Land battles
A Land Battle takes place when any two armies, whether on the campaign map or in custom battles, meet on land in combat. Land battles in the Total War series are characterised by units consisting of many men meeting on a large, 3D battle map that may or may not correspond with the unit(s)'s location on the campaign map.
Many conflicts in the Total War series are decided in massed combat on land, and the outcome of such a battle may change the outcome of a campaign or multiplayer tournament.
Land warfare is the term used to desribe how and what operations are carried out in a land battle.
Battles during Campaign Play
Battles during campaign play can be fought either on an open field or in and around a settlement if the settlement is under siege. Battles can also be auto-resolved, or fought by the AI rather than you. Generally, auto-resolved battles will be determined by the quality and attributes of the units in your army, rather than the tactics and terrain that would normally be available to you in real-time.
Siege battles
Siege battles occur when a settlement is besieged and the defender either sallies out to attack or the attacker chooses a direct assualt on the settlement. These types of land battles occur around the settlement in question, or in ETW and NTW, they may occur in an open field or empty fort with the settlent far in the distance.
The objective of the attacker is to breach any walls of the settlement and destroy the enemy within. Special equipment set aside for siege battles may be put into use during these battles. Such equipment includes ladders, grappling hooks, siege towers, and
Deployment zones in siege battles may vary for the attacker(s), but the defender(s)'s deployment zone will always be within the confines of the settlement.
Reinforcements
Reinforcements are any armies that enter the battle without being deployed at the forefront of the battle. In the campaign map, reinforcements are any armies that stand in a close enough radius next to the battle. If they are in your posession, these armies can be set to be controlled by the AI or the player in the battle deployment panel during campaign play. If set to be controlled by the player, these armies will as soon as there is space open in your current army.
In the case that you might be controlling a reinforcing army, in ETW and NTW, your troops wil enter the battlefield one by one without deploying first.
The Deployment Phase
The Deployment phase is the first phase of battle in which opposing armies are given time to position their units in their specific deployment zones, or areas of the battlefield set aside for deployment.
The rules of deployment are as follows:
- The attacking army's deployment zone will always (with the exception of NTW and ETW) match it's line of approach.
- The defencding army's deployment zone will always be on a complementary side of the battlefield.
- During an ambush, the defender will not have the chance to deploy his or her units.
- Deployment zones may vary in custom battle maps.
Terminology
Ambush
An ambush occurs when an army on the campaign map is attacked by hidden enemies. In the ensuing land battle, the defending army will not get a chance to deploy their troops and will be stretched out in a long forward column instead.
Buildings
Buildings exist on battlefields as well as the campaign map. They provide sheltering strongpoints for units inside them. Buildings are vulnerable to artillery fire, however, so it is important to keep an eye on enemy gun battery positions.
Cover
Cover is any obstacle between one unit and another which can offer some shelter from gunfire. In ETW and NTW, effective use of cover can protect troops and provide a safe location for them to return fire.
Defences
Deployable defences allow the player to create a “strong point” in his or her lines. These defences are placed before the battle and during the deployment period, with the exception of wooden stakes in ETW and NTW.
These defences may provide cover, hinder enemy troops, or even act as mines to blow up unsuspecting units.
Experience
Military units receive experience for their actions in combat. The more enemies a unit kills, the more experience it gets. Unit experience is shown by the chevrons on their unit cards. Experienced units may feature bonuses in morale, missile accuracy, or melee proficiency.
General
In land battles, an army's commander will always be known as a general. In campaign map play, if there are mulitple generals, who commands the army in question is determined by the generals' command rating. Whichever general has the highest command will always be the one to command the army.
Groups
Units can be assigned to unit groups. Orders issued to a group are followed by every unit in the group. In the group formations tab, there are a number of preset unit positions that can be selected to form that group formation.
Guard Mode
Ordering a unit into guard mode makes them hold position. They will not move out of place, breaking your battle line, even if enemy units confronting them run away.
Halting
Ordering a unit to halt cancels all its existing orders and stops its movement on the battlefield.
Morale
All units are influenced by their morale. It measures their willingness to fight on the battlefield, the likelihood that they will impetuously charge at the enemy, and the chance that they will run away. Units with low morale are likely to run from battle, even if they have taken few casualties.. Morale is damaged by being under fire from many directions, being outflanked or when facing units that have morale-damaging attributes.
Rallying
Generals can rally routing troops who are running away. If the general can intercept a routing unit and calm the men before they leave the battlefield, the unit can be ordered back to the fray. Units that have been rallied are usually in a fragile emotional state, and may run away again.
Routing
Units can rout (run away) if their morale is too low. Routing troops may return to the battle once they have recovered from the “shock and awe” of combat, but you should try to make sure your troops support each other and never have to face the enemy alone. If all of an army routs, the battle is over.
Skirmishing
Ordering a unit into skirmish mode will enable them to keep firing while moving away from enemy units. This makes skirmishers very difficult for an enemy to pin down and destroy. This is useful when used with archer or light infantry units. Skirmishing can also be used to draw enemy units out of a formation and into a tactical ambush.
Special Abilities
Certain units in Total War games have special abilities. These are activated by pressing special ability buttons on the battle user interface. Selecting a special ability might allow archers to use flaming arrows, your catapults to launch cow carcasses, a general to rally his troops, or druids to frighten nearby enemies. It’s worth exploring what units have what special abilities.
Units
Units are the basic building blocks of armies. There may be as many as 20 units in an army. A unit has many men in it, all equipped and trained in a similar style. Not all units are equal, so it’s worth the time to have a good look at the types of unit you can have in your armies, and the types your enemies might field.
Withdrawing
Sometimes it is necessary for an army to leave battle in good order so that the army will not be completely destroyed. Withdrawing can be dangerous, as armies inevitably become weaker as units leave the battlefield. A carefully handled rearguard is often a good idea to keep the enemy at bay while the main body of the army escapes to fight another day.
In multliplayer land battles, a total withdrawal can be ordered by going to the game menu and selecting the Admit Defeat option. However, it immediately ends the battle, and this option is not available in ETW or NTW.
