How do you behave after the enemy routs?

**Grand Duke Vytautas** · 08-23-2005, 20:51

Yep - are you merciful for those poor beggars and don't exploit the game (as I've heard that AI never slaughters your units if it wins) or do you hunt them down, slaughter them like whipped dogs cut their heads and bath in their blood - MUHAHHAHAHAHA!

**King Henry V** · 08-23-2005, 20:55

I unleash my cavalry until everyone one of my enemies lies dead, their bloated corpses rotting in the sun as crows peck out their eyes and worms and insects reduce it to a few bare bones.

**Akka** · 08-23-2005, 20:57

I kill as much as I can, so that I won't have to face them the next turn again.

**LittleRaven** · 08-23-2005, 20:58

I have a weakness for infantry heavy armies, which makes my Pontus games...frustrating, actually. But because of this, I'm frequently not in a position to do much head hunting. It's not like I'm going to catch them.

If I have the horses, though, by all means, kill away...

**Doug-Thompson** · 08-23-2005, 21:05

Pursuit is a fine art. I've spent hours in custom battles, perfecting and refining pursuit techniques. Nothing gives me more pleasure in this game than a well-conducted pursuit that leaves none of my enemies alive. I've often given ground when it wasn't strictly necessary so that fewer of my enemies will escape after they finally break.

**edyzmedieval** · 08-23-2005, 21:08

I fry and eat them.

I pursue them till every soldier dies. SO I won't have to face them again.

**professorspatula** · 08-23-2005, 21:15

I pursue the occasional enemy, perhaps the enemy's stronger units, but I generally end the battle as soon as the option pops up. I think the AI needs all the help it can get in a campaign, and killing all its men after it loses a battle is a bit unfair as it can't do that to your own men.

**Dutch_guy** · 08-23-2005, 21:27

I always pursue the enemy , always strong units first then the weaker ones.
To bad you can't capture the enemy , I loved that feature from MTW..

**Celt Centurion** · 08-23-2005, 21:48

Originally Posted by professorspatula

I pursue the occasional enemy, perhaps the enemy's stronger units, but I generally end the battle as soon as the option pops up. I think the AI needs all the help it can get in a campaign, and killing all its men after it loses a battle is a bit unfair as it can't do that to your own men.

From Celt Centurion,

I recall seeing the AI chasing my men down and killing them as they routed, and being unable to do anything about it.

When I have the enemy routing, I usually turn my cavalry loose on them chasing the ones farther out, and then work back toward where the biggest pile of bodies is. I take my phalanx units out of phalanx formation and send them running after enemy phalanx units. Sometimes, they catch up and cut them down enough for the cavalry to finish off.

My preference is to use cavalry to chase down archers first, peltasts and slingers next, and whatever is left afterward. I rarely overtake a horse, and as such rarely chase them unless in the case of an enemy General. I will then continue chasing the General anyway in the hope that he will turn and my cavalry catch him then.

An enemy killed while running away will not attack me later. Given the choice of totally killing every one of a unit is preferable to a few getting away and those surviving to be the "core" of a retrained unit. If I kill them all, the unit won't be around to retrain will it? It's better to make the enemy train a totally new unit rather than the lesser expense of retraining one. I make it a point to make them train LOTS of totally new units.

I certainly don't want them coming back later with a lot of retrained units.

What I would like to see is being able to "loot" the defeated army after the defence of a city, or for that matter, out in the field. Think about it. Kill some 1300 bad guys, and empty their pockets for money and take their armor as well. That could offset the cost of retraining your own losses, and perhaps even upgrade your armour. In a town with only a blacksmith, it could provide armour to those who didn't have it at all.

Strength and Honor

Celt Centurion

**Deus ret.** · 08-23-2005, 23:54

Originally Posted by professorspatula

I pursue the occasional enemy, perhaps the enemy's stronger units, but I generally end the battle as soon as the option pops up. I think the AI needs all the help it can get in a campaign, and killing all its men after it loses a battle is a bit unfair as it can't do that to your own men.

Yep, same for me. Hunting down each one of the enemy's units gives you an unfair advantage.

The AI does kill your routing units, but ends the battle when all your units rout (=when the message would show up). Thus, I deem it unbecoming to systematically wipe out every last enemy unit; additionally, the mopping up consumes much less time. Battles have become significantly shorter since.

Army routing in MTW was far better represented. Firstly, units retained their defence, rendering it likely for some of them to escape the battlefield; secondly, those struck down'd have been captured, "malifying" your general if he killed 'em off too often. This defninitely should be changed again.

**Craterus** · 08-24-2005, 01:06

Originally Posted by professorspatula

I pursue the occasional enemy, perhaps the enemy's stronger units, but I generally end the battle as soon as the option pops up. I think the AI needs all the help it can get in a campaign, and killing all its men after it loses a battle is a bit unfair as it can't do that to your own men.

Yeah, I never thought of this. Usually, I chase till all are dead.

But now, for more of a challenge, I will let them run free, to trouble me another day. Except for Romans, fleeing Romans make for a better hunt than anything else. Oh yeah, and Egyptians must die too.