The Shield Problem(s)

[Musashi]

The reason horse archers generally win isn't that they can smash spears with a frontal charge, it's that greater mobility plus range means the spears have to either endure their entire arrow supply from flanks and rear directions before the engagement, or have to break formation, and end up getting caught out where the HAs can smash them with 3 units to their one, and under flanking attack any unit will beat any other, more or less.

Carl: In my experience the Byz spear are equivalent to spear militia in other factions (Nothing they have really compare to say, armored sergeants... and I'm certain english spear militia don't win without the a zero shield fix, which I'm not willing to apply). Their sword and shield guys, which are actually quite nice, don't come until about the middle period. You need a level 4 barracks, which actually takes quite a while to get out there.

The turks infantry absolutely SUCKS. Muslim spear units are worse than European militia units, imho.

Granted, in the late period you get the various awesome Janissary units. But to get there you basically have jack other than your horse archers.

[Carl]

and under flanking attack any unit will beat any other, more or less.

Well of course, that’s what I love about the TW games, even though these are my first ones.

The reason horse archers generally win isn't that they can smash spears with a frontal charge, it's that greater mobility plus range means the spears have to either endure their entire arrow supply from flanks and rear directions before the engagement, or have to break formation, and end up getting caught out where the HAs can smash them with 3 units to their one,

Well HA seemed to be able to smash them with a frontal charge before. I was just trying to point out that this has changed and if you don't REALLY whittle them down, your going to get beaten. i.e. it's going to put a stop to half stack HA armies beating Full Stack enemy armies as you claim to have done.

Shilstrom seemed to be the Western European answer to HA too. By the time the HA are close enough to be in effective firing range, (they brace sooner in Shilstrom), they are braced, and that means their are 5 guys with shield pointing at you between you and the guy with his back to you. Don't get me wrong, you will get some enfidle effects and I don't expect shistrom to be as resistant under those circumstances.

Overall, It was more a case of me saying that pure HA armies seem to have been reduced to an even keel and I liked that. Sorry if it game across as overly aggressive. it was too aggressively worded I admit.

[Musashi]

Actually, my victories have not been due to relying on charge bonus... In fact I never chain charge (I think it's lame and exploitish). I've found that flanking fire is SO effective, that I can easily rout or annihilate twice my number in infantry troops without needing to do much melee.

What melee I do do with them is always flanking and rear work. Because of their mobility it's dead simple to do.

The only frontal charging I do with them is against foot archers (Which the AI always foolishly stick out in front of the other troops.