Mod to let defenders retreat?

[prince_of_arfon]

New to the game. I've been getting pretty annoyed with the "defenders can't retreat" mechanic. I searched the workshop for the keyword "retreat" but didn't find a mod that addresses this. Is there a mod that lets defenders retreat or somehow addresses this issue?

[Gloweye]

We cant mod that.

[prince_of_arfon]

Bummer. Thanks for replying though.

[Outis]

Defenders making a last stand has been a feature since the original AoW to avoid chasing an enemy party all over the map.

[prince_of_arfon]

Even so, I wish they'd found a different solution. Endless Legend let defenders retreat once from an attack at the cost of some life.

[Gloweye]

You being in combat means that fleeing already failed. If you could have run, you wouldn't have been in combat in the first place.

[~ Fabulous ~]

If I not mistaken you can stall the enemy for 20+ turn the defender basically win...or maybe that is aow2

[pipo.p]

Indeed in AoW3, you only need 5 turns without any damage taken for the defender being declared the winner (if at the end of its fifth turn the attacker can't attack, its units disappear). If any damage is sustained (or any attack is performed?), the counting is reset. The same rule applies to sieges.
The defender is credited a victory, the winner is credited a defeat, both sides retain their surviving units, The attacker looses all his remaining movement points on the strategic map. It's even a loading screen hint.

Lately, for instance, I could repeatedly avoid a fight against the same AI stack with a single wyvern defending a city, or a griffon on a rugged, volcanic terrain, by simply flying frome one edge of the TC map to the other. As a side note, each time the AI spent its CP buffing its units, letting me to win battles elsewhere on the map!

(playing with PBEM Balance mod)

[prince_of_arfon]

I learned the 5 turn rule from another post, but haven't managed it successfully yet because the battle maps are simply too small. If they were large, as in the first AoW, I would have escaped a few battles that saw key armies of mine get wiped out. But oh well. On the whole, I am really enjoying the game. Trying to get familiar to the vanilla version before trying mods.

[Gloweye]

in AoW1, you could just have a flying unit, kill just the archers, and wait it out.

I've managed it, but it was in rare cases that it actually worked. You need like flying, city walls, and a broken city gate on the other side of the map. Then I could force the AI to try walking around the wall, then move to the other side of the wall, rince, repeat. Of course, doesn't work against flying units.


In sea battles, both galleons and frigates can infinitely kite a number of melee units.

[pipo.p]

To evade the attacker for 5 turns, it's easier with a terrain with many obstacles and a unit that has superior movement such as a flier (if the attacker has none, else you have to kill them first if possible, as Gloweye says).

[MrNo]

Against the AI, if your unit is flying and the opponent is all melee you can pull it off fairly reliably. You just need to lead them off to one side and then fly crosswise to put terrain between yourself and the enemy on turn 3-4. This lets you break sideways and get clear without much difficulty, and they can't pin you again before the timer runs out.

[pipo.p]

Note that even with same speed melee infantry units this can work, if they are not to many to corner you. Five turns are coming soon!

[Nefrogitis]

Endless Legend and the Total War series managed to address this bit in a smart way. Not taking damage for 5 turns would have been viable had it not been for the small maps.

[pipo.p]

What were those smart ways?

On the other hand, on small tactical maps, it's only natural that the slow is often caught up by the fast. As it is on the strategical map for a lone, non furtive and slow unit to be caught up and destroyed by a fast, superior stack.

One interesting idea however is to question how a draw should result into gaining or loosing terrain (hex) control: what if the attacker has no attack type to wound the defender? What if the defender turns invisible for 5 or more turns? What if it outrun the attacker?

[prince_of_arfon]

Originally posted by pipo.p:

What were those smart ways?

Endless Legend let the defender retreat before entering battle mode, at the cost of some life to all your units. I don't recall if the retreating army was also forced to move back on the strategic map or not, but I think it couldn't retreat more than once per turn. Been awhile since I've played it, though.

In the Total War games that I've played, a defending army can retreat before the battle begins, and the AI will force it to use its remaining movement points to move away from the enemy, even running towards friendly cities if possible. Once in the battle, if it was going badly the defender could still pull their troops to the edge of the map and hit the "withdraw" button, hoping that his troops would flee past the edge of the map. Depending on how many defenders were left, the army might be salvageable. But you couldn't do either of these more than once per turn per army,
if I recall correctly, so there wasn't any danger of it being a cheesy tactic. It just added to your tactical choices.