Hello, I am new to this forum and I didnt find much about this topic.
I understand that the developers werent looking for perfect realism. However, I find that it is completely unrealistic to allow light infantry to fire simultaneously and retain their accuracy. If my history serves me well, irregulars or light infantry were used as harassing units, and mostly took opportunistic shots at the enemy. This consisted primarily of sporadic fire from concealed and covered positions. You may ask, "How hard is to have an entire unit of light infantry fire all at once at the enemy?"
The answer is simple and it boils down to discipline, training and the method that the unit engages the enemy. Line infantry units are trained to keep their muskets level and parallel to the man left and right of him. This allows an even dispersal of rounds towards the enemy and maximizes accuracy of the entire unit. This is precisely why Line infantry do not aim their weapons at a specific target. Whereas light infantry are tasked to fire at the most available "individual" target. The difference is, there is no coordination between one person or another. It is extremely likely that half the platoon would fire at the same individual unknowingly until that target fell dead. Without the coordination, that line infantry units possess, allowing light infantry to use platoon fire would diminish their effectiveness.
It also blurs the role of line infantry and light infantry I am sure most see this in multiplayer games. I dont know about you, but I would like to see this game get back to classic infantry battles, where you see two armies square off and attempt to out maneuver each other. Instead you see lines of Light infantry backed by some Line infantry, and it looks like something out of WW1.
My biggest concern is that I would like to use light infantry as they were actually used so I can employ light infantry strategies. As it is now, I use them interchangably with line units. I dont remember any musket era battle where two major forces used light infantry in such a manner.
My suggestion is to (this also addresses balancing issues)
1. Increase the range of light infantry units by 15-30 yards (This gives them a little more flexibility since they are losing simultaneous fire.)
2. Allow them to fire in any direction automatically, (This would be done without having to rotate your units. The target would be up to you or otherwise the first available target)
3. Remove simultaneous fire, and replace it with sporadic fire 5-7 shots per 1 second iteration (This combined with a 360 degree sector of fire makes it very effective)
4. Allow all light infantry to move through "certain terrain" relatively camouflaged. (This would bring ambushes back into the game and not just limit it to a couple units ie, WB and US Long rifle.)
5. Increase the time it takes to have an entire platoon to start moving by 1 or 2 seconds. (The communication is much slower than line units because of the distance between individuals.)
The last one forces light infantry to stay at max distance otherwise become susceptible to infantry and especially cavalry charges.
My biggest issue is with simultaneous fire. Light infantry would never use this firing technique.
Last note: These are just my opinions. I am open to your thoughts. Thank you.
I understand that the developers werent looking for perfect realism. However, I find that it is completely unrealistic to allow light infantry to fire simultaneously and retain their accuracy. If my history serves me well, irregulars or light infantry were used as harassing units, and mostly took opportunistic shots at the enemy. This consisted primarily of sporadic fire from concealed and covered positions. You may ask, "How hard is to have an entire unit of light infantry fire all at once at the enemy?"
The answer is simple and it boils down to discipline, training and the method that the unit engages the enemy. Line infantry units are trained to keep their muskets level and parallel to the man left and right of him. This allows an even dispersal of rounds towards the enemy and maximizes accuracy of the entire unit. This is precisely why Line infantry do not aim their weapons at a specific target. Whereas light infantry are tasked to fire at the most available "individual" target. The difference is, there is no coordination between one person or another. It is extremely likely that half the platoon would fire at the same individual unknowingly until that target fell dead. Without the coordination, that line infantry units possess, allowing light infantry to use platoon fire would diminish their effectiveness.
It also blurs the role of line infantry and light infantry I am sure most see this in multiplayer games. I dont know about you, but I would like to see this game get back to classic infantry battles, where you see two armies square off and attempt to out maneuver each other. Instead you see lines of Light infantry backed by some Line infantry, and it looks like something out of WW1.
My biggest concern is that I would like to use light infantry as they were actually used so I can employ light infantry strategies. As it is now, I use them interchangably with line units. I dont remember any musket era battle where two major forces used light infantry in such a manner.
My suggestion is to (this also addresses balancing issues)
1. Increase the range of light infantry units by 15-30 yards (This gives them a little more flexibility since they are losing simultaneous fire.)
2. Allow them to fire in any direction automatically, (This would be done without having to rotate your units. The target would be up to you or otherwise the first available target)
3. Remove simultaneous fire, and replace it with sporadic fire 5-7 shots per 1 second iteration (This combined with a 360 degree sector of fire makes it very effective)
4. Allow all light infantry to move through "certain terrain" relatively camouflaged. (This would bring ambushes back into the game and not just limit it to a couple units ie, WB and US Long rifle.)
5. Increase the time it takes to have an entire platoon to start moving by 1 or 2 seconds. (The communication is much slower than line units because of the distance between individuals.)
The last one forces light infantry to stay at max distance otherwise become susceptible to infantry and especially cavalry charges.
My biggest issue is with simultaneous fire. Light infantry would never use this firing technique.
Last note: These are just my opinions. I am open to your thoughts. Thank you.
