Slitherine

Does anyone have any advice on stopping phalanxes and warbands with massed archer armies? They're actually pretty good at taking the steam out of regular formations (the archers have a good chance of scoring disruptions and knocking holes in the enemy line), but the sheer depth and power (even once disrupted) of phalanx armies makes it very difficult for archers to stop them. Is it just a case of going wide and locking around the pike army? Maybe have the bowmen in the centre, but the tribesmen/irregulars and cav on the flanks?

I was able to auto-break two phalanxes playing against the AI using Armenians, mostly from shooting, though it did take a while! The key is that your massed bows have to be on a hill and preferably have some other type of terrain (rough ground is good) nearby. Putting them on a hill not only gives them the combat advantage, but allows you to stack your bows and get more shots in. You also have to have some better melee troops to support the bows, behind them, javelin men will do. They can hit the flanks of the phalanx when it breaks through. It helps to have some light bowmen as well, as they can move around your hill while the massed bowmen stay put. Currently I am giving Seleucids a hard time using massed bowmen in woods, though only one pike phalanx has been routed so far. Putting them in woods helps protect them from other bowmen - those outside the woods that wondered into range of his light bowmen and got routed from shooting. For bowmen in the open, you need some serious heavy infantry to protect them e.g. later Armenian imitation legionaries, probably in a staggered formation with the bowmen back and the legionaries forward.