Does anyone actually use siege engines?

[Facetious Firefly]

I find that the best way to take a settlement in the campaign is to equip my army with a couple of artillery unity and punch some holes in the walls. Siege engines (non-artillery) seem superfluous to me. It takes multiple turns to get a decent array of engines, which is more time your army decomposes from attrition and more time the enemy has to bring in reinforcements. Plus, I lack the patience.

On the other hand, having a bunch of siege engines makes the battle look a lot more cinematic, which I particularly enjoy.

Do you guys tend to take the time to siege a city, or do you just Jericho the place with artillery?

[Gryphonheart]

Well, I can't say I use them a lot but some are specially useful when besieging big cities. I find siege towers useful and battering rams as well to add pressure on several gates while the main force makes an advance somewhere else. Artillery during sieges is very useful but you waste a lot of ammo bringing down the walls so I'd think twice if it's worth wasting that ammo; it could serve you, for example, when trying to break an enemy defensive position inside the city (most of the time it is where the cap point is.)

[Facetious Firefly]

I know there's a mod to remove seige attrition, but if anyone knows of a mod that removes or modifies the time it takes to develop siege engines, drop it here, cos I'd definitely be interested.

[The Legend 27]

Originally posted by Gryphonheart:

Well, I can't say I use them a lot but some are specially useful when besieging big cities. I find siege towers useful and battering rams as well to add pressure on several gates while the main force makes an advance somewhere else. Artillery during sieges is very useful but you waste a lot of ammo bringing down the walls so I'd think twice if it's worth wasting that ammo; it could serve you, for example, when trying to break an enemy defensive position inside the city (most of the time it is where the cap point is.)

If you think ammo is a problem bring like 3 artillery engines.
an as for the the city archers are good or a scorpion is just as effective

[Gluteus maximus]

I like seige engines against Barbariain Factions like the Ram. like to use the Siege tower for Walled cities.

[Gryphonheart]

Originally posted by SirTaylorTheSwift:

For me, artillery's only purpose in seige battles is to down the walls. and get rid of the ranged uinits sitting on the walls. It only takes 5 - 6 ammo from 6 catapults to down one wall. No need in being stingy with your ammo. Artillery sucks at killing infantry inside of city walls. Plus you can't see ♥♥♥♥!!!

Also Gryphonheart, it sounds like you dont mind taking casualties... I do. I like to finish my battles with as few casualties as possible. That means making sure the walls are clear of ranged units before i approach. Rome II puts ranged units on every side of the map that you have deployed troops so you cant really flank a walled city. If you're approaching the back of the city with a battering ram, you're going to get pelted.

Lol. I dont know why would you think I dont mind having casualties... Sure, it's pretty risky the way I do stuff during sieges but imo it much more efficient than having all your infantry toguether like a big mass. It's not effective to do things that way.

I dont use siege artillery for killing, but to get the morale shock (you have to move them a bit, obviously), along with some fire javelins or arrows from behind to kill the "beefy" units faster. For ranged defenders you just build siege towers, place some swordsmen inside and they aren't a trouble anymore.

And, as I said, I like to add pressure on different spots during the battle to spread the enemy thin and to flank the main force. You will get casualties, of course, but it's a ton more fun than doing the same stuff always, plus you learn a lot of stuff.

[Lonely Roman]

I use them, quite often. I usually like siege towers.

[Varmint]

Ballista are too cheap, too mobile, too easy to research, too accurate and too useful in general. Even in Rome1.
And every damn barbarian is just as proficient as the finest Roman trained redlegs.
Ballista ruin the Siege Warfare aspect of the game.
And they look plenty stupid being ambushed in column, too!

[[*UNITY*]_ james]

Until perhaps when I get my hands on artillery, I keep sieging the settlement (if its huge or its garison formidable) and have siege towers and tortoises built. Both provide great cover and tortoises are especially useful as they can also knock down an entire segment of a wall with a full rammings.

[Knox]

I almost never wait to get siege engines. No use in doing that when I can take the city in one turn.

I also often avoid using ballista, they are too powerful and too easy to get.

But that is me.