■ BATTLE-INTERFACE TIPS

PAUSE GAME

At any point in a battle, press P to pause the action. The action will stop but the camera will still be operable, and you can still give orders and waypoints to all units. Pressing the Spacebar at this time will show you where your new unit destinations are. Press P again to resume the action. In this way, you can play the 3D battles as a kind of pseudoûturn-based experience. ItÆs also a handy way to recompose yourself when the action gets really hectic!

DRAG SELECTION BOX

Hold Ctrl and right-click and drag to create a box around several units at once. This method of selecting units will be familiar to mainstream RTS gamers, and is a handy way of selecting several units in close proximity to each other in the heat of battle.

WAYPOINTS

Waypoints are an extremely useful way of pulling off devastating flanking maneuvers. Simply hold down Shift and then left-click to form a path of flags on the battlefield for your unit to follow. This technique can also be used when multiple units are selected.

■ BATTLEFIELD TACTICS

The most important thing to remember when fighting battles is that, unlike in most other strategy games, MedievalÆs battles are a realistic simulation of the way combat was at that time. All the factors that used to affect real troops and real armies are here. So if you charge your heavily armored units from one end of the battlefield to the other, theyÆll get tired and wonÆt fight as effectively. If a unit is taking severe fire from enemy archers or gets charged in the flank by heavy cavalry, the morale of the men will suffer ù and they could end up running for their lives.

This authenticity actually makes the game much more intuitive than other strategy games because it means you donÆt have to learn the tactics that fit best with that particular game ù you just need to apply common sense. A few good tips for beginners:

ROCK/PAPER/SCISSORS

As a general rule, MedievalÆs units adhere to the well-known rock/paper/scissors mechanism. In a nutshell, there are three primary types of units: archers, spearmen, and cavalry ù and each of them is a perfect foil for another.

Archers will defeat spearmen because their light armor enables them to move faster, allowing them to fire their arrows, then retreat and fire again ù with the slow-moving spearmen never being able to reach them to engage them in hand-to-hand combat.

With their long spears, spearmen are more effective against cavalry. A cavalry charge will often come to an abrupt (and bloody) end when confronted by a wall of spears!

At the same time, cavalry units are particularly effective at chasing down and massacring the lightly armored archers, who can usually unleash only a few rounds of arrows prior to being engaged.

ItÆs a simple enough concept, but players who keep it in mind will find they spend more time tasting sweet victory than players who donÆt. YouÆll notice that we donÆt mention infantry here. Infantry fall outside of this set of rules, and are generally pretty effective against all kinds of units.

POSITIONING (TAKE THE HIGH GROUND!)

The positioning of your troops is vital. Even if you are greatly outnumbered, finding and holding a good position on the battlefield will increase your chances of victory immeasurably. When deploying troops, look to position them on the highest piece of ground within your deployment zone. Armies attacking uphill suffer massive penalties, as theyÆll have less momentum and will be tired from the climb. Your archery units will also have a better range and accuracy when firing from higher ground and your units will receive a bonus when attacking downhill. In other words, every possible advantage is with the army on higher ground. Armies that maintain a strong position on high ground and maintain their discipline can defeat much stronger armies.

CHOOSE A WELL-BALANCED ARMY

The basic rock/paper/scissors mechanism mentioned earlier means that a well-balanced army is strongly recommended. No matter how powerful and indestructible you may feel your veteran heavy-cavalry units are, theyÆll soon come a cropper if met by a well-balanced enemy army. Also bear in mind that an army is likely to come across all manner of different terrain, enemy, weather conditions, and so on, so try to maintain armies that are balanced enough to cope with most conditions.

A well-balanced army can have many different combinations of units. HereÆs an example for the English: four knights, three longbowmen/archers, six infantry, and three billmen. This combination provides good protection against enemy cavalry (with three units of billmen), a solid core (with six infantry), speed, a devastating charge, and the ability to chase routing units off the field (with the cavalry), as well as the ability to pepper enemy units from a safe distance (with the longbowmen).

CHASE ROUTERS OFF THE FIELD WITH CAVALRY

If, at any time during a battle, the enemy starts to rout, send cavalry units to attack the routing units. This maneuver will make it very hard for the routing units to rally and rejoin the battle ù and youÆll also inflict more casualties and take more prisoners (which can be sold for profit or massacred to gain ôdreadö). Continue chasing these units until they leave the battlefield. Routing units inflict a morale penalty on the whole army, so youÆll often be able to cause a mass rout in this way.

Be wary of charging off a hilltop to chase routing units, however. The enemy will sometimes use this temptation as a ploy to draw you away from your advantageous position on top of a hill. Remember the folly of Harold at the Battle of Hastings!

■ MORE BATTLEFIELD TACTICS ù FORMING FORMATIONS

The formation that your army lines up in is crucial. YouÆll often find your own preferred formations, but here are a few examples that our in-house testers have used in both single- and multiplayer games to great effect. (DF = defensive formation, OF = offensive formation)

Legend
= Cavalry	= Infantry	= General
= Spearmen	= Archers	= Peasant Units

STANDARD LINE (DF)

As the name suggests, this is a pretty standard defensive formation. The spearmen in the front-center provide good defense against a full-frontal assault (especially from cavalry), and also protect the archers while they loose arrows into the approaching army. Your flanks are protected by cavalry, which can (if the opportunity arises) charge into your opponentÆs flanks from this position. The infantry on the fringes of your front line can be used to bolster the line or charge into the flanks of attacking units once theyÆve engaged your spearmen.

CIRCULAR (DF)

This formation provides a good defense from an attack on more than one front. Such an attack may come from two or more enemy armies ù or from a single opponent thatÆs divided its forces and is attempting to flank you. The spearmen at the front and sides form a formidable defensive line, and the central infantry units can be used to bolster any breaches. The archers that are protected by the spearmen have a wide angle of fire ù and can even be used in melee to help bolster the line if necessary. In this formation, the cavalry are free to be used to flank the enemy, or to remain in reserve and run down routing enemy units. The general is in the center, giving a maximum morale boost to his entire army while remaining heavily protected.

ARCHER SKIRMISH (DF)

This formation gives your archers maximum opportunity to inflict heavy casualties on the enemy army while it marches toward you. Make sure that your archers have the ôskirmishö icon selected so that they retreat of their own accord when the enemy gets close. ItÆs also a good idea to set them to ôlooseö formation so that they can retreat through the defensive line more easily when the enemy closes in.

CAVALRY SKIRMISH (DF)

This formation is similar to the archer skirmish but with horse archers. The benefit of using horse archers is that, with their much greater speed, they can afford to engage the enemy with arrow fire while a good distance from the rest of your army. This scenario not only maximizes the amount of arrow fire the enemy must suffer prior to reaching your main army, but also tends to draw the enemy cavalry out to attack them. If you then retreat the horse archers back to your main army (with the impetuous enemy cavalry chasing them), you can sometimes entrap the enemy cavalry by charging your own cavalry into the gap between the distant enemy army and their cavalry, thereby snaring them between your front line. Of course, if the enemy cavalry arenÆt drawn out to attack, then your horse archers will be able to fire their entire constituent of arrows with nothing but enemy archers to concern them.

CAVALRY CHARGE (OF)

A very aggressive formation that should be used only if your enemy forms up with archers in the front line. ItÆs designed to engage the defending enemy army quickly in order to avoid a prolonged archery assault. With your strongest cavalry units charging at the center of the enemy front line and the rest of your cavalry running flanking formations against the enemy position, the enemy archers will sometimes skirmish backward and cause minor disruption to the enemy line. Always make sure that your infantry is also in close support to make the most of this situation ù and also to prevent your cavalry from becoming overwhelmed by superior enemy numbers.

CAVALRY SWEEP (OF)

When the enemy places its archers at the front of its battle lines, counter this setup with your cavalry. Send them up the flanks and then turn them in so that they charge across the enemy lines and attack the archers. As they do so, theyÆll draw out the stronger enemy units, exposing them to your arrow fire. Keep your cavalry away from any spearmen and return them to the flanks to try again.

FEIGN RETREAT (OF)

As with most other offensive strategies, the theory here is to draw the enemy army (or at least some of its key units) off a hill and onto a more even-sided fighting ground. Place your infantry and peasant units at the bottom of the hill away from the main body of your army. Charge them up the hill as if to attack the enemy frontline and then, just prior to engaging them, pull away and run back down the hill. YouÆll undoubtedly be taking heavy arrow fire by now, so try to make sure that the enemy takes the bait the first time around. If the enemy is reluctant to follow, clicking the ôroutö icon for these infantry and peasants will make the enemy more likely to leave their positions to ômop upö your routing units. Your archers can fire volleys into the enemy as they charge down the hill, while your spearmen prepare to engage them. Your cavalry is in a position to be able to run flanking maneuvers against the now-weakened enemy army on top of the hill ù or to bolster the defense at the foot of the hill.

SPLIT ADVANCE (OF)

This strategy is slightly harder to execute than many of the others. The idea is to use your general unit as bait to suck the enemy army into a vice-like trap. Split your army into two evenly balanced forces, and leave your general unit on his own in the middle. An unprotected general is a very tempting prospect for an enemy army. Concealing units in any nearby forests will also be a massive help in the deception. By gradually advancing your general toward the center of the enemy army, it should be relatively easy to draw some of the enemy units off a hill. Meanwhile, your two flanking forces should be advancing slowly along the flanks (keeping as wide a berth as possible), ready to spring the trap. Try to drag as much of the enemy army off the hill as possible before using your large number of flanking units to attack the enemy army from both sides. Your general unit is on horseback and should have little trouble rejoining the battle at a suitable point as soon as his deception job is completed.

For more Medieval hints, tips, and strategies, visit the Total War forums at www.totalwar.com.