United States and Company Limited

[Didz]

I had the United States appear somewhat early in my British Campaign (over 70 years early in fact) and I've sent my British mercenaries to Virginia to deal with the rebels. I was expecting to have to deal with militia, minutemen and perhaps some long riflemen.

Instead it appears that Williamsburg is being defended by a commercial company army that looks remarkably similar to the VOC used by the Dutch in the East Indies.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

These guys are professional soldiers not rebels, is this normal?

[Marquis of Roland]

Saw it on my campaign too. Since the last patch, United States can build company infantry. Hooray for capitalism and the American Way?

[Didz]

Just thought it was amusing that they still say 'This unit was raised in India.'

What are they supposed to represent?

[Megas Methuselah]

They're the line infantry that are recruitable only in India, where regular line infantries are unavailable.

Strange rebellion you've got on your hand.

[FactionHeir]

Don't you know that there are Indians in America? Columbus found 'em

[Didz]

Strange rebellion you've got on your hand.

Well I did.

I had an absolute epic battle at Williamsburg with the United States India Company Army versus my bunch of German and Jamaican mercenaries. It's the first time I've seen the AI actually advance an army in line and go toe-to-toe with my battle line. Given that I am using the 'Blood and Smoke' mod and the Drum and Fife Mod the resutls were pretty amazing.

The US battle-line deployed on the high ground overlooking Williamsburg and the British deployed on the pasture land below. However, the American's had no artillery and after taking a couple of nasty hits they decided to abandon the hieghts and come down and deal with me face to face.

The entire US battle line marched down the hill in line playing 'Yankee Doodle' and the 'Grenadiers March'. whilst being given a good pounding all the way by my artillery. When they got within range cannister started blowing holes in their regiments but they just kept coming and eventually both battle-lines engaged along their entire length and the whole pasture area just became a sea of gunpowder smoke.

I was very lucky, the American's outnumbered me slightly and their company mercenaries were as good and my germans, but they lacked technical skills and had not been trained to form square so I was able to enfilade their left with my dragoons and destroy two of their company battalions with well timed charges. My centre including the 2nd (Queens) Regiment (the only actual British regiment present) gave way under pressure. They didn't exactly rout so much and cease to exist. But the American left and right fell apart and I was able to swing my flank regiments round to cover the centre.

In the end the US attack just fell apart and it was just a case of dealing with the die hards that tried to rally. Their General a guy called Livingstone died early in the battle. But there were precious few British units still standing by the end most of the centre regiments had ceased to exist, but the United States faction has been eliminated, and I was treated to a rather sad little lament by the game designers, instead of the usual bland 'Faction Elminated' message.

Just wondering if they we try again later, or if thats it for the USA.

[Dayve]

They'll keep trying if more than one faction own any of the 13 colonies, or if one colony goes on strike and you don't do anything about it (like make them exempt from tax or lower the tax rate for all the Americas).

They appeared in 1708 in my UP campaign, first in Albany as it rebelled from French rule, then they took Boston from the French too, so they've got two provinces next to each other, and although they're feeble and destitute i've supplied them with every technology i have and about 500 in money every turn for 22 years, but i have not allied with them, just incase they go to war with Britain, who i don't want to lose as my only ally that doesn't declare war every single turn.

[Didz]

So, are you dealing with Indian Mercenary Infantry in your rebelion too?

[al Roumi]

I saw the very same things in my GB and Fr campaigns. The US will form most often when either Cherokee or Iroquois capture, but cannot control, one of the 13 colonies' provinces.

I also saw that the US has "company infantry" as it's main infantry force. No idea why though -are they supposed to be anachronistic war-of-independance US mercenarcy forces?

[Dayve]

So, are you dealing with Indian Mercenary Infantry in your rebelion too?

Sorry, i meant to add that but must've forgot. Yes, i sailed a sloop and a unit of militia over to check them out once i read your post, they have Indian company linemen. I don't know if they can recruit them from their towns or not, but that seems to be the mainstay of their armies that spawn when they arise from a rebellion.

[Didz]

Seems a bit odd, the US have their own Continental Line Infantry units, so I fail to see why they need to borrow the Dutch East India Company's. The only reason would be that US players complained about the inability to prevail over British Redcoats with the standard militia and minutemen units early in the rebellion. But essentially that was the case and I don't see why the Dutch should be added to the US Army mix just to make it easy for them.

Do other rebellions get fully trained line infantry regiments from the outset, can't say I've seen may rebellions so I don't actually know?

[Dayve]

That's the whole point though... any rebel faction starts out weak. If Britain had come down on America with everything they had in history, the rebellion would have been squashed like a bug, but when you're at war with like 6 different nations on every single continent that's impossible, and so it grew and grew and grew and prevailed. That's how it should be in the game too. It should start off weak, and if whatever country is dominating the region at the time leaves them alone, or can't come down on them hard enough, then they should become more capable, not start off with awesome infantry right from the start, because Indian company linemen really are quite awesome.

As for other rebellions, i have no idea. Karelia, that north-western most province that Russia begins the campaign with has rebelled in every campaign I've ever played since the patch came out, so perhaps you could start a campaign as Poland or something close to Karelia so you can see what they rebel with, as they usually rebel on the 3rd or 4th turn, even earlier sometimes.

There's also a particular province on the eastern side of India that keeps rebelling from the Mughals in my game. It never rebels to Maratha, it always becomes its own faction called the Maratha rebels, which makes no sense, but whatever. They always start with generic low-end Indian units, like swordsmen and militia musketeers, and occasionally a unit or two of demi-cannons.

[al Roumi]

This must simply be a bug. As you say Didz, the US has it's own Continental line infantry -why is it recruiting India Company infantry, which any EU power can recruit in India, in the US?

Anyone tried the RTI part 4?

I'm sure it's a bug. Probably just a typo in the code or somthing silly.

[Didz]

Yes! I've completed the whole Road To Independance Campaign and I've played the US Campaign, but I never got to recruit Dutch mercenaries. I had to make do with militia and minutemen until I could train Continental Line infantry.

[al Roumi]

How do you know they are Dutch though? Do the units speak Dutch on the battlefield? From your screeny above they could be US India company infantry, just teleported through time and space.

Have you tried RTI part4 since patch 3?

[Dayve]

Don't be silly, time and space didn't exist yet because they didn't have clocks or a tardis.

[al Roumi]

beg pardon sir! They had sun-dials alright! and clocks but what weren't portable like, that were part of the church, see. And maybe fancy cuckoo ones from switzerland, if Asterix books are to be trusted as a robust historical source. Ahem.

[Dayve]

I wonder if, when the sundial read 5, they said "It's 5 o'sundial."

[Didz]

Have you tried RTI part4 since patch 3?

Dunno! When was patch 3?

I don't get any notification at all when the game is updated, let alone asked if I'm happy to have a third party load software onto my PC behind my back.

[Fisherking]

In the RTI all the upkeep costs are about what they were in the original.

This did show up post patch so maybe it is a way around a complex issue for them…

That is only a guess but it made sense to me…lol

[Kulgan]

How do you know they are Dutch though? Do the units speak Dutch on the battlefield? From your screeny above they could be US India company infantry, just teleported through time and space.

Have you tried RTI part4 since patch 3?

I have - see post in guides section - absoluteley NO india company men there

[Fisherking]

I have - see post in guides section - absoluteley NO india company men there

That is correct…No East India Company in RTI if you are not in India.

The patch was roughly 3 weeks ago…

As I said I think it may be so the normal units in RTI don’t have the huge increase in the upkeep costs and they may not be available to the AI faction when it emerges in the grand campaign.

It is possible it is just a bug but from what I have seen of RTI it is not the case.