Difference between revisions of "STW Yari Samurai"

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''TO DO: Someone might want to throw in a word about actual yari and place a pic here.''
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TO DO: Someone might want to throw in a ''short'' paragraph about actual yari and place a pic here.
  
 
=Yari Samurai=
 
=Yari Samurai=
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|morale=2
 
|morale=2
 
|cost=200
 
|cost=200
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|card=''insert pic here'' }}
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|card= [[Image:Stw-ys.gif]] }}
  
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Yari Samurai are the first (and for quite some time the only) decent melee unit you get. They're not exceptionally good at anything, but they're also not bad at anything, arguably making them the most versatile unit. They will remain useful throughout the game.
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Yari Samurai are the first (and for quite some time the only) decent melee unit you get. They're not exceptionally good at anything, but they're also not bad at anything – jack of all trades, master of none. They're really nothing to write home about, but due to their low cost and relative versatility they will remain useful throughout the game. Until you become seriously rich, you'll probably field more Yari than all other troop types combined. They therefore are the benchmark for melee units.
  
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Yari are Spears -- in Total War terms, this means that Yari Samurai work best in an orderly formation facing the enemy. In such a setup, only the soldiers in the first row do the actual fighting, however, they have the support of three or four ranks behind them. In later games of the series, this meant a boost of +1 defence for every supporting rank and +1 attack for every ''two'' supporting ranks. Oh, and besides Spears get a huge attack bonus against cavalry.
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Yari are Spears -- in Total War terms, this means that Yari Samurai work best in an orderly formation facing the enemy. In such a setup, although only the soldiers in the first row do the actual fighting, however, they have the support of three or four ranks behind them. In later games of the series, this meant a boost of +1 defence for every supporting rank and +1 attack for every ''two'' supporting ranks.  
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Oh, and besides Spears get a huge attack bonus against cavalry.
  
 
Ordering the unit to "keep formation" is easy; ensuring that they will actually face their opponents can be tricky at times, especially when attacking. Tried and proved methods are:
 
Ordering the unit to "keep formation" is easy; ensuring that they will actually face their opponents can be tricky at times, especially when attacking. Tried and proved methods are:
 
* set a waypoint behind the enemy, let your troops march into the opponents' unit , once the first men start fighting order your unit to stop.
 
* set a waypoint behind the enemy, let your troops march into the opponents' unit , once the first men start fighting order your unit to stop.
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* tell them to attack some unit; they will charge the enemy, losing any formation on the way. When they're rather close, usually the enemy will counter-charge. Just stop your troops, more often then not they will shape up sufficiently even in the few moments that remain.
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* if you tell them to attack some unit they will charge, losing any formation on the way. When they're rather close, often the enemy will counter-charge. Just stop your troops, more often then not they will shape up sufficiently even in the few moments that remain. Taking the enemy charge, then fighting in proper formation usually is more favorable.
  
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Spears aren't made to chop up the enemy (unless they're on horseback), their emphasis is on holding out. If they occasionally manage to kill an opponent, so much the better. Two units of Yari Samurai fighting head-on is mutual attrition, not actual slaughter. Yari are best used in the tactical defensive ‐provoke an attack then hold out– buying you time to outflank said enemy and have another unit charge into their back. Said flanker may well be another unit of Yari: although [[No-Dachi]] or [[Warrior Monks]] will do much better at the task, Yari usually are good enough. Don't bother with formations when flanking, though, just get as many spears into contact with the enemies' behinds as possible.
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Spears aren't made to chop up the enemy (unless said enemy comes on horseback), their emphasis is on holding out, the more so because attacking units usually don't keep their formation. Yari are best used in the tactical defensive -provoke an attack then hold out- all things being equal, orderly defenders will win against an attacking mob even when fighting uphill. However, two units of Yari Samurai fighting head-on is mutual attrition, not actual slaughter. The real point of Yari is to keep the enemy occupied, they will hold out some time even against the fiercest opponents, buying you time to outflank the enemy and have another unit charge into their back. Said flanker may well be another unit of Yari: although [[STW No-Dachi|No Dachi]] or [[STW Warrior Monks|Warrior Monks]] are much better at the task, units are so much more vulnerable to attacks from behind that even Yari usually are will do. Don't bother with formations when flanking, though, just get as many spears into contact with the enemies' behinds as possible.
  
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=Yari Ashigaru=
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[[Category:STW unit|Yari Samurai]]
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{{STW_Unit
 
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|name=Yari Ashigaru
 
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|type=Spear
 
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|charge=0
 
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|attack=-1
 
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|defence=-1
 
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|armour=0
 
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|speed=5 - 10 - 12
 
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|morale=-4
 
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|cost=200
 
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|card=''insert pic here'' }}
 
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Like Yari Samurai, Yari Ashigaru are equipped with spears; all that has been said about ranks and formations applies in full, they also get the bonus against cavalry, and in principle they're suitable for the same tasks.
 
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In practice, they're dead cheap and worth even less. You definitely don't need to tell Ashigaru how to perform a retrograde maneuver; they have an instinctive knack for it and will display their mastery of the technique at every opportunity. Too bad that these opportunities come at the most inopportune times.
 
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Early in the game, Ashigaru can still be a boon: a unit of Ashigaru is better than no unit at all; two cheap units offer more flexibility on the battlefield than a single expensive one, and numerical superiority can be a value in and of itself (even though a 2:1 battle of Ashigaru vs. Samurai will be a close call). Finally, Ashigaru are faster than any other foot soldiers: until you have proper cavalry, Ashigaru are your best chance to catch a few routed enemies.
 
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Later in the game, when armies are approaching the 16 unit limit, it's usually better to fill the positions with actual fighters and leave the peasants on their fields. However, they may still come in handy as ''butt <!-- I mean the butts you find on a shooting range, behind the target. Is there any other word?--> and bait''. If the day is long enough, have the enemy empty their quivers at some Ashigaru while your actual troops have some R&R. Try to play hide and seek (exhausting your enemies), or send the cheap troops into the wood first: at the very least, fighting back your Ashigaru will be as tiring as any other melee &ndash; and with some luck, the enemy will pursue the routing Ashigaru, thus running straight into the arms of your other troops waiting outside. Sometimes, this also works with castles. Remeber, it's not only that Ashigaru are cheap: actual Samurai are not impressed when the peasants start running.
 
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However, you may need to spend quite some amount on morale upgrades: without, the Ashigaru may break and run even before the enemy sees any reason to react to the bait; likewise, when used as archery decoy, pampering their morale helps more than thick armour.
 
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=Yari Cavalry=
 
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Although equipped with Yari, they don't belong here. See [[Cavalry (STW)]].
 

Latest revision as of 17:48, 2 March 2011

TO DO: Someone might want to throw in a short paragraph about actual yari and place a pic here.

Yari Samurai

STW Yari Samurai
Unit Name: Yari Samurai
Type: Spear
Combat Stats
Charge: 0
Attack: 0
Defence: 2
Armour: 2
Speed: 5 - 8 - 9.5
Morale: 2
Cost:
Unit Card:           Stw-ys.gif


Yari Samurai are the first (and for quite some time the only) decent melee unit you get. They're not exceptionally good at anything, but they're also not bad at anything – jack of all trades, master of none. They're really nothing to write home about, but due to their low cost and relative versatility they will remain useful throughout the game. Until you become seriously rich, you'll probably field more Yari than all other troop types combined. They therefore are the benchmark for melee units.

Yari are Spears -- in Total War terms, this means that Yari Samurai work best in an orderly formation facing the enemy. In such a setup, although only the soldiers in the first row do the actual fighting, however, they have the support of three or four ranks behind them. In later games of the series, this meant a boost of +1 defence for every supporting rank and +1 attack for every two supporting ranks. Oh, and besides Spears get a huge attack bonus against cavalry.

Ordering the unit to "keep formation" is easy; ensuring that they will actually face their opponents can be tricky at times, especially when attacking. Tried and proved methods are:

  • set a waypoint behind the enemy, let your troops march into the opponents' unit , once the first men start fighting order your unit to stop.
  • if you tell them to attack some unit they will charge, losing any formation on the way. When they're rather close, often the enemy will counter-charge. Just stop your troops, more often then not they will shape up sufficiently even in the few moments that remain. Taking the enemy charge, then fighting in proper formation usually is more favorable.

Spears aren't made to chop up the enemy (unless said enemy comes on horseback), their emphasis is on holding out, the more so because attacking units usually don't keep their formation. Yari are best used in the tactical defensive -provoke an attack then hold out- all things being equal, orderly defenders will win against an attacking mob even when fighting uphill. However, two units of Yari Samurai fighting head-on is mutual attrition, not actual slaughter. The real point of Yari is to keep the enemy occupied, they will hold out some time even against the fiercest opponents, buying you time to outflank the enemy and have another unit charge into their back. Said flanker may well be another unit of Yari: although No Dachi or Warrior Monks are much better at the task, units are so much more vulnerable to attacks from behind that even Yari usually are will do. Don't bother with formations when flanking, though, just get as many spears into contact with the enemies' behinds as possible.

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