Shield Units Strategies
By: Foghladha
Shield Units are an essential part of the meta and shield other units from ranged attacks. Pikes and Specialty Units won't last long without a shield covering them.
A good shield commander will keep his shields just far enough in front of the pikes that the tips of their shields poke through the shields while the spear unit remains covered by the towering shields. They are mainly focused on forward-looking for incoming ranged attacks.
Shield units must be cautious around Cavalry, Mace Units, and some specialty units like Shenji Grenadiers, Siphonarioi, or Zykalian Militia.
Current Shield Unit Lineup:
-
Spartan Chosen - Defensive Shield Unit
-
Ironcap Spearmen - Defensive Shield Unit
-
Spear Militia - Defensive Shield Unit
-
Demesne Spearmen - Defensive Shield Unit
-
Imperial Spear Guards - Disruption Shield Unit
-
Symmachean Stalwarts - Polearm / Shield Hybrid Unit
-
Shieldmaidens - Offensive Shield Unit
-
Spear Sergeants - Offensive Shield Unit
-
Black Dragon Spearmen - Mercenary Unit - Bonus XP When Used
Tips & Tricks
Don't Let Collision Stop You!
There's a little-known secret that was actually taught to me by one of my students iSecret (see the irony), that you can use the block formation to phase through other shields or pike units before hitting cover commander to disrupt the unit.
A great example of this is to take Imperial Spear Guards and fight a unit of Fortebraccio Pikemen. If you simply walk into the unit, you will lose. If you use the block formation to walk into the Fortebracio Pikemen, then cover commander, it disrupts the pikes so that you can push into them unharmed. This simple strategy turns a hard stop into a keep rolling.
Standfast Doctrine
One of the doctrines that every shield unit should get is the Standfast doctrine that allows the shield to be immune to crowd control (CC) for a limited time. This is a doctrine that can make or break your push, and timing is essential. If you see Cavalry, Imperial Pike Guards, Spartan's Chosen, or Sunward Phalanx marching towards you, that added skill will let you get to the side and around them to disrupt from the back. On Symmachean Stalwarts, it can be the difference between a full wipe and a full decimation of the enemy. Timing is everything.
Rotating Cover Commander
For units like: Spear Sergeants, Imperial Spear Guards, and Shieldmaidens, when you start the cover commander command, your unit will glow gold for a few seconds. This is a defensive aura that increases both your unit and your defensive ability. Using a formation and then cover commander instantly after every 3 seconds can keep this buff up perpetually.