[Phalanxes] What am I doing wrong?

[FriendlyFire]

As you can see, for a non-phalanx defender, defending (i.e. idling) will result in a tricky situation. Either you can idly defend, losing more men yet remaining fresh, or you can actively defend (i.e. guard mode disabled), and be more tired yet survive with more men (because you routed the enemy faster). The question is: Do you want less men that are more fresh to be used later in the end game? or do you want more men, albeit tired men, to be used earlier, during the mid game? To be honest, I would go with the latter because fatigue doesn't play nearly as much a role in the game as quantity does.

I agree that it's a tricky choice with no obvious clear-cut winner. Letting them fight feels a little less "gamey" to me (since that's what the AI would do), but sometimes when facing overwhelming odds I want to keep a phalanx fresh so that it can become the next flanking and/or router-chasing unit.

I'm also not so sure about fatigue, because tired units seem to kill at a lower rate. I'm getting quite good results by cycling units out of combat, especially where it's constrained terrain (e.g. city streets). Of course, you suffer casualties as you disengage, but if you carry on cycling then your units will always be warmed up or winded at best, while they're fighting (and then pulling back from) very tired and exhausted enemy units. And it's much easier to disengage from a tired enemy.

[A_Dane]

For some reason, I've always found, that if your line is longer than the enemies line, you'll get absolutely decimated. It's not something I've tested, but I'm always using my guys in a somewhat dense formation when fighting other phalanxes. That's been working for me...

[QuintusSertorius]

For some reason, I've always found, that if your line is longer than the enemies line, you'll get absolutely decimated. It's not something I've tested, but I'm always using my guys in a somewhat dense formation when fighting other phalanxes. That's been working for me...

I'm wondering if this is the case too; I leave them a lot wider than they are deep (the default they appear on the battle deployment) for maximum frontage. What I worry about is leaving gaps between them where the enemy can filter in and threaten their morale ("Concerned about exposed flank").

[antisocialmunky]

Make phalanx boxes instead of lines and order them to attack?

[Cute Wolf]

Make phalanx boxes instead of lines and order them to attack?

HOLY LOL! I remember doing that when I first playing RTW!

Complete mess, complete BLOODY MESS even against depleted Egyptian Axemen
(but I understand if some newbie try to plainly attack after made a sucessful noob-box defense)

[A_Dane]

I'm wondering if this is the case too; I leave them a lot wider than they are deep (the default they appear on the battle deployment) for maximum frontage. What I worry about is leaving gaps between them where the enemy can filter in and threaten their morale ("Concerned about exposed flank").

Can only advice you try it for yourself. In some situations i find that a wide line is better than a box, but when fighting other phalanxes, being slightly more dense seems to give me the advantage.

[vartan]

I agree that it's a tricky choice with no obvious clear-cut winner. Letting them fight feels a little less "gamey" to me (since that's what the AI would do), but sometimes when facing overwhelming odds I want to keep a phalanx fresh so that it can become the next flanking and/or router-chasing unit.

Realize that what I mention about the pros and cons of guard mode for a defender do not apply to phalanx units.

When you're playing against an opponent, be it human or AI (hope you're playing against a player or I will go after you!), you usually want to match the enemy's phalanx line, no matter what. And for good reason. Your phalanxes are the best possible match for his. And of course, if you're attacking, guard on, if you're defending, guard off. Smart players, when attacking, attack in such a way as to give one of their flanks a bonus, while refusing the opposing flank. Sons of guns gain the initiative and win more often than not. They also tend to be the victors of tournaments and whatnot.