"Hold Position" ---- How effective?

[Maeda Toshiie]

Hold Position?? Offense Not Defense Wins Wars!! In my strategem i have noticed that holding is only used by the weak, undeserving, factions such as the polish, or the hungarians. The Key tactic i always use doesn't revolve around holding, it's offense. Take example the highland charge. The highlanders are poorly moraled yes, but in great numbers they can disrupt a rank of well to do soldiers!! As for defense i always say turn the tide on the offensive general and make him defend the land he sets his foot on to be stained by his own troop's blood!! Storm out of your castle and meet him face to face and let him see the rage in your eyes!!!
Hey anyways this is my strategy and i'm not saying it's right or wrong i'm just explaining that my tactics don't require holding.

It depends on the faction and the types of units used. If you use viking like units or units that charge and do a lot killing (and often a lot of dying as well), hold position/hold formation does not exist in your game. However, if you use combine arms armies, they are needed. Skirmish is added for factions with HAs.

[massamuusi]

I found out that byzantine infantry, for example get far less casualties and are much more of a kick ass unit if you stretch them quite a bit and order to hold formation and/or hold position. They just kick ass that way.

[King Edward]

Byz Infantry are a great early unit but soon get outcalssed in the High and Late periods by the heavy catholic units or turkish janissary units. Also no decent spears makes the Byz vulnerable to cavalry.

As far as i know Hold position gives +2 Def and -2 Attack. (As already stated.)

[Blodrast]

Byz Infantry are a great early unit but soon get outcalssed in the High and Late periods by the heavy catholic units or turkish janissary units. Also no decent spears makes the Byz vulnerable to cavalry.

As far as i know Hold position gives +2 Def and -2 Attack. (As already stated.)

sorry, as Maeda Toshiie pointed out, that's hold formation.
Hold position, again, as already stated, has no effect in combat (other than it just tells the unit to stay there). No bonuses, no antyhing.