PURSUIT TRAPS

Here is something that the experienced players probably already know, but it might be of some use for us lesser mortals.
I developed it some time ago when I was trying to find ways of countering Elephants when Psiloi are not available.
The basic idea is to draw pursuing enemy into double-overlap traps and kill them as quickly and safely as possible.

Decoy Columns
In the front of the decoy column you place decoy troops (usually Psiloi or Cavalry) who will lose the combat and be recoiled back
through the killer elements behind them, leaving the pursuing enemy both double-overlapped and facing their worst nightmare.
And the beauty of this ploy is that the enemy can do nothing about it, as pursuit is compulsory for certain troops.

“♫ Neighbours, everybody needs good neighbours...♪”
Of course, to make this work you’ll need good friendly troops on either side of your decoy column that hold their ground so that
the pursuing enemy will be overlapped in the subsequent bound. Friends that go haring-off pursuing on their own are not suitable
for the job. Fortunately foot (other than Hordes) will not pursue mounted enemies, so they are ideal for the role of creating such
hard shoulders.
Remember, when neighbours hold their ground, that’s when “♫ neighbours become good friends...♪”

Size Matters (!)
Even if your flanking hard shoulder troops recoil, they can still cause overlaps on the pursuers...if their base depth is less than
that of your recoiling front rank decoy troops that is. For example, when using foot as a hard shoulder, they will recoil their base
depth of 20mm, but your decoy Cavalry recoil their base depth of 30mm, leaving the pursuing enemy still overlapped.

Surprise! (or I bet you didn’t see that coming...)
To keep your opponent guessing, don’t put your killer elements in the column...keep ‘em back in reserve instead.
That way they can suddenly join behind any decoys in your battleline that are in suitable range.
On the other hand, I did once have a game where my decoy column (which I never intended to use) was itself a decoy.
My opponent spent valuable PIPs and time panicking and shuffling his Knights about to avoid it while I just concentrated all
my efforts on the opposite wing for an easy victory.

Here is a chart showing the best troops to use against pursuing enemies.
(The numbers in brackets shows your combat factor against that particular pursuing enemy)
To understand why these elements are best you will need to consult the “Combat Effects Chart”, which can be found here:-
fanaticus-dba.fandom.com/wiki/File:COMBAT_EFFECTS_CHART_for_DBA_%26_HOTT.pdf


* Cv and El don't mix: Cv cannot recoil through El...but Ps can.
# The Hd will be destroyed...but their loss don't count (could use Civilians or SCh instead).
Pursuing Hd are included not because they are dangerous, but they are a pain to kill, so the sooner the better.

Psiloi make good decoys as mounted in the column behind can move through and interpenetrate them if necessary.
But watch out for enemy mounted making diagonal cross-over charges that the DBA 3.0 high movement rate allows.
If in doubt, use Cavalry (or even Hordes, Civilians, or Scythed Chariots) as decoys.


Final Thoughts
I’m not saying that the use of decoy columns is a sure-fire battle winner...but it is another tool to put in your tactics toolbox.



Some Helpful Downloads can be found here: fanaticus-dba.wikia.com/wiki/Category:Reference_sheets_and_epitomes
And here is the latest Jan 2019 FAQ: fanaticus-dba.wikia.com/wiki/FAQ_2019_1st_Quarter