Army Design: A Christmas Treat!

[Seamus Fermanagh]

I don't think there's such a thing as an ideal field army. The performance of any combination of troops depends too much on the environment where the combat will take place. One could try and come up with optimized setups for each environment type though.

...oh, goodie. I'd managed to get this far without realizing that life etc. is relative. Thanks for getting me up to speed on that rather than just having a bit of fun with this.

[Pannonian]

Why not dispense with infantry and just go with 100,000 Mongol archers for the musclepower era? Supremely organised, wonderfully flexible, tactically unbeatable in the open and with a strategic range no other army can match. If they need to take cities, cut that down a bit and add the standard corps of Muslim/Chinese engineers. If they feel they can win a fight, thy'll just slaughter you where you stand. If not, they'll go away and terrorise someone else, then catch you when your back's turned.

[Pannonian]

Late modern - no precise figures, just broad outlines.

Israeli tankers in American tanks.
British infantry.
British generals.
American logistics.

The US-Israeli armour provides the ultimate in punching power, while the British main force ensures operations don't go too far beyond what's necessary, while retaining a fair bit of strike power and flexibility. American logistics is, as always, a wonder of the world. 1960s Israelis, plus the latest in other areas.