Rome Total War- Battle strategies

[Epictetus]

How do you guys use velites or skirmishers? If I put them out front to harass an enemy, they send cavalry to rout them. If I leave them in the rear they do little besides hiting my own troops. It seems like the only way I can use them is if the enemy either has no cavalry or if I have already engaged their mounted troops before the infantry gets close to one another.

[M. Demetrius]

Cavalry sometimes does bad things to the velites, but if you post a group of Hastati with them, the damage is greatly lessened, since the velites will retreat and the hastati will take the brunt of the cavalry, while supported by the javelins. Don't turn off the button that lets them scurry around on their own, though, they're not much good if they have to stand and fight. Light infantry. They do pretty well against archers, head to head, I've found, except those near-immortal Egyptian archers.

[Gaius Julius Caesar]

Ditto to dave. I usually place thwm behind the first line, with skirmish mode on. (the button that lets them run around, dave :wink: )
Slingers though out front, same mode, they wil usually run when threatened closely.
Archers behind the lines!
If they are of limited number, put them to the left to hopefully catch the enemies unshielded side.

[M. Demetrius]

There you go again, GJC, getting all high techie on me. :roll: Everybody knows it's the "run around" button. Gee. :wink:

[Gaius Julius Caesar]

You will be assimilated, resistence is futile! :twisted:

[M. Demetrius]

Not if I run around enough...the little yellow clock will run out, and I'll be free! Muhahahhahahahahahhaaa! :lol:

[Gaius Julius Caesar]

I always disable that feature..... :| wink: No escape!

[M. Demetrius]

Well, then, I hope you like the taste of javelins, buddy.

[Epictetus]

I just had that problem. I had a force of infantry-only moving to a different city and ran into some brigands which were all skirmishers. I chased them all over the freaking place and eventually carefully caught some in a corner to demolish them. I was running out of time but eventually trapped enough to make the whole lot of them rout. But I was quite worried for a while. High mobility can be quite useful.

Later edit:

Has anyone ever managed to force another faction to become a protectorate? What happens? I was ordered by the Senate to do this, but the faction refused to submit. When I failed, the Senate said that I should have been more forceful, or something like that. So later I waited until this faction only had one town left, which I was beseiging. I raised the seige to ask them to submit and they still refused. hock: I don't know how much more forceful one could be! What's the trick?

[M. Demetrius]

I have never gotten anybody to become a protectorate. I've been asked, and once on a whim, I accepted someone else's offer. Suddenly my allies didn't like me, and since I was Roman, the Senate wasn't impressed. No problem, though, I just attacked his town and we were enemies again. But my old allies didn't come around for a while. Messy.

[Gaius Julius Caesar]

I did get protectorates long time ago, but they likewise broke their obligations with me....it was good to
give them a tast of cold Roman steel. :twisted:

[Titvs Statilivs Castvs]

Pay them. P

Btw, sieging them won't help - AI isn't that smart. (or very brave)

[Gaius Julius Caesar]

I alway demand tribute from my allies.....and everyone else who listens.....can add a few cents to the coffers for a while.
But best to ally your self wit has many as possible, and then pick the ones to subjugate, one or 2 at a time.

[Tiberius Clodius Corvinus]

I have never gotten anybody to become a protectorate. I've been asked, and once on a whim, I accepted someone else's offer.

same here. I never got the sense of having or becoming a protectorate :?

[M. Demetrius]

After a period of heavy fighting that might have eliminated an opponent culture, it would sometimes be nice to become the "protected one" guarded by a large enemy. But in reality, that probably wouldn't happen, and even though I've been "protected" in one game, just to see what it would do, your Benefactor doesn't come to your aid, or at least not to mine. Oh, well.