[Boron]

The Panther said:

Boron, I can't help but feel that you have totally missed the point here. Your explanations clearly say to me that you have figured out how to use this odd inconsistency correctly. I already knew that, of course. Many others have done the same as you and figured out how to exploit this error.

The point is that ANY SC with ANY troop OUGHT to be superior to the identical SC without troops. Period!

But troops actually hurt your chances, not help. It does not matter that you or me or anyone else has figured how to get around this weird thing but using non-routing troops or power summons or whatever, it still stands as a violation of a fundamental axiom of war. Superior forces should win more often than lose, not the converse. This is something they taught me when I was an officer in the United States Navy and certainly rings true.

And MOST ESPECIALLY when the superior force is primarily caused by being home and in the presence of Province Defense.

ok it is perhaps not really realistic .
but it is needed for gamebalance .

just see it this way as somebody wrote already:
an elite lone warrior like "rambo" doesn't withdraw until he is killed or captured .
so the lone sc .

if "rambo" has some friends with him ( the archers lol ) and they are wounded he withdraws to help them .

i have now gotten your point and you are right it isn't logical but it stands at least in the manual .
and i think it is needed for balance too because otherwise i wouldn't use any troops at all expect freespawns anymore probably .
given how useless most national troops + lower summons already are taking away the role of route preventer from them makes them really useless .
i wouldn't even need them for sieging because my antisc-scs would have gate cleavers for that .