One of the biggest changes in Patch 3 (ETW v1.2) was arguably the rise in recruitment and upkeep cost of line infantry units. At the begininning of the game, i find i am unable to recruit many of them in one go, meaning my early armies (first 10-15 turns) are invariably composed of a mix of pike, militia and line infantry -with a little cavalry and some fixed arty.
Mid/late game tactics with full brigades of infantry, including light, line and grenadier companies abound, but the early game is somewhat under-discussed. I'd be interested to know what other players do as for me, it's the period of the game where the risks are highest and the benefits of getting an early campaign advantage over your rivals can be telling.
Below is an image of a typical early game formation -artillery would be positioned behind or to the side of the main line -on a hill or other suitable terrain.
Key:
Red box = Pike
Blue line = militia / line infantry
Green box = cavalry (favouring cold-steel weapons)
Black box = general
In the very early game i tend to under-use artillery (at least untill i can recruit 12lber foot arty) and build my battle line around "anchoring" pike companies.
Borrowing from an excellent infantry guide on TWC, I form militia and line infantry units into a double rank formation (each company 2 men deep) such that after firing a volley, the unit in front can either be withdrawn behind or leapfrogged by the second line, in a crude immitation of rank firing or even fire and advance. Just remember to turn off fire at will for the units at the back!
Their flank shielded by pikemen (and cavalry) isolates the threat to militia/line infantry to the front -placing the enemy at the end of their gunsights.
Having no offensive capacity (other than a useless charge with side weapons), the Pikes should act as strong points around which your other infantry and cavalry maneuvre. Drawing the enemy onto a pike wall or square presents the opportunity for flank fire from infantry and cavalry charges (although be carefull not to kill your own troops on the pikes or in the charge).
The pikemen need to be watched carefully, their formation (square or wall) should of course be in function of their position in the line (Square more likely on the end of the line) -but most importantly that of the enemy and their attacking intentions.
The obvious weakness of this formation and plan comes from cavalry charges against militia/line inf head-on, in between pike companies. Despite being able to get one volley off, 2/3 or 3/4 of the attacking cav will likely crash into your first line; the only positive of this is that with the inf spread out, the cav will not be able to engage and charge the whole company as they can when the inf are in a more compact formation. Researching the square formation helps counter this though.
I've personaly found this formation and tactic very usefull against American indians, prior to the development of bayonnets or rank fire -and now without the ability to build forts in their territory.
Any other ideas or comments on this?
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