pgeerkens wrote:Good work. To get to the next level I suggest recruiting one Triarii, one Legionary or Praetorian, and two more Velites instead of the last two Auxilia. Specialize the Triarii as anti-cavalry (you wouldn't believe how these guys can chew up even the best of enemy cavalry hen backed up by a Velite), and the second heavy infantry as anti-infantry. When the Triarii come on your goal should be to get them to level 6 or 7 in their first battle by chewing up enemy light infantry.
I know those archers are so pretty when they get to level 12, but you are paying prestige for them in every battle until then. Grab 4 Velites quickly, and then work on affording the archers.
Hello friend, long time no see!
Yes, I remember your Triarii tactics. I was in a mood for a completely light army, though, so I went for the mix you see above. I really like it; I can't put m finger on why, but it has lot to do with their visual appearance, power of archers, uniformity of the mix, light-only settings and healings, etc. Even when I started the run, I knew this won't be the best, but I still wished to play it like that.
When I checked the units after I finished the campaign, I realized something very strange. Although the archers are strong and are very useful as they might severely weaken the most dangerous enemy before he hits, they had very small "highest kills" statistics compared to the other units. Of course that this is due to the fact that they'll lose the arrows mid-battle, while the swords will never blunt. This led me to a next-level tinkering, and I guess that it's not so surprising and many people knew that for years: one shouldn't play too many archers, maybe two are enough. Use them to cripple the incoming wave, machinegun the out-of-reach enemy, etc., but don't rely on them, as they will run out of ammo and moreover need quite some bodyguards.
Also, I'd love to make some final decision on pin cushions. They're useful in that they stop the arrows, but there are times when their unreliability was unwelcome, e.g. when they broke faster then excepted and the enemy drilled a hole in my lines due to this, higher numbers of them make army cumbersome to command, they consume their corresponding part of the experiences' bonus, and although this ain't that hurtful in one scenario, there are tens of battles through the whole campaign, so this adds up, esp. in times when you use moreof them. (And yes, sometimes you need to have as many as 1/4 pin cushions in your particular deployment.)
A small question: pgeerkens, do you really mena I should play with four Velites? Four? It sems like a truly high number. But then again, I regularly end with them this way or another, as I tend to keep fortunate pin cushion that pass over level six. Maybe you're right, if played correctly, those four Velites shouldn't need to heal too often, and their help would be much appreciated. I just fear that my army might become a bit too unwield and once again a bit too ranged-dependant.
