There's plenty of finesse to be seen throughout the era.

• At Hastings in 1066, William the Conqueror used cavalry feints to thin out the English shield wall and ordered his archers to fire at a higher angle knowing that tired soldiers would struggle to hold their shields high enough to protect themselves.

• At Bouvines in 1214, Phillip II secured a French victory over a pursuing allied Rebel, English and German force by choosing the right moment to fight, preventing his enemies from grouping together and defeating each contingent individually.

• At Leignitz in 1241, the Mongols used the mobility of light cavalry to harass and outflank their Hungarian opponents before using a smokescreen to hide the advance of their heavy cavalry and surprise the Hungarian tactical reserve.

• At Bannockburn in 1315, Robert the Bruce chose his ground very carefully in order to prevent the English army from concentrating its force effectively.

• Ahead of the battle of Najera in 1367, both sides manoeuvered across open ground in attempts to outflank each other and the battle itself was decided partly by an unusual cavalry manouevre against the Spanish left flank. Attacks against this side were typically avoided because this was the side on which soldiers held their shields.

In terms of supporting units, all successful medieval armies developed effective ways of allowing units to support each other effectively. Whether its the English combination of men-at-arms and longbowmen, the Mongol use of heavy and light cavalry or Crusader armies combining spearmen and crossbowmen in a fashion similar to the pike and musket formations of the 16^th Century, medieval generals knew that battles could not be won if any section of their army was unsupported.

A good reference for this sort of thing is Bennett et al's Fighting Techniques of the Medieval World, which is surprisingly well researched and detailed for a book which also has lots of lovely pictures in it!