First crusade at Chanier ( Germanicus )

[badhabum]

So I used a First Crusade army with the following composition
LC
Ally TC
Ally CC
CC
all generals being instinctive .
1 TUG of 4 sup knights
2 TUGs of mixed knights and squires all SUP all melee expert
2 TUGs of mixed knights = squires all sup but rear rank is not melee expert
4 TUGs of 8 spearmen
2 TUGs of 6 protected crossbowmen
1 TUG of unprotected crossbowmen
1 TUG of pilgrims

Game 1 vs early medieval danish with wendish contingent

Both army are strong in infantry . I decided to put most of my knights on my right flank in order to crush his right flank that is the weakest one, his left being defended by some terrain and the wendish contingent. The pilgrims will slow him down. Both armies will manfully march towards each other . I sacrifice a unit of spearmen and the pilgrims to slow him down . In the end those units will still be there . I  will crush his right flank on turn 4 but in the center the melees are hard, turn 5 I begin to sent my cavalry towards his camp and the rear of his infantry. But the nemesis of infantry fight on the whole line is there. No more time . 6 to him -9 for me . I needed 2 more turns

Game 2 vs Serge's Welsh army .I outscouted him and managed to get a very flat terrain. He deployed his 15 TUGs, 4 at a time and made a big mistkae. 4 TUGs will be deployed far away on his left flank at his table edge. They will play no part in the battle. I advanced towards his army, his longbowmen facing big blocks of infantry . With the help of my crossbowmen and the cavalry I will manage to kill 5 TUGs before time ran out so 8 for him as he managed to kill 3 TUGs  but I got 12 points .

Game 3 vs Jim's early kingdom of Aragon . I  outscouted him . I deployed with a strong left flank vs his strong right flank . I had to act quickly as part of his cavalry is fully armoured . I will admitt  some luck as I managed to destroy one of his knights unit in one charge + melee and did not try to reorganise my ranks but just went forward . I had to sacrifice some units, the almughavars charging hard. On the very last turn, very last dice roll, a black and a withe I managed to kill a base and so 15 for me ...

Game 4 vs Jacques's late crusader army . He outscouted me . Both armies deployed mostly infantry in the center and cavalry on the flanks . I lost pretty quickly and the game ended 15 to him and 2 to me . So what happened : I sent 3 TUGs of 4 knights and mixed squires he sent 2 tugs of 6 military orders knights . After impact and melee he had lost 1 base and I had lost 4 bases + 2 wounds ....I did last one more turn ( after breaking off to reorganise a bit ) . All infantry melees went against me except for one . Both lost heavily but on the turn I could have reversed the stream of defeats, it was his turn to choose where he would start melees and he had the luck I had in game 3 . So game over but very funny . My knights failed at the beginning, failed vs infantry ...infantry was too tired to fight more ...a bad day for dice 

[nikgaukroger]

2 TUGs of mixed knights = squires all sup but rear rank is not melee expert

I hope the front rank was not ME either due to:

"Unless specified otherwise, if an optional characteristic is taken, it must be taken by all the elements in the UG for which that optional characteristic is available." frompoint 4 of the general rules for lists.

[badhabum]

Well we forgot it but it had no impact in the games . What would have changed is one unit without melee expert and all the others with it . But no impact on the games

[badhabum]

The problem being that the second rank is already different from the front rank . So is the intend to rule that even if ranks are different, if you take an optional characteristic, it should be the same for everybody or is it to avoid group of units which should be similar ( the spearmen for exemple ) to have one half with a charateristic and the other without, in this case "shieldwall".

Interesting to know what is intended

[nikgaukroger]

IMO it is clear that even if the ranks are different they must all take the same optional characteristics if they are available to all.

[lionheartrjc]

IMO it is clear that even if the ranks are different they must all take the same optional characteristics if they are available to all.

Exactly.  If Melee Expert is available to both as an optional characteristic, then either both take it in the UG or neither.

Richard

[badhabum]

So it is clear