This has been discussed in other threads, but has discussed elements that are not those that I want. What I want to know is how does one evaluate the a-priori probability of victory given the information available? Obviously terrain, weather, morale, experience, fatigue, frontage and the types of units are going to affect the result. But the question is how does one use this knowledge to evaluate the probability of success? Sometimes a 5000 army with an inferior general can beat the crap out of a 10,000 army, and the victory screens do not give any information on WHY? I understand that war is somewhat unpredictable. In other words, say I have a 20,000-man well-balanced army about to attack a similar army (or a 10,000-man army). Can I evaluate the probability of victory without going through a spreadsheet (the manual has tables)?
Another question: in this game, is it useful to use cavalry to scout around to find enemy unit locations and strength as for example the Confederates did in the US Civil War? Or did the Romans keep the cavalry with the legions?