Yes, Your Grace: Best Radovian Battle Tactical Choices

To win the Radovian battle with minimal troop losses in Yes, Your Grace, King Eryk must execute defensive commands matched to the specific phases of the assault rather than reacting immediately to enemy movements. Trigger ground traps as the vanguard sprints forward, hold arrow volleys until enemy shield lines break around obstacles, pour boiling oil only after the battering ram contacts the gate, and hold cavalry in reserve until the enemy lines overextend.

Initial Skirmish: Trap Activation and Archer Discipline

The Radovian offensive opens with a vanguard charge designed to pressure Davern's outer perimeter before the main infantry lines meet.

Trap Timing: If caltrops or pitch trenches were prepared before the battle, activate them the moment the forward scouts commit to their sprint across open ground. Triggering them too early allows organized troops to alter their march path, while triggering them too late risks catching your own retreating pickets in the hazards.
Archer Discipline: The Radovian force advances behind broad wooden mantlets and woven wicker shields that absorb direct fire. Do not order archers to loose arrows immediately. Wait until the enemy reaches the obstacle zone, where the terrain forces their ranks to compress and separate. Order a concentrated arrow volley the moment their shield line fractures to target exposed shock troops and force their siege equipment forward prematurely.

Wall Defense: Repelling Ladders and Rampart Breaches

When the main host reaches the curtain wall, Radovian climbers deploy scaling ladders and grappling hooks across the battlements.

Focus Ladder Defense: Avoid spreading defenders evenly across the entire parapet. Prioritize sending standard castle guards and local levies to the specific wall sections where ladder density is highest to push the equipment clear.
Preserve Specialists: Keep your royal general and elite retainers off basic ladder duty.
Handle Rampart Breaches: If attackers reach the top of the wall, deploy secondary infantry equipped with polearms to clear the walkway. Keep archers disengaged from hand-to-hand combat so they can continue firing at climbers and reinforcements on the ground.

Gatehouse Defense: Countering the Battering Ram

The Radovian battering ram is the primary structural threat to Davern's defenses. If the gate fails, inner courtyard defenses collapse and expose vulnerable auxiliary units.

Boiling Oil Timing: Position defenders above the gatehouse murder holes with boiling oil. Do not pour while the ram is on approach, as armored canopies deflect the liquid. Wait until the ram locks directly against the gate timbers before dumping the oil to destroy the crew immediately.
Alternative Gate Defense: If boiling oil was not stocked before the battle, brace the gate with heavy timber barricades and form a dense pike receiving wedge directly behind it.
Avoid Sallies: Never send foot infantry outside through the main doors to contest the ram. The narrow choke point leaves your units vulnerable to concentrated enemy archer fire in the doorway.

Decisive Flanking: Allied Lords and Cavalry Timing

Premature cavalry charges into dense infantry ranks cause severe losses against Radovian spears. Keep mounted units concealed until the enemy commits its reserve infantry to the wall ladders and the gate.

Once the Radovian battle lines overextend toward the walls, signal your mounted forces to execute a wide flank against the exposed rear. If allied lords like Lord Grego or Lord Atton contributed auxiliary troops, use heavy infantry to pin the remaining frontline while cavalry sweeps behind the assault lines to scatter siege engineers and prevent enemy officers from rallying.

Phase / Threat	Optimal Tactical Choice	Risk of Misplay
Vanguard Sprint	Trigger caltrops or pitch trenches during sprint	Deploying early alters enemy path; deploying late traps pickets
Shielded Advance	Hold arrow volleys until shield wall breaks at obstacles	Firing early wastes ammunition against mantlets and shields
Scaling Ladders	Direct standard levies to dense ladder clusters	Spreading forces thin allows climbers to secure the parapet
Parapet Incursion	Clear breaches with polearms; keep archers shooting down	Engaging archers in melee halts suppression of ground forces
Battering Ram	Drop boiling oil when the ram strikes the gate timbers	Pouring early hits canopies; sallying on foot causes heavy losses
Overextended Lines	Launch concealed cavalry into the exposed enemy rear	Charging early into braced spear lines wipes out mounted units

Battle Aftermath: Securing the Field

When the Radovian army breaks, sound the retreat to secure the immediate battlefield. Do not order a pursuit into uncharted territory, as overextending surviving cavalry risks ambushes from scattered enemy remnants. Securing the perimeter allows you to treat wounded soldiers, recover abandoned weapons and supplies, and maintain the standing army numbers needed for future kingdom management decisions.