Calling all INFANTRY commanders!!

[Henry707]

Morning All,

I've been reading with interest the post on cavalry - everyone loves the nice horsies...but...there must be those out there like me who prefer the gritty determination of the humble infantrymen.

I do use cavalry in my games but my real love is the foot soldier - infantry or archer. There's nothing like see a line of your troops hold a skilful enemy whilst your archers rip them) out of them!!

Playing Egypt at the moment, the sacaren milita have become my first love - what an amazing unit - can last the whole game & really can hold the line against the horsies. I only wish pikemen were better to give the cavalry a poking with those sharp sticks!

Be interested to see, is infantry the boring alternative, anyone a master of infantry - even artillery?

Henri

[marrow]

I know where you're coming from, but in my opinion infantry in M2TW has been portrayed in an underwhelming fashion!
First off - I understand that hardware requirements have gone up significantly, as has number of polygons per unit and it's beneficial for us to play with smaller unit sizes, but it has robbed the game of its cinematic feel.
It would take me a loooong time to inspect my, say, macedonian army on the field. 10 - 12 huge units of phalangites really made ground tremble and gave off a sense of serious clout when sprawled across half the map (esp with darth formations in XGM). Infantry armies in Rome were enormous!
Somehow, 8 units of Italian Militia, with the feeble patter of their tiny feet, doesn't really cut it for me.
Secondly - cavalry is particularly nasty in M2TW and will gut pretty much any infantry unit, usually head-on, occasionally even in thick woods. It is perhaps a fair illustration of improvents in armament and gear (stirrups!) which elevated cavalry to the top of the food chain on most medieval battlefields.
There are other reasons too - commanding infantry is generally easier to grasp and has fewer snags than commanding cavalry in M2TW, and as such i find it less tactically challenging and ultimately rewarding. This is just my personal take on the game so do not feel offended!
I actually know exactly what you mean and I second that in a way, infantry-biased battles in modded RTW were immense in scale and generally excellent fun (XGM, EB, RTR), but in some TW incarnations (STW and M2TW) commanding cavalry is just more fun for people like me.
As Empire TW is coming out you should keep banging on CA doors to give infantry justice this time round.

[pevergreen]

Infantry

Give me a Single unit of heavy armoured sword and broad wielding men anyday over your lousy horses.

Thats why i have the Hastati in my Avatar.

at least, i hope its a Hastati, it might be a Principle

[Henry707]

You're right Pever, I also love the way those sneeky naffatuns creep up next to heavily armed horsemen & start taking out some real vengence!!!!

Henri

[TinCow]

I'm a fellow infantry-lover. I love to see row upon row of steel-clad men lined up before a charge. Everything else in my armies exists to aid the infantry line. Missiles and artillery are there to kill off enemy missiles and to soften up the enemy line. Cavalry are there to help break the enemy line once engaged. All of them are merely filling supporting roles. The hordes with the swords do most of my dirty-work.

[spud_u_like]

Amen!

Who can be bothered with the horsies!

Cavalry: Woohoo I've charged and killed lots of enemy! Now pay me constant attention!

Me: Sorry busy with archers.

Cavalry: Wah Wah! Help melee! And they have pointy sticks! What do i do, what do you mean retreat and charge again?! Sod that I'm going to stay here bogged down and die before you scroll back!

Me: whatever, you cost too much anyway.

Give me retinue longbows any day of the week :)

[rvg]

Ahh, yes, the Infantry. Love those guys.

Nothing like a bunch of Italian Spear militias with a few Pavise Xbows, Venetian Archers and Venetian Heavy Infantry to make me feel like I am once again commanding a post-Marian Roman Army in RTW...

[Charge]

Thats why i have the Hastati in my Avatar.

at least, i hope its a Hastati, it might be a Principle

Actually it's a Triarius

There is nothing better for me than strong heavy infantry with swords or axes!

[RemusAvenged]

IMO the only good cavalry are defensive cavalry-killers.

It feels like your cheating by using anything that actually charges, the AI certainly doesn't ever try it... Except for the standard General's Suicide Charge.

[econ21]

For me, one of the greatest thrills is the "thin red line". A small, elite infantry force - preferably on top of a hill (Shinano ) - holding off a massive AI army.

Of course, you need the missiles to demoralise and thin out the enemy. And you need the cavalry to flank them and pursue. But it is the poor bloody infantry who have to hold the hill and bear the brunt of the fighting.

[Akashic]

I also prefer infantry than cavalry. Of course flanking and charging is much more effective, but to break the lines from pure force is just beautiful.

[imnothere]

Gimme some men in solid shieldwalls, some archers, and lots of pitfalls, stakes and tree trunks, and William-de-bastard will be William-the-Conquered, complete with free horse-BBQ.

Count me in.

yeah, the defective cavalry units keep refusing to respond to command after command to withdraw after charging into combat also has ALOT to do with this as well.

if wasn't for the AI 10 units of trebuchets/cannons, i am more than happy to have an all infantry (exc general) army. now i have include some expensive cavalry units that keep dying (suffering from combat stupidity)

[Henry707]

As infantry commanders, there is one thing we all fear - the heavy artillery!!

I know sometimes you are not taking such heavy causalities but I just can't take having those fire balls smashing into my men. Sometimes you can string a forlorn hope out in front to soak up the punishment but other times it just keeps whacking you - as has been mentioned, you just need some cavalry to deal with them.

Henri

[Per Ole]

Infantry forever!

Granted, there are less infantry in m2tw then in Rome, which is one of the reasons I still play Rome as well, but in m2tw they are awesome to watch fight!

With infantry, you get the biggest wins. Can you do *this* with cavalry?

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

[Zim]

Fellow infantry lover here, despite the sad fact that my favorite factions(Russia, the Byzantines) have better cavalry.

One of my favorite things in Byzantine games is seeing my early, horse archer heavy armies slowly give way to armies of Kataphractoi, fully upgraded dismounted Byzantine lancers, and Byzantine Guard archers, with a few dismounted Latinkon and Varangian guard units to provide extra brute force/flanking ability.

[imnothere]

forlorn hope? do you mean cavalry/mercenary cavalry? (^_^)

as spud_u_like said - they cost too much anyway :-) and they can cope 10 blasts of fireball, 20 bolts, and 50 blasts of lightnings from angry Gods for all I care. just make sure that they keep those artillery units occupy until my men have the chance to loot their dead bodies. and oh, this way i dont have to pay them wages the next turn.

Cavalry: "look at my shining armour! look! look!"

Cavalry: "err... do we have to take the city? i hate to get my armour dirty and those peasants/city gangsters looks real mean..."

Cavalry: "I demand the best! Gimme more money!"

[Zim]

forlorn hope? do you mean cavalry/mercenary cavalry? (^_^)

as spud_u_like said - they cost too much anyway :-) and they can cope 10 blasts of fireball, 20 bolts, and 50 blasts of lightnings from angry Gods for all I care. just make sure that they keep those artillery units occupy until my men have the chance to loot their dead bodies. and oh, this way i dont have to pay them wages the next turn.

Cavalry: "look at my shining armour! look! look!"

Cavalry: "err... do we have to take the city? i hate to get my armour dirty and those peasants/city gangsters looks real mean..."

Cavalry: "I demand the best! Gimme more money!"

There's a mod for Europa Universalis where if too large a percentage of your armies consists of cavalry their pay doubles. Now I won't be able to play it without that going through my head.

[Galain_Ironhide]

As infantry commanders, there is one thing we all fear - the heavy artillery!!

I know sometimes you are not taking such heavy causalities but I just can't take having those fire balls smashing into my men. Sometimes you can string a forlorn hope out in front to soak up the punishment but other times it just keeps whacking you - as has been mentioned, you just need some cavalry to deal with them.

Henri

I heed your call, Infantry is the Best!

When I start a battle against a stacked Heavy Artillary enemy, I keep my men spread apart and command them to run like they have never run before into the enemy lines. Usually the 3 or 4 militia armys protecting the HA's (stupid AI!) are wiped out within seconds by my first wave and then the second wave which were following in close pursuit take out the centre of the HA's.

Whatever cavalry I have usually takes out the flanks of the HA's at the same time. Then they take all the glory by capturing a ridiculous amount of the routers. Glory Dogs!

I've always found the immediate frontal assault to have the best results and has the least minimal impact on my troops. Sure they're buggered by the end of it, but just imagine the nights sleep they'll have afterwards.

[Henry707]

Then there is the city assault of course. The fancy horsies can fire arrows but someone at sometime has got to get up that ladder, man that ram or push the towers into position.

No matter how tech'd up you get, some poor &*£(($ has still got to break through the gates or get through that breach!

Henri

[WhiskeyGhost]

Then there is the city assault of course. The fancy horsies can fire arrows but someone at sometime has got to get up that ladder, man that ram or push the towers into position.

No matter how tech'd up you get, some poor &*£(($ has still got to break through the gates or get through that breach!

Henri

or man the siege weapons and fire some rotting cows, and cannonballs =P

[Csargo]

I'm more interested in using infantry than cavalry. More fun I think

[anders]

nothings sweeter than watching those high-and-mighty, trained-from-birth noble knights in a gazillions worth of armor and purebred horse being pulled to a muddy death by an english yeoman farmer with a bill hook, or impaled upon a lowly burghers pike.

[Yesugey]

When I look at the shock infantries which has extremely high attack with less than no defence skills... (like dismounted English knights, woodsmen, or Eagle warriors) I feel orgasmic.

And their kill animations (tackling them to turn them upside down... Or crushing the man with the axe while begging for mercy) is pure awesome.