time for a vote...

[Leet Eriksson]

I'm still trying to find a way to make those lithuanian cavalry useful,and my head seriously hurts when i think about it.

anyways vote for your worst cavalry and mentioned why if you want,i'm interested in your opinions.

[DDogwood]

I usually send the lighter cavalry out onto the flanks of the enemy army, and try not to engage them until the enemy starts to break and flee. Then I use them to ride down the mangy curs while my tougher units focus on defeating the folks who haven't learned the bit about discretion vs. valor yet. I still can't find a decent way to use Berber Camels (in spite of the helpful advice I've been offered on this board&#33http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif as I have a hard enough time with horse archers who don't run so slowly.

[Leet Eriksson]

second worst unit on my list are the berber camels,they are expensive and not really good at anything unless defending desert provinces.still if your crusaded just attack with berber camels from the rear of any fighting order and they will rout(camels cuase fear to horses).

[andrewt]

Lithunian Cavalry. So much work and teching up for an underwhelming unit. They're just a little better than mounted sergeants. If they only need 1-2 more buildings than mounted sergeants then they could be worthwhile.

Viking raider calvary are only useful because you don't have other cavalry as the vikings.

[Alrowan]

lith for sure, low everything... siphahi are great, as are berbers, once you figure out how to use them.. one of the few mounted archers that fare well vs most cav

[Sainika]

Vote for Lithuanian cavalry. Useless. Everytime I use it they run or suffer very heavy casualities and run anyway even against not outstanding units (even archers can beat them sometimes).
But maybe I do not know how to use them properly? Maybe their own task is to pretend powerful in order to frighten enemy inf.? http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif Even berber camels can be useful at least in desert. Let alone sipahi.

[Portuguese Rebel]

Lithuanian cavalry, for sure. Huge tech tree to get there, only avaiable in lithuania and marginaly better than mounted sargents.

[Leet Eriksson]

Lith cav really need some serious tweaking,i mean they can't even beat archers :\ i witnessed that when i attacked the byzantines and got one of my lithuanian cav creamed by a unit of terbizond archers...

[eXistenZi]

Heh can anyone explain why in the hell the Turk heirs/king are in siphas of the port units? Why can't they be just regular heavy cav like all of the other nations? I never use horse archers (except boyars who are much better than siphas because boyars can hand-to-hand just like royal knights), and I find playing the Turks really stupid without heavy cav heirs/kings.

[Sainika]

Quote[/b] (eXistenZi @ June 16 2003,07:37)]Heh can anyone explain why in the hell the Turk heirs/king are in siphas of the port units? Why can't they be just regular heavy cav like all of the other nations? I never use horse archers (except boyars who are much better than siphas because boyars can hand-to-hand just like royal knights), and I find playing the Turks really stupid without heavy cav heirs/kings.
Sipahi of the Porte were the bodygards of many turkish sultans. So it is historically accurate. Try not to underestimate SotP. They are archers AND very heavy cavalry so they are very flexible in battles. I like them.

[ichi]

Saharan or Steppe Cavalry

Light, fast, not good in a knife fight

ichi

[o_loompah_the_delayer]

I loathe the ottoman sipahi (the plain sipahi not the archer sipahis of the port) - I had a battle against the poles who had two peasant units one on each flank. On the riht I charged their peasants valour 3, headlong wiht my sipahis valour 1. Same on the left with ghulam knights valour 2 against peasants val. 3. The knights wiped out the left and cantered round the back of the poles in time to help out the wavering http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/eek.gif sipahi now down to 26 men against 55 peasants still going strong

The description also says they can take on European knights - everytime time I tried them against the crusaders, santiagos, templars and goths wiped out the sipahi in no time http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/pissed.gif

[hrvojej]

Lithuanians require too much tech, that's for sure. I hardly see the reason to build sipahis when you have access to Armenians at about the same time. The same goes for ghulams unless you're playing Almos (Turks - Armenians, Egyptians - Mamluks). OTOH, I love camels and fast cavalry, and find them extremelly useful when used right.

[A Nerd]

I don't like the berber camels. There aren't many desert provinces, I haven't noticed adverse effects to horses and they smell funny and drool too much.

[Nelson]

Doesn't Viking raider cav dismount into carls? That makes them very useful dual purpose troops. They are rather cheap and maintenance is low too. I like 'em.

[Nowake]

Quote[/b] (Nelson @ June 17 2003,17:49)]Doesn't Viking raider cav dismount into carls? That makes them very useful dual purpose troops. They are rather cheap and maintenance is low too. I like 'em.
Indeed, they are rather good from that point of view. You can always back up your landsmen by dismounting them, if the situation requires it.

[Poopy]

Berbers are useless. They're slow and they die fast. Why use them when Saharan Cavalry or even the crappy Ghulam Cavalry is available?

[A.Saturnus]

I voted for peasants. They are crap and haven`t even horses. What of a cavalry is that??
http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

[Brutal DLX]

Lith. Cavalry hands down. It's better to dismount them and use them as archers. Unless you have a good general, or decent valour/upgrades, they are severely limited in their role as they can't win against any other unit...save peasants.

[The Last Emperor]

Its Lith Cavalry for me also...takes so much time to tech-up to build a below average cavalry unit...it will be a better idea to boost up what they can do now-they r supposed to b the "knights" of Lith, not some cheap peasant riders.

[Cazbol]

Quote[/b] (A.Saturnus @ June 20 2003,05:20)]I voted for peasants. They are crap and haven`t even horses. What of a cavalry is that??
http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif
Touché.

[The Blind King of Bohemia]

Bedouin Camels can on many occasions be quite horrendous and very often Polish retainers suck.

[Basileus]

Lithunian Cavalry, i dont even build em anymore..they could have used a little buff on their stats http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[Sjakihata]

berber camels, good in desert, bonus vs horses and ranged.

[Knight Keimo]

Berber camels should not be even at same list with those pitiful Liths and others I get angry soon..They´r a very usefull and flexible unit, used against both crusaders or other muslims.

[Longasc]

Lithuanian Cavalry.

Will become available very late and is quite weak. Needs a lot of buildings...

Why do people say they suck, I hardly can believe anyone used them.

Because by the time you have enough cities developed enough to build them, you are close to the 66% domination victory...

[Praylak]

Lith Cav: Dismounting as archers would appear to be a neat tactical option, but like it's already been stated. The amount of tech required is quite absurd

I actually think the Berber Camel is pretty useful. They earned my respect when I had to engage them against some Feudal Knights in a temperate province where they supposedly get a penalty. I think the camel to horse advanatge has been changed since VI. They're great to have when your opponent has half a dozen Spanish Jinettes racing in and out at your flanks.

With the option now of having Faris Cavalry though, I find I'm not using them as much. I'm not suggesting they are a replacement, but just that my Almo army layout for the later era's has changed to adpot the newer unit. Early game though, Berber Camels get the position of honour in my armies.