Cheap Expendable Cannonfodder

[Robespierre]

I love the cannonfodder units in Broken Crescent! Nubian spears and bedouin archers for instance. They die so easily, but are the cost effective choice in the early game. it makes more sense to let lots of cannon-fodder die, and save up elites for when you might need them. What is your favourite cannonfodder unit and do you have any particularly callous tactics that involve them?

[ArtistofWarfare]

I love the cannonfodder units in Broken Crescent! Nubian spears and bedouin archers for instance. They die so easily, but are the cost effective choice in the early game. it makes more sense to let lots of cannon-fodder die, and save up elites for when you might need them. What is your favourite cannonfodder unit and do you have any particularly callous tactics that involve them?

Often, my cheap units will be used to bait the enemy and lure them out of a strong position/formation.

If it's a throw away unit in the first place, might as well get as much bang for your buck as possible. Taking them and targeting the enemy's strongest unit and then retreating is a nice tactic that often works.

[phonicsmonkey]

Ghazis!! :smash:

Throw them at the enemy - when the first wave is dead, chuck another wave at them

then hire more

:skull:

[PBI]

Never been a big fan of "human wave" tactics myself; makes me feel a little too much like a tyrant to drive masses of untrained conscripts to their deaths. I generally only use the cannon-fodder militia units for garrison duty.

The only two situations I can think of where such units are useful are for manning rams and for drawing missile fire. For manning rams I tend to use mercenaries; I feel less bad about throwing their lives away, and if they are half-decent they will probably come through more or less intact.

For drawing arrow fire (not javelins or guns) I quite often use my general's bodyguard, especially in BC; the bodyguard are such a small target and so heavily armoured that they almost never take casualties against non-armour-piercing missiles.

[Galain_Ironhide]

The only two situations I can think of where such units are useful are for manning rams and for drawing missile fire. For manning rams I tend to use mercenaries; I feel less bad about throwing their lives away, and if they are half-decent they will probably come through more or less intact.

I agree with you there. I generally only use cannon fodder type units to man rams. Usually I like my armies later in the game to be fairly hitech, so I have no use for the expendable guys. In BC2 I've usually used Italian Crossbow merc's (because they can't fire at walls properly during a siege battle - therefore expendable -and they make good fighters, hand to hand.), Armored Swordmen or Phonicsmonkey's favorite - Ghazi's because they are cost effective.

[Askthepizzaguy]

I actually like to have beefy cannonfodder.

They cost a little extra, but are a much more formidible presence on the field, usually with some kind of specialty.

For example, I like a horde of spearmen, because the more expensive units on the side of my enemy are usually cavalry. I can spam the spearmen, use other, various, unspammed units to block a full frontal charge, and force them into a melee situation with endless spears.

I particularly like the tactic of getting one major city to produce blacksmiths and armourers and so on so that they can mass produce cheap, cheap militia which are boosted with armour, or experience/morale in BC.

Then, they cost exactly the same as the other cheapo units, but become nearly effective fighters against the much more expensive dismounted knights, mounted knights, and horse archers.

There may be "cheaper" units like peasants or ghazis, depending on the faction, but if you choose your cheap, spammed infantry unit wisely, and beef them up, or specialize them somehow (Spammed militia crossbowmen versus armour and formed charges.... spammed axemen versus armoured anything...) you can turn your cost effective army against other's Elite stacks... except, YOU can afford lots of reinforcements.

Turn 3 stacks of Horde militia, properly armoured and mixed with generals and cavalry, against someone's carefully prepared, hugely expensive, well-trained, experienced, hard to replace main forces... and watch them get overmatched and outmaneuvered and slaughtered...

So what if most of your first wave dies? Or the second? As long as you win and you can regroup the remainder, and churn out more... and more... you will wear down their forces and soon they will be unable to defeat you.

When cheap but effective hordes prevail over expensive and difficult to train forces... it's very, very cost efficient.

Death and profit... my two favorite things.

One more note... nothing wrong with preparing your castles and barracks to mass produce the more expensive and powerful forces... let the training pools fill up, and keep a large reserve of cash on hand. Then, when you weaken/obliterate your opponent's forces with your mass militia, you can disband or destroy them in battle, and instantly spawn a HUGE force of unbeatable troops, and swarm through their defenses like a wave of destruction.

[ArtistofWarfare]

Never been a big fan of "human wave" tactics myself; makes me feel a little too much like a tyrant to drive masses of untrained conscripts to their deaths. I generally only use the cannon-fodder militia units for garrison duty.

The only two situations I can think of where such units are useful are for manning rams and for drawing missile fire. For manning rams I tend to use mercenaries; I feel less bad about throwing their lives away, and if they are half-decent they will probably come through more or less intact.

For drawing arrow fire (not javelins or guns) I quite often use my general's bodyguard, especially in BC; the bodyguard are such a small target and so heavily armoured that they almost never take casualties against non-armour-piercing missiles.


With me, "human wave" tactics are entirely dependant on the enemy. You'll never see me specifically plan to wind up doing it...but if it's called for, it's called for.

I remember back about 2 summers ago I had a really complex EB (rtw mod) campaign going for months (which I eventually won). As the Romans, I wound up overextended to the north...while I tried to deal with threats to the south and east. Battle after battle I found myself outnumbered 2-1 and 3-1 by barbarians in the germanic regions. Clearly, I had the tech..I just couldn't translate it into a high tech army where I needed it ...and when I needed it.

So I started to spam low tech auxillia/levies/peasants in the north...and giving them as much armor/exp as I could before composing armies with them. What followed was a long, tedious guerilla war taking place largely in the woods. Quickly, I was able to turn the tide...even though the quality of my units was a bit less than my enemy in this theater, human wave tactics w/ battlefield micromanagement proved to win the war. (instead of simply throwing these units away, I just would pack as many of them into the "war zone" as possible...hoping to outlast my enemy in a trading of blows. Once on the field of battle, I would be as careful with every unit as possible...until the enemy threw their main attack at me- then onto the "human wave" to simply outnumber/surround them and close it out).

In each battle, after an initial skirmish, the enemy typically just unleashed a wave of barbs toward my romans. And I would meet them with a wave of my own troops...with a 2-1 advantage, and 80 percent of my best troops still tending to operations in other theaters.

It just depends on the situation and the current necessity your faction faces as a whole in the campaign. But spammage of cheap units , with some nasty surprises, will sometimes allow you to wage a 2 front war where you might not have otherwise been able to. At the very least, you will grind down and weaken your 2nd enemy while you finish up your first one. The key is to remain on the offensive with your large, weaker armies. You don't want these guys defending home cities and provinces obviously...and this would also negate their entire purpose in this situation.

[Robespierre]

You see, I plan to raise a big force of Iranian militia and Nuristani tribesmen to stop the Mongol hordes in their tracks! These light infantry auxiliaries sacrifice their pixels for the good of the empire, as I up-cannon 'nd better troops muster in the rear-zones.

Earthman, i know nothing of this Spam of which you speak.

hang on, research shows this contains, according to wikipedia, mechanically recovered/reclaimed meat (MRM) of a named animal (?trotter?) [the only part of a pig you can't used- oh yes, the squeal, bom bom.] , is this not the processed ham tinned food ? excellent with muesli!