Army Construction vs. Knights

[benos]

sassanid levy are poor def spear or poor mob.
So they cannot support elephants.
Actually why i don't use the elephants in my sassanid army at the moment as i can't get decent support
that costs less than the elephants.


Ben

[ShrubMiK]

>As it is poor, would it really stand up to knights

Not quite as well as if it was average!

But overlaps have already been mentioned, and a hypothetical matchup between one knight BG and one cataphract BG in particular. And the factor of cost meaning that the cataphracts may not have support alongside them.

Stop for a moment and apply similar logic to the knights vs. spears confrontation. The spears are a lot cheaper (especially if poor) and come in bigger BGs. If you don't get at least one file overlapping out of your spearmen in that matchup, you are doing something wrong

And - which often seems to get forgotten in these "but troop type X can't possibly stand up to (more expensive) troop type Y which has more POAs" discussions - any points you save in matchup A can and should be put to use trying to win the battle elsewhere.

[batesmotel]

sassanid levy are poor def spear or poor mob.
So they cannot support elephants.
Actually why i don't use the elephants in my sassanid army at the moment as i can't get decent support
that costs less than the elephants.


Ben

Hill Tribesmen and MF Archers are both fairly cheap rear supports for the elephants at 30 points for a BG of 6. If you are using the Levy spear with the elephants, the MF can also support those as well. A BG of 6 could provide read support for a BG of elephants plus a BG of 10-12 Levy spear if placed correctly behind both.

Chris