Quote Originally Posted by Barbarian
Chariots can be deadly, if used right. Using them as heavy cavalry means loosing them, but hit enemy's formation in the right spot or while it is reforming, and instant rout guaranteed

Of course, AI doesn't know that. I had several battles against Egypt today, and AI simply charged it's chariots in phalanxes.

Skirmishers could be useless against chariots, but you could just use some different units, light cavalry is the best to catch them.
Yeah. The 'abilities at a glance' of javelin skirmishers typically include a bonus against chariots, which implies that they are useful anti-chariot units, but I've never been able to use them successfully versus chariots.

In the M/M Julii game I was playing just now, I just brought along a whole bunch of Hastatis and charged the Briton king. The chariot bodyguard didn't exactly die like flies, but they did the job. In regular battles, I just pray like mad that my Hastatis' morale don't break.

One annoying thing about chariot bodyguards is that, you can't chase a routing chariot unit without losing some men, due to the bloody scythes on the wheels. I once lost my general after I won the battle, chasing a Briton coward of a warlord. That was so unfair that I loaded the game and played the battle again.

Chariots need micromanagement, I feel-- they are most effective as skirmishers to sap the morale of the enemy line right before a charge. So if I play as Egypt, I usually wait till I can build chariot archers.