Elephants

[Panzerwu]

Hello everyone!

Today I'll like to ask fellow gamers on the art of using elephants.
I might have played for quite some time, but I'm a newbie in my own opinion, ha!

Been having fun with recruiting Elephant Musketeers and Elephant Artillery, but due to the rarity in it's availability to replenish its ranks, I try ever ever so hard to keep the unit intact, rushing them off to back to the East for resupply just wastes too much time, not to mention the cost of keeping them!

Anyways, the point is, how many of you use Elephant Units? I hear that some say it's a shock value treasure, but it's over-priced, as well as a loose cannon at some points.
Elephant artillery is quite good, reloads fast, good range, but can't be much use when closed in, well, expect for the fact they cause havoc in the enemy's formations. Elephant Musketeers are vice versa I suppose.

So do you charge them through? Their kill ratio was lower than I expected, but nerveless, powerful. If they get stuck in melee too long, they get cut down, if you keep them on the move, they're slow, and mostly stun the soldiers they hit, since I zoomed to see most guys get right back up.

What's everybody's tactics?

[diez]

in both vanilla and ss i use them to reduce the morale of the enemy or take out the enemy cav.vs cav they really are useful...now even if they are close to enemy inf they will cause them huge morale penalties.
another tactic i use is to charge them through a part of the enemy line,then charge with cav,finaly use ur inf...they will be destroyed sooner than u expected

[Panzerwu]

Really? my original tactic from my days of old was to place them on my flanks, I have always feared of getting outflanked, I usually place my strongest units on the flanks. The AI often tries to outflank you with cavalry, after the elephants tear them to pieces, I swing them around to park right behind the enemy, who is probably currently engaged with my infantry. But the downside is that the elephants size and all often ruins your own units formations and sometimes make them vulnerable to the enemy instead, since they just charge around loosely.

I did try using them as a "opener", placing them in the front lines and charging through, but they sometimes just get boggled down in the sea of infantry, which sometimes, and highly probable, make them soon to be dead elephants.

Anyone else had fun with elephants?

[Ultra123]

keep musket elephants and arty ones behind your lines and let them shoot over your men, only use in direst situation in melee, they are far more usefull blowing/shooting enems and giving massive morale penaltys.

[.L.]

Make them charge THROUGH the enemy line, then have your infantry slowly advance(I use pikes to do this) Their formations will be ruined.

[-Myth-]

Which playable nation in SS has Elephants? (I'm talking without modding the Timurids as playable)

[Homeros]

Which playable nation in SS has Elephants? (I'm talking without modding the Timurids as playable)

All factions.

Elephants can be recruited as mercs by everyone in the right area. Technically you can send a Danish FM to the far East, have him recruit Elephants and return to Denmark to kick some butt.

[Panzerwu]

Myth, I'm playing as the Templar, my faction can't recruit the Elephants as its own, I recruited them in the Middle East, south of Damascus.
They're dead useful, but as well as dead expensive.... but sure FUN!!!!

[Panzerwu]

Homeros... that would truly be an amazing sight..... I think it would scare the hell out of any European Army..... The way those Elephants just destroy cavalry with ease...

[hull19]

*cough**cough*

Scotland went on a crusade. They army came back ruined, with Jerusalem captured by the Pope (yes, highly improbable).

But the army came back with 2 (or 3?) units of Elephants. The English already long dead, the French got to try out a half-crazed army of Scots with great big amoked elephants.

Fun fun fun

[-Myth-]

You're talking about artillery, are these like the timurid rocket launcher elephants? When can one recruit them? Since I have to wait for an event to recruit anything but dirt farmer Jack and his cousins I suppose I have to wait for the Elephants as well. I was thinking of starting a new Early Era campaign as France, I'll be sure to look for them after I smash the Yellow Death.

[.L.]

You're talking about artillery, are these like the timurid rocket launcher elephants? When can one recruit them? Since I have to wait for an event to recruit anything but dirt farmer Jack and his cousins I suppose I have to wait for the Elephants as well. I was thinking of starting a new Early Era campaign as France, I'll be sure to look for them after I smash the Yellow Death.

Cheating is the only way to recruit rocket elephants.

[StupidAlarmClockGuy]

Never seen elephant artillery in SS, only the ones with arquebusiers.

[Panzerwu]

I didn't recruit rocket elephants before, never seen them as well up to now, the only elephant related units were the Arquebusiers and the Elephant Artillery, which is one of my favourites. With their small but neverless powerful guns, they start ripping holes in the enemies linear formation from a pretty well of distance, as well, as being mobile and changing positions at ease. When artillery is useless due to the close proximity of combat, The elephants just charge through with my infantry mopping up the fallen and shocked.

True though, you can't get any decent units, well the "fun" units at the early age, you just get Farmer Jack and his rabble for hire. I played as the Knight Templar, I was stuck with Templer Spearmen or Militia for ages before acquiring more decent units, even them, I'm ver protective of my decent units, I hate having to replace or restrengthening them. Even so, I always like to play from the very beginning, makes me more aware of the whole siuation.

Just out of curiosity, has anyone faced elephants in an open field battle? I was wondering with my success with elephants, what it would be like to face these great beasts of war.....

I know most would say the use of ranged units, but has anyone defeated by purely melee units before? Like Pike Units?

I don't know why, but the Timurids spawned at Kiev than the usual Baghdad.
They're moving south to Constantiniople. I can't wait for the ultimate showdown....

[hull19]

Elephants? Arrows or pike.

If they charge you, your formation will get destroyed. But usualy, the elephants wil be pretty much alone and your troops will get back up.

In melee, especially if you have a spear/halberd/someting liek that, it's an easy win. Just watch the morale or your troops.