Regarding Cavalry

[Cthulhu]

i'm pretty sure they made the bayonet shorter, the cavalry sabre longer, and they added more cavalry units

This really does not matter. Infantry can still out-range all but lance stabs (which can be easily blocked), the changes to the saber have been minimal, and the new class is just the same lancer class that all the other factions had. Any sort of OPness is just a product of teamwork, skill, and shock.

[Jishnu]

i'm pretty sure they made the bayonet shorter, the cavalry sabre longer, and they added more cavalry units

This really does not matter. Infantry can still out-range all but lance stabs (which can be easily blocked), the changes to the saber have been minimal, and the new class is just the same lancer class that all the other factions had. Any sort of OPness is just a product of teamwork, skill, and shock.

Agreed. A bayonet can still beat anythings reach besides a lance. It just takes positioning and skill to be able to take the cav down. But then the skill of the cav guy comes into effect to try to get the infantryman to attack early then come in for a saber slash

[Major Sharpe]

As cav we train a lot against infantry and try too lure them into a lose formation. We also use cover of terrain so as not too get shot. Also there are lots of ways to beat bayonet infantry such as pairs; one distracts and the other goes in for the kill. Another thing that should be obvious is circulating round the infantry in the same direction so you don't cut of your team members who will then lose the speed advantage and most likely die. Hope this helped.

[tacticalretreat]

the discussion which got have already nuked =( cav isnt over powered infantry are usually just shit sadly =( If you look at experienced players you will see them easily kill cavalry


Cavalry should get 3 kills per man that is the general rule. Play cavalry and learn how annoying it is to get shot, or your horse to get shot. We arent overpowered and I have played both =) cavalry is easily dealt with. It all comes down to experience and sadly most infantry run away from cav and shit bricks instead of using that bayonet ^^ a skilled infantry reg demolishes cav

[Pip]

I realize this discussion is largely concerned with linebattles but as a pubber I'll still throw in my opinion.

Cavalry can be extremely effective against infantry who are unskilled, unprepared or taken by surprise. This is no different from infantry being able to take other infantry by surprise and get a lot of kills - the difference is that cavalry are able to exploit those weaknesses better given their mobility. This is basically the only advantage cavalry have over infantry. In a head-on fight against prepared and even modestly skilled infantry, it is very difficult for the cav to win because of their shorter weapons. It's possible to win using horse feints and tricks like that, which for me are the most fun parts of playing cav (along with cav vs. cav fights) but the chance of victory shrinks to nothing as the skill of your infantry opponent increases.

I've heard people talking about the upcoming patch reducing the range of cavalry swords and I hope it isn't too dramatic. Such a change will just make it even more difficult, perhaps impossible, to play cav as anything other than sneak attack, backstabbing, etc. which is what most people seem to hate about cav right now.

[15th Archer]

About skill and tactics on the battlefield. If the charge is right the infantrymen will die quickly and cavalry will have almost no casualties, if the charge is wrong then the cavalry will be taken out in no problem. When fighting against heavy cavalry I would not advise a close cav formation, jump in and the whole formation is ruined and everyone panics making easy kills for the cav. Easiest way is to keep aware of the cav and always have a shot when cavalry is close. Some cavalry regiments get taken out even with the best players in the game if they do the charge at the wrong time and place. Just about the awareness of the terrain and location of the cav the best way to counter them.

[Duuring]

I've found that being aggressive when charged by heavy cav might be even more effective then the blob formation.

As cuirassiers, we once managed to break two regiments in fully prepared square, while we lost most of our men after we tried to charge a group of aggressive rifleman.

Of course, getting in the cover of trees, fences and houses is even a better strategy.

[Thunderstormer]

Ill go ahead and chime in.  I find Cav to be a class that is fairly weak when it comes to Cav vs Infantry head on.  As Pip described, you have to do a lot of tricks to win against a competent Infantry player.  The better they are, the harder it is.  Each Cav class has its ups and downs,  As a Hussar, It is pretty much suicide to take on Infantry that know you are there.  Your shorter length sword plus your very weak horse makes it a challenge. (which I do enjoy)  Lancer is in the same boat, if you don't use the full range of that lance, you will most likely die.   Dragoons are pretty much nothing outside of the drive bys that people do.  Heavy Cav are the only Class I feel can take on an Infantry head on and still live because of the armor and powerful horse. Very powerful in LBs but not as much in pub play.

Now I look at Cav as a support role and not a grind it out class. (except for heavy cav)  The best bet is to help the front line troops out in melee where both can succeed  without taking many casualties.

On a side note, I miss the days the horses bucked if you attacked a bayonet head on. 

[KillerMongoose]

As light cavalry you really need to be creative if you want to thrive on the battlefield. I can recall a linebattle where I led the 7de as Hungarian hussars and we repeatedly managed to flank and destroy the enemy army by using hills and trees to conceal our movements. We also eliminated their best means of support by butchering their artillery at the offset of every round. And then with their artillery out of the equation, we would merely circle around the enemy army, going from tree to tree and hill to hill until we were positioned practically in line with the cracks of their asses and then ride through them, slashing through their ranks and decimating them. I saw a video of that lb from their point of view and it was an impressive sight. The enemy lines were firing upon our lines and then suddenly blood flies and a hussar flies past the line and then suddenly many more hussars smash through and being putting them to the saber.

My point is that if you want to keep cavalry from charging you, put your artillery in a position with a lot of open ground between them and the enemy cavalry and where their backs are covered either by the map edges or by rough terrain (IE- rivers, mountains, large bodies of water) that way there is no cover to keep the enemy cavalry concealed from artillery and musket fire, they can't flank you, and if they do try to charge you, you'll have a cannon putting fire on them until they reach you. Smart cavalry will avoid crossing massive areas of open ground especially when exposed to artillery fire.

[Niophoris]

Cavalry is not overpowered, it can be used effectively or ineffectively. If you hit a line directly with cavalry you'll obviously get demolished if its a good and organized regiment. From what I've seen cavalry are usually most useful when they are doing quick drivebys, taking out disorganized troops or skirmishers and attacking unsuspecting units. Cavalry is a risking investment, they can easily be destroyed by effective enemy maneuvers but can deal a lot of damage if used correctly.

[75th Stark]

Gentail me we all know this is pointless discusen but can i just say that it is the skill of the rider and the comander that is the strangth of cav and also hevey is the most flexable for combat