalry as they harassed the Roman cavlary. I placed the Phalangites in the middle of the front line with the hoplites on the outsides of the phalangites. I did this because the hoplites are more flexible and once the cavalry started routing the outside flanks I could easily use the hoplites to start collapsing down on the sides of the nearest roman units. The cavalry could then move around and flank from the rear of the Romans. The elephants floated around the rear of the Romans once the flanks started routing, they kept units running and picked off stragglers.

Oh, and I placed the Toxotoi and slingers right behind the Phalangites, stretched out as far as I could get them.

[rsog2000]

Aha, so one very long battle line...I think that's where I went wrong, I had two lines so I could keep some reserves but the Romans kept flanking me. Thank you gentlemen!

[rsog2000]

And I got a heroic victory using one very very long line, and didn't lose a single elephant! Of course, now the really hard part begins as I have to figure out how to balance my kingdom's budget while fighting a two-front war...

[Pat89]

Try to concentrate on one front and just try to protect the other as good as you can with minimal effort. Also try to keep peace at the non-active front, so you can trade there

[Tony83]

Fighting as Epeiros, deploy your four phalanx units in one line (I use a four rows deep formation). If you want to be historical, make sure that you place the Asthetairoi on the right of the line, as elites they should have the place of honour. Deploy your phalanx in as good a location as you can, place them "on guard", and let the Romans bring the battle to you.

From the front, your phalanx will be completely safe, as the Romans have nothing that can touch them head on. The main danger will be from attacks on the flank, where the Roman swordsmen will have the advantage, so make sure that both the left and right flanks of your phalanx are covered by the hoplite units and light and missile infantry, backed up by the cavalry and elephants. I would place the Chaonan Agema Hoplites on the left, immediately next to and a little back from the phalangites. This will place two of your best infantry units at either end of your phalanx, minimising the risk of your flanks being defeated and rolled up.

Your cavalry and elephants are very powerful tools, but don't commit them too soon. Use them on frontal attacks of uncommitted fresh Roman infantry and they will be overcome easily and wasted. Especially, keep your elephants in the rear, out of harms way, during the early phases of the battle. Most Roman infantry are equipped with javelins or pila that will make short work of your tuskers, so wait until melee has been joined right along the line, by then most of their missiles should have been expended.

With "on Guard" mode switched on, your infantry should soak up a lot of punishment from the Roman infantry. The trick is judging the right moment to swing your cavalry and elephants around one , or both, flanks to attack the Romans in the rear. I you get the timing right: your cavalry attacking the rear of the tired and disorganised Romans infantry, and you elephants working their way from one flank to the other (either left to right, or vice versa), it won't be long before a general rout will be in progress and you will be left with mopping up the fleeing horde.

One thing to remember, even when attacking infantry in the rear, don't leave your cavalry in prolonged melee after the impact. You will be much more effective and suffer fewer losses if you charge, withdraw, charge, withdraw, until the infantry break. It takes a fair bit of micromanagement, considering the number of cavalry units Epeiros fields, but it is worth it. If your elephants don't make short work of the first unit that they attack in the flank, you have probably mistimed things and counter attacked too soon - so be careful!

[rsog2000]

Excellent Tony, and almost exactly what I did! The thing I love about games like this is figuring out the right solution to each situation. I used similar tactics as Carthage to great effect in TIC and EB (even though I didn't have a phalanx, but did have more mobile infantry). In my FOE campaign as Epiros I won Heraklea by lining my troops up as you said, with my honor guard cavalry on the right, hippies and tarantine cav on left, missile troops as a second line with the possibility of using them to plug any gaps (fortunately it didn't come to this), and my general and elephants in the back center, with the intent of bringing them around either flank as needed. The Romans came at me with 2 lines, infantry in front, equitates on flanks, and leves/velites in the rear. Their center ended up hitting my right side. Since I didn't really have a second line (other than missile troops) to bolster my right flank, and trying to change formation at this point would have created too much confusion, I decided to use my left cav to win the battle on my left flank as soon as I could, eventually bringing my general into the battle here. When it became clear that my right might not hold long enough for my left to sweep around, I committed my elephants on my right. I ordered them to charge straight through from the side. The result was nothing like I expected: as they went from right to left (from my POV), they killed a lot of the Romans on my right flank but didn't break them, but they eventually made it to the left side where the enemy was on the verge of breaking and this cause a rout. Within a minute the rout cascaded back to the right side, and the battle was won. With most of my cav intact, I easily chased down the fleeing Romans. Their general was one of the few to flee. Result (as mentioned in my previous post): Heroic Epirote victory, with no elephants lost.

Haven't had much time since to play beyond the first year so no more big battles at this point. Does anyone have any suggestions for a good second line composition (to plug holes and such), or am I better off just taking my chances with one big line?

[Horse Archer]

Also, consider either using your elephants to cover one flank while you mass your cavalry on the other, or using your elephants to create disorder while your cavalry charge in right behind (I used this in vanilla to crush roman fullstacks with my halfstacks of round shields and one elephant unit-vanilla really rewarded light cavalry in the early game, but I digress. Though here that shouldn't be as devastating, it's still worth trying.). You will almost certainly roll up the roman flank, but make sure you don't commit too early.