Mercenary Rhodian Slingers
Mercenary. Hired from a regional pool, not recruited from a building.
Class: missile · Category: infantry · Men per unit: 40
Description
These slingers are notorious for their deadly aim and thus both revered and dreaded throughout the Mediterranean world. Equipped with slings made from leather, hemp, or braided flax, they could shoot small lead bullets as far as 400 metres and were able to easily outrange most other missile troops of the time. Xenophon describes their effectiveness during the campaign of the mercenary army known as the "Ten Thousand" through Asia Minor. On their way back to Greece, they were constantly harassed by Persian horse archers and slingers, who remained outside of the range of the Cretan archers. Xenophon had his Rhodian hoplites produce make-shift slings to "sent back an answering volley, and not a man among them missed his mark" (Xen. Anab. 3.4.15). Thanks to their smaller lead bullets the Rhodian slingers could shoot further than the Persians, who were using stones, and forced them to give up the chase.
Stats
| Rank in roster | ||
|---|---|---|
| Men per unit | 40 | ███······· 30% |
| Attack | 8 | █········· 9% |
| Charge bonus | 5 | ███······· 26% |
| Defence | 17 | █········· 12% |
| · armour | 1 | █········· 0% |
| · defence skill | 14 | ██········ 17% |
| · shield | 2 | ███······· 25% |
| Morale | 9 | ███······· 26% |
| Discipline | Normal | |
| Training | Trained | |
| Recruitment cost | 2,712 dn | ████████·· 76% |
| Upkeep per turn | 662 dn | ██████···· 56% |
| Turns to recruit | 3 |
Weapons
| Primary | Secondary | Primary | Secondary | Primary | Secondary | Primary | Secondary | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Attack | 8 | 4 | Charge bonus | 5 | 5 | Type | missile · archery | melee · simple | Damage | blunt | piercing |
| Projectile | lead_bullet | — | Range | 170 | — | Ammunition | 25 | — | Properties | Armour-piercing (counts only half the target's armour) | — |
Defence
| Primary | Secondary | Primary | Secondary | Primary | Secondary | Primary | Secondary | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 17 | — | Armour | 1 | — | Defence skill | 14 | — | Shield | 2 | — |
Condition and terrain
| Hit points | 1 | Ground: scrub / sand / forest / snow | 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 | Charge distance | 30 | Formations | Square |
Technical stats
| Time between blows (primary / secondary) | 2.5 s / 2.5 s | Extra fatigue in hot climates | 0 | Collision mass per man (1.0 is normal) | 0.85 | Spacing between men: close / loose | 1.2 × 2.8 m / 2.16 × 5.04 m |
| Default ranks | 5 |
In battle: Very good stamina
Where to hire it
No mercenary pool on the campaign map offers this unit, so it cannot be hired.