AI column attack tactics

[Marquis of Roland]

Pre-patch, where the AI would march up to musket range and exchange volleys, I would almost always outshoot the AI because I had 3 layers of fire in the same space they would have one (light infantry, backed up by line infantry, backed up by light dragoons). Now I'm fighting the French, who practically spam grenadiers and guard infantry (France seems to be very infantry-heavy in its recruitment) and the'yre breaking into my line to melee.

It's the same thing that happened historically; one battalion would run in ahead and absorb the volleys, then the rest of their battalions behind it would rush in, force my light infantry to retreat, throw grenades on the 2 line regiments holding my center, and it's huzzah and a mean bayonet charge. A few times they actually broke through my line and some of them got into the artillery. And I'm not just twiddling my thumbs while this is going on either, I have my own grenadiers in the center throw bombs on their attacking columns, I am swinging in my flanks to box them in, my light infantry guys are running around behind the AI. There's just too much weight of bodies being pushed through the center in the end.

I still win decisively when the AI does this (since they charged into the center, there's no real hope for them to break the eventual encirclement), but I take about 100 casualties more than I would have had they stood off and shot volleys. CA already said they'd go back to more standing off and shooting for the AI like in pre-patch, but I must admit these current hard-charging AI tactics, while not necessarily inflicting significantly more casualties, are probably more decisive on the AI's part, because IMO it has a higher chance of actually destroying or significantly damaging a few select units, whereas stand-off shooting would spread the casualties out amongst several units, leaving every unit a little scratched up, but still very functional.

If your army is gonna be involved in more than one fight before you can replenish your units, having a few critically reduced units or even missing a whole unit has a significant impact, especially when that unit is artillery (I use 3 units of arty).

[Fisherking]

I have only seen they try that once on me. But as it happened it was late game and shrapnel broke them before they made contact with my line.