This is a guide for the assaulting a city or fortress. This is a broad overview of tips, trips, and basic guidelines for attacking walled defensive positions. Let me begin by stating that I have played the game mostly on Medium or Hard difficulty and have found these ideas to be helpful in all situations. One more technical note, these strategies are all based around the idea of having at least an hour on the battle timer or having no time limit.
Forts Large and Small
It is a given that not all forts are the same in Empire Total War. The European style fortresses and city defenses differ greatly from their eastern counterparts so consequently they will have to be addressed separately. There is also one other distinction I make between European fortresses. The final phase of fortifications in cities and free standing fortresses, include outworks protecting their gates which can significantly alter your strategy. Other than these minor distinctions I would venture to suggest that most forts and therefore sieges in the game are the same, essentially large cannon-mounted walls. The variations in strength and design are almost purely aesthetic.
Once More Unto the Breach
Typically the simplest way to attack any fortress is to use artillery to knock a hole in its wall through which your forces may then pour in. I use this method more often than I care to admit since it is simpler and more cost effective in terms of casualties. The downside is that whatever you do to the fortress in terms of damage remains when you take over. For example if you knock four breaches in the wall in order to give yourself options and spread the enemy forces out then those breaches will still be there if you ever have to defend the place. Empire Total War does not allow you to repair walls the same way you can repair other buildings. In order to remove the damage then you must either upgrade it (if you can) or tear it down and start over. Both of these can be pricey options and for the conqueror-on-the-go it may be more than you are willing to invest.
However if you are still determined to go about smashing holes in walls then there are a few simple procedures that will help. First, you need real cannon. Horse artillery generally just does not cut it. Given enough time, yes, they can destroy a wall but it can take seemingly an eternity. I generally won’t even consider trying to form a breach without at least 12lbers. Fixed batteries can be used, but it is sometimes difficult to get them in a good (unexposed) position. Second, do not put yourself in a position to duel it out with the guns on the walls. Your guns may be better and heavier, but there are almost always a lot more of them and they are firing from cover. Why put yourself through that agony? The best place to position your guns is facing the corners of the fortress where typically no enemy cannon can cover. In the case of eastern defenses the corners themselves can be knocked down. For western forts, the walls to either side of the corner can be breached. In this situation you also have a readymade approach for your infantry since the enemy can no more fire at them, than at the artillery that did the breaching. Third, when your infantry reach the breach do not, I repeat, do not let them march through it. One of the few real advantages the defenders of a fortress get is a massive morale boost from being behind walls. If you send your troops in there you will be dancing to their tune. Defenders inside those walls almost always fight to the last man, meaning they almost never break and run. So instead of engaging in costly hand-to-hand combat with a bunch of desperate enemies keep your troops outside the breach, but still in musket range. Typically the defenders will cluster round the openings waiting for you to rush forward. This makes them easy prey for your firepower. As you wear down their numbers (be patient) they often reach a breaking point and will rush outside to engage their tormentors. When they leave the shelter of the walls they lose their moral bonus and rarely have the courage to press home their attack. My experience is that units that try to attack like this will melt away like snowflakes in a blast furnace as soon as they pop out of the breach. To speed up this process I have sometimes brought up artillery into canister range and had them fire through the breach. This can be risky as you are naturally close to the enemy and at risk of a sudden rush reaching the guns between discharges. Finally when then breaches have been cleared of defenders you can lead your troops in to mop up the remainder. Again I would encourage the besieger to avoid hand-to-hand combat with enemy infantry if possible. Hopefully by this point most of his forces are already dead and you have been spared a bloody struggle for a narrow gap in his wall.
Over the Walls
If you find yourself short of guns or want to take a position without damaging the defenses then the only method left to you is to storm the walls. If the enemy has anything approaching your numbers then I would recommend the more destructive but safer breach in the wall. Taking a fort by simple assault can be costly at the best of times since it inevitably involves the desperately-to-be-avoided hand-to-hand combat.
Picking the spot to attack (except in the cases of late stage European fortifications, which I will get to in a moment) is as much an art as anything and in the end you are dependent on your troops to outfight the defenders. There are a few things that may help you though. The corners are still blind spots for their artillery if nothing else. If you focus your attack heavily on one spot then the enemy can concentrate and make your job much much harder. At the same time don’t spread out too much as this may make you too weak to achieve superiority anywhere. The hardest part is to establish the initial bridgehead on top of the wall and it is here that your troops will be at the greatest disadvantage. I usually pick two or three likely places to attack and reinforce the most successful one(s). One final note, if the enemy has any reserves, particularly cavalry, then they will try to use the moment when your troops are climbing the wall to attack. To guard against this, try to cover the gates around the assault area either with infantry or with your own cavalry. This can be a good use for your light infantry or skirmisher units since they typically have less than stellar melee skills.
The late stage European fortifications however have a specific strategy that may help you a great deal with these stone behemoths. To protect the gateway these forts have a triangular outwork, also called a Barbican. These can be your ticket into the fortress and save your army the gruesome cost of establishing a bridgehead on a space of occupied wall. I have never seen these mini-forts manned and the enemy is rarely quick to defend them when you move against this outpost. First send two of your best musket armed units to each scale one side of the fort (you can’t climb the wall facing the fort and I would recommend it anyway). The defenders usually rush to defend their side of the bridge connecting the barbican to the main fort but are slow to counterattack. By the time they work up the nerve and numbers to attack, you should have your regiments positioned on the wall facing the fort and the bridge with hopefully a third unit on its way. When the enemy tries to recover the outwork you can gun them down from cover as they try to cross the bridge. Once they have exhausted their efforts to counterattack, your forces can push across the bridge. Even though you may have to run the same gauntlet of fire they did, any casualties will still be less than the cost of climbing a wall in the face of opposition.
Eyes on the Prize
In the midst of these assaults keep in mind your objective. Unlike a field battle you don’t have to eliminate all the enemy troops. Any of your foes that started in the fort are automatically destroyed if you win. Don’t obsess about clearing the walls or chasing down every routed enemy, get to that flag. Once you have it you are they defender and they must come to you or perish. Any troops the enemy has left will probably counterattack, but your soldiers can confront them with firepower on a level playing field. If you have the opportunity, it can be a good idea to occupy one or two of the buildings in the fort’s interior. These little bastions can make taking the flag back from your army nearly impossible.
It is a given that not all forts are the same in Empire Total War. The European style fortresses and city defenses differ greatly from their eastern counterparts so consequently they will have to be addressed separately. There is also one other distinction I make between European fortresses. The final phase of fortifications in cities and free standing fortresses, include outworks protecting their gates which can significantly alter your strategy. Other than these minor distinctions I would venture to suggest that most forts and therefore sieges in the game are the same, essentially large cannon-mounted walls. The variations in strength and design are almost purely aesthetic.
Typically the simplest way to attack any fortress is to use artillery to knock a hole in its wall through which your forces may then pour in. I use this method more often than I care to admit since it is simpler and more cost effective in terms of casualties. The downside is that whatever you do to the fortress in terms of damage remains when you take over. For example if you knock four breaches in the wall in order to give yourself options and spread the enemy forces out then those breaches will still be there if you ever have to defend the place. Empire Total War does not allow you to repair walls the same way you can repair other buildings. In order to remove the damage then you must either upgrade it (if you can) or tear it down and start over. Both of these can be pricey options and for the conqueror-on-the-go it may be more than you are willing to invest.
However if you are still determined to go about smashing holes in walls then there are a few simple procedures that will help. First, you need real cannon. Horse artillery generally just does not cut it. Given enough time, yes, they can destroy a wall but it can take seemingly an eternity. I generally won’t even consider trying to form a breach without at least 12lbers. Fixed batteries can be used, but it is sometimes difficult to get them in a good (unexposed) position. Second, do not put yourself in a position to duel it out with the guns on the walls. Your guns may be better and heavier, but there are almost always a lot more of them and they are firing from cover. Why put yourself through that agony? The best place to position your guns is facing the corners of the fortress where typically no enemy cannon can cover. In the case of eastern defenses the corners themselves can be knocked down. For western forts, the walls to either side of the corner can be breached. In this situation you also have a readymade approach for your infantry since the enemy can no more fire at them, than at the artillery that did the breaching. Third, when your infantry reach the breach do not, I repeat, do not let them march through it. One of the few real advantages the defenders of a fortress get is a massive morale boost from being behind walls. If you send your troops in there you will be dancing to their tune. Defenders inside those walls almost always fight to the last man, meaning they almost never break and run. So instead of engaging in costly hand-to-hand combat with a bunch of desperate enemies keep your troops outside the breach, but still in musket range. Typically the defenders will cluster round the openings waiting for you to rush forward. This makes them easy prey for your firepower. As you wear down their numbers (be patient) they often reach a breaking point and will rush outside to engage their tormentors. When they leave the shelter of the walls they lose their moral bonus and rarely have the courage to press home their attack. My experience is that units that try to attack like this will melt away like snowflakes in a blast furnace as soon as they pop out of the breach. To speed up this process I have sometimes brought up artillery into canister range and had them fire through the breach. This can be risky as you are naturally close to the enemy and at risk of a sudden rush reaching the guns between discharges. Finally when then breaches have been cleared of defenders you can lead your troops in to mop up the remainder. Again I would encourage the besieger to avoid hand-to-hand combat with enemy infantry if possible. Hopefully by this point most of his forces are already dead and you have been spared a bloody struggle for a narrow gap in his wall.
If you find yourself short of guns or want to take a position without damaging the defenses then the only method left to you is to storm the walls. If the enemy has anything approaching your numbers then I would recommend the more destructive but safer breach in the wall. Taking a fort by simple assault can be costly at the best of times since it inevitably involves the desperately-to-be-avoided hand-to-hand combat.
Picking the spot to attack (except in the cases of late stage European fortifications, which I will get to in a moment) is as much an art as anything and in the end you are dependent on your troops to outfight the defenders. There are a few things that may help you though. The corners are still blind spots for their artillery if nothing else. If you focus your attack heavily on one spot then the enemy can concentrate and make your job much much harder. At the same time don’t spread out too much as this may make you too weak to achieve superiority anywhere. The hardest part is to establish the initial bridgehead on top of the wall and it is here that your troops will be at the greatest disadvantage. I usually pick two or three likely places to attack and reinforce the most successful one(s). One final note, if the enemy has any reserves, particularly cavalry, then they will try to use the moment when your troops are climbing the wall to attack. To guard against this, try to cover the gates around the assault area either with infantry or with your own cavalry. This can be a good use for your light infantry or skirmisher units since they typically have less than stellar melee skills.
The late stage European fortifications however have a specific strategy that may help you a great deal with these stone behemoths. To protect the gateway these forts have a triangular outwork, also called a Barbican. These can be your ticket into the fortress and save your army the gruesome cost of establishing a bridgehead on a space of occupied wall. I have never seen these mini-forts manned and the enemy is rarely quick to defend them when you move against this outpost. First send two of your best musket armed units to each scale one side of the fort (you can’t climb the wall facing the fort and I would recommend it anyway). The defenders usually rush to defend their side of the bridge connecting the barbican to the main fort but are slow to counterattack. By the time they work up the nerve and numbers to attack, you should have your regiments positioned on the wall facing the fort and the bridge with hopefully a third unit on its way. When the enemy tries to recover the outwork you can gun them down from cover as they try to cross the bridge. Once they have exhausted their efforts to counterattack, your forces can push across the bridge. Even though you may have to run the same gauntlet of fire they did, any casualties will still be less than the cost of climbing a wall in the face of opposition.
In the midst of these assaults keep in mind your objective. Unlike a field battle you don’t have to eliminate all the enemy troops. Any of your foes that started in the fort are automatically destroyed if you win. Don’t obsess about clearing the walls or chasing down every routed enemy, get to that flag. Once you have it you are they defender and they must come to you or perish. Any troops the enemy has left will probably counterattack, but your soldiers can confront them with firepower on a level playing field. If you have the opportunity, it can be a good idea to occupy one or two of the buildings in the fort’s interior. These little bastions can make taking the flag back from your army nearly impossible.