Infantry are a type of line infantry in Napoleon: Total War and The Peninsular Campaign.
Description[]
These musket-armed troops use massed volleys to break an enemy, relying on discipline to withstand counter attacks.
“Marching regiments” or “line battalions” make up the majority of units in most armies. They are so called because they form the line of battle, not because they always deploy in a line. In fact, when faced with a cavalry charge, it is wise to form square for protection. Their strength comes from their close formation which gives them firepower and strength in melee, but this also leaves them vulnerable to artillery and skirmishers.
Historically, these soldiers carried muzzle-loading, smoothbore muskets firing lead balls as wide as a man’s thumb. These were inaccurate weapons, effective only over 200 paces or so. They were usually fired in massed volleys to increase the chance of the target being hit! This also meant that the whole unit was busy reloading at the same time. To counter this, the British Army perfected a kind of continuous rolling barrage called platoon fire. A regiment would divide itself into two halves and fire alternately, so that while one “platoon” (the modern use of the word has a different meaning) was firing, the other was loading.
General Information[]
The confusingly titled Infantry are Portugal's line infantry. They have better morale, reloading and accuracy than default line infantry, and cost only slightly more. This advantage is consistent with other Portuguese infantry, which are generally slightly more expensive but statistically superior.
In The Peninsular Campaign, Great Britain can train these units (titled "Portuguese Infantry" instead) if it takes control of a traditionally Portuguese region. While Portuguese Infantry are statistically inferior to Foot (Great Britain's standard line infantry), they are cheaper, and benefit from several technologies that Foot do not enjoy.