how to use archer units in melee

[shakaka36]

i havn't played a non-catholic faction in ages, and thus have not made use of the various avalry and infantry types which can both ranged attack and melee competently, recently after returning to a game with my favourite faction, the Byzantines, i discovered i needed to do this, and could not remember how. if you just click to attack normally they default to ranged attack so i havew no idea what to do

[Lord Rom]

Use the alt-attack. Also often you will want to put the hybrid unit on hold formation to keep it from skirmishing away.

[Colovion]

What units are competent in both melee and range? I mean I know that they CAN go and fight - but how competent is each unit? Anyone have any information on that?

[shakaka36]

cheers, just beat the english on the back of that info

[squippy]

Quote[/b] (Colovion @ May 26 2004,03:51)]What units are competent in both melee and range? I mean I know that they CAN go and fight - but how competent is each unit? Anyone have any information on that?
Yeah check out the Unit Guides linked at the top of the forum. These give the numbers indicating combat effectiveness.

Mostly, vanilla archers are pretty useless in melee. Almost all the combat-effective archer units are specialist or muslim, the honourable exception being longbows.

With all these units, remember that their defence is poor even if their attack is respectable. Some of the slower units (arbs, pav arbs, handgunners) wear decent armour though.

[ichi]

Quote[/b] (Colovion @ May 26 2004,02:51)]What units are competent in both melee and range? I mean I know that they CAN go and fight - but how competent is each unit? Anyone have any information on that?
Longbows (V2), Bulgarian Brigands (V4), Genoese Sailors

Trebizond Archers (V3)

Nizari (V1), Futuwwas (V2), Janissary Infantry (V2)

Also Ottoman Inf, Turcoman Foot but they have trouble getting their morale up high enough to last long, and Hashishin but they only 12 man


Quote[/b] ]Use the alt-attack. Also often you will want to put the hybrid unit on hold formation to keep it from skirmishing away.

I prefer to put the hybrids on Engage-at-Will when I want them to go chop someone's head off. Also, once they run out of ammo they automatically revert to melee.

I use these guys two or three ranks deep to shoot to max rate of fire, then switch to 4 or 5 deep to fight. A lot of hybrids can really benefit from good armor, as they have low def stats.

ichi

[katank]

armor is always good for archers due to helping them in both missile duels and melee.

they are best used on flanks/rear where the enemy can't retaliate and thus negate their pathetic defense.

personally, nizaris stand out due to charge of 7 and attack of 6 which is one of the strongest in the game.

also, the longbows have 3 attack with armor piercing which makes them better than even FMAA on flanking heavily armoured units.

it's nice to chew enemies troops up using billmen and longbows.

once the longbows are out of ammo, they still are competent on flanking and chew up heavy cav on the flanks nicely.

those dead french knights can attest to their power http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

[ichi]

In a recent MP game I was getting it bad from 3 serious opponents - my allies had folded faster than Superman on laundry day - and I looked to my right and here comes the Lancers

I switched my LBs to melee and set them on the Lancers, then turned my attention back to the center and left. It was a bad deal, I was getting seriously hammered. As my main line collapsed the only bright spot came as I looked back in on my LBs - the Lancers were almost gone and the Spanish were sending all of their cav 'cause the LBs were soon gonna go for the Gen

ichi

[Cebrus]

I once sent out a spent archer unit after horse archers and they did quite well.

[Somebody Else]

I seem to remember playing an MP game against a friend of mine on a LAN... I charged a unit of his longbowmen with a unit of kataphracts. And lost. Not best pleased as you can imaging. I had to grind the rest of his army into dust as retribution.

[Gregoshi]

Quote[/b] (ichi @ May 26 2004,20:15)]...my allies had folded faster than Superman on laundry day...
http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/gc-laugh4.gif Classic