M2TW armor: worth it?

[Phrossack]

Is it just me, or does armor do very little in this game? I've had heavy cavalry in advanced plate die after being hit with a few arrows (not from longbows). Also, it seems as though a cavalry unit with steel horse armor is as tough as an unarmored horse.

Lastly... what's the point of Armor Factories? They cost an arm and a leg, yet only a few units can receive an advanced plate upgrade, making them utterly useless for any non-Italian faction and not worth it for the Italians.

 

[Flying Pig]

FUlly armoured elite knights are gods in this game, and it's great for infantry slug-fests.

 

[Phrossack]

Thanks for replying!

But my Lancers always suffer nasty casualties from Mongol Horse Archers, both from arrows and in melee. And when my infantry are hit in a fight but live, they flinch, thus allowing the guy who hit them to hit them again and again in a vicious cycle. Am I just unlucky?

 

[Flying Pig]

If you're trying to fihgt the Mongols, expect a bashing - they are the most powerful cavalry. Tey putting fully armoured billmen against unarmoured ones in a CB and watch the figures, to give you an idea of the vaslue of armour.

 

[aronnax]

The way to victory against the Mongols is not a fully armoured cavalry unit but 8 elite missle units on the walls of your cities, supported by a hell lot of pikemen/Spearmen and a crap load of luck.

 

[Flying Pig]

I tend to hit them head on on the weakest point, using covering fire, shock attack and momentum (comes with the training) but it's hard to do and really complicated.

 

[Maniacal]

The mongols are grossly overpowered in vanilla. Armour is worth it, however armour is not perfect, as I think you know some weapons like the longbow and crossbow are really good against armour. Although I don't remember how effective it is in vanilla as I have not touched it in a year or so.

 

[Flying Pig]

Gunpowder goes straight through most armour

 

[Maniacal]

Not in vanilla

 

[Flying Pig]

I'm sure it does, but at varying levels - good gunpowder beats good armour

 

[kibbles]

Well, SEGA kinda . .. .. .. . up when it came to med 2, they have these little ungraceful animations in combat when fighting, that make combat about 10x times more unrealistic then say, rtw, for example. That is why what Phrossack was saying can occur, with some crappy town militia beating the lights out of an armoured swordsman over and over again, until he's dead. It's utter . .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

 

[Flying Pig]

I like the combat, but only because it's fun

PS: I'd edit that before the mods get here

 

[Maniacal]

In vanilla the gunpowder units tend to glitch and screw up.

 

[Flying Pig]

I fiddled it around a little - I can now get Spanish Dragoons.