Unit Upgrades

[Chopper]

Is there a way that you can bulk upgrade units without needing to individually select them?

Also, I always seem to park my units in cities and them when attacked bring out the strong units to try and intercept. Should I be placing defensive units outside cities and if so what do people recommend?

I have read about the mobile stacks but I never seem to be able to place them in the best positions.

[Nugog]

Okay Chopper - here is my (possibly flawed) advice.

To bulk upgrade units, from memory, select one type of unit, and there should be an option to upgrade all of that same type of unit. I think, again from memory that it is hold ctrl then click on the upgrade. You do, obviously, have to have enough money to pay for it all.

Mobile stacks work best, IMO, only in certain situations. When the AI only really has a couple of ways of getting to you, then mobile stacks are great.

I do always try and have some units (sacrificial if need be) sentried on hills, near borders, or what I think will be the AI's attack path - this can help.

Also city placement, and expansion patterns can also help. This is dictated by the map, but where possible I try and expand in such a way that I have enough "internal" cities that do not need many defensive units as possible.

Please note with the above advice, that I'm a warmonger, can't build to safe myself, and that reasonably often, the AI spanks me!

[Nugog]

By the way - welcome to 'Poly

[Chopper]

Thanks for the welcome. I am a hoarder and don't want to lose any units but the idea of a sacrificial unit/s does make some sense to me.

Do you only use warriors or are you also trying to reduce the incoming power level at the same time thereby using some more highly valued sacrifice?

Also, I just don't seem keen on Horse Archers? Am I alone or are they actually quite useful.

[grassmarket]

Horse archers? Useful for barbarian patrols on smooth ground.

[Quillan]

It's ALT+upgrade to upgrade all units, by the way. If you don't have enough money, it'll upgrade what it can with the money you have, but you won't have any control over which ones get upgraded.

Me, I like to keep the reaction force outside the cities. The reason is simply so that I don't forget about it. If something happens, I can immediately activate the entire reaction force and get it moving. If it was all parked in the city, I'd have to go in and pick out what I wanted to leave behind, either by activating everything and then refortifying the garrison troops, or picking out units one at a time to activate.

As to horse archers, they're immune to first strikes and have a strength of 6, which makes them nice for attacking archers. In the ancient times, they are usually first in against a city, unless I've got a bunch of City Raider 2+ axemen or swordsmen there. The horse archers at least have a withdrawal chance, so losing them isn't guaranteed.

[johnmcd]

I think your warrior point is interesting. I notice what seems to me a dissproportionate number of fights that though they follow the odds, the damage given within the battle doesn't really.

For example, a warrior attacking an axeman with a 0.1% of victory will always lose, but will often do something like 25% damage to the axeman. No idea if it's a real or imagined, but yeah, making the sacrifice can be worth it.

Where it's not worth it is if you have two archers and a warrior defending and two axemen attacking - at that point you could easily lose to both axeman and no longer have the warrior to hold the city. It buys you one more turn to bring up reinforcements or rush your new archer or whatever.

[Arrian]

Hold down ALT when you click the upgrade button. If you mouse over the upgrade button while holding down ALT it'll show you the total price tag.

-Arrian

[Nugog]

Ah yeah it's ALT, not Ctrl - but I was working from memory (and after a bottle of wine ).

I really find that the sacrificial warrior tatic can make a big difference in delaying Barbs (and occasionally an ai civ), long enough to mobilise an army out of my cities.

It does REALLY depend on the map, and your roading network. It is best if you have a choke point of some kind.

And others may confirm this, but IMO, it only really works effectively if warmongering is you plan.

As for hoarding old units, unless you are expecting to have lots of money later in the game I see little point. Use 'em - you will probably lose 'em, but they will weaken your opponents units and give your main force a greater chance of survival, gaining XP, getting upgrades and then they become worth upgrading.