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This thread discusses the Content article: The Peasant Tactica

Lady

I have read and enjoyed your tactica. I intend that my Peasants will be an important part of my army.

I notice you do not give your MaA spear. Would not two fighting ranks help offset there low weapon skill.

Pierre.

I must express the same doubt. In normal circumstances, that is, against WS 3 and R 3, statistically spears can do better than polearms when not in a charge. And if charging, I'd seriously consider working them to flank charge a unit in front combat with knights or else. Or fight with hand weapons to get the armour bonus. Or not?

When charging I use hand weapons, I use spears if being charged now. It really differs on the player doesn't it?

I used to use two men-at-arms units in tandem. A large unit with spears to take the charges and then have the smaller unit with halberds charge the enemy's flank. The spears almost always held as they start combat with +4 or 5 to combat resolution. (3 ranks, standard and often outnumbered)

Very good tactic, maybe I'll use it sometime. I find that I don't use men-at-arms that often though.

Yes but, why bother with spears? Armed in that way, you only get 5+ AS, which is difficult to save, and your peasants will die in numbers, risking even losing (and we all know what peasants usually do when defeated even by 1 CR..).
I use a reliquae (hand weapon-shield) to withstand the charge, and then a 16 strong unit of MaA from the left and 10 MaA from the right get the flank charge. If the enemy charges a different peasant unit, other than the reliquae, I flee.

People underestimate peasants, and that's good!

I use my men@arms alwais with hand weapon and shield.
AS 4+ saved a lot of my beloved foot warriors.
I prefer to save men and get a better combat resolution instead of make some few more Attacks at WS2 and S3.

Rochefort is right, but now I at least always have at least one unit of them. Hand weapons REALLY helps them though, I find they take a lot more damage.

I'm usually fighting softer targets though (especially skaven) so the extra attacks can mean a bigger boost to CR than a few extra saves. It depends on the enemy. If charged by harder units the +1 to save is nice, but I find it hasn't helped as much as the strength on the harder units knocks down the save considerably anyway. A well. At least our various tactics work for each of us.

okay, spears ARE very useful, once I saw goblins facing down dwarves with great weapons! You'd think the dwarves would win as easy as pie right? After only somehow killing two goblins, the goblins kill off two dwarves and in the CR they actually WON! Only by one point. In the second round of combat, the same thing happened: They won by one point AGAIN! Spears can be VERY useful with those extra attacks.