This is a continuation of Phalanx 101, the beginners course. Read simply, that course’s contents can be summarized with the phrase: “Put the pointy end towards the enemy, then guard the other sides of your phalanx from attack.”

Phalanxes are nothing more than a group of guys crowded together in a block, really tight into each other. They carry spears, since no other weapon would have any effect when wielded in such a press. They also carry shields- sometimes strung up by a band around the neck, to leave both hands free to thrust and jab with the long spear.

Not all spears carried by phalanx troops are called spears. Some exceptionally long spears are called sarissas, or pikes, or other descriptive and melodious names. But for our intents and purposes, this being an advanced beginner course, we shall simplify the terms so that everybody understands what we are dealing with.

So, the phalanx is a block of spear-carrying men standing really close to each other. Anyone familiar with the hand-grenade would wonder why on earth would so many people want to stand so close together. Well, in those days, there was no hand grenade. There were, however, onagers and ballistae which can really ruin a phalangite’s day. But more on those later.

Phalangites wear crappy armor. A sad fact, but a true one. All they really have for protection is that huge shield, their very long spear, and their buddies. No, the flock mentality of sheep is another subject. We are talking about formations here. IN the days of old, placing men in formation increased their individual combat power by multiples. Thus generating combat power meant forming up the men who delivered it into the most effective formation possible. Swordsmen need room to swing and stab- thus their formations are somewhat looser. Pikemen, needing only a bit of space to operate their weaponry, stand much tighter- and present an impenetrable barrier of layered spears toward the enemy.

The phalanx can march forward slowly (they cannot run and still hold formation) or it can stand still. Those are your choices. It can turn, slowly, very slowly, but faster if you turn the phalanx option off. Yes, that is possible! ALT+F does that, and turns it back on once the unit is set. The phalanx can also run while not in formation- something any budding general ought to remember. Only while in phalanx formation (Special Ability On) is the spearwall tight and the movement slow.

Now, with all those guys standing tightly together, with locked shields and spears jutting forward, a clever man will note that the other, non-pointy sides of the block of men have absolutely nothing in the way of protection. They also have no way to harm an attacker. Thus the clever man will allow a phalanx to chase him, then hit it from the unprotected sides and rear with a smashing, thunderous charge of heavy cavalry (or swordsmen, or skirmishers, or anything, really- it does not matter). That will panic the tight-locked-shields men and destroy their formation. And with their formation falls their strength.

Thus it is imperative that the commander of an army with phalanxes (and hoplites, too, for that matter) GUARD THE FLANKS AND REAR of the phalanx. This can be done by placing a second phalanx next to the first, or by placing other troops on the flank to cover it. Keep your men safe and warm, and they will perform brilliantly.

Sometimes you will order an attack, then go somewhere else and when you return, you see your troops off on the other side of the battlefield fighting with swords. Phalangites are horrible swordsmen, and gallivanting off like that is suicidal. Berate them not, for the fault is not theirs. It is yours. One does not order a phalanx to attack a band of hostile warriors- for they will do what they just did. No, one places the in Guard mode, and orders them to walk to a piece of ground. They will kill anything in their path, and if they get bogged down, simply click on them and then Backspace, cancelling the move order. They will stop, form the phalanx, and stand their ground against all comers- until attacked from the sides or rear, but you covered those now, did you not?

Fighting against a phalanx is not so difficult, though the killing machine is a juggernaut from the front. Simply attack its side or rear and it will melt like snow before the summer sun. Archers and skirmishers can have a jolly good time fighting a phalanx- they sit back prettily and happily exhaust their missiles against it. Often this can tease a phalanx out of line to where it can be easily destroyed. Failing that, the phalanx grows much smaller with every volley.

Thus concludes Phalanx 202, the advanced beginner course.