High ground

High ground offers an incredible advantage in medieval battle, since it allows those who hold it to fire arrows further than those on lower ground, and to have the advantage of momentum when charging downhill.

Anyone trying to charge uphill (especially when wearing armour) will be exposed, slowed and quickly tired by the extertion of climbing the slope. The greater the grade of the slope, the more the difficulty. Combined with the advantage to archers and other missile weapons, an attacker can expect heavy casualties even before coming to grips with the enemy and fighting hand-to-hand, when the defender then has the advantage of being able to strike powerfully downward at his opponent's more exposed head and shoulders.