A question on mounted defense

[He-Who-Hunts]

It says that mounted units recieve no defensive bonus in their description...

I was wondering how true this was in respect to all defensive fields... Does it apply to city defense? Fortification defense? and Terrain defense? or is it just one or two?

 

[MrCynical]

Mounted units don't get any defense bonuses from fortification, cities or terrain. The only exceptions are that when they are attacked across rivers they get the 25% defense bonus, and when attacked from the sea they get the 50% defense bonus.

 

[Innawerkz]

All the above. The only promotion that I could consider being used defensively is 'Shock' offering a 25% bonus vs. Melee Units.

Otherwise, you can't fortify with them - only sentry (no incremental bonus up to 25%) - and there is no defense bonus to specific 'land' types available to mounted units.

I still use mounted units in a defensive role of patrolling my lands and engaging the enemy in open field combat with Flanking promotions and granting the odd unit Medic ability to bring their healing skills where they are needed in a hurry.

 

[Wodan]

Note that Conquistadors DO get defensive bonuses!!!

Wodan

 

[Innawerkz]

Good catch!

Still think the Conquistador is my favorite UU! Pure medieval dominance!

 

[Palantir30]

Persian Immortals dont get the penalty either.

Better check all those UU's again.

 

[He-Who-Hunts]

Persian Immortals dont get the penalty either.

AHHH that would explain it...

you see lastnight 6 of my immortals held out against 6 horsearchers.... thats what spawned the question.

 

[carn]

Mounted units don't get any defense bonuses from fortification, cities or terrain. The only exceptions are that when they are attacked across rivers they get the 25% defense bonus, and when attacked from the sea they get the 50% defense bonus.

I think the point about sea and river is, that it is a malus the attacker suffers, therefore mounted units profit as all others. I think it's a malus as the amphibious promotion says:"can attack across rivers or from sea without penalty".

Carn

 

[Wodan]

What's a malus?

Wodan

 

[ZippyRiver]

What's a malus?

Wodan

LOL. I had no idea either. I looked it up. The only malus refrence in the dictionary was Etienne-Louis Malus, a french physicist 1775-1812. (wow, he died young)

 

[MrCynical]

A malus is the reverse of a bonus, basically means a penalty.

 

[Good Omens]

What's a malus?

A malus is the opposite of a bonus, basically a penalty. Somewhat of an archaic word.

EDIT: Whoops, beaten by MrCynical.

 

[Palantir30]

It's also a 'hammer'. I generally like antiquated words, but not when there is more than one antequated meaning for the antquated word.

I like "hammer" better than 'penalty' for when I say 'malus', so that's the only one that I'll perpetuate.

 

[Bast]

Good catch!

Still think the Conquistador is my favorite UU! Pure medieval dominance!

True! Viva España!

 

[sandman_civ]

A malus is the reverse of a bonus, basically means a penalty.

Where do you guys find these defs? My printed dictionaries don't have that entry, and dictionary.com has:

malus

n : apple trees; found throughout temperate zones of the northern hemisphere

 

[MrCynical]

I believe that in Latin 'malus' can be mean either apple or evil/bad (probably related to Garden of Eden). Using it to mean a penalty is I think a fairly recent occurence, or it has only recently come back into use. I suspect some people see 'bonus' and take 'bon' as French for good and replace it with 'mal' as French for bad to reverse the meaning, without actually knowing it is a genuine, if archaic word.

 

[sandman_civ]

Live and learn Thanks!

 

[Xcalibur]

I believe that in Latin 'malus' can be mean either apple or evil/bad (probably related to Garden of Eden). Using it to mean a penalty is I think a fairly recent occurence, or it has only recently come back into use. I suspect some people see 'bonus' and take 'bon' as French for good and replace it with 'mal' as French for bad to reverse the meaning, without actually knowing it is a genuine, if archaic word.

Actually, malus exists in French. It's exactly what was said here, the contrary of bonus.

The word exists (in french) since 1970 and is taken directly from latin. It's a technical word though

By the way, I find it weird that ranged mounted units don't receive a defensive bonus via terrains or fortifications...

 

[carn]

What's a malus?

Wodan

Sorry,
of course the others are right, correct is "penalty".

Thought that word existed in english.

Carn

 

[carn]

By the way, I find it weird that ranged mounted units don't receive a defensive bonus via terrains or fortifications...

In some way it makes sense, a horse is of limited use upon a city wall or in a dense forest. For armor i think its the same, it cannot hide inside buildings and a dense forest is propably as much an obstacle as a cover.

But on hills i think at least armor can have an advantage, same way as artillery should get an advantage there.

Carn