Mercenary Asian Light Spearmen
Mercenary. Hired from a regional pool, not recruited from a building.
Class: spearmen · Category: infantry · Men per unit: 60
Description
The people of Western Asia are diverse, numerous, and fierce, and have a long tradition in warfare. These men's homes have been ruled by Assyrians, Babylonians, Urartians, Medians, Persians, Macedonians, and now the splinter kingdoms that traipse on these lands make use of these men as an important part of their fighting forces, appearing frequently in the armies of the Parthians, Pontians and Armenians. With good encouragement and support, their spears and shields are all these troops need to hold off infantry and provide time for cavalry to outflank the enemy. That is where these men's strengths lie: either in providing a flexible light infantry force to help protect the vulnerable flanks of heavier troops, or in holding a foe in place so they can be outflanked at some point with chariots, horse archers, cavalry or even elephants.
Stats
| Rank in roster | ||
|---|---|---|
| Men per unit | 60 | █████████· 87% |
| Attack | 5 | █········· 0% |
| Charge bonus | 3 | ██········ 16% |
| Defence | 26 | ███······· 31% |
| · armour | 1 | █········· 0% |
| · defence skill | 22 | ██████···· 60% |
| · shield | 3 | ████······ 37% |
| Morale | 7 | █········· 10% |
| Discipline | Impetuous (may charge without orders) | |
| Training | Untrained | |
| Recruitment cost | 2,220 dn | ██████···· 57% |
| Upkeep per turn | 542 dn | ███······· 26% |
| Turns to recruit | 2 |
Weapons
| Primary | Secondary | Primary | Secondary | Primary | Secondary | Primary | Secondary | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Attack | 5 | — | Charge bonus | 3 | — | Type | melee · blade | — | Damage | piercing | — |
| Properties | Light spear (braced against cavalry charges from the front) · +8 attack against cavalry | — |
Defence
| Primary | Secondary | Primary | Secondary | Primary | Secondary | Primary | Secondary | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 26 | — | Armour | 1 | — | Defence skill | 22 | — | Shield | 3 | — |
Condition and terrain
| Hit points | 1 | Ground: scrub / sand / forest / snow | -2 / 0 / -4 / 0 | Charge distance | 30 | Formations | Square |
Technical stats
| Time between blows (primary / secondary) | 2.5 s / — | Extra fatigue in hot climates | -2 | Collision mass per man (1.0 is normal) | 0.83 | Spacing between men: close / loose | 1 × 1.2 m / 2 × 2.4 m |
| Default ranks | 5 |
In battle: Can hide in long grass · Good stamina
Where to hire it
No mercenary pool on the campaign map offers this unit, so it cannot be hired.