Tactics in R:TW?

[Adrian II]

Cavalry flanking is powerful especially your general's. Sieges are 5x better than MTW.

Thanks for your elaborate answer, Quietus! Finally we're getting some beef here. Sounds great.

[Adrian II]

OK, this is day 2 of RTW and I've hit some bad turbulence while reading the boards.
1. Is this a Cavalry game where the horses are running on crack and "to flank or not to flank" is your only question?
2. Is it true the AI is scripted to only attack head-on, and that your (AI-controlled) allies are suicidal maniacs?

Will somebody please tell me this just my Sunday morning blues while I help myself to a third cup of coffee?

[Quietus]

OK, this is day 2 of RTW and I've hit some bad turbulence while reading the boards.
1. Is this a Cavalry game where the horses are running on crack and "to flank or not to flank" is your only question?
2. Is it true the AI is scripted to only attack head-on, and that your (AI-controlled) allies are suicidal maniacs?

Hey Adrian,

1. Initially you really get crappy troops. You have to flank to win. I guess it depends on the units too. Gaul units especially the Warbands, first yell like crazy (to lower your morale) then chaaaarrge!!!. The only thing you can do is charge back and flank with cav or other units. (missiles are pretty much worthless due to speed) Although missiles will work very effectively vs. Hoplites (they walk slow and can't run). Again, like I said you can't build a lot of troops or you'll go broke. I hired a hoplites merc out of necessity and they are sloooowww.

Right now it is in the 250s, and I have about 41000+ denari. Looks big, but if a war erupts among the Roman factons it ain't going to last. Hastati upkeep is 170 denari, Town watch is 110, so you get the picture on. In a couple more turns I will be building Principes. Hopefully those are better shock absorbers.

As for Equites only army (54 per unit), you'll lose alot of money because they only good for flanking. You charge them head-on against a warband(120) they won't last very long. Regular price for Equites(54) is 390 denari, Hastati(80) is 440d, while Town Watch(80) is 150d. You gotta find a cheap upkeep army that will be comparably durable. Romans aren't horsemen either so it is inaccurate ( the major reason I don't use too many horses).

2. For friendly AI, they go suicidal. Early in the game, I stormed a Gallic town, one of my family member general was included in the reinforcement. He charged alone on the other side of the town and got slaughtered. You can control AI reinforcement though if it isn't led by a General, just a captain (and your 20 slot isn't full). Generals must be a family member. I have done it a number of times it has become a tactic When I can't, I just try to beat the friendly AI to the battle so the General won't get killed. They just walk.

For enemy AI, have only fought the Gaul & Rebel armies so far. All they do is charge, no missiles as far as I know. AI Cavalry is so fast you gotta pause because weave in and out like fish in the water. One thing that irks me is if you barely beat them with a block, they still penetrate or go around your blocker like they aren't there. Remember in MTW, when you block a cav trying to hit your archers, some of them go around the sides. Here, they can go through all the way. They do this when they are charging your General or Archers/Velites.

Oh well, the campaign is getting hectic. The Senate is giving me crazy missions and my reward was a mercenary unit or $1000 denari (for capturing a Carthagian town) Now I have a two-front war and Carthage owns the Mediterraenean Sea.

It's great though, the campaign is long and continuous, like you're making you're own story or should I say History.

[Adrian II]

Quietus, where would I be without you? I'll repay you in kind if ever I can. So I gather the game has completely different challenges from STW and MTW, like concentrating on the long term (building durable armies and strengthening your family faction) and all sorts of new battlefield phenomena (the Cavalry run-through effect, etcetera). As long as these are equally exciting as the old ones I guess it's no big loss, it's just become a whole different game. I still don't like what I hear about the AI, though I realise it's early days. And i do like what I hear about the strategic map and the battlefield maps being more or less integrated, that seems to be a really new feature and working well, too.

Oh well, the campaign is getting hectic. The Senate is giving me crazy missions and my reward was a mercenary unit or $1000 denari (for capturing a Carthagian town)

Yeah, I can tell you're up poo creek, and boy do you love it!

[DisruptorX]

OK, this is day 2 of RTW and I've hit some bad turbulence while reading the boards.
1. Is this a Cavalry game where the horses are running on crack and "to flank or not to flank" is your only question?
2. Is it true the AI is scripted to only attack head-on, and that your (AI-controlled) allies are suicidal maniacs?

Will somebody please tell me this just my Sunday morning blues while I help myself to a third cup of coffee?

1) Yes. Infantry is utterly useless unless its a heavy phalanx. Horsemen cut through infantry like a hot knife through butter.
2) The enemy AI will send its horsemen (50-70% of its army) to attack your flanks. The friendly AI will send its general off alone into enemy spearmen, every single time.

[zentuit]

1) Yes. Infantry is utterly useless unless its a heavy phalanx. Horsemen cut through infantry like a hot knife through butter.

Well I won't go so far as say utterly useless I've had my hastati accept a charge; now they weren't spread out but bunched up together and while they got hammered they held while another hastati swarmed the flanks.

Control is something to get used to. You have to anticipate things more since the units don't go immediately - I'm playing it as runners passing the orders ... although they do stop immediately when I tell them (cowards!).

I am using pause a lot during my battles. But I'm not a 14yr old twitch king no offense intended to any 14 year olds or twitch kings; my hand-eye coordination/reaction times are slowing as I get older

2) The enemy AI will send its horsemen (50-70% of its army) to attack your flanks. The friendly AI will send its general off alone into enemy spearmen, every single time.

Now here you and I are on the same page my friend! I hope a patch addressing that is planned.

Although its strange since it doesn't look like the enemy faction members are all that suicidal. Has anyone noticed if they are?

[Adrian II]

Infantry is utterly useless unless its a heavy phalanx. (..) The friendly AI will send its general off alone into enemy spearmen, every single time.

I find that hard to believe. No offense, DisruptorX, what I mean to say is that the developers are supposed to love their own game just as much as we do. They should know the real beef is not in the graphics or interface, it's in the Artifial Intelligence. Every player's wish for Christmas is:
1. A good AI
2. An even better AI
3. The best freaking AI anybody can come up with
I can't believe they didn't iron out such things as a suicidal AI, unless it's intentional and they want you to rely solely on your family -- this is Italy after all, so maybe a bit of the old mob ethics was to be expected...

[Ulstan]

"1. Is this a Cavalry game where the horses are running on crack and "to flank or not to flank" is your only question?"

Cavalry is very fast and too powerful. I don't use any. The AI does and you have to watch out for it. If you form your infantry properly they can withstand a charge. But ifthey are already engaged even milita cav can knock down dozens of them.

Pilum are very effective against horsemen though, if you can manage to throw a volley at them if they are charging someone else.

"2. Is it true the AI is scripted to only attack head-on, and that your (AI-controlled) allies are suicidal maniacs?"

I don't know about friendly AI. Enemy AI is not bad. When they attack, they either seem to charge down the whole length of the battle line, or send in masses of men on the flanks and then try to move down the side of your army crushing it. They do this with both infantry and cavalry as far as I can tell.

Seiges are awesome :) You can build rudimentary seige machines (rams, towers, ladders, sapping points) on the spot. Which is good, because there is no way you are taking down these castles by hand :D

The towns are huge and you actually get the feeling you are attacking a big civilized hub, instead of just a fort with no people ala MTW.

One siege I fought at tarentum, I got a spy in before the battle, and it told me he would try to open the gates before the assault. He did!

So, I happily marched my men in fine parade order through the gates, only to get doused with burning oil. O.o I ran them through the gate at top speed, only to have all the archers on the walls (Your men can stand and fight like 4 or 6 deep on walls now - very cool) turn around and start shooting me in the back!

I told my hastati to go clear them out, and they all ran inside a door in the wall and vanished.

A little while later, they popped out a door on top of the wall and attacked the archeres. Was neat to see.

Seiges are much much better now :)

Also if you attack the town and fail, any damage you do carries over to the next fight, so you can slowly reduce the walls and towers bit by bit :)

[Ulstan]

"Oh well, the campaign is getting hectic. The Senate is giving me crazy missions and my reward was a mercenary unit or $1000 denari (for capturing a Carthagian town"

At least your senate is giving you rewards Mine now hates me (thanks to the people loving me as much as they possibly can) and have given missions like this

Do:

Or:
We send the qaestor to investigate you!

Do:
Sail across the sea and take out this town with more soldiers in it than you have total!
Or:
We reveal your dirty little secret.

[Ulstan]

"From the battlefield management of those wardogs"

It is pretty neat actually - the handlers run with the dogs towards the enemy, then whoop and cheer the dogs on to the enemy when you get close. The dogs rush forward enthusiastically and the handlers discreetly retire behind the rest of your men.

Dogs are great for getting the enemies line out of order. :) It seems like none of the guys I fight can stand in their places and let their buddies to the side cope with the dogs - it quickly devolves into a big frenzy of dog killing. Of course then you take advantage of that and your brave doggies have not died in vain :D