How to play as the Moors

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Moors M2TW Faction

This faction strategy concerns the oft-forgotten Moorish faction which can be one of the most exciting and fulfilling to play. Starting in the precarious position of southern spain, your adversaries will often unite to push you out of europe with better equipped spearmen, specialist archers and far heavier cavalry. But all is not lost, for a "Deconquista" is entirely feasible.

The Campaign Map

You will start with several poor regions in Africa and a couple in Andalusia. The first moves you make and where you concentrate your forces initially will heavily impact the future of your campaign. The following is a (humble) "to-do list" to prevent you re-enacting Boabdil's lamentation when he saw the Alhambra for the last time.

1) Concentrate your forces near Cordoba. Those cavalry units and spearmen in africa are next to useless right now. Form a respectable army stack. They wont be up to going toe to toe with a crusading army, but it will make your historic enemy, Spain, think twice about investing into Al-Andalus.

2) Take Valencia. This is normally (outside of many mods) a rebel held city. Take your low grade army and beseige the eastern coastal castle. This castle is held by a certain "El Cid", so it will be up to you if you want to assault this ferocious infidel or starve him out.

3) Try not to fight Portugal and Spain at the same time. Instead, try to ally the Portugese. Keep your enemy in front of you. Prepare for war with the Castillians.

4) Make war with Spain. You can achieve this with one stack, albeit with difficulty, and one moderate defeat can leave your entire empire open. Two stacks are okay, but three are easier (though expensive). Drive on Toledo and Leon at the same time if possible. Use the bridge below Leon to hold off reinforcements for Toledo if you wish to starve the latter out.

5) The Pyrenees should be your northern border. To secure the Iberian peninsula, you should build forts along the Pyrenees with a decent army hovering around the centre. Use peasants or spear militia. It will be up to you whether you want Portugal to exist. Making them a vassal can be lucrative.

6) Make lots of money. How so do you say? Three words: Tim-Buk-Tu. Take it. Secure it. Love it. Around this Shang-rila is merchant heaven. Gold and ivory and more gold. You can make up to 10,000 florins per turn just from around this area. Block the straits of Gibraltar, and your merchants will not be molested. Other trade resources exist towards the west near Arguin and around Marakesh and Tunis. This time next year, you'll be a millionaire.

You've secured your northern borders. You're in possession of decent troop producing cities like Toledo. You're making some money. It is now up to you what you want to achieve. Help your muslim brothers in the east by relieving them of the burden of some land? Distance and the desert can be prohibitive however. The mediterranean islands can be conquered and defended. Or perhaps you want to take revenge for the Battle of Poitiers now Charles Martel is in his tomb?

Before discussing your army composition, remember to turn Granada into a city (it's too far from the frontlines to be useful), and never, ever give out your map information... ever. Unless you want English dismounted knights, Milanese crossbowmen or Venetian heavy infantry landing near a city two turns away from your nearest army.

The Moorish Army

Some may say the moors lack hard hitting early units. Some may say they lack decent late units. Some may even say that no moorish unit can stand up to a decent Christian knight's charge. These people are... well pretty much right. BUT a moorish army can be greater than the sum of its parts. The following units are what make the moors special:

Lamtuna Spearman

Moderately priced and recruitable from a mid level castle. Good charge, but expect a hefty loss from a full lanced charge. They have excellent morale, so with adequte support they will do what (commander of the northern armies) Maximus asks and "hold the line and stay with you". Cool blue headresses too.

Desert Archers

These hooded skirmishers are what the french would call "les couilles". They have a similar range to longbowmen and can be recruited from low level archery ranges. They are cheap and have a big bonus fighting in the desert from which they will hardly ever desert. Their arrows really hurt too. Not great against armoured adversaries however.

Christian Guard

If you cant beat them, employ them. Whether mounted or sans cheval, they are your elite. They will charge and stick their lances into the face of any christian non-spear infantry. They will not run, they will die protecting your general. Keep the footmen away from cavalry and as an anti/flanking force. Expensive, but you get what you pay for.

Camel Gunners

Probably the most fun unit to play with in M2TW. They are mounted musketeers. Fast moving, high morale, deadly from a long distance. Use them to get behind an enemy to fire round after round into the enemy's rear. Use them correctly and it just doesnt seem fair, ducks and barrels come to mind. Keep away from archers and fast enough to scoop up routers. Very expensive though.

Other units can be added for individual taste such as cannons, catapults, and mangonels. But the above units must be used effectively because pound for pound, with the exception of the camel gunners, other Western factions have units better than yours.

I suggest using 5 lamtunas in front of 5 desert archers as a main line. Flanked on either side just behind the line by dismounted christian guards. A bodyguard unit backed by 2 mounted christian guards makes a formidable flanking and punching force. The remaining 5 slots should be used for camel gunners separate from the main flanking force to harass the enemy. Be careful not to move the gunners too far from your main force otherwise enemy cavalry and missiles may decimate these expensive units. Gunners can also be used to close an envelopement.

See also:

-The Moors faction page.