My army has about 70 Nord infantry, 5 archers, and 20 cavlary (including Companions). In battle, I usually find a hilltop or a tree, hold that position, and then wait for the enemy to come to me. Let's say I'm fighting Rhodoks…
If I order my cavalry to charge before my infantry meets theirs, then the enemy battle line will break a little, and it stops their crossbowmen from firing, but my cavalry just get crushed by the mob.
If I order my cavalry to charge after my infantry meets theirs, then they just ride their horses up to the melee and try to fight alongside my infantry. But their horses get in the way, they don't have the right weapons or armor for melee fighting, and they're just too expensive.
I've also tried ordering my cavalry to follow me while I ride circles around the enemy, but they inevitably drift into the melee and die.
It seems like cavalry are only good for mopping up the runners (assuming they didn't lose their horses or die during the main battle). Am I missing something here? I'd like to use a more complicated strategy, but nothing seems as effective as the Nord Steamroller.
Best Answer
Having a superior archer line and the infantry composition makes a difference in how best to use cavalry.
The enemy has better/more archers, same infantry levels: Go and slaughter the archers, sure your footmen will get more losses to their cavalry, but a freely firing archer line, if they aren't Nords, can be devastating.
Same archers, more infantry: Try joining the fray on the flanks, or even better from the rear. Wherever their infantry faces to deal with, they will be vulnerable from the rear to the rest of your army. In this case fast death dealers (short weapon, nasty swing) will be much more useful.
If they have hard hitting cavalry the best you can do is to engage them with your own. A close matched infantry skirmish can fast become a massacre with a bunch of heavy charging cav with spears, as these tend to keep the enemy -you!- at arms length while their buddies slaughter those who fall down from the initial charge or the impact of horses when things become a giant melee ball. If you send your cav to meet theirs however, your footmen will have more time and chance dealing with their enemy.
If you are Nord, and it sounds like you are, then your guys have slow horses. That means your companions will have to be more active in mopping up the light armored foes. To this end, I'd suggest lance/shield combo, and on your part, constantly looking up where you can strike hard. Your cavalry still should function according to the cases above.