Dealing with Immortals

[Catt]

Don't forget one of the most valuable weapons against an Immortal invasion -- a robust road network. With immortals limited to one move in enemy territory and your units (even slow-movers) able to move three tiles (provided you've built the roads ), you've got a huge advantage on your side. Attack the Immortal stacks with either horsies or slow-movers, but if with slow-movers, make sure you can destroy / severely damage each individual stack or can defeat the last immortal with a fast-mover who will have moivement points after the attack -- with at most only your final victorious unit advancing - perhaps into a tile bordering additional immortals - you leave very, very few units subject to counterattack the next turn. As Arrian and others point out, fighting a "2" immortal (defense value) is a much better proposition than fighting a "4" immortal (attack value).

Catt

[MrWhereItsAt]

I had this problem recently - facing (as the Vikings from another landmass, sans Berzerker!) a strong Persia with Immortals. The combination of the above worked wonders. My captured cities (Carthaginian_ had good road networks, and I quickly use Horses to pillage the connections on their side of the border. Then I massed all my Swords, Spears, Catapults and Horses into a placewhere they travelled through - with one square between my stack and the border.

The Persians would move a stack of as much as 5 Immortals in to my lands. I would hit 'em with my 10+ Catapults and weaken them considerably, usually to 2Hp or more (especially by the time I had 20 Catapults there!). Then the Swords would attack and take as many out as possible, gaining lotsa promotions and the odd GL as they did so. The last Immortal/unit there I would hit with Horses until it died, then the Horse would move back safe to the stack. Even if I felt that I couldn't risk the attack on one or two (non-Immortals), the damage would be sufficient to cause the remainder to withdraw to heal. All that was left was to establish a small crappy city nearby with barracks where my troops could retreat to heal.

This was glorious. I must have taken down 20 Immortals this way, and all the while my troops kept massing there (almost no losses). When the tide stopped for a turn, I marched forward - I lost a unit or two in the counterattack, but with so many there it was nothing. I kept this up until I reached a city, then with so many Catapults it was easy to take it and hold it. Bang! No more Iron city for Persia and they fell to pieces.

[Jon Shafer]

Mobility, mobility, mobility.

Mounted Warriors or Gallic Swordsmen used effectively are many more times deadly than Immortals. On the same note, you have to use mobility to defeat them. Your road network is pivotal, as are Horsemen and well-placed Spearmen.