[Esben Mose Hansen]

A technique I use (but which would be silly in this case) is to have the melee people guard commanders along the front. This is most effective when the arches are the main force and the troops in front are just blockers/guards, meant to keep chargers away from the archers while they do their thing. The advantages are

1. More clear rounds of fire. Often you gain a round or 2 this way.
2. The resulting combat is closer to your archers/mages (and probably further from the enemies), increasing hit chance

Disadvantages are
1. The melee troops are less effective (no charge, e.g)
2. It can go wrong, ending up with meleers and arches in one big mess.

However, as others have mentioned, if you have strong meleers with weak protection, you job should be to avoid missile fire! Staff of storms is a great solution; 1 or 2 small flankcharging hold-and-attack rear are also nice. Avoid having the meelee group too large to maximize the number of your troops in the front, and charge immediately from the very front. Place the priest right in the groups and have them bless first thing, unless you have access to lv 3 priests.