Platoon fire unlocked, why do elite units still use fire by rank?

**IGdood** · September 10, 2010, 10:41 PM

Yeah, I'm talking about the guards and grenadiers. I've got platoon fire unlocked, yet on the battlefield they still use fire by rank. The only mods I'm using are AUM and some audio and graphical mods.

I even downloaded the DB editor to check the units.

Their abilities are Improved_Platoon_fire_grouped buut NOT Platoon_fire_grouped. So they know the ability, but I don't see it used in the battlefield. Why is that? Do I have to line up the men in 4-man rows?

Thanks in advance.

**MortenJessen** · September 11, 2010, 03:30 PM

Hi there.
Well, all I can tell you (not knowing any of the mods), is that in vanilla, platoon firing is for Elite units like guards, while fire by rank is for the line regiments.
Y.S.
M. Jessen

**Okuto** · September 11, 2010, 08:21 PM

believe me, you dont want platoon fire, it's rubbish

**IGdood** · September 11, 2010, 08:42 PM

In my experience, platoon firing does more damage when there's a meatshield to take fire.

**Mattyclark** · September 12, 2010, 03:30 PM

Isnt it a cycle through ability? Like the archers cycle through abilities in Medieval 2?

**Dave Strider** · September 12, 2010, 03:47 PM

No...Pretty much everything in M2 was scrapped in ETW

**eregost** · September 13, 2010, 03:29 PM

Once you research it it should replace fire by rank for elite units permanently. No cycling through option. Fire by rank is better in some ways though if you want an immediate punch. Platoon fire starts off slow so when facing a line unit they will kill more of your men at the start of the firefight. Platoon fire's beauty though is when a firefight continues for a while and your constant non stop shredding of the enemy will rout them.