Garrison Units

[Roxlimn]

For central cities, Warriors for HR. If I'm going for Rep, then one Warrior per city - the absolute cheapest.

For border cities, optimized to the enemy. Against Genghis Khan, I keep promoted Spearmen in every city two deep to his borders. That means that essentially, every city within 8 squares of his border gets one. Same with anyone who has Mounted UUs or Ivory. Those Elephants are tough cookies.

Against Rome or Ragnar, I keep plenty of Macemen and Axemen around. Can't be too careful with those Praetorians and Berserkers.

My actual defensive layout depends on Civ size, terrain, and strategic resources, as well as border morphology. If, for instance, I have a two city exposure to Ragnar, then I'll create a response stack of Macemen and keep it fortified in the more important of the cities, in the closer one, or barring that, in between them in a Fort connected with Roads.

Forts and Citadels (very small cities with essentially just Walls and Castles) are useful for controlling movement and punishing invading stacks.

 

[cabert]

Pre-HR: one warrior/city, plus fogbusters as needed. If I have an aggressive neighbor, I'll keep some real forces (axes and a spear or two, or archers if I have no metals) in the most likely target city. Post-HR: as many warriors as I need to avoid happiness constraints. Unless I'm unlucky enough to start with Hunting (or I need it for Ivory/Furs), in which case archers or chariots. Once the AIs get Astronomy, I'll reinforce coastal cities with 2-3 good defenders. I'll also either set up a network of caravels to spot incoming fleets, or wait until Physics and use airships; then a centralized or regionalized stack of mixed troops can respond.

peace,
lilnev

For central cities, Warriors for HR. If I'm going for Rep, then one Warrior per city - the absolute cheapest.

For border cities, optimized to the enemy. Against Genghis Khan, I keep promoted Spearmen in every city two deep to his borders.

I do it this way too, except I don't care about having archers and chariots instead of warriors. The beans counting makes me nervous .

So the result may go up to, if happiness constraint (quite often!), 2 archers (may as well have some real defense) + 3 chariots.
If I need more happiness, I'll make more chariots, since they can move faster from one unhappy city to the next.

 

[AmazonQueen]

What promotions for defenders?
I usually find I can manage 2 promotions for most units early on so thats what I'll assume.
For archers I usually go CG unless I have a protective leader in which case I'll go for Drill.
Spearmen Combat I and Medic.
Axemen Combat I and Shock.
Mounted units Flanking I and Sentry or Combat I and Shock.
Catapults I don't tend to promote specifically for city defence so if they get pushed into this role they'll probably have CR. Do those who use catapults for city defence build catapults specifically for this role? If so what promotions do you give them? Barrage presumably?

 

[cabert]

no promotions except archer which get CG.
I wait till I need them, and then promote them.

 

[Philo_Beddoe]

Archers do much better if you build a barracks and give them city garrison 1.

I always build a barrack before I start producing units.

 

[A_Hamster]

What promotions for defenders?
I usually find I can manage 2 promotions for most units early on so thats what I'll assume.
For archers I usually go CG unless I have a protective leader in which case I'll go for Drill.
Spearmen Combat I and Medic.
Axemen Combat I and Shock.
Mounted units Flanking I and Sentry or Combat I and Shock.
Catapults I don't tend to promote specifically for city defence so if they get pushed into this role they'll probably have CR. Do those who use catapults for city defence build catapults specifically for this role? If so what promotions do you give them? Barrage presumably?

Defensive promotions exactly as you've outlined above.

For purpose-built defensive catapults, I use a mix of Barrage and Combat. The first few in a city are pure Barrage and are the "forlorn hope", meant to suicide against a large invading stack (or later when I go on the offense, suicide on a AI counterattack). Later ones have Combat, in the hope that they will survive their attacks on the weakened stacks, and can be promoted.

 

[The_Reckoning]

Minimum in all inner cities. I still had only a warrior in in capital in my last Prince win. Border cities get a large garrison generally.

 

[Krazy]

Depends on the city, but usually an archer, later adding a spearman and possibly an axe. The archers, get upgraded to longbows or I add longbows and then pikes and crossbows. I've had games where a warrior has been the garrison the whole time, and often reach the modern era with some BC archer still defending a city. Fairly silly, but it amuses me.

 

[Shadzy19]

Early game : I pretty much always have only 1 cheap useless unit in the non border city's unless i can make some use out of HR (greater benefit then the unit cost) or there is a danger of naval invasion , then i just build the cheapest unit I can build to support the faces from HR.
The never leave the city anyway so why build expensive troops there.
If I have many city's on the border I want at least some axes/spears and walls in these city's with my SoD being in the most central city on the borders.

Late game : After Astronomy comes in I normally want 2 of the best defenders atm in all my city's on the coast and a few tanks/cavs in a central city to go help where needed , If i lack the production it will be 1 + some fast units nearby .