peasants

[Ikken Hisatsu]

peasants. the only time I use them is as a garrison to deter rebels, and the one time I made a giant peasant army for fun (they got their collective arse handed to them by the turks)

I was just wondering if anyone here has ever used them effectively? i usually play on hard so sending them as bait then letting them route tends to take half my army with it (the sissies) they cant fight, they cant defend, and they are barely useful for chasing down the enemy- I usually let the cavalry do that. At least the ones in shogun have cool hats.

Also- is there some reason why the french churns them out like cheap japanese cars? The french were well known for their rather mighty armies that occasionally consisted entirely of horsemen (until the english showed them the error of their ways) I mean it is fun watching and hearing them get decimated by arrows (that thunk noise turns me on) then trampled by horsemen, it gets a wee bit tiring.

This is my first post so I hope none of the above has been done to death http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[motorhead]

Some players like using peasants as decoys to draw the enemy out, but i find, like u that the morale hit from routing peasants isn't worth it. The base game does generate too many peasant filled armies for most factions. Try medmod (http://wes.apolyton.net/) (different mods for MTW 1.1 thru 2.1). Wes cranks down the build priority for peasants so you'll rarely see those stinkin' peasant rabble. Go over the readme file carefully as the mod makes significant changes to the game (especially the latest mod for 2.1).

[Jacque Schtrapp]

Good advice motorhead. I've been playing MedMod3.13 for about two weeks now and haven't seen a single peasant unit yet. The mod's creator, WesW, effectively modded them out of the game. Anyone who wants a real challenge should check it out.
http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

[Gregoshi]

http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wave.gif Greetings and welcome Ikken. Thanks for joining us.

Speaking to your topic, I think if we as players had to build armies with lots of peasants the way the AI does, things might balance better in the game. But since we humans like to build the biggest, baddest units we can and the AI doesn't, the situation gets out of hand. This is where mods like the MedMod come into play. I think it would be a different kind of challenge fighting battles with armies with fragile morale...or maybe it would be an exercise in frustration. http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/joker.gif

[Ikken Hisatsu]

Probably frustration- most of my plans revolve around using several units to occupy the enemy while the rest do a flanking maneuver. would be a bugger if my bait just ran away all the time http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/pissed.gif

[Balamir]

Peasants? Just paint red and whit circles on em and let the enemy do target practising http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[Cebei]

Hey Balamir http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wave.gif naber?

That picture was my sig some days ago and somebody told me to change it because it was too big. I know you want to..but http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/mecry.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/joker.gif

[Lord Of Storms]

Quote[/b] (Balamir @ Nov. 15 2003,04:42)]Peasants? Just paint red and whit circles on em and let the enemy do target practising http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif
Balamir, your sig is to big at the moment max size is 500x 150, but data size max is 10kb approx. 10,000 bytes yours reads over 21,000 could you be so kind as to trim it a bit , thanks, LOS

[bighairyman]

well sometimes want i'm bored, i built like 3 full stacks of peasnats led by a knight general and sent them to small (less thn 1,000) enemy armies and just auto-calu.

i loved to see the high caualties http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/shock.gif

[Trax]

Peasants...
Once I found them useful, I was Spain and the Aragonese attacked me with 3 units of royal knights and some urban militia
I had 1unit of peasants 1 archers and 1 jinettes.

I took a position on an high mountain and the enemy surrounded me and moved to attack from two sides. My archers shot his urban militia to pieces and then charged 1 of his knights unit (downhill of course)and were destroyed, winning me some time for.
On the other front I cherged his 2 knight units with peasants and many cavalrymen died (peasants have good charge).

My jinettes let their javelins loose and one unit of knights was completly destroyed and the other seriously damaged before the peasants routed.
Then I charged with jinettes and routed the knights at impact.

Then I walked my cavalry to the opposite side of map on an other mountain, the heavy knights followed and tired themselves terribly and I could easily rout them too.

So at least in this battle the peasants proved to be very useful.

[The_Emperor]

Peasants are only useful for two situations in my view.

1) Keeping the enemy busy while my archers line up behind to fire into the melee... Peasants should be expected to take arrows in their backs when it suits me http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

2) Battering down that castle gate when you have no siege engines... All that boiling oil has to go somewhere http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

(Yes I know, I am Evil to my underlings)

[-Amon-]

oo bizden bazilari da varmis burda ya :P

however,i got tired to see that ai's huge peasant armies..they are looking like..mmm..like snacks http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif snacked peasants.. http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[Oaty]

Yes they can be very useful to soak up a charge. I was playing the Byzantines and managed to get the loyalty up high enough in Naples to where I wasn't having any rebellions, of course the rebellions made a nice 7 star dreadlord. Well of my original force left were aout 40 Byzantine infantry and 5 naptha throwers both of high valor. I was training units as I teched up so first came the peasants then the urban militia and then some trebizoids. Well I had a spy in the next province so I got to see what was being thrown at me.

6 units of royal knights one being the king, that right there had me scared, 3 units of spearmen and 1 unit of urban militia, all at full strength on normal size units

As fo me I had 3 units of peasants 2 units of urban militia and 3 units of trebizoids at full force along with 40 Byzantine infantry and 5 naptha throwers

Sure I had the numbers in my favor but way to inferior forces to deal with 121 royal knights

Well it was pretty much flat terrain and my best spot was to try to hold a small hill. I decided not to opt for the woods as I was hoping for my best results to come from my 180 archers. Well I opt to put peasants on the front in hold formation hoping they hold out long enough in the cavary charge to let my archers do the work. Well the battle begins and I do not get a charge head on instead I am getting out flanked as the comp goes to my right to get to equal ground and staying out of archer range. Well I quickly form a new line to the right so I am facing the enemy. As I'm doing this I see a 1 unit of royal knights straggling behind and looked perfect for the pickings so I quickly charge some archers to pick them off. I get off about 3 volleys and the straggler unit of cavalry charges so I qickly try to get them back behind my lines but not in enough time and they route after getting nailed in the back but the cavalry falls prey to 120 archers firing in mass and they route with 3 men left but I also payed a price losing 43 archers from that unit. Now the main battle begins and the spearmen start marching forward along with the urban militia. I wanted to use my arrows on the cavalry but they are stil not in range. I was in dispair and decided the arrows were best spent on the lightly armoured troops anyways. I see my left flank facing infantry and my right flank threatened by 100 cavalry in reserve. I massed all arrows on 100 spearmen and brought them down to about 40 men but still had to face 300 more infantry. I concentrate on another unit of spearmen and see the cavalry charge coming so I halted my archers to fire on targets their own choosing and put my general on the right flank along with 1 unit of urban militia. On my left flank I send out my urban militia to threaten the enemies left flank. The cavalry charge takes a heavy impact on my right flank and the lines are broken but the cavalry are completely scattered and easy pickings for my general but still have the threat of 41 more cavalry as the king and 1 other royals are still in reserve. So I stiil keep my general in reserve on the right flank and send the urban militia (in hold formation so they don't scatter) down the line and start picking off the scattered cavalry 1 by 1 but the 20 more cavalry come charging at the urban militia and the king moves forward but does not charge but I felt it was time to use my Byzantine infantry against the royals along with the naptha throwers as they were tearing into the urbans and at the same time the enemy started routing on my left flank as the arrows had decimated them and the threat of the urban militia comingdown on on them from the left. I decide to concentrate the few remaining arrows on the king as all other units are engaged. Well it started looking ugly for them as there cavalry was scattered among my peasants because 1 third of them of each unit got stuck in the front of my peasants 1 third were in the middle of them and the other third were attacking my archers in hold formation. But fianlly because they were scattered they started becoming peicemeal and the archers killed the king and everyone started routing. What they had gotten away with was about 20 cavalry 100 spearmen and about 10 urbans. So I can truly say that the peasant won the day for me not so much that they made too many kills but the fact that they scattered the enemy and had trapped and entangled the enemy

[|OCS|Virus]

I have won a battle or two because of them, they are basicly a form of bait. I noticed that peasents are unusualy fast I suppose it is because they have no armour and a stick to fight w\ I will send them out to face the army by them selfs and have them run back usualy taking one or two enemy units chasing after it. I have my archers in a hallway formation with my infintry directly beind it. I let the peasents run between the archers then if the enemy decides to attack my archers my infintry step in. that is how you use you peasents, of course it requires a good bit of space to manuver them.

[Balamir]

Quote[/b] (Lord Of Storms @ Nov. 15 2003,14:43)]Balamir, your sig is to big at the moment max size is 500x 150, but data size max is 10kb approx. 10,000 bytes yours reads over 21,000 could you be so kind as to trim it a bit , thanks, LOS
http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/mecry.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/mecry.gif

Well never mind..


Selam kardesler goruyorsunuz Turklugumuze burda bile zincir vuruyorlar http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[Lord Of Storms]

Quote[/b] (Balamir @ Nov. 16 2003,08:54)]
Quote[/b] (Lord Of Storms @ Nov. 15 2003,14:43)]Balamir, your sig is to big at the moment max size is 500x 150, but data size max is 10kb approx. 10,000 bytes yours reads over 21,000 could you be so kind as to trim it a bit , thanks, LOS
http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/mecry.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/mecry.gif

Well never mind..


Selam kardesler goruyorsunuz Turklugumuze burda bile zincir vuruyorlar http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif
Don't cry mate, I asked you to resize it, not remove it http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/pat.gif If you need some help in resizing it let me know, hate to see you sad..LOS

[Hajduk]

I'll use peasants as garrison and reserve troops, if necessary. Once I'm able to raise quality troops to replace them, I'll expend them on the battlefield or disband them to save money.

When I attack bridges, I send peasants and other expendable troops across first. (Expendables may include units with low-loyalty commanders or mercs.) Hopefully, they & my archers will wear down the enemy.

I've had some success using peasants against isolated cavalry in wooded areas. During one game, in central Europe during winter, 200 peasants surrounded the HRE emperor & his personal bodyguard in hilly woods. My peasants managed to kill all his men & sent emperor packing.

--Hajduk

[FoundationII]

I ussually use peasants for guard duty in a castle, keep(whatever) in the early stage of the game so the enemy can't take my castle, keep, whatever without a garrison inside, so they have to besiege them and that way I win at least 2 years time for only 50 florins, I think that's a good deal. They're also good when charging downhill espessially when the enemy doesn't see it coming and hits a cavalry unit in the flank, the cost difference matters even if they're annihilated.

[HawaiianHobbit]

I'll use peasants for garrison, to open the gate during an assault, and soak up arrows during a bridge battle.

[Brutal DLX]

I don't use them at all, unless I get some by a revolt or bribing and have to fight a battle. They have a good charge and that's it.

Now the ashigarus of STW were armed with yaris and much more diciplined, they're not comparable to the peasants of MTW.

[Bevan of Hertfordshire]

I never touch peasants with a barge pole, uggghh smelly things. http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/rolleyes.gif

They are too weak to do any good in battle and seeing hordes of peasants running never helps my army.

[Balamir]

try driving one unit of peasants into war with any kind of army. Let them die (the more men they lose the better). then get the remnants of those peasants and put them in a garrison. The enemy will never be able to get the castle without sieging. And the enemy is not very tempted to siege. http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif


LOS, I would appreciate if you could help me with the trimming, double clicking is all I know in a computer http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/joker.gif

[-Amon-]

Quote[/b] (Balamir @ Nov. 16 2003,08:54)]
Quote[/b] (Lord Of Storms @ Nov. 15 2003,14:43)]Balamir, your sig is to big at the moment max size is 500x 150, but data size max is 10kb approx. 10,000 bytes yours reads over 21,000 could you be so kind as to trim it a bit , thanks, LOS
http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/mecry.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/mecry.gif

Well never mind..


Selam kardesler goruyorsunuz Turklugumuze burda bile zincir vuruyorlar http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif
euhehu :)bosver kardes http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif