Seleucid unit choices

[ByzantineLover]

Hello, as the title says, I'm looking for the best units to use as the Seleucids, assuming you get to the high-tier buildings.

I prefer to use a hammer-and-anvil strategy for phalanx-based armies.

So which units are better for which purpose?

1. Phalanx Pikemen or Silver Shield Pikemen? (Main line)

2. Silver Shield Pikemen or Silver Shield Legionaries? (Flank support)

3. Archers or Peltasts? (Ranged units)

4. Best cavalry combination - Companion Cavalry/Cataphract, Greek Cavalry/Cataphract, Companion Cavalry/Greek Cavalry?

5. Elephants or Scythed chariots? (Wildcard unit/shock weapon)

[Bonez]

Silver Sheild pikeman for the main line because as long as you keep them away from archers they are very good.
Silver Sheild legionaries for the flanks because they are more manuverable.
Archers because they have better range.
Companion Cav/Cataphract is the best combo, the Cata's run rather slow but are amazing in melee so the companions can chase down the enemy.
Elephants because as long as you use them right they have both good melee and archers on their backs so they can be a double threat if kept from amok.

[ccgr1121]

Hello, as the title says, I'm looking for the best units to use as the Seleucids, assuming you get to the high-tier buildings.

I prefer to use a hammer-and-anvil strategy for phalanx-based armies.

So which units are better for which purpose?

1. Phalanx Pikemen or Silver Shield Pikemen? (Main line)

2. Silver Shield Pikemen or Silver Shield Legionaries? (Flank support)

3. Archers or Peltasts? (Ranged units)

4. Best cavalry combination - Companion Cavalry/Cataphract, Greek Cavalry/Cataphract, Companion Cavalry/Greek Cavalry?

5. Elephants or Scythed chariots? (Wildcard unit/shock weapon)

1) Silver shields are better in every way for the main line.

2) Legionaries. They can actually run and manoeuvre properly, unlike pikemen. They are brilliant units.

3) Archers, definitely. The only advantage p]eltasts have is their bonus vs chariots and elephants, and fire arrows do that as well. However, don't go overboard on them.

4) I personally go for cataphracts to be my sledgehammer on the enemy line, companions to be my backup hammer whenever I need more mobility and Greek cavalry/Militia cavalry to chase down archers/routers etc.

5) Elephants. Chariots are useless.

[Vindictus]

Chariots are so great against cavalry though

[ccgr1121]

Chariots are so great against cavalry though

Granted, they are lethal to cavalry, as anyone who has played as the Britons will tell you

However, they do not really kill infantry; rather they just knock them down and disperse them. The best strategy here is to charge your cavalry in straight afterwards and rout them. The main issue I have with chariots is that they are bogged down too easily. When that happens, they are destroyed. Every single time. While elephants are not as lethal, they can be moved out of tricky situations and saved from being skewered so much.

As for flankers, I have found that pikemen are only useful in formation. While they can obviously be taken out of formation for running, I find it too laborious to micromanage them. But that's just me

[Vindictus]

Granted, they are lethal to cavalry, as anyone who has played as the Britons will tell you

However, they do not really kill infantry; rather they just knock them down and disperse them. The best strategy here is to charge your cavalry in straight afterwards and rout them. The main issue I have with chariots is that they are bogged down too easily. When that happens, they are destroyed. Every single time. While elephants are not as lethal, they can be moved out of tricky situations and saved from being skewered so much.

As for flankers, I have found that pikemen are only useful in formation. While they can obviously be taken out of formation for running, I find it too laborious to micromanage them. But that's just me

I find that chariots alone will kill infantry very well and during the charge into their backs when they are preoccupied with your pikemen will route them almost instantly.

As long as you have enough chariots to counter the amount of infantry, it will suffice. Surely one group of chariots will not kill an entire army! I find that 2 groups or even 3 groups of chariots will deal significant morale blow to them, which is sufficient enough for me.(:

[Genius of the Restoration]

The main issue I have with chariots is that they are bogged down too easily.

It just requires a bit of micromanagement to keep them from getting stuck. A free-moving chariot is brutal.

@OP
This is assuming that money is infinite:
1. Silver Shield Pikemen

2. Silver Shield Legionaries

3. Archers

4. I'd go with Cataphracts only, with maybe one unit of Greek Cav if you really want something to mop up with afterwards. Catpahracts should be enough though.

5. I'd rank Armoured Elephants and Scythed Chariots as a tie. Elephants have the added bonus of being able to knock down the gates of settlements that have wall levels beneath stone. Chariots are generally more useful in battles IMO and less troublesome to deal with if they run amok.

[Willowran]

they do not really kill infantry; rather they just knock them down and disperse them. The best strategy here is to charge your cavalry in straight afterwards and rout them. The main issue I have with chariots is that they are bogged down too easily. When that happens, they are destroyed. Every single time.

scythed chariots send people flying, and they don't tend to get back up. i don't actually fight anyone with the chariots, i charge throughthem. keep moving, always. jus barrel through/past the enemy army, turn around, repeat. they slaughter thousands, and are moving too fast to take more than a token casualty.

problem is you can't do this to cavalry. you actually have to fight them.

elephants can do it too, but they're a lot slower, and tend to stop more often in order to kill people. more losses

[Willowran]

1. Phalanx Pikemen or Silver Shield Pikemen? (Main line)

2. Silver Shield Pikemen or Silver Shield Legionaries? (Flank support)

3. Archers or Peltasts? (Ranged units)

4. Best cavalry combination - Companion Cavalry/Cataphract, Greek Cavalry/Cataphract, Companion Cavalry/Greek Cavalry?

5. Elephants or Scythed chariots? (Wildcard unit/shock weapon)

1: silver shield. theyre better units all-round over phalanx pikemen.

2: hmm. pikes dont die so long as they're facing the enemy, but legionarres require less micromanaging... i'd still say pikes. i never had an issue with getting them facing the right direction, and you don't haveto replace them nearly as often. usually enemy flankers are cav, and pikes will survive longer/do more damage there.

3:archers. more ammo. more range. better. peltasts i find dont cause enough enemy casaulties.

4: greek cavalry sucks. no way around that. companion cavalry don't stand as well in prolonged combat, but they're still great. catas are just beast. but don't waste companions on chasing routers. i say greek cav/catas. catas for killing, greek cav for chasing. they're a lot cheaper than companions.

5: id actually say chariots. they can just mow down any infantry they go up against (minus pikes from the front), are considerably faster/more manoeverable than elephants (thus less likely to amok by fire). the only downside is they're a little less effective against horse... but they're still better overall.

[Vindictus]

I like chariots because you can train them anywhere, on the contrary of elephants.

[Basil II the B.S]

Archers, silver shiled pikemen (optional legionaries for flanks), elephants, cataphracts and companions.

Main strategies: if you are stronger in terms of ranged units, keep the elephants back and let the archers do the main job. Works particularly good in presence of hills.
If not, archers in spread out formation first, to cover your phalanx advancing, use elephants and your cavalry to take out the enemy's cavalry then use the pincer maneuver. Phalanx holding the front, cavalry from the back.
If the enemy lacks phalanxes you might want to charge up front with elephants, followed by cataphracts. Companions better from behind or enemy's cavalry. Not even the best Roman troops can stand the combined might of a charging elephants and cataphtacts.

[Vindictus]

I realized I haven't adequately answered the person's thread. The Seleucid Empire is incredibly flexible and pikemen are some of the most fantastic units any faction can have. They are nearly unbeatable in a front to front battle. This is the sole reason why they are used as the main line in "spearmen" armies.

Front line: Silver Shield pikemen (or Phalanx Pikemen). It really doesn't matter. For Multiplayer, choose Silvershield Pikemen. These guys should be the one that stop the enemy from breaking your middle. Don't worry about these guys. As long as they remain where they are fighting, they shouldn't lose.

Flanks: Silvershield Legionaries are ideal troops. The flanks of an army should always be versatile and strong. Pikemen are very good infantry, but they lack the maneuverability that helps them react to instantaneous movements. Silvershield Legionaries can intercept and prevent the enemy from flanking your strong, sometimes inflexible line.

Missile: Archers any day, everyday. Javelinmen won't cut it in battles. Archers will help thin the ranks of the approaching enemy. Aim them preferably at enemy cavalry, as horses are susceptible to such missiles.

Cavalry: Cataphracts, hands down. All though Companion is recruited at the HUGE CITY level, they lack the armor and shock power needed to decapitate troops. Sure, they have the same charge and more damage, but it is the Cataphracts durability that make them such dangerous units. They also do an alternative attack that is effective against armored(?) troops.

Shock Troops: It is dependent on the situation. For more mobility, go with chariots. If you want something that completely shreds opponent lines to pieces, then pick Elephants. Both absolutely destroy lines, but the Chariots are more reliable. Elephants can end up charging into your own lines (pikemen, which in this case will get slaughtered in hand to hand), and break it. Chariots are very good as shock troops and they make quick work of troops.