On Leaders
First, make sure you have many leaders capable of leading the specific troops you've got (eg some leaders cannot lead undead/magical beings). Otherwise you are extremely vulnerable to earth attack/seeking arrow/wind ride/mind hunt/seduce commander etc. Nothing like seeing that grand force sitting like a lump, leaderless.
Second, ideally you have a leader with astral. That heads off the aforementioned mind hunt.
Third, spell support is critical. Good mages scripted to cast buffs, artillery, etc is the difference maker while the rank & file troops soak up the enemy's return salvos.
Fourth, design armies for specific purposes. Be aware of what the implicit purposes are. Some armies fare well against SC's, some are meat. Know in advance what you want the army to do and design it to accomplish its objective.
Personally, I like a few ethereal leaders (better resistance to wind ride or seeking arrow) leading my troops from the rear in concert with battle mages (generally not my sages). While the idea of fodder is nice - like scouts - to soak up enemy attacks, it is often difficult for said fodder to keep pace with the main force. In mid-late game, no army should be snail'ing across the map towards its objective. Forces should be teleported/astral travelled/etc into their destination for a lightning strike. Attacks that leave armies exposed should be multi-pronged to divide the enemies likely artillery responses, etc.
|
Linear Mode
