Reserves

[the oob]

Has anyone tried this tactic:

Let's say you're defending two cities along a border. Rather than splitting your force and putting half in each city, put one unit in each city and then the rest (the reserve) between the cities, so that the reserve can move to either of the cities in a single turn. That way, as long as you have at least one turns notice, you can put the bulk of your defense into either city.

The downside of course is that the reserve won't get the fortify bonus since they just arrived.

This would work especially well with persian immortals since they are AFAIK the only mounted unit that benefits from defensive bonuses.

 

[wioneo]

No enemies ever touch my city walls(which I don't build). It is much better to execute them once the cross the line of fire AKA my cottages.

 

[the oob]

Well this is of course for situations where you don't have the available manpower to repel an attack and need the defensive advantages of a city, ideally you would destroy their forces before they even get that close. For instance the bulk of your army may be in the east but you get unexpectedly attacked in the west.

 

[Sisiutil]

Yes, I've used that tactic--but usually to defend a key resource which is far from a city. For example, in one game, pre-Engineering's +1 road movement bonus, one of my (newly captured) cities had a copper mine on the other side of an inlet/mountain tile combination, putting it 3 tiles away from the city. Near the copper was barb country; on the other side of the city was the enemy, with whom I was still at war. So I positioned a defensive unit 1 tile out of the city so it could either reach the copper if a barb came to pillage it or turn around and defend the city if need be.

 

[wioneo]

I'm sorry to say that Warlords and its chariots have made the good doctor's quote obsolete, Sisiutil.

 

[Sisiutil]

I'm sorry to say that Warlords and its chariots have made the good doctor's quote obsolete, Sisiutil.

Nah, just bring along a couple of Spearmen to the party--I always do anyway, since the AI is so fond of HBR and Horse Archers.

 

[Khan Quest]

I may put cats or my most advanced offensive units between cities. Since I will counter attack with these, I don't care about fortifying. Make sure the cats are out of range of horses. I also try to place horse units where they can get to three cities.

 

[DuseCutter]

I've done this before. It's also a nice way to hide units. If you don't have open borders with a Civ and he has the shrine to your state religion. Put a stack out of border range and city range and he's blind to your force.

 

[the oob]

I've done this before. It's also a nice way to hide units. If you don't have open borders with a Civ and he has the shrine to your state religion. Put a stack out of border range and city range and he's blind to your force.

This is good or bad depending on how you look at it... in multiplayer, I would want the deterrent effect of a large visible force.

 

[DuseCutter]

This is good or bad depending on how you look at it... in multiplayer, I would want the deterrent effect of a large visible force.

I only play single player right now but I've played enough RTS games to know that multiplayer is a whole other animal.

 

[automator]

Has anyone tried this tactic:
The downside of course is that the reserve won't get the fortify bonus since they just arrived.

Yeah, but that's a 25% loss that I, for one, would not be comfortable in losing.

Plus, if you're one turn from each city, that means that if you move units to city A, then a stack approaches city B, they won't get back for two turns. Meanwhile, your units are not healing.

In mid/late game, I leave a couple mini-stacks each one turn movement from each other to play "invader destroyers", so I use your strategy, in a way.

 

[NKVD]

why would I risk the AI to take my city.If they do this means nearly half my improvements destroyed. I prefer having a copper mine destroyed!

 

[InvisibleStalke]

Very early on the strategy is helpful for dealing with barbarians. I like having chariots or axemen on the roads between my cities and archers or warriors fortified in the cities. That way I can shift my defense.

For dealing with enemy civilizations its a different story. If you are worried about being attacked you want to make sure that the cities have some visible units to make the AI think twice about attacking them. And walls are great for this too, esp with stone. They don't stop you attacking the AI, but they increase your power and make a city look tougher to the AI, which deters them from attacking you. And they cost no maintenance - whats not to like.

Generally I will post defensive units in my cities, and cavalry in the interior ready to rush to another city for defense.

One thing I've learned - the bigger my army, the better I do. If my army is too small, then wars become a matter of attrition. If I'm up there in power then wars become something that I initiate and my army more than pays for itself.

 

[DuseCutter]

An example just yesterday of this strategy working for me.

I started my first Warlords game last night as Izzy, with Monty, Brennus and Genghis as my first neighbors. I planned on taking out Monty first but Brennus and Genghis were already Pleased with him and only Cautious with me dispite us sharing Hinduism. Oh well, I set my army to defend and went into builder mode. That was a mistake , I dropped in the power graph and when I realized it I started making units.

I had just expanded south and beat Monty to a site by 1 turn. I put an ok defense but it got stretched thin as I took a barb city even further south. I put a mini stack of a horse archer, spearman and archer between my capital and this new city which both are right on the border with Monty. A few turns later he demands tribute. Uh Oh! I check the diplomacy screen...."We have enough on our hands right now."....I change every city to making units. Click the red button, nothing. Hmm, ok. Keep making units.

A couple turns later I see a small stack of 2 chariots near my capital. Ah hah! I'll move my mini stack north to my capital to reinforce the defenses. But that AI was tricky (surprisingly). This stack was just a feint. The next turn he declares war, but the stack disappears and turns into a stack of 4 near my lightly defended new city. My mini stack made it to the other city in the nick of time. The only damage done was a pillaged banana plantation. I lost no units. If my mini stack was just sitting in the capital, I would have lost that southern city. I then proceeded to destroy Monty and with no negative modifiers with the other 2. Yay!

I know, I know, a -1 "You declared war on my friend" with Brennus and Genghis wouldn't have made much difference, but I like to keep my diplomacy clean if I can regardless of whether or not my plans are to take their cities in the future. I like my victims amenable. I suppose I could have just put that mini stack in the southern city, but Monty is notorious for large stacks of units and I didn't know what to expect. Those 4 chariots were the only units he sent at me too. *shrug*

So, to wrap up, I used the strategy and I helped me out of a jam.

 

[cabert]

the strat is good, if the "in between" units are offensive ones.
Meaning that you can attack the enemy stack before it hits you.
Best units for this are siege and mounted.

be aware that those "hidden" units are no deterent for the AI. Sometimes, you can avoid being attacked with just a few more units in the border cities.