So i still havnt been able to get the game but ive been so caught up in rome: total war and i know that its a totally different game when it comes to the battle map. Usually in Rome i play as the Selecude empire or The Greek Cities and use a hammer and anvil tactic. I take my hopitalite infanry and form a main battle line, then lure the enemy to them with archers/horse missle units. Then once the enemy engages my hoplites, i send fast moving infantry and calvalry in to the rear of their army, the hammer being calvalry/infantry, the anvil being a wall of spears. I usually alter the tactic depending on what the enemy does but thats how the battles usually turn out when im against enemy A.I.

But i know that Empire: total war is completely different with the introduction of firearms so i know my tactics are completely useless on a much more advanced battlefied. So i was wondering what are some good tactics that i could use since i have no idea how to fight those kinds of battles found in Empire: total war.

I have been using some similar tactics in Empire that has been working pretty well. Basically you have your general firing line of infantry and cavalry fill those same roles.  Try to keep your infantry behind whatever walls are available to minimize losses and gain the upper hand in the battle.  Once you have your infantry line firing you can circle your cavalry around to the back and attack from behind.  Then order your infantry to do a bayonet charge to surround as much of your enemy as possible.  Just keep an eye on the terrain and keep an eye on your flanks and you should be fine.

Also, you get dragoons pretty early (at least I did, may change depending on what nation you start as) which are units on horseback that can dismount and then act like regular infantry.  Very handy for quickly dropping some muskets behind enemy lines or getting some much needed back up to a  unit in serious trouble.

If your like me though your probably gonna get frustrated trying to wrap your head around the differences between muskets and swords.  Most of my early fights ended with me resorting back to a Rome style rush the enemy and hope for the best.  After some fights though you start to figure it out.

Here's some counter-flanking maneuvers I found to work out against the normal AI and even a multiplayer match:

It helps to place a heavy cavalry unit on each side of your flanks, this not only opens up a quick flanking maneuver for you but also helps fend off enemy cavalry attacks on your own flanks. Also, don't forget about your canons behind your lines, a well placed canon ball can rout a cavalry charge. Keep an eye on your enemy's cavalry, if he's rushing towards one side of your line, use any free infantry to break from the battle line and form a protective L on the side of your line. This will help prevent the charge from breaking through into the rear of your lines and allow some time for you to reposition and reinforce. If he bypasses your flank and is running a muck behind your lines, pin him down with a free cavalry unit, then move in with a bayonet charge to reinforce.

I'm all good when it comes to ground combat (calvary for the win!), but the sea combat is killing me!

I usually get my ships in a straight nice line and can get them to shoot off one wave of cannon shots, but trying to get the ships to circle back to the enemies is just a pain. Part of this has to do with pathfinding issues but, regardless my naval battles usually just end up in chaotic groups of ships.

"I'm all good when it comes to ground combat (calvary for the win!), but the sea combat is killing me! I usually get my ships in a straight nice line and can get them to shoot off one wave of cannon shots, but trying to get the ships to circle back to the enemies is just a pain. Part of this has to do with pathfinding issues but, regardless my naval battles usually just end up in chaotic groups of ships."

So ive found a really good strategy that works really well against the enemy AI, ive yet to test it out online yet but im sure it will still be pretty effective.

First i take light infantry/militia (totally stole this from The Patriot btw) and put them out as the front line, then i take two line infantry units and put them slightly behind and to either side of the militia, then i take the rest of my line infantry and put them to the very rear of my army along with any calvalry that i might have. When the enemy marches towards me i weaken down the middle of their army with artillery, then when they close in on my militia, i have my miltia fire a few shots then i withdraw them behind the line infantry to the rear, the two units i put on either side of my miltia stay put, then once they try and confront my line infantry to the rear, i send my calvalry in to their rear and order all of my troops to charge, their entire army is then surrounded and almost no one survives. Almost always works as long as i have at least two cavalry units.

One of the best things you can do in Empire is to research Fire by Rank.  Your units fire so much faster it's not even funny.  If you rush to the Fire by Rank tech you can have a significant advantage over even more developed nations for a long time.

"One of the best things you can do in Empire is to research Fire by Rank.  Your units fire so much faster it's not even funny.  If you rush to the Fire by Rank tech you can have a significant advantage over even more developed nations for a long time.

Also putting a couple of light infantry units that can hide on your flanks (such as Rangers) can do worlds of good.  As they hide and the enemy can't see them they tend to send a unit of 2 of cavalry around the flank to weaken your lines or get a rush on your artillery and the highly accurate light infantry units can make a big mess of them.

"

I've been doing a lot of strong main line, artillery support, and calvary protecting flanks. Behind the strong line I have long range riflemen for fire support. Also I do a lot of middle line calvary charges. The enemy doesn't really prepare for that. When all hell has broken loose on the line, my strong front line pushes forward breaking their center.