Dealing With Cav. As England

[Askthepizzaguy]

Interesting, Ratwar.

If I might suggest, bowmen are good, because you can set them to skirmish mode and run away, that helps break up charges. Others, like javelins are also effective in skirmish mode. it's difficult to get a formed charge going against a mobile enemy. However, I feel you might be taking too many unnecessary casualties.

(Listen to me, I'm becoming an old softie... caring about my troops? WTH?)

I can deal with some militia or worthless infantry casualties, because that's basically what they are for. Keeping my heavier infantry, archers, and artillery from being caught by mounted units, so I don't have to send them back to my homelands for retraining. I can always hire whatever infantry and mercenaries as meat shields wherever I am on campaign, no need to return home for top units.

But I believe good, powerful, professional archers, artillery, and heavy infantry need to be guarded. And even in the example where you can disrupt a formed charge with other cavalry, it would not be a melee engagement to the death. The infantry would rush in behind them and destroy what's left of them. They flee and get destroyed by light cavalry lances, javelins, and arrows. Protect the skilled members of your military at all costs.

If not with light or melee cavalry, then definitley use the less skilled meat shields you can recruit while on campaign... peasants, peasant archers perhaps, mercenary spearmen, mercenary crossbows. Pikemen are the best, but they are worthless against anything but cavalry, and for defending your city from seige armies. You can't make a greek army of pikemen versus gunpowder, archers, horse archers, and heavy cavalry in the open field. And heavy infantry just destroys them.

Be flexible, be economical, and use worthless infantry if you're going to meatshield. Remember that light cavalry is quicker, more maneuverable, and perfect for blocking formed charges. And they are easy to recruit and ship towards the front lines, especially with a drillmaster general. Try to reduce casualties from unnecessary formed charges, unnecessary heavy infantry melee situations, unnecessary archer fire, unnecessary artillery fire.

Identify the largest threat to your soldier's lives. Artillery and archers are both devastating in seiges, cavalry is more devastating in the field. Deflect their most destructive abilities with smart tactics. Use artillery of your own in seiges for offense and defense, and your own archers and cavalry, perhaps, for defense in seiges. Use pikemen and heavy infantry for street fighting and wear them down faster than they wear you down.

In the field, deflect formed charges, destroy their cavalry, and attempt to make their archers and artillery rout or flee with your own cavalry. Avoid direct confrontations with enemy infantry unless you're sure the melee will be brief, or you can outflank and charge them, or if you've already weakened them with archer fire so they rout.

Also be sure to destroy the enemy general if he is alone, as your top priority, as soon as it's feasible. Routing units don't fight very effectively. Keep some fast horses to mop up the mess and imprison, ransom, or execute, or even release them for your benefits. Fewer casualties means less time wasted on campaign waiting for retraining, reinforcements, or retreating. Fewer casualties means you can fight more consecutive battles without weakening. It can mean the difference between holding the line against an enemy assault, or your entire border crumbling.

It can mean your invasion into Germany continues, or fails. Every fallen soldier is one you have to replace.