Battle advice

There is no single winning strategy in multiplayer or single player, but there are general tips and specific hints we can give to make the experience easier.

Multiplayer

New players are often astonished by the power of onagers and their perpetual presence in multiplayer scenarios. It’s not so much the onagers that are the problem, as the explosive flaming ammunition is, but that’s a fact of life each side has to deal with. At least one battery of onagers should be present in your army. Heavy onagers should be avoided since their range is no greater and their extra damage hardly compensates for a slower rate of fire. Other artillery units like ballistae, scorpions and repeating ballistae can be safely discarded as well, they’re nowhere near as damaging or intimidating.

The side with more, better cavalry can generally but not always be expected to win. Units like elephants and camels have combat bonuses versus cavalry. Also, spearmen are absolutely devastating against any horse- or camel-mounted troops. We’d shy away from those units that “can form phalanx” because they’re not at all maneuverable and are easily flanked or avoided. By contrast, spear warbands, triarii and auxilia are far more maneuverable and adept at hunting down cavalry.

Skirmisher units are best avoided. Javelins have short range and, since they’re usually fired at the start of combat when both armies are facing each other, the javelins are wasted on units with shields. Skirmishers simply lack range.

Archers and slingers are a tough call. A powerful, upgraded archer unit can be devastating – especially if it’s a long-range archer – but they have limited use in melee and are sheep before a cavalry charge. If you’re going to buy archers, make sure they’re good, like a Chosen Archers, Pharaoh’s Bowmen or Archer Auxilia, rather than the basic kind. Pharaoh’s Bowmen, in addition to being the most powerful archers in the game, are also competent light infantry. Once the initial melee has started, if you have the dominant cavalry or at least spearmen to protect your archers, you can move the archers to the side to attack the enemy infantry line. Archers armed with flaming ammunition are effective against elephants.

Elephants are… well, in a word, they’re tanks. The basic kind of elephant is relatively cheap and easy to kill or rout, but still devastating against packed ranks. However, it’s the War Elephants – or even worse, Armored War Elephants – that one must be wary of. Either mob them from the start or avoid them. Though certain units like Light Auxilia, Velites or Velite Gladiators boast combat bonuses against elephants, in reality they’re all but useless against them. Use flaming pigs once the elephants are engaged, to make them panic. War Elephants and their armored cousins should be targeted from the start of a battle with flaming arrows, ballistae, and onagers with flaming ammo. Though cavalry have a disadvantage against elephants, they’re actually the most effective unit at taking them down. Just tie the elephants up with infantry and charge with cavalry. The losses will be heavy, but if you have no alternative…