Late Praetorian Cohort
Class: heavy · Category: infantry · Men per unit: 40
Reforms: Unlocked by A New Man: Gaius Marius (switched off)
Description
This unit represents the Praetorians from the mid-1st century AD onwards. These soldiers would have been Claudius' and Nero's bodyguards, and would have been involved in the tumultuous Year of the Four Emperors. Subsequently, soldiers such as these would have been the bodyguards of the Flavian and Antonine Emperors. As the dynasties changed, so too did the recruiting among the Praetorians - there is now a higher number of non-Italians in the ranks. Veteran legionaries from Gaul, Spain, and Macedonia now fight among their Italian brethren. Gone by now is the lorica hamata, replaced by the distinctive lorica segmentata, of the Corbridge A type. The bronze Montefortino helmet has been replaced with an iron Imperial Italic Type D helmet with bronze decorations. The gladius is of the Pompeii-type, which has no tapering edges. Note that now only one belt is worn, to which the pugio is attached - the scabbard of the gladius now attached to a baldric slung over the left shoulder so that the gladius hangs on the right side of the body, as was conventional in the Roman Army. Evidence of various kinds of scutum (both ovoid and rectangular cylindrical) is available for the period, and the Praetorians would also have their two pila just as normal legionaries would.
Stats
| Rank in roster | ||
|---|---|---|
| Men per unit | 40 | ███······· 30% |
| Attack | 19 | █████████· 92% |
| Charge bonus | 12 | ████······ 42% |
| Defence | 51 | ██████████ 95% |
| · armour | 16 | █████████· 90% |
| · defence skill | 28 | █████████· 87% |
| · shield | 7 | █████████· 91% |
| Morale | 13 | ███████··· 70% |
| Discipline | Normal | |
| Training | Highly trained | |
| Recruitment cost | 1,908 dn | ████······ 44% |
| Upkeep per turn | 698 dn | ███████··· 65% |
| Turns to recruit | 4 |
Weapons
| Primary | Secondary | Primary | Secondary | Primary | Secondary | Primary | Secondary | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Attack | 19 | 10 | Charge bonus | 12 | 13 | Type | thrown · blade | melee · blade | Damage | piercing | piercing |
| Projectile | pilum_imperial | — | Range | 40 | — | Ammunition | 1 | — | Properties | Armour-piercing (counts only half the target's armour) · used just before charging into combat | — |
Defence
| Primary | Secondary | Primary | Secondary | Primary | Secondary | Primary | Secondary | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 51 | — | Armour | 16 | — | Defence skill | 28 | — | Shield | 7 | — |
Condition and terrain
| Hit points | 1 | Ground: scrub / sand / forest / snow | 0 / -2 / 0 / -2 | Charge distance | 30 | Formations | Square · Testudo |
Technical stats
| Time between blows (primary / secondary) | 2.5 s / 2.5 s | Extra fatigue in hot climates | 5 | Collision mass per man (1.0 is normal) | 1.41 | Spacing between men: close / loose | 1 × 1.2 m / 2 × 2.4 m |
| Default ranks | 5 |
In battle: Can sap · Very good stamina
Who can recruit it
No building recruits this unit: every route to it needs A New Man: Gaius Marius, a reform that is switched off in this version.