Did anyone ever use a unit size past Brigade/Battalion?

[zgrssd]

As far as I can tell, the larger formations seem to be mostly useless:
- They are still just 5 units + HQ.
- For almost the same manpower, I can get 4 Brigades. Wich can be in 4 times many places. If I need more troops/hex, I can just concentrate them a bit.

The only advantages I can think off are:
- better scouting. 36 subunits of even infantry get some pretty good accumulated recon (36 or more). While 120 should basically never run into an ambush/poor recon fight
- more troops before the multiple OHQ penalty becomes an issue. But I have the fear the stacking limit will hinder here anyway, even with complete encirclement
- Justus2 pointed out, that you can also affect more subunits with high leadership skills or postures for a lower cost.

So, what is your opinion on the Echelons past B&B?
Have you used them?
Were they usefull?
Do they have advantages I do not see or just underestimate?

[nedjh2]

I’ve been using corps as offensive formations with brigades mostly reserved for holding territory. It’s probably suboptimal but a light tank corps coupled with a motorized infantry corps has incredible striking power that can collapse a front in just a couple turns. The lack of OHQ malus helps, but the sheer weight of 180 tanks or 7200 infantry is really difficult for the AI to bear. I often make attacks with just one unit and still force a retreat.

[Kamelpov]

I did you use that when you want to give as much unit to a good OHQ or require to hold vs AI massing units and need hard to rout formation. else the smallest one is good enough.

[Thomas8]

You also need to remember that there is limit of 16 units per hex. It might be problem in longer games (if units are retreating from combat - for example - I dont know what happens when this limit will be reached). But for most game batalions are good enough.

[Twotribes]

I usually make regiments eventually and in one game I made a couple independent divisions of Infantry.

[Justus2]

I use Corps of Siege infantry for offensive operations, as mentioned above it's nice when a single unit (regiment) can force retreats as you approach the objective, and a siege rgt has enough artillery to be useful in indirect attacks to prep a target while other units get into place. I still used multiple MG Inf Brigades to guard flanks/road network, or deal with rebels, when I want to cover a lot of hexes or be able to easily surround a unit. In my last game, I had saved up the IP and metal/rares for a Mech Assault Corps, until I got to the second screen and saw the fuel cost, which would have exhausted my entire stockpile! [X(] So I used brigades (one armor, one mech) on each front which worked out well for encircling units.

As for advantages, two that haven't been mentioned are leaders and posture strategems. I don't worry too much about using a Junior on an MG Brigade, but for my lead assault forces, I want the best leader and the ability to use an effective posture (Infiltration works well for the Siege corps). If I had an equivalent # of brigades, I don't think I'd have enough posture stragems for all of them, and definitely couldnt count on using Mercs with high combat skills for each bde.

Early on, I found it easier to build siege brigades, and then upgrade them to corps as I had the resources, that way the leader and sub-units can gain some XP, then you fill them out to make the larger attack force. It's especially useful when preparing for a war, you can raise the brigades at a city, then position the brigades on the front line, upgrade them as you invade and within a couple turns (as long as you buy all the replacements) they build their strength as they get closer to the enemy cities.

[Grotius]

I have not yet used anything larger than a brigade, mostly because of manpower limits. Usually it's all I can do to scrape together a brigade. Maybe my population is too small? How big a population should one have before one can start building a corps or army?