The primary purpose of this guide will be to showcase Roman battlefield tactics! I'll include DeI screenshots and videos as well as links to external sources showcasing Roman tactics, both historical and game pertinent, so that you can recreate Mare Nostrum (Latin for "Our Sea" as the Romans referred to the Mediterranean).
I will detail the evolution of the Roman military from its earliest times through the fall of the Western Roman Empire. This will, therefore, precede and carry on further than the time-frame of the Grand Campaign.
As previously stated, this guide is concerned with battles. Some limited information about the campaign will be provided, but only as it pertains to recruiting a type of unit (i.e. research technology x in order to recruit unit y).
I'll make an effort to respond to specific requests, i.e. such as battling against a particular faction, battlefield scenario (siege, ambush, weather etc), Roman army questions etc, in a timely manner.
More note than goal, but the DeI version is included in the title simply as a way to let people know what I'm still updating this guide. The DeI mini updates (version 1.1b, 1.1c, 1.1d) won't be reflected in the title. Battle overhauls generally come in the large mod updates (1.0, 1.1, 1.2).
De Exercitus Romanus (Latin: On the Roman Army)
Disclaimer: This section strives to offer historically accurate information for those interested. All dates are approximations. Tactics presented here may not be the most efficient or optimal way of fighting battles in R2TW — this is a video game after all — but can be adopted in game to great success.
Easily the biggest surprise to new players is that the Romans are not able to steamroll every other faction in simple head-to-head combat. We all know Rome conquered vast swaths of land and so assume they must have had the best warriors; not (quite) true! The average height of a Roman infantryman during the Punic Wars (264BC - 146BC) was 5'1" or 155cm; contrast this with the Gauls who had an avg height of 5'6" or 168cm. Point being, the Romans did not rely purely upon physical prowess to dominate their foes. It was Roman tactics, combined with an iron will and willingness to sacrifice for the State, which gave the Romans their success.
Servian Reforms (570-380 BC)
This army structure takes its name from the Roman king Servius Tullius, who is believed to have instituted the first national levy of adult males for army duty. This encompasses the period of transition when Rome was governed by a Rex (literally 'Ruler' often translated as 'King') to the Early Republic. During this time the army is divided based on wealth and the soldiers must purchase most of their own equipment. The infantry was stratified by property ownership and were labeled Classes I-V. These were further sub-divided by age; men over 45 serving garrison duty, the younger out in the field. The Equites (or 'cavalry') were comprised of the wealthiest Roman families. The tactical unit was the centuria (or 'century') a unit of 100 men, which in later times was reduced to 60 men. Organization of the typical Servian legion was as follows:
9,000 Infantry
6,000 Hoplites
Class I: 40 centuries = 4,000 men. Armed with spear and sword. Armored in helmet, small round shield (clipeus), greaves and breastplate (all bronze).
Class II: 10 centuries = 1,000 men. Armed the same as Class I. Armor differs in that these men had no breastplate, and so had a long wooden shield instead of the clipeus
Class III: 10 centuries = 1,000 men. Same as Class II with the exception of no greaves.
2,400 Velites
Class IV: 10 centuries = 1,000 men. Armed with spear and javelin, no armor.
Class V: 15 centuries = 1,500 men. Slingers, no armor. ~1 century (100 men) of this 5th class acted as horn-blowers and trumpeters.
600 Cavalry
Equestrian Class: The armaments of the equites during this period aren't well defined. Polybius, writing some 300 years later, states that the cavalry is unarmored and carries only a spear with ox-hide shield. I find this perplexing given that many modern scholars assert it was Rome's wealthiest families who supplied the cavalry. Generally, Polybius is regarded as the most rigorous scholar of ancient Roman times, and so is to be trusted
Tactically, the army deployed as such:
Class V (in front to skirmish and cover army movements)
Class I
Class II
Class III
Class IV (launch javelins from the rear)
Cavalry on the wings.
Note that the Servian Era is prior to DeI's Grand Campaign; therefore, there are no accompanying screenshots to include. Rome being full of Romans, did, of course, fight many important wars during this period. Notable battles include the Battle of Lake Regillus and the Battle of Mons Algidus.
Camillan Reforms (380-270 BC)
This army structure takes its name from Marcus Furius Camillus. Camillus was heralded as the Second Founder of Rome; he rescued the city from the Senones (a Gallic tribe) who had destroyed the Roman army and occupied Rome itself. Following this, Camillus began to reform the army — an effort spanning decades — from the rigid Greek/Etruscan style of hoplite warfare into the flexible maniples fighting in quincunx formation, which is where the DeI Grand Campaign begins. The major changes begun by Camillus were:
Division of the infantry based upon wealth.
Creation of the maniple tactical unit. A maniple is a combination of two centuries containing 120 men, except for the triarii who only had 60 men per maniple. The men of each maniple elected one of their own to be the leader, known as the centurion.
This main centurion was nominally leader of the maniple as a whole and the first century. He then chose a second centurion to lead the second century of the maniple. The senior/junior status was styled prior/posterior and was important for battlefield maneuvers (shown in the VVV section).
Creation of the cohort as an administrative unit. A cohort consisted of one maniple each of hastati, principes and triarii plus the velites who were attached to each maniple of hastati.
Deployment of the infantry into triplex acies ('three lines') and in quincunx ('checkerboard') formation for battle.
At this point the army still supplies their own armor, so the it varied between individual soldiers. Organization of the typical Camillan legion:
4,500 Heavy Infantry
Hastati: 15 maniples = 1,800 men. Armed with hastae (short spear ~6ft), two pilum (javelins). Carrying a scutum (large rectangular shield with rounded corners), feathered helmet and small breastplate (both bronze)
Principes: 15 maniples = 1,800 men. Same weaponry as the hastati. Same shield and helmet but wearing larger bronze breastplates and some would have been able to afford greaves.
Triarii: 15 maniples = 900 men. Weapon is the hastae, no pilum. Scutum shield, bronze helmet, greaves and chainmail instead of a bronze breastplate.
500 Light Infantry
Leves: 300 men. The leves are attached to the hastati when marching to battle, 20 leves per maniple of hastati. Carrying javelins and wearing no armor.
Accensi: 100 men. Unarmored, sometimes acting as slingers during the battle. Primarily these men see no fighting acting as supernumeraries (think temp worker or intern).
Roarii: 100 men. Unarmored, carrying spears. These men also rarely saw battle, usually helping to push from the rear of a unit.
320 Cavalry
Equites: 10 turmae each consisting of 32 men were the basic cavalry unit. Again, little information concerning the armaments of the cavalry is left to us. Presumably they are still lightly armored and carrying spears.
During this era, Rome expands her power to become the dominant player on the Italian peninsula. Following her subjugation of the Samnites in 290 BC, Rome is able to utilize troops of Sabines (and other) peoples to further augment her military might. These allied troops (known as socii) were under the command of the Romans, who decided when troops were to be raised and where campaigning would occur. The socii often provided significantly more cavalry (30 turmae = 960 men) yet fewer velites than would be found in the Roman legions — infantry numbers were similar. Of the socii troops: two cohorts and ten turmae were known as extraordinarii and were under personal command of the Roman Consuls.
Polybian Reforms (270-107 BC) section forthcoming
Below are images of typical battle maneuvers undertaken by the Polybian/Camillan era Roman army. This deployment scheme was not always followed verbatim; the Romans were masters of adapting to the circumstances (topography, weather etc) and this manipular formation offered great flexibility. Notable exceptions to this array can be found in the Battle of Cannae and the Battle of Cynoscephalae.
In the images below you will see Hastati, Principes, Triarii as they perform the maneuvers to engage and disengage the enemy. This is during the Camillan and Polybian army era's when the legion was arrayed in triplex acies, as manipular units, utilizing quincunx formation. There is a video at the end showcasing this.
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1. As the Romans close distance, the prior unit of Hastati move to the right.
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2. The posterior unit of Hastati moves forward into the vacated space. The Hastati are now one solid line and fight as such.
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3. If required, the signal for withdrawal will be given to the Hastati. They withdraw in similar fashion, posterior first disengage followed by prior.
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The units marked yellow will disengage first and move through the alleys in the manipular formation.
4. The Hastati have withdrawn and reformed behind the Triarii. The Principes, following the same prior-posterior maneuver, form a single line of battle and engage the enemy.
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5. If the Principes are beaten (a rare occurrence), they will follow the same withdrawal pattern and form up behind the Triarii who then engage the enemy. The saying, "Inde rem ad triarios redisse" ("The last resource is the triarii") came to mean a very desperate situation.
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Here is a video showcasing this maneuver in action — only the Hastati and Principes are shown. Note this is not my video, credit to the YouTube user who uploaded it.
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VENI, VIDI, VICI! (Latin: I came, I saw, I conquered)
This section will cover how to compose a historically accurate army, for each Reform era, in DeI's Grand Campaign; this will include unit composition, initial deployment and tactical maneuvers. Media will be screenshots and, eventually, narrated videos.
For the army compositions found here, feel free to tinker with aspects of them to suit the manner in which you want to play your GC. Some players don't create full 20 stacks, some will always carry supplies with them, some always separate the Roman units and Socii units into different stacks etc... Figure out what works best for you and roll with it.
General battle suggestions for a historical playthrough:
Utilize Socii at approximately even numbers to your Roman units.
Primarily use the historical deployment of Triplex Acies (so no Triarii in front!) during the Camillan and Polybian eras, but don't forget to occasionally mix it up based on circumstances.
Quincunx formation and the prior/posterior movements of the infantry are largely ineffective in game. This is through no fault of DeI but a limitation of the game itself. There is no way to "tactically retreat" your men who are engaged in battle; they will get slaughtered.
When on a campaign to conquer, always place your army in Fortification stance. DeI facilitates this by having the Fortify stance cost 0% movement points for the Romans (if you find it makes the game too easy, drop this).
Camillan Army (start of Grand Campaign)
Campaign requirements: Supply Reforms and Barracks Construction technologies. Auxiliary Camp building.
Roman Units
1 Custodes Corporis Legati (general, cavalry)
2 Hastati
2 Principes
1 Triarii
2 Leves
1 Roarii (optional)
1 Accensi (optional)
Socii Units
2 Hastati Samnitici
2 Principes Samnitici
1 Pedites Extraordinarii
2 Equites Extraordinarii
Example deployment scheme:
View from the enemy perspective. Unit abbreviations are self-explanatory, (s) denotes Socii. Note that the Leves are directly in front of the Roman Hastati, and not the Socii because at this time the Leves are actually attached to maniples of Hastati. There is nothing special in the placement of each unit within a line. Hastati line could have been H, H(s), H, H(s); that is up to you.
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Overhead view from the player's perspective, no labeling. If you're a bit OCD about straight lines don't look.
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Changelog v0.07 Camillan Army media added to VVV v0.06 Updated Camillan DER with socii numbers v0.05 HI renamed to DER. Reorganization of material v0.04 Updated Camillan HI section
v0.03 Updated HI with info on Camillan era (halfway complete). VVV section outline included. v0.02 Updated HI with info on the Servian era. Created placeholder for Camillan and Polybian. v0.01 Guide created w/basic layout. Goals added. Historical Info (triplex, manipular).
Last edited by TheRazaman; February 16, 2016 at 11:19 AM.
Re: [Guide v0.01] Roman Military Academy for DeI 1.0
Originally Posted by BooBooLovesAll
Looking forward to the rest of the guide.
From watching the video from the other thread, the triple formation was no longer used in the Marious reforms. What was used instead?
Marius abandoned the quincunx formation (the checkerboard formation of the maniples) and the Roman army didn't have a routine set of tactics. Marius and other generals adapted their formation to the particularities of each battle. The triplex acies was still utilized in both the Marian and Imperial times but not with the high frequency in the Polybian era. Julius Caesar would deploy in one, two, three or even four lines as the situation dictated.
Re: [Guide v0.01] Roman Military Academy for DeI 1.0
Ah, already this has clarified some things for me! (Referring to each acies forming a continuous single line instead of fighting in the checkerboard pattern)
My issue (As it stands) is I am having a hard time simulating each acies forming into a battle line. Because of Unit Limits, having a unit for a posterior and prior maniple isn't really possible. I've tried increasing the rank and/or file of individual units to simulate such, but haven't had any significant success.
In a 20 unit Legion (Just what I use) I usually have this polybian era roman units:
1 General
6 Hastati
5 Principes
4 Triarii
3 Velites
1 Equites
What I am most interested in (One I'm sure you'll cover when your VVV section is Up and running) is to see the Triple Acies Quincux formation in action right before battle is joined and how it others use it during a battle.
Last edited by Richard III; February 03, 2015 at 09:55 PM.
Re: [Guide v0.01] Roman Military Academy for DeI 1.0
Trying to emulate historical unit deployments is feasible but only to a certain degree. As to your case, disregard the prior-posterior maneuver of each line during battles. Keep all hastati in a single line, and so on for the others in the triplex acies. You certainly can, as some ppl do when doing the hardcore-historical play through's, but not recommended when you're first learning the battle system — it adds unnecessary complexity that could cost you more men/time than necessary to win. Vids will be up over the weekend.
Re: [Guide v0.01] Roman Military Academy for DeI 1.0
Originally Posted by TheRazaman
Trying to emulate historical unit deployments is feasible but only to a certain degree. As to your case, disregard the prior-posterior maneuver of each line during battles. Keep all hastati in a single line, and so on for the others in the triplex acies. You certainly can, as some ppl do when doing the hardcore-historical play through's, but not recommended when you're first learning the battle system — it adds unnecessary complexity that could cost you more men/time than necessary to win. Vids will be up over the weekend.
Re: [Guide v0.01] Roman Military Academy for DeI 1.0
This is great! Looking forward to formations for the Marian Reforms and the Principate. Especially interested in seeing videos of these formations in combat and how you compose armies with the 20 unit limit.
"You hurt me long ago; my wounds bled for years. Now you are back, but I am not the same."
Re: [Guide v0.01] Roman Military Academy for DeI 1.0
unfortunately, outside of sentimental roleplaying value, triplex acies really isn't optimal for DeI.
the best thing to do when using a historically accurate army composition is to spread out triarrii in a somewhat thin long line in phalanx, at the front of your army, then line of hastati/principe right behind them.
charge the triarri to initiate, since hoplites got huge charge bonus, then fill in any gaps/reinforce with hastati/principes. use any additional hasttati/principe to circle around and flank enemy infantry while taking out archers with cav.
if possible focus your ranged units on enemy ranged units and route them asap or circle around to shoot from the enemy's back.
putting hastati - the most routeable units - in front is a poor choice, even if they recover after retreating to your 2nd/3rd line, routing will cause them to lose alot of men.
better off putting the best morale units infront and reinforce with weaker units for the least amount of routing.
plus putting triarri in line 3 robs them of their biggest power - the charge. also they are too slow to use as reserve against enemy cavalry flanking you. better off using sword infantry for that - ya its counter intuitive but thats how DeI works atm.
in DEI, rotating reserves to manage fatigue is not effective in an open battle, its much better to use your reserve to circle around and flank if you have some avaialble - although most of the time i'm fighting much greater numbers of enemies and scarcely have the luxury of putting infantry in reserve - have to engage them all asap or my front line gets routed by huge local superiority from enemy.
the only time where keeping multiple lines to reinforce/rotate fatigue is actually beneficial is in siege battles in narrow corridors where you can't really flank.
Last edited by meerkatology; February 12, 2015 at 04:10 AM.
Re: [Guide v0.01] Roman Military Academy for DeI 1.0
Originally Posted by meerkatology
unfortunately, outside of sentimental roleplaying value, triplex acies really isn't optimal for DeI.
the best thing to do when using a historically accurate army composition is to spread out triarrii in a somewhat thin long line in phalanx, at the front of your army, then line of hastati/principe right behind them.
charge the triarri to initiate, since hoplites got huge charge bonus, then fill in any gaps/reinforce with hastati/principes. use any additional hasttati/principe to circle around and flank enemy infantry while taking out archers with cav.
if possible focus your ranged units on enemy ranged units and route them asap or circle around to shoot from the enemy's back.
putting hastati - the most routeable units - in front is a poor choice, even if they recover after retreating to your 2nd/3rd line, routing will cause them to lose alot of men.
better off putting the best morale units infront and reinforce with weaker units for the least amount of routing.
plus putting triarri in line 3 robs them of their biggest power - the charge. also they are too slow to use as reserve against enemy cavalry flanking you. better off using sword infantry for that - ya its counter intuitive but thats how DeI works atm.
in DEI, rotating reserves to manage fatigue is not effective in an open battle, its much better to use your reserve to circle around and flank if you have some avaialble - although most of the time i'm fighting much greater numbers of enemies and scarcely have the luxury of putting infantry in reserve - have to engage them all asap or my front line gets routed by huge local superiority from enemy.
the only time where keeping multiple lines to reinforce/rotate fatigue is actually beneficial is in siege battles in narrow corridors where you can't really flank.
Agreed. I tried the whole historical triple line, and it ended poorly.
I use Principes to flank, and the hastiti as reserves for the triarrii.
Re: [Guide v0.01] Roman Military Academy for DeI 1.0
MOAR!
I want to see some late Republic formations/tactics
I want to see some early Empire formations/tactics
I want to see some Trajan/Hadrian/Severus era formations/tactics
MOARR this guide is in pre-alpha and I wish to see it completed.
Love the details to formation movements, colours to signify whose moving and coloured boxes etc all amazing (aswell as the provided video)
I would love to see more of this soon
I'm not sure if KAM is going to be incorporating his tweaks into "vanilla DeI" soon. That said, my thoughts are to keep an eye on the development of KAM's work in that thread before really going all in for the VVV section; the historical section will of course be updated. Reason being that if it is soon incorporated, the battle tactics will change and any videos I now update will be moot. As meerkatology explained, there is essentially but one tactic to use with Rome on the open field — sieges are a different matter.
No longer relevant, main mod has implemented similar changes.
Last edited by TheRazaman; February 16, 2016 at 07:30 AM.
Re: [Guide v0.01] Roman Military Academy for DeI 1.0
PLEASE do continue this guide, a very interesting read and that video is priceless in showing how it was donw, i would love to see it being used in battle even if its not effective!
Originally Posted by Garbarsardar R2 is a deeply flawed, partially completed, hastily assembled, sub-par product.
Re: [Guide v0.01] Roman Military Academy for DeI 1.0
I do not use Kams mod and have to disagree I find hastati hold the line quite well, of course i cycle them out before i let them get to Very tired or exhausted.
Hell, even the roaraii hold well, i generally use them first then hastati, then princpes, the 2 units of triaraii are on the flanks to protect from cavs.
But i also tend to shy away from infantry flanking until one side of the enemy line begins to falter and rout then i'll begin to wrap around... otherwise every battle is the same.
However i realize this may be more of a house rule then a general popular idea i find it to be extremely fun.
Re: [Guide v0.01] Roman Military Academy for DeI 1.0
After a year of no progress on this guide (Bloodborne, laptop death, Destiny, enjoying DeI 1.1 with new laptop) I've posted a small update here. Future updates coming much more quickly, I hope
Re: [Guide v0.03] Roman Military Academy for DeI 1.1
Perhaps you should get updated on what we have included in DeI. both the increased spotting range and the experimental battle pack have both been implemented in DeI for quite some time. Though this guide is quite nice. I sadly have to agree that the game doesnt really offer any real chance to use the roman tactics to their fullest. As mentioned by other users, withdrawing from combat will just lead to massive casualties. Sadly there isnt anything we as modders can do about it. But still glad that people are having fun and using this guide.
[Guide v0.07] Roman Military Academy for DeI 1.1
GOALS
De Exercitus Romanus
VENI, VIDI, VICI!
Reply With Quote
Originally Posted by BooBooLovesAll
Originally Posted by Garbarsardar 
I sadly have to agree that the game doesnt really offer any real chance to use the roman tactics to their fullest. As mentioned by other users, withdrawing from combat will just lead to massive casualties. Sadly there isnt anything we as modders can do about it. 
