The Battering Ram is One of the Best Units in the Game

[MarigoldRan]

It's true.

1. Useful throughout the game from the Ancient to the modern.
2. Cheap.
3. Can stack onto a tile with another unit (unlike Catapults)
4. Can't be targeted or killed as long as you have another unit on it.
5. Absolutely necessary for fast conquest.

Try this as a challenge: win domination on a large map against warlike and wall-like foes WITHOUT the battering ram.

 

[Laurana Kanan]

4. Can't be targeted or killed as long as you have another unit on it.

Spec Ops can target them regardless.

 

[stealth_nsk]

Also, Battering rams (and towers) don't work against civil defenses. So, they obsolete in mod-game.

 

[MarigoldRan]

Oh yeah. Huh. Well that's weird.

Building spec ops to kill battering rams. Not something you'd normally think of.

The Battering Ram becomes obsolete (cannot be produced anymore) after researching Civil Engineering. However, curiously enough, any existing rams will still continue functioning against modern city defenses! It is really amazing how a wooden beast can beat those rockets and trenches...

http://civilization.wikia.com/wiki/Battering_Ram_(Civ6)

 

[stealth_nsk]

However, curiously enough, any existing rams will still continue functioning against modern city defenses!

Are you sure?

As of the Summer 2017 Update, the Battering Ram became ineffective against cities with Urban Defenses and could upgrade to a Medic.

 

[MarigoldRan]

Oh. Well then the site is outdated. I just got it from the civ page.

They certainly work up to Renaissance at which point the game is either won or lost.

 

[Archon_Wing]

Rams are indeed incredible. In fact I never use siege weapons anymore until bombards and sometimes not even that if I lack niter. Just knights + rams. And when the knights aren't good enough, well, knight corps + rams!

By the time they come up with steel, most conquest should be done with anyways and even if you aren't you have better things to do than to smash your face against cities anyways such as artilery, planes, or tanks. My first win on emperor a while back was just a few infantry corps and a ram plowing through everything. But this is before I learned about air balloons.

They are very needed if you lack resources, such as if you don't have iron or something. In these cases, suiciding warriors + ram can let you break down walls much more easily and buying a ram may be necessary for continued conquest in the classical era.

 

[Lily_Lancer]

You can comfortably erase the "one of" in your title.

Wait a minute!
To be honest, workers and settlers are better and you cannot play without them.

 

[Arent11]

It's true.

1. Useful throughout the game from the Ancient to the modern.
2. Cheap.
3. Can stack onto a tile with another unit (unlike Catapults)
4. Can't be targeted or killed as long as you have another unit on it.
5. Absolutely necessary for fast conquest.

Try this as a challenge: win domination on a large map against warlike and wall-like foes WITHOUT the battering ram.

And that is the exact reason why I would like to have them as own units, like in civ 5 the siege towers of Assyria or the battering rams of the Huns. Then, they would also become "obsolete" because you could attack them directly.

At the same time, I would like archers to be stackable.

 

[bonafide11]

I usually just build one and roll it around to each city I conquer throughout the game.

 

[tedhebert]

Hmmm... funny I always build siege towers instead... so I am wrong in this ? I should stick with battering rams ?

 

[Trav'ling Canuck]

Hmmm... funny I always build siege towers instead... so I am wrong in this ? I should stick with battering rams ?

I can't tell you, because I don't think I've ever build a Siege Tower.

And I can't tell you why I haven't built one, either. Just got in the habit of using Battering Rams only, I suppose. I'll have to try using Siege Towers only next time I feel like playing an attacking game.

 

[shaglio]

I've always just build Siege Towers. You need to take down the city's defense in order to capture it, but you don't necessarily have to take down its walls. Battering Rams do a lot of damage to the walls, but Siege Towers simply ignore the walls allowing you to take down the city defenses sooner. Maybe I'm overlooking something, but that's the method that has always worked for me.

 

[tedhebert]

I can't tell you, because I don't think I've ever build a Siege Tower.

And I can't tell you why I haven't built one, either. Just got in the habit of using Battering Rams only, I suppose. I'll have to try using Siege Towers only next time I feel like playing an attacking game.

Well, Battering rams come earlier than siege towers and cost less ( at least from memory I think they do), so maybe very efficient players prefer to spend less on rams, earlier, if they feel that they get the same results with them ?

 

[Duuk]

I usually just build one and roll it around to each city I conquer throughout the game.

Roll one up. Then you have the first swordsman attack, move the ram to the next swordsman, have him attack. You use the same ram twice per turn.

Why would you ever need more than 1?

 

[isau]

Knocking the walls out eliminates the city's ability to counter attack. I don't know how that affects the rams/siege tower equation, but it's why siege units with 3 range are so useful.

 

[shaglio]

Knocking the walls out eliminates the city's ability to counter attack. I don't know how that affects the rams/siege tower equation, but it's why siege units with 3 range are so useful.

So I guess I WAS overlooking something. Perhaps the optimal strategy is to bring along one of each. IIRC, you only need to have one Ram or Tower for all units attacking the city to benefit. The only reason you would need to build more than one is if you want to attack more than one city at a time.

 

[tedhebert]

Roll one up. Then you have the first swordsman attack, move the ram to the next swordsman, have him attack. You use the same ram twice per turn.

Why would you ever need more than 1?

Holy smoke, does this forum make me feel like a newbie most of the times !!!

I really, really thought that ONE ram or siege unit adjacent to the city walls gave the bonus to ALL attacking melee units... have I got it so wrong for so long ?

 

[bonafide11]

Roll one up. Then you have the first swordsman attack, move the ram to the next swordsman, have him attack. You use the same ram twice per turn.

Why would you ever need more than 1?

You don't even need to move the ram as long as it's next to the city, unless I've been doing it wrong this whole time.

I think the only reason to ever build more than one is if you're attacking more than one city at a time or if you're afraid of losing it, but I usually protect mine pretty well.

I also don't think I've ever built a siege tower, but maybe I should try one sometime. I just have enough success with battering rams before they're available I haven't found a need for it.

 

[kaspergm]

Roll one up. Then you have the first swordsman attack, move the ram to the next swordsman, have him attack. You use the same ram twice per turn.

Why would you ever need more than 1?

Eh, you don't need to move the ram - the ram will affect all units, as long as it's adjacent to the city (which is, arguably, very imbalanced).