Egyptian drill built complex maneuvers from tiny standardized unit movements

Evidence

It was in such a manner that the soldiers were trained. Every action, however complex, was broken down into its most basic constituent parts. The soldiers were then trained in how to perform these simple movements in a standard, unified way, and in unison with each other. Only after they had been thoroughly trained in these small units of movement were they allowed to move to more and more complex ones and within larger and larger formations. — Khaled Fahmy, All the Pasha_s Men_ Mehmed Ali, his…, 740