Your own formations

[Frtigern]

Good day!

As the title says, I would like to see your own custom made formations. If you can, please leave a picture with the formation (optional: a walk-through of what the current formation is good at, their possibilities to adapt to different situations and who you primarily use it against).

Inspired by this thread: http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?t=39743

But I know this is not vanilla RTW so us EB players probably have more sophisticated formations made to counter all the various armies we might find in EB that don't exist in RTW.

And how about we try to separate formations according to specific faction reforms like Camillan, Polyian, Marion, and Imperial.

Central Italy Formation
A L L L L A
Sc H H H Sc
P P P
Hc T T T Hc
G

Roman army
L-Leves
A-Accensi
H-Hastati
P-Principes
T-Triarii
Sc-Skimishing cavalry (Camapanian)
Hc-Heavy cavalry (Eqvites Extraordinarii, Eqvites Romani, Misthophoroi Hippeis)
G-General (Eqvites Consvlares)

Southern Italy Formation
A S Sk Sk S A
Sc Li Li Li Sc
Hi Hi Hi
Hc H H H Hc
G

Greek-Samnite army
I like to use these units in place of Hastati and Principes:
Li-Light infantry (Hastati Samnitici or Bruttian Infantry)
Hi-Heavy infantry (Pedites Extraordinarii or Samnitici Milites)
Instead of Rorarii, Celtic and Hellenic archers I like to substitute them with:
A-Archers (Cretan archers)
S-Slingers (Balearic slingers)
Sk-Skirmishers (Numidian skirmishers)
Since I can't recruit Triarii in Southern Italy or Sicily I substitute with these:
H-Hoplites (Classical hoplites or Syracuse hoplites)
Sc-Skirmishing cavalry (Camapanian or Numidian)
Hc-Heavy cavalry (Eqvites Extraordinarii or Misthophoroi Hippeis)
G-General (Eqvites Consvlares, Italic General or Hellenistic Mercenary General)

Northern Italy Formation
A S Sk Sk S A
Sc Li Li Li Sc
Li Li Li
Hc Hi Hi Hi Hc
G

Italic-Gallic northern army
A-Archers (Celtic archers)
S-Slingers (Celtic slingers)
Sk-Skirmishers (Hellenic skirmishers)
Li-Light infantry (Rhaetic axemen, Ligurian Infantry, Gaeroas, Noricum Spearmen)
Hi-Heavy infantry (Mercenary Celto-Hellenic Infantry, Massilian Medium Hoplites, Gallic Heavy Swordsmen)
Sc-Skimishing cavalry (Gallic or Ligurian)
Hc-Heavy cavalry (Eqvites Extraordinarii, Eqvites Romani, Misthophoroi Hippeis)
G-General (Eqvites Consvlares or Celtic Lesser King)

I advance together to sling and bow range. If enemy refuses to parry I will exhaust all my missiles. If not, then I pull them behind the first infantry line. I then rush forward my skirmisher cavalry. All the while I am advancing up til skirmisher infantry range. Once skirmishers ready to fire I move up my heavy cavalry to check enemy cavalry moves and protect flanks. Once skirmishers are out of javelins I pull them back to the rear along with archers and slingers and they become the rear guard if disaster should befall my infantry and cavalry while routing. Now all infantry and cavalry advance forward until first line of light infantry is within javelin range. I give them one volley and charge the first line in. The second line are my flankers. I reserve the fastest hardiest troops to fulfill this and try to get them behind enemy lines if I can. Around this time I will send my cavalry to wipe out enemy cavalry and missile units. This sometimes causes enemy general to get involved and if I am lucky I kill him too. The third line are my reserve and gap fillers. They are told to hold their line if we are losing ground, but if we are gaining ground I let them kill at will. Now my second line has charged the flank and the next two units are going for their rear. Checkmate.

[Ferdiad]

I use one basic formation, 8 Cohorts in a line, one reserve line for exploitation purposes. Archers behind that again and cav on wings.One space left open for whatever I need.Never really bother with any fancy as the AIs so stupid basic is all you need.
C=Cavalry
L=Legionares
A=Archers
G=General

C-C L-L-L-L-L-L-L-L-L C-C
L

A-A-A-A

G

[Frtigern]

Yea, I've actually yet to get Imperial Legionary Cohorts, which in your configuration will beat any other infantry army. It makes it much simpler, but when you can only afford a handful of picked troops and you have to face elite Epirote, Carthaginian, Gallic, and Lusotannan infantry all at once, you need to have missile troops and throwaways in order spare your better troops in a direct confrontation. If only I had Legionary Cohorts in 230 BC!

[Ferdiad]

Yea, I've actually yet to get Imperial Legionary Cohorts, which in your configuration will beat any other infantry army. It makes it much simpler, but when you can only afford a handful of picked troops and you have to face elite Epirote, Carthaginian, Gallic, and Lusotannan infantry all at once, you need to have missile troops and throwaways in order spare your better troops in a direct confrontation. If only I had Legionary Cohorts in 230 BC!

You can get Cohors Reformata fairly quicly so its not all bad, but yah waiting for the Imperial Reforms uscks big time.

[Yomamashouse]

Skirmisher - Heavy Infantry - Spearmen - Spearmen - Spearmen - Heavy Infantry - Skirmishers
--------Cavalry --- Medium Infantry - Medium Infantry - Medium Infantry --- Cavalry
------------Archers/Slingers ------------Commander ----- Archers/Slingers

[smoesville]

Since i usually fight as a successor state i have a simple formation. The hoplites / hypaspists covered the makedonian phalanx flank and the cavalry encircled and harassed enemy skirmishers. Mostly the skirmishers were there as a fence to reduce casualties to the mainline infantry also they were usually mercs as that type of merc is easy to come by (and replace ).
) = archers
| = hoplites / hypaspists
] = phalangites
> = cavalry/general
/ = skimishers

 |
 | ] 
 > ] 
 ) ] /
   ]
 ) ] 
   ] 
 ) ] /
 > ] 
 | ] 
 |

To sustain the army on campaign it necessary to replace units in the field with locals or mercs but when this happens i try to employ units of similar type to what is missing/weakened. And on very long campaigns (like my Roman anatolian conquest) i ended up with fewer than 5 original units still in existence (in a few cases they had been made garrison troops as they were well below fighting strength ie less than 20 men). In that case my fresh Roman replacements couldn't get there as the gauls in Alpine italy were massing and the getai north of makedon had declared war so there was no easy way to get them there

My Roman legions (polybian and camillan) start with a simple setup, triarii, hastati and principes in three lines fronted with skirmishers and supported by two horse and a general. The army was treated in a historical(ish) fashion. The hastati took the brunt of the fight while the the principes plugged gaps in the line when necessary or covered the flank. The triarii were kept in reserve for those dire situations and the cavalry flanked the enemy. Attrition during a campaign usually went from the front, skirmishers were often replaced early on with Cretan archers or other archers when available. Hastati dwindle fast in a long campaign so they usually were replaced with mercs as time went on. In fact in greek lands when casualties had mounted over many turns i ended up having a Roman legion which mostly consisted of greek mercs and used tactics similar to the greek formations above

) = archers
| = hastati
] = principes
} = triarii
> = cavalry
x = general
/ = skimishers

>
 } ] | 
 } ] | /
x} ] |
 } ] | /
 } ] |
>

[torongill]

This is a formation that I used just two times out of desperation. I had an army made of hoplites, thracian peltastas, missile units, half a unit of falxmen and half of naked fanatics and some light infantry with an allied greek general(see thumbnail). The desperation was because I had to face it off with a seleucid army with a general, one medium and two heavy cavalry, one general, two missile units and nine phalanx units, including IIRC three silvershields. I had my hoplites and one galatian heavy spearmen form shieldwall and echeloned them to the right, sort of Epaminondas's amassment formation at Leuctra, but modified a bit. On the left I had my general with a unit of light axemen for added melee punch as well as the falxmen/naked fanatics(deployed as a single unit) and half the thracians in a column. The line ended with two other thracian units to serve as flank protection. My idea was to attack the rightmost phalanx unit and lure the seleucid general and kill him there. Then attack in the same manner the next rightmost unit until all were destroyed. The echelon was to delay the moment my small line entered action and to prevent the enemy phalanx from swinging to the right and hitting me in the flank. It worked pretty well, although I had one and a half units of hoplites annihilated by a frontal charge of the enemy heavy horse.

[Lansa]

On my current AS file, my standard formation against all but HA armies is as follows. It's a jack of all trades army, so it does everything reasonably well but nothing particularly outstandingly.

H-------------T---T----------------------H
---E-Th--P-P-P-P-P-A-A-P--Th-G-
-----------C-To-To---------------

H = Hetairoi, or in their absence merc. Thessalians etc
Th = Thorakitai Agema, single best siege assault unit IMO
P = Pezhetairoi/Klerouchi
A = Argyaspides
G = Gaesatae
E = Hypaspistai
To = Toxotai
C = Commander/General/Strategos etc

[Gromit]

Something I used repeatedly against Carthage in my Romani campaign during the 1st Punic War.


----------H K K K K K K K K K K K K H---------------

S S --------------------------------------------S S
E X X -----------------------------------------X X E
---------------P P P P P P P -----------------
-------------------A A A---------------------
---------------------C---------------------
Key-
E- Equites or other cavalry
S- Javelin armed skirmishers (leves, lucanian infantry, akontistai)
X- Sword/axe armed assualt infantry (camillian hastati, rhaetic axeman, gallic swordsman, bruttian infantry, samnite milites, pedites extraodinarii)
P- Spearmen (Camillian principes, hoplitai, triarii, samnite hastati
A- Long ranged skirmishers (accensi, toxotai, cretan archers)
C- Commander
H- Enemy cavalry
K- Enemy infantry (usually spearmen)

Carthage fielded armies filled with libyan spearmen and liby-phoenician infantry, the logic behind the formation was that my spearmen would form a defensive battle-line and allow the enemy spearmen to engage them while my trops on the flanks would harass the enemy spearmen with javelins and then launch massed charges onto the enemy units on the flanks of their line, trying to rout them quickly and then continue the charge. I won a large battle near Lilibeo doing this, my skiirmishers on the flanks took out the enemy elephants and the enemy spearmen routed quickly after my infantry charged.

[Frtigern]

Ah Gromit, that reminds me of the Zulu Buffalo Horn formation.

[Boriak]

-Archers/Slingers------Peltasts-------------------
-LC-------------HI-------HI-------HI-----------HC
-LC------LI--------HI---------HI--------LI------
--------------LI--------HI--------LI------------HC
----------AI-----------General----------AI--------

HI - heavy infantry
HC - heavy cavalry
LC - light cavalry
LI - light infantry
AI - additional infantry

This is my conventional formation for most of my armies, no matter the nation. I modify it, depending on what units I have because I always tend to improvize, depending on the location. If I use a phalanx, then the formation is much more compact.

I tend to put my archers/slingers at the left flank of my formation. This gives them greater chance of coming around the shield defence bonus and also makes the AI more prone to running after them because of their exposed position. I tend to put light cavalry behind the skirmishers, covering the left flank of the main army. By stationing them there, they can pepper the enemy when they come towards my heavy infantry. If the enemy gives chase to my skirmishers with heavy infantry, my light cavalry will retreat with the skirmishers. Both are fast enough to outrun heavy infantry. If the enemy sends light infantry or cavalry, I will retreat the skirmishers but order the light cavalry forward to stop the enemy from advancing. When that happens, I will attack with my heavy infantry from the flank, usually creating a rout withing moments.

After that, I will advance my heavy infantry until they connect. The light infantry on the flanks are used in a backstabber javelin role, while my heavy cavalry on the right flank attempts to envelop the enemy's formation and charge into their backs. My light cavalry, usually depleted of missiles by now, will usually envelop as well, only instead of charging it will wait to handle the routers.

[DarthLazy]

Make a line. Put cavalry behind it. Skirmishers infront or in the back. March up. Kill. Go home.

[torongill]

Make a line. Put cavalry behind it. Skirmishers infront or in the back. March up. Kill. Go home.

Why in the world would you put your cavalry behind the infantry line? And one line? ahistorical as hell and exploiting the AI limits as hell

@Casual tactician, that sounds like fun and also sounds suspiciously like the English tactics portrayed in the second battle in the movie Braveheart
BTW off skirmish+fire at will is how I usually deploy my javelineers. This way, combined with control of the high ground ensures that the enemy skirmishers will be ineffective(since they usually deploy in skirmish mode).

Don't get me started on the whole skirmish mode is BS topic. Hopefully if there is RTW2 they will make it more realisitc, with morale penalties and real skirmishing.

[Blatta Optima Maxima]

Not always in the same order of lines, but same here.

[DarthLazy]

Fancy formations tend to get ripped apart as soon as you get flanked.

[Blatta Optima Maxima]

They tend to get ripped up as soon as anything happens.

[Casual Tactician]

This is merely a fun formation/tactic:

If you want to play it evil, a cute formation is to have a line of 2-4 cheap skirmishers (in guard mode, loose formation, at least 4-5 rows deep, skirmishing disabled and fire at will) in front of your main battle array (archers/slingers other javelin men up front). Once the bulk of enemy units are engaged in melee with the cheap, disposable skirmishers, you order your archers, slingers and/or other javelin units to fire at the enemy (thus naturally also at your own men).
Once your skrimishers are down to only a few men or are about to rout, you make a charge with your fresh main infantry line and use your other units to flank/surround the exhausted and decimated enemy. If the archers/slingers have any ammo left pull them round your left flank, so they can fire at the enemy where he can't use his shield. Soon enough all enemy force will be dead or running for their lives.
To make this work properly it's important to have a fairly good general with some command stars or other morale boni, otherwise your skirmishers may rout too early.

I've never used this tactic in EB as I prefer to play historic/realistic (mostly anyway), but in my tatw3.0 Isengard campaign it worked quite well in a few situations. I'm pretty sure Saruman had a jolly good time watching the bloody carnage.

[DarthLazy]

This is merely a fun formation/tactic:

If you want to play it evil, a cute formation is to have a line of 2-4 cheap skirmishers (in guard mode, loose formation, at least 4-5 rows deep, skirmishing disabled and fire at will) in front of your main battle array (archers/slingers other javelin men up front). Once the bulk of enemy units are engaged in melee with the cheap, disposable skirmishers, you order your archers, slingers and/or other javelin units to fire at the enemy (thus naturally also at your own men).
Once your skrimishers are down to only a few men or are about to rout, you make a charge with your fresh main infantry line and use your other units to flank/surround the exhausted and decimated enemy. If the archers/slingers have any ammo left pull them round your left flank, so they can fire at the enemy where he can't use his shield. Soon enough all enemy force will be dead or running for their lives.
To make this work properly it's important to have a fairly good general with some command stars or other morale boni, otherwise your skirmishers may rout too early.

I've never used this tactic in EB as I prefer to play historic/realistic (mostly anyway), but in my tatw3.0 Isengard campaign it worked quite well in a few situations. I'm pretty sure Saruman had a jolly good time watching the bloody carnage.

If anyone still doubts the effectiveness of the one line, or thinks multiple lines are far better, see here.

[Casual Tactician]

I guess for some folks playing EB, it's not the main priority to beat the hell out of the AI with the most efficient battle tactics and campaign strategies. But to play with your own house rules, having a fairly historic/realistic army composition and also to stick to somewhat historic/realistic battle tactics even if they don't always offer the best results (and the stubbornly AI behaves as it does > mostly weird).
In brief: (At least for me) the aim when starting a new EB campaign isn't to beat the AI, but to replay or rewritte history and have a good time doing so. And EB is just perfect for that!

[Casual Tactician]

@ smoesville + torongill > That's the EB spirit!

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Did you use my Saruman/Isengard tactic at the beginning of the battle there? How wicked! Interesting battle by the way.

If anyone still doubts the effectiveness of the one line, or thinks multiple lines are far better, see here.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Not sure what your definition of 'one line' is here. But anyhow, I guess it's pointless to compare roleplaying-/history/realism-orientated EB campaigns with EB online battles, where you try to beat another player by all means.