So distractions of an impressively lush land aside, we're still tracking on the Guilds run. The elephant island is interesting, and the areas are almost too big for much conflict, but we still can royally mess up someone else's day with our cataphracts. It's time for another installment of:
Today, we discuss counters; the list of hard counters is simple: Rifles. If we had Ottomen kicking around, we'd be warry of janisaries, but as it is muskets don't hold much to fear. The usual dribs and drabs of medieval warfare, like maces, crossbows, and knights, are all respectable in large numbers but cannot come even close to matching 'phracts on anything like an equal hammer conversion ratio. The three primary worries we'll face on our cataphract quest for glory are longbows, pikes, and war elephants.
Longbows are normally what knights are made to counter, and cataphracts certainly don't do worse against them. The point is, due to the lack first strike immunity, neither do they do much better. Longbows aren't all that scary on the open field, but unfortunately, we're not really going to be facing them on the open field much. With stone at the capitals, walls are going to be dirt cheap and once the 'phract stacks show up, they'll be whipped in everywhere. Behind those walls enjoying all sorts of city-defense bonuses will be longbows, cheap and plentiful. The calculus for killing longbows is simple, throw 'phracts at them until they die...generally with combat bonuses matched against CG promotions, our 'phracts will enjoy a slightly better than even rate of exchange...which translates to a net loss in hammers.
Anti-longbow doctrine is one and the same as anti-city doctrine, use cataphract's superior mobility to fork, divide, and crush the weak points. depending on where iron is, if we can cut off the victim's supply then these little guys will be their best defenders.
Pikemen are the natural counter to knights, and do well against non-Spanish curs...so yeah, pikemen do well against cataphracts. The trouble for pikes is in the cataphracts' much higher natural base strength and how % modifiers work in Civ 4. A vanilia pike is strength 6 +100%, or 12, against the 'phract's own 12. However, bonuses are summed and then added, so a shock cataphract against a C2 pike is 12 vs. 6+(100+20-35=85%) (net 11.1). So while pikes, particularly on defensive terrain, do get odds on the 'phracts, they don't get amazing odds. So, see the previous song and verse about forking.
War elephants are probably the worst threat we're going to face on our cataphract romp around the globe, particularly in the hands of scooter. They have a higher base strength than pikes, do pretty well on the offense, and generally are banned because they come into play obscenely early if beelined and have no counter on the attack until pikes are in play. They are slow, but with Theocracy, Vassalage, barracks and a ger, they can start out with formation, which covers a multitude of sins.
Seven placed ivory on icy little islands in the middle of the sea, which if anything makes it even more a priority for everyone to settle, because in an Always War game like this, those 2-commerce overseas trade routes are more precious than gold (at 9+ cities ). So far, they're the only IC-TRs we've seen, so the ivory will be getting settled on...which makes it darn hard to kill.
WE, however, do have weaknesses of their own. Like all mounted units, they receive no defensive bonuses, so they go under if someone foolishly places them on hills or forests. They're slow like pikes and longbows, so forking still works although they certainly enjoy being on the attack. The general plan for dealing with WE is going to be to cut off our victim from his ivory as soon as possible, ideally even with HA/axes in this earlier game. Again, it all comes down to initiative.
Today, we discuss counters; the list of hard counters is simple: Rifles. If we had Ottomen kicking around, we'd be warry of janisaries, but as it is muskets don't hold much to fear. The usual dribs and drabs of medieval warfare, like maces, crossbows, and knights, are all respectable in large numbers but cannot come even close to matching 'phracts on anything like an equal hammer conversion ratio. The three primary worries we'll face on our cataphract quest for glory are longbows, pikes, and war elephants.
Longbows are normally what knights are made to counter, and cataphracts certainly don't do worse against them. The point is, due to the lack first strike immunity, neither do they do much better. Longbows aren't all that scary on the open field, but unfortunately, we're not really going to be facing them on the open field much. With stone at the capitals, walls are going to be dirt cheap and once the 'phract stacks show up, they'll be whipped in everywhere. Behind those walls enjoying all sorts of city-defense bonuses will be longbows, cheap and plentiful. The calculus for killing longbows is simple, throw 'phracts at them until they die...generally with combat bonuses matched against CG promotions, our 'phracts will enjoy a slightly better than even rate of exchange...which translates to a net loss in hammers.
Anti-longbow doctrine is one and the same as anti-city doctrine, use cataphract's superior mobility to fork, divide, and crush the weak points. depending on where iron is, if we can cut off the victim's supply then these little guys will be their best defenders.
Pikemen are the natural counter to knights, and do well against non-Spanish curs...so yeah, pikemen do well against cataphracts. The trouble for pikes is in the cataphracts' much higher natural base strength and how % modifiers work in Civ 4. A vanilia pike is strength 6 +100%, or 12, against the 'phract's own 12. However, bonuses are summed and then added, so a shock cataphract against a C2 pike is 12 vs. 6+(100+20-35=85%) (net 11.1). So while pikes, particularly on defensive terrain, do get odds on the 'phracts, they don't get amazing odds. So, see the previous song and verse about forking.
War elephants are probably the worst threat we're going to face on our cataphract romp around the globe, particularly in the hands of scooter. They have a higher base strength than pikes, do pretty well on the offense, and generally are banned because they come into play obscenely early if beelined and have no counter on the attack until pikes are in play. They are slow, but with Theocracy, Vassalage, barracks and a ger, they can start out with formation, which covers a multitude of sins.
Seven placed ivory on icy little islands in the middle of the sea, which if anything makes it even more a priority for everyone to settle, because in an Always War game like this, those 2-commerce overseas trade routes are more precious than gold (at 9+ cities ). So far, they're the only IC-TRs we've seen, so the ivory will be getting settled on...which makes it darn hard to kill.
WE, however, do have weaknesses of their own. Like all mounted units, they receive no defensive bonuses, so they go under if someone foolishly places them on hills or forests. They're slow like pikes and longbows, so forking still works although they certainly enjoy being on the attack. The general plan for dealing with WE is going to be to cut off our victim from his ivory as soon as possible, ideally even with HA/axes in this earlier game. Again, it all comes down to initiative.
If only you and me and dead people know hex, then only deaf people know hex.
I write RPG adventures, and blog about it, check it out.
I write RPG adventures, and blog about it, check it out.