Impact POA - General questions

[moet]

OK guys, I am trying to summarize the impact POA rules (listed on the Impact Combat HTML help page). There are a lot of things that are not clear to me, and I need to understand all the details to get the whole picture.

So let’s begin with four general questions:

1. Are the advantages of mounted troops cumulative?
Example : Do lancers get +1 POA (because they are mounted) or +2 POA (because they are mounted and lancers) when charging against medium foot?

2. Are the advantages of charging pikemen cumulative?
Example : Do 100% steady pikemen get +1 POA (because they have 50% of their initial strenght) or +2 POA (because they have 50% and 75% of their initial strenght) when charging against medium foot?

3. Do a battle group get POA when charging against the same type of troops?
Examples : knights against other knights? heavy or scythed chariots against other heavy or scythed chariots? elephants against other elephants?

4. Lancers don’t get POA when charging against steady pikemen, but in this case do the pikemen get their "defensive" +1 POA when being charged by any units? In other words, do the resulting POA balance of this combat is 0 or +1 for the pikemen ?

[petergarnett]

OK guys, I am trying to summarize the impact POA rules (listed on the Impact Combat HTML help page). There are a lot of things that are not clear to me, and I need to understand all the details to get the whole picture.

So let’s begin with four general questions:

1. Are the advantages of mounted troops cumulative?
Example : Do lancers get +1 POA (because they are mounted) or +2 POA (because they are mounted and lancers) when charging against medium foot? It's +2

2. Are the advantages of charging pikemen cumulative?
Example : Do 100% steady pikemen get +1 POA (because they have 50% of their initial strenght) or +2 POA (because they have 50% and 75% of their initial strenght) when charging against medium foot? Again +2
3. Do a battle group get POA when charging against the same type of troops?
Examples : knights against other knights? heavy or scythed chariots against other heavy or scythed chariots? elephants against other elephants? Even if they do they would cancel each other out I believe

4. Lancers don’t get POA when charging against steady pikemen, but in this case do the pikemen get their "defensive" +1 POA when being charged by any units? In other words, do the resulting POA balance of this combat is 0 or +1 for the pikemen ? Yes the pikes do get +1

[rbodleyscott]

4. Lancers don’t get POA when charging against steady pikemen, but in this case do the pikemen get their "defensive" +1 POA when being charged by any units? In other words, do the resulting POA balance of this combat is 0 or +1 for the pikemen ? Yes the pikes do get +1

Actually +2 if they are above 75% strength.

[deadtorius]

1. Are the advantages of mounted troops cumulative?
Example : Do lancers get +1 POA (because they are mounted) or +2 POA (because they are mounted and lancers) when charging against medium foot?

It would be a ++ versus MF in the open. If the MF are in terrain or if they have set portable defences, (stakes) then the lancers would lose the POA for versus MF in the open so it would be a + POA.

Lancers VS pikes. If the pikes are not charging the lancers the pikes get a ++ POA, the lancers get a --. Not a good idea to charge lancers if you can help it.
If the pikes are charging the lancers, ++ POA lancers +POA so it ends up as a +POA for the pikes. Pikes will still end up with a slight advantage in combat.

POA's cancel each other out, so if you go into a combat with a +POA and your opponent gets a +POA they cancel each other and you go in even with no POA's. If you have the same troop types charging each other with the same POA's they will cancel out so no one has a POA.
Each +POA one side gets gives their opponent a - POA. The POA's are used to determine what die roll is needed to score a hit.

[rbodleyscott]

1. Are the advantages of mounted troops cumulative?
Example : Do lancers get +1 POA (because they are mounted) or +2 POA (because they are mounted and lancers) when charging against medium foot?

It would be a ++ versus MF in the open. If the MF are in terrain or if they have set portable defences, (stakes) then the lancers would lose the POA for versus MF in the open so it would be a + POA.

Actually no. They would also lose the lancers bonus. And if the MF had portable defences the MF would get +1 for those.

So in terrain without defences, the combat is on 0 net POAs.

With defences (in or out of terrain), it is on net + to the MF.

[deadtorius]

Guess I should have been paying more attention to those Quick Reference charts

[moet]

Guess I should have been paying more attention to those Quick Reference charts

That's why I try to summarize the POA in one simple table. The way it is explained in the rules impose to the player to calculate too much (although the calculation remains simple).

[deadtorius]

actually its easier if its against specific troop types, for example MF spear versus lance etc. When your talking general stuff like above its easier to overlook specific POA's since MF can cover many troop types with different weapons, but still I should have looked at it all a bit closer

[Blathergut]

1. Are the advantages of mounted troops cumulative?
Example : Do lancers get +1 POA (because they are mounted) or +2 POA (because they are mounted and lancers) when charging against medium foot?

It would be a ++ versus MF in the open. If the MF are in terrain or if they have set portable defences, (stakes) then the lancers would lose the POA for versus MF in the open so it would be a + POA.

Actually no. They would also lose the lancers bonus. And if the MF had portable defences the MF would get +1 for those.

So in terrain without defences, the combat is on 0 net POAs.

With defences (in or out of terrain), it is on net + to the MF.

Has anyone yet confirmed this is how the PC version is treating stakes?

[moet]

POA's cancel each other out, so if you go into a combat with a +POA and your opponent gets a +POA they cancel each other and you go in even with no POA's. If you have the same troop types charging each other with the same POA's they will cancel out so no one has a POA.
Each +POA one side gets gives their opponent a - POA. The POA's are used to determine what die roll is needed to score a hit.

I understand now that this is true for all BG, except pikemen : pikemen charging other pikemen would fight with a negative POA because of the POA given to the non-charging pikemen. Am I right ?

[TheGrayMouser]

POA's cancel each other out, so if you go into a combat with a +POA and your opponent gets a +POA they cancel each other and you go in even with no POA's. If you have the same troop types charging each other with the same POA's they will cancel out so no one has a POA.
Each +POA one side gets gives their opponent a - POA. The POA's are used to determine what die roll is needed to score a hit.

I understand now that this is true for all BG, except pikemen : pikemen charging other pikemen would fight with a negative POA because of the POA given to the non-charging pikemen. Am I right ?

No they are even

The active unit (the charger) gets a + if charging foot
The passive (the charged) + for not charging
(both these assume not fragged and above 50%)

Both units would get a + for just being Pikes if over 75% strength
thus both ++ which nets out to pure equality

[deadtorius]

You are confused with pikes charging shock mounted, then they don't get the POA for pikes but still get a + for the rear rankers believe it is more than 75% strength. If charging non-shock mounted they still get the ++.

As far as stakes goes, my experience with them seems to be that bows without them get slaughtered by mounted, if they are set the cav get beat on pretty badly, so educated guess is yes they seem to work as they do on the TT.