Anyhow, as it already has come up - I think some tips and thoughts on crossbow-units could be interesting here as well, so I’ll do some of that now….


Crossbow-units: tips & thoughts
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  • Crossbowmen have much slower fire rate then archers (roughly 50%) but they are much more deadly if allowed to fire. Not much will survive it, including Byzantine cataphracts…

  • Crossbowmen have shorter range then most archer formations, thus a “ranged duel” with archers is not an optimal scenario for crossbowmen. Besides, archers usually have fire rate of 200% or more by comparison…. That will be a factor too.

  • Crossbowmen are more defence-oriented troops then archers as their fire rate are slower and their range shorter – making it harder to successfully create viable circumstances to use them in offensive operations.

  • Crossbowmen are cheap (and easy to get), while archers are (usually) not…

  • Quarrels are much better at killing heavily armoured units then arrows….

  • Do not use crossbow-formations for suppressive fire in a battlezone – because that will probably create plenty of casualties due to “friendly fire”….

  • Do not move troops directly in front of crossbow-formations while they are firing – that is practically begging for casualties in Redux…

  • Once crossbowmen are placed in a good position switch off the skirmish-mode so they won’t run around like idiots as soon any enemy is close. It is much better that they move when given the order to do so then “improvising” it on their own…. This is especially true for Pavise units….

  • If deploying crossbowmen in battle, always be very careful with the “fire at will”-mode. It is safer to instantly switch that off just to save yourself future possible casualties due to “improvised” fire-directions – which is otherwise bound to happen. After all, quarrels are far too deadly to disregard like that…

  • As with archers, crossbowmen need protection and support to survive. If cavalry (or regular infantry) catches them they will probably die… Heavy and mercenary crossbow-units are tougher then the rest, but they too will die if catched by serious enemy troops….

  • Heavy-, mercenary- and Italian crossbowmen have slightly faster fire rate (and better accuracy) then other crossbow-formations due to more extensive training (and reflecting better equipment).

  • Pavise-units have little use beyond defensive-operations as they are usually too slow for anything else. Once in position however (preferably with support), they will withstand enemy fire better then any other ranged unit in the game. Remember, pavise-units are worthless in combat and poor escapers - if not protected they will die…


Alright, that is some tips on crossbow-units in Redux for you guys. Discuss this or general topic at your discretion….

- Cheers