Fire from the sky!

[CrazyGuy]

I was wondering, has anybody experienced the supposed lack of accuracy when using flame arrows? I haven't, which seems to negate the point of ordinary arrows, (flame arrows kill and give a larger morale penalty). Am I correct? Are ordinary arrows essentially redundant?

[wizbode]

In my experience, it seems that normal arrows take less time to "reload" and kill more easily, but I could be mistaken!

Fire arrows on the other hand have the morale factor, so I guess depending on your tactics, each have it's value.

[mrdun]

Once playing multiplayer this guy was using fire onagers and they just burnt my men to dust.

[Omanes Alexandrapolites]

Hmm, flaming arrows do seem ever so slightly less accurate from my experience - their missiles seem a little more scattered, although it's not usually especially noticeable when one is attacking units with them. I haven't noticed any large decrease in reload time, although there does sometimes seem to be an ever so slight reload penalty when using them.

I don't think, although am not completely sure that they cause more damage either - I believe that the illusion may be given by the fact that it is more noticeable.

Flaming missiles from Onagers though are noticeably less accurate, and miss much more frequently. I am, in this case though, inclined to think that more damage is caused by them to units - the area of damage seems larger when a flaming rock hits.

[mrdun]

Yeah, for example if a flaming missile land in the centre of a cohort it will take them all out depending on normal unit sizes but just stones normally only take out a handful.

[Caeser The III]

i dont think flaming arrows are as accurate.plus did anyone notice that there is not as many flaming arrows as when you fire normal arrows?

[mrdun]

They seem to take ages to reload!

[Caeser The III]

that is true

[Celt Centurion]

Rarely do I use flaming arrows.

They do seem less accurate and take longer to load.

When I am sallying from a walled city and an enemy is using elephants or chariots, I use flaming arrows to turn the elephants and chariots to my own advantage. For the same reason, I rarely use elephants and chariots myself!

I use flaming arrows on towers and rams. I have even set fire to a few enemy onagers with flaming arrows and one sapping point.

When I am sallying from a walled city in a night battle, by the placement of armies at the beginning, I can usually tell which way the enemy army will march. I place archers on that wall all along that corner with "fire at will" turned off. When the enemy is just outside the wall and all archers have targets in range, I turn fire at will back on with flames extinguished.

Imagine all those poor guys getting nailed in the dark, and they cannot even see the arrows coming, and they will take many more casualties before they are out of range!

I'm sure that hurts their morale. It also causes a lot of enemy casualties rather than the first units getting hit and the rest taking a longer route and moving out of range.

Yeah, thats probably a really dirty trick shooting them in the dark with the flames extinguished, but it does me a lot of good!

Strength and Honor

Celt Centurion

[Punicus]

i dont think flaming arrows are as accurate.plus did anyone notice that there is not as many flaming arrows as when you fire normal arrows?

Hmm... I agree on both counts. I rarely use them unless under special circumstances.

[georgeman51]

i dont like fire arrows because they fire less and take about 5 seconds extra to reload

[Caeser The III]

basicly, i use to burn down artillery, ex. seige towers,rams, ballistas, and onagers

[Mikeus Caesar]

I prefer flaming arrows. The innaccuracy isn't too noticeable, plus the destruction of enemy morale greatly outweighs the slight amount of survivors. Makes your final battle once you get in a settlement much easier.

As for flaming onagers - i've had one to many bad experiences with them. Stupid things are hideously innaccurate. I've had many instances where they've fired, only for a projectile to smash into the unit of infantry right in front of them.

[Quirinus]

Generally, I only use flaming arrows in a bridge battle, when defending against ladders, or if I'm in a really close infantry slug. (I normally turn fire-at-will off the instant my melee troops engage the enemy. Friendly fire is the most wretched of casualties.)

And yeah, I agree with Mikeus Caesar that flaming onagers are so annoyingly inaccurate that they negate much of the advantage of the morale reduction when it actually hits. But nothing's more gratifying than torching the capital city of an enemy faction, if I'm feeling particularly vengeful. I still remember the time I set Tarentum ablaze when playing the Greek Cities, and then massacring the population after I won. Ah...... good times.

[placenik]

Generally, I only use flaming arrows in a bridge battle, when defending against ladders, or if I'm in a really close infantry slug. (I normally turn fire-at-will off the instant my melee troops engage the enemy. Friendly fire is the most wretched of casualties.)

Yep, nothing worse than shooting your infantry in their unprotected back :)
I rearly use flame arrows- my archers mostly shoot to kill, not to rout, and FA have slower rate of fire and are inflicting less casulties.

[Good Ship Chuckle]

I also notice that fire arrows suck in the rain. Go figure.

[Critical Bill]

As for flaming onagers - i've had one to many bad experiences with them. Stupid things are hideously innaccurate. I've had many instances where they've fired, only for a projectile to smash into the unit of infantry right in front of them.

How they can hit people standing 10 feet in front is beyond me....

Still I use them against chariots or elephants, especially at bridge battle time. Just need to remember to stop them firing before the targeted unit sets foot on the bridge!

Hmm, there's a thought - BRIDGE DEMOLITION!

[The Wandering Scholar]

Flaming Ballistas and Scorpions are lethal, do not place a unit infront of them. But how can you not. Leave a gap and infantry/cav will just cut them to pieces.

[Quirinus]

Same as slingers, except that slingers are actually fast. >.< Though I would imagine that the same principle applies to ballistas and scorpions as well: put them on higher ground than the troops protecting them.

[Ibn-Khaldun]

I use flaming arrows quite a lot .. like to see the enemy burning to death
Like it has been sayd ..the moral penalty that the enemy unit gets from the flaming arrows overweigths there minuses (accuracy and reload) ..
Onagers useing flaming ammo is a nightmare when not used properly .. I once tried to kill Parthian faction leader who was in his little village( or small town .. can't remember exactly) ... from all the flaming rocks(?) just one hit him .. and I had 3 onagers with me???? (it is not the best idea to take onages with your army to steppes .. it takes a long time before they ever get anywhere )

[The Wandering Scholar]

Finding higher ground on a battlefield is not always possible, infact hardly ever. You have to put them somewhere.

Same as slingers, except that slingers are actually fast. >.< Though I would imagine that the same principle applies to ballistas and scorpions as well: put them on higher ground than the troops protecting them.

With fire arrows I usually let archers fire twice at the enemy with fire to give them poor morale, panicked by fire attack, then normal arrows to create casulties and thus rout them.

[Hannibalbarc]

With fire arrows I usually let archers fire twice at the enemy with fire to give them poor morale, panicked by fire attack, then normal arrows to create casulties and thus rout them.

Thats what I do most of the time as well, but occasionally if I have a lot of archers and ammunition I don't want them to rout so that I can get more kills with my archers.(for exp)

[el_dext0r]

i tend to fire maybe 3-4 volleys using flaming arrows, when switch to normal when the rate of killing slows down as the enemy ranks thin, and use normal arrows when shooting at <20 enemies.

Onagers on the other hand, depends entirely how destructive i'm feeling. I've noticed that they usually aren't worth the cost and movement penalty for the damage they do. For example 3 onager batteries, firing into a small, wooden walled town, that is absolutely rammed with bad guys, will probably only kill 100-150 enemies each (due to the accuracy penalty when using flaming stuff). Maybe I expect too much from them :P

Saying that though, I always open my fights with flaming onagers if I can help it, on several occasions the first volley has killed 2 enemy generals with one hit, and they are REALLY effective against those pesky chariots you tend to encounter in western Europe.

[The Wandering Scholar]

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