Question regarding stats

[Sowilo]

I know that formations, vegetation, yell, relief etc. affect the troops, but how exactly?

- A testudo protect you against arrows. But how? Does it increases the defense? What about wedge, phalanx?
- I looked the files up because of Egyptian fighting in snow etc. there is just one number for each reagion. Does this number affect the moral? Attack damage? Or what?
- Does the yelling increase the damage? How exactly?
- If a unit has to climb a hill they have disadvantages fighting units at the top. Which one?
- Do higher ranks increases the moral too or attack and defense only?

[econ21]

Most of this stuff we don't know, as CA regards their formulae as trade secrets. They did tell us the formulae for STW and MTW (basically the difference between attack and defence determines kill chances, after many potential situational modifiers), so we might have a reasonable idea on some points - but they also told us they had changed the formulae dramatically with RTW.

I believe:

Tetsudo apparently makes you vulnerable in melee.

Wedge raises attack, lowers defence.

Phalanx probably allows more ranks to support the melee, perhaps raising attack and especially defence (pikes did that in MTW anyway). I wonder if there's also a funky "stand-off" effect at work, so that phalanxes can sometimes wipe out hastati etc without the enemy doing hardly any damage.

Height raises kill probabilities of those with the advantage and lowers them of those below.

Other terrain advantages - e.g. good or bad in a desert etc - probably modify attack.

I doubt ranks raise morale. There's a "push" effect to do with mass that gives ranks some value in stopping penetration (esp. useful in stalling cav charges).

I don't know about yelling but guess it's an attack boost. (Morale would make sense too, but I don't know).

[Avicenna]

I wonder if there's also a funky "stand-off" effect at work, so that phalanxes can sometimes wipe out hastati etc without the enemy doing hardly any damage.

Yes, it does. When I played TGC against the Scipii using 6 militia hoplites VS their 3 hastasi, I ganged up 2 V 1 and massacred them almost without a loss. There were some stray hastasi who walked to the side to kill some hoplites though, but they were soon dead or routing.

[econ21]

Here's one of my favorite demonstrations of the power of the phalanx - my levey pikemen walked over Praetorians without breaking a sweat:



Sadly the phalanx seems much less effective against cavalry. Personally, I think it should be the other way round. I suspect even levy pikemen could stall cavalry whereas the Praetorian swordsmen would have some chance of working their way into the phalanx formation.

[Sowilo]

No wonder that I didn't found the information if they keep them secret.

I doubt ranks raise morale. There's a "push" effect to do with mass that gives ranks some value in stopping penetration (esp. useful in stalling cav charges).

I am sry I mean the "valor"? I have the German version and don't know the exact names.

Other terrain advantages - e.g. good or bad in a desert etc - probably modify attack.

You know it? I asked 3 persons:
1: +x to moral, attack and defense
2: +x to moral only
3: +x to attack only

btw. There is one number too if an unit fear for example elephants. Does it effect the moral only or does it decrease attack and defense?

I don't know about yelling but guess it's an attack boost. (Morale would make sense too, but I don't know).

One guy said me that he belives that it decreases the defense of ennemy troops too. Same with screaming/singing. Increases the own attack and maybe moral and decreases the enemy defense?

[econ21]

I am sry I mean the "valor"? I have the German version and don't know the exact names.

I'm not sure I understand what you are saying here: on ranks, one effect I was talking about is that bunched up troops stop cavalry charges. I believe in the combat model, there is a kind of momentum effect captured, so that if they are not stopped, charging cavalry are more lethal (probably keep their charge bonus). Thick ranks can stop that, I think.

You know it? I asked 3 persons:
1: +x to moral, attack and defense
2: +x to moral only
3: +x to attack only

As I said, we don't know much about RTW. But I do know that modifying attack was the way terrain worked in MTW (according to the official strategy guide)

btw. There is one number too if an unit fear for example elephants. Does it effect the moral only or does it decrease attack and defense?

Not sure - some units get bonuses in attack against other units; I think you can see that in the EDU file.

One guy said me that he belives that it decreases the defense of ennemy troops too. Same with screaming/singing. Increases the own attack and maybe moral and decreases the enemy defense?

In the old formula, raising your attack and lowering the defence of the enemy were equivalent, since the kill probability was a function of the difference (attack-defence).