Art De La Guerre

[Sean Walker]

Deploying stakes in front of Longbowmen

Do they have to touch (why I ask - fortifications have to touch and if they do not, they have to leave a one MU gap)

If they do not need to touch can I place the stakes at the interval I want?

If I do this what happens to a group of elephants and foot that attack the stakes. How do they conform?

I'm assuming the stakes cannot 'conform' as they are planted.

Thanks
Sean

[AlanCutner]

P18. When a unit places stakes it is moved back the depth of the base of stakes and the stakes are placed in front of it. So the stakes must touch the units front and be aligned with it.

[Ramses II]

Good point, but not quite what Sean was asking.

Sean was asking whether there was a restriction when placing the stakes with respect to another base of stakes, like the restriction when placing fortification bases.

I would say the only restrictions are the number of command pips available. If you want to scatter a number of longbow bases separated by less than 1UD, taking a separate command pip to deploy each stake base, then you can.

Don't forget that to deploy separate longbow bases will hamper moving the rest of the corps, then to deploy the stakes in front of each will take up further command pips, and that the stakes are lost if the unit moves away from frontal contact with the stakes. Finally stakes only affect enemy mounted not enemy foot, and the conformation process will separate support from both sides.

Note, using a single command to deploy the stakes of a group is also a powerful incentive.

[Sean Walker]

Thanks and so I can place them where I like.

So does the enemy
conform and in doing so break his line because there is not enough room between stakes
or
Fight at the point of contact and conform when it is possible p54

BTW the reason I ask is this can be an effective anti elephant unit in that it will break up the command and also elephants lose impact and furious charge when fighting against stakes

[Hazelbark]

You can place them where you like, but the unit that put them down can't move without either picking up the stakes or the stakes disappear.

Yes you could create a \ _ situation where various units are at angles. Note the units with stakes can still be ZOC'd and vice versa.