I am being continually asked by players that I have been helping with BfME how to keep control of the game and convert this into winning it. My answer to this has always been map control. Map control is the key to staying ahead of your opponents in a game, and ensuring your army is big enough to best theirs. How you use your units to gain map control can decide who wins and who doesn’t. So I took the time to make this short guide to explain the theory behind fighting for map control in a team game, to help out any new players. This is part one of my new guide.
Don’t forget this is the foundation of BfME. All pro players had to learn this the hard way. But hopefully by taking the time to read this guide you can fast track your learning, and pick up some of the fundamental ideas of fighting in a 2vs2. Be sure to watch the replays provided so you can see these ideas in action.
Map Control
The definition of Map Control or "MC"Map control is commonly abbreviated to "MC".
Basically MC is having control of a larger portion of settlements, as well as other outlying expansion plots such as outposts and camps and then guarding them effectively from your opponents so they can’t take them back easily and gain economy from them. MC can also be not being able to advance your units to the opponent’s side of the map which means you can’t harass as easily or make offensive movements.
Three important things to MC Harassment - Harassment - Attacking opponent farms with cavalry, Orcs, pikes or whatever other unit you have at your disposal. Mostly harassment is done with cavalry, which means you have to try and keep your cavalry at your opponents’ side of the map as much as possible. Force the opponent to defend. The more pressure you keep on the opponents’ farms, the less they will be able to retaliate with pressure on your farms.
Good unit counters - You have to use the correct units to make sure that you can keep MC. For example there is no point in making pikes against double Mordor because pikes can’t counter any of Mordor’s units. Work together with your partner to get to provide a counter to everything, and get down opponent farms
Map awareness - Be aware of the map around, and of what is happening on the entire field, making good use of the mini map. If you are FoD (forces of darkness – Isengard or Mordor) you should have laborers hidden in strategic locations around the map to help you predict what the enemy is doing. With FoL (forces of light – Gondor or Rohan) hobbits can be used for the same goal, hidden with Elven Cloak. Again work together with your partner on this. Four eyes can see better than two. If you notice something you think your teammate hasn’t yet, press Ctrl + B to place a beacon to help them out.
