German Infantry Pikeman are elite native infantry of the Polish Commonwealth. Strangely enough, they also work as mercenaries for the Muscovite Tsardom.
Hence their name, these pikemen units are German mercenaries recruited from the Holy Roman Empire. Carrying heavy head and body armor, the German Pikeman is the improved, westernized version of the Polish and Muscovite Pikemen. They are equally matched to the Swedish Pikeman in terms of stats and equipment.
They become available for hire along with the German Infantry Musketeer at Polish or Muscovite fortifications after a Commander and Mercenary Commander have been hired. Regional mercenaries are different from the mercenaries available at Mercenary Camps as they are only available at Polish fortifications and can therefore only be recruited by Polish faction members.
Tactics[]
The German Infantry Pikeman is the best Pikeman Unit that the Polish Commonwealth and Muscovite Tsardom can muster. In terms of stats and equipment, German Pikeman is more efficient on the battlefield than their weaker Polish or Muscovite counterparts. The fact that they carry a morion, breast plate, and leg guards make them more resilient to enemy attacks. Since they carry long pikes, they are very effective at slowing and breaking up cavalry charges. Once the fighting is in melee, German Pikemen can hold their position far better than the Zolniers and Militiamen. They can also be used against infantry as long as they keep formation. Since German Pikemen carry broadswords during sieges, they can be classified as "Heavy Infantry" and are very useful at either attacking or defending fortifications.
In order to use German Pikemen effectively during battle, order them to form 2 or 3 tight columns in front of the Musketeer Units to protect them against charging cavalry or infantry. Placing them on a sloping hill is a good place to keep enemies at bay, but be careful of where you position your pikemen; if they are too close to the Musketeers, they cover their line of fire, but if they are too far to the Musketeers, the cavalry will pass the pikemen and will slaughter your musketeer units.
During sieges, make sure that the Pikemen stay together as they attack or defend enemy fortifications. If you are attacking, make sure the musketeers from a line of fire to protect the besieging pikemen. If you are defending, make sure you stockpile German pikemen units as well as musketeers. Once the battle has started, place your pikemen in tight formation at the bottom of the staircase to counter the large waves of enemies, while the musketeers can shoot them in the flank. Mixing the pikemen with heavy infantry and dismounted melee cavalry will increase their effectiveness at defending the position. If you have an army consisting of German Infantry Musketeers and Pikemen in the battlefield and during sieges, you can bet that they will hold their ground and repulse enemy attacks far better than the alternatives.
Stats and equipment[]
| German Infantry Pikeman - Default Stats and Equipment | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Troops of the Muscovites | ||
|---|---|---|
| Village Recruits |  Staff Militiaman
| |
| Garrison Militia | Lance Militiaman (veteran)
|
 Posad Marksman (veteran)
|
| Regular Infantry | Staff Militiaman Marksman (veteran) Marksman Spearman (veteran)
| |
| Guard Infantry | New Order Marksman (veteran) New Order Spearman (veteran)
| |
| Regular Cavalry |  Armed Serf (veteran)
| |
| Heavy Cavalry | Moscow Reiter (veteran) Gentry Cavalryman (veteran)
| |
| Personal Guard Cavalry |  Noble Guard (veteran)
| |
| Camp Mercenaries (southwest of Moscow) |
Muscovite Mercenary Infantryman (recruit) • (experienced) • (veteran) • (elite) Muscovite Mercenary Rifleman (recruit) • (experienced) • (veteran) • (elite) Muscovite Mercenary Cavalryman (recruit) • (experienced) • (veteran) • (elite)
| |
| Regional Mercenaries (Cherkassk • Izum Fortress) |
Village Cossack (veteran)
| |
| National Mercenaries | Kalmyk (veteran) German Infantry Pikeman (veteran) German Infantry Musketeer (veteran)
| |
| Unrecruitable | Tsar Bodyguard
| |