Units Historical View

[Haegemon]

This thread is for those who like know and discuss about game units in true historical meaning.

Footmen
Peasants (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peasants).
Swordsmen. Type of unit. Skilled in the use of swords.
Men at Arms.
Templars (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Templars).
Highlanders. People from Scotish (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scotland)Highlands.
Vikings (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viking).
Normans (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Normans).
Teutonic champions (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Germanic_peoples).
Saracens (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saracen).

Mounted Units
Light Cavalry. Type of unit. Cavalry (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cavalry)
Hobilars. Type of unit. Light horseman armed with knife, sword, and lance. Hobilars were used for reconnoitering, dispatch riders and combat, in which they dismounted to fight with the infantry.
Cataphracts (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cataphracts).
Feudal Knights (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knights).
Boyars (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boyar).
Camel Riders. Type of unit. Cavalry (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cavalry)
Knight and Knights' Own Guards (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knights).
King (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monarch). (The king will have some mouted scort.)

Polearm units
Spearmen. Type of unit. Soldiers who are armed with a spear (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spear).
Halberdiers. Type of unit. Soldiers who are armed with a halberd (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halberd).
Royal guards.

Range units
Archers. Type of unit. Soldiers who use an arch. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arch)
Crossbowmen. Type of unit. Soldiers who use a crossbow. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crossbow)
Longbowmen. Type of unit. Soldiers who use a longbow. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Longbow)

Range mounted units
Horse archers. Type of unit. Riders with archs.
Steppe Horsemen (http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/6992/mongols.html).

Siege equipment
Catapult (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catapult).
Oil Cauldron.
Trebuchet (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trebuchet).
Ballista (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ballista).
Siege Tower (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_tower).
Laddermen. Men with ladders.
Battering Ram (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battering_ram).




Historical facts (maybe) different from game:


*A swordsman is someone skilled with swords, while a man-at-arms it's a soldier.

*Templars were cavalry. No foot troops.

*Crusaders were from western christian realms included the Templar Knights.

*Saracen was a word to describe Sinai Arabs at the beginning, and finally used to describe all muslims.
Invaders from North Africa were Arabs and Bereber hordes.

*Cammel Riders were only in Africa and Middle Est. Arab/beduin also ridded horses. Absolutely they did in Europe.

*Cataphracts were armed with lances, and an additional arm like sword, mace or bow. Nations deploying cataphracts at some time in their history included the Armenians, Byzantines, Parthians, Pergamenes, Romans, Sarmatians, Sassanids, and others.

*Scythians, Huns, Avars, Magyars and Mongols, all were steppe horsemen.

*A Knight and a Feudal Knight it's the same thing. While at the beginning a knight was a warrior on horse-back, and the title became increasingly connected to nobility; feudalism was a legal and political system in which all the aspects of life were centered on "lordship".
Every Knight in middle age was submitted to Feudal system. He had vassals and was a vassal at the same time. Like a noble a Knight was owner of land. Feudal knights.

*Catapult was an evolution from Ballista.

[hulkster225]

Are Boyars actually units in the game? Because if they were really the ruling elites I would wager that they didn't do too much fighting themselves. I'm sure they would rather hire/force other people to do it for them.

[Krum The Terrible]

I can tell you that in the east countries like Bulgaria or Russia boyars are equal to the nobles from west Europe. They own lands
but they also form an elite cavalery squads aka Heavy cavalery. When the king is on the battlefield he is also part of the heavy cavalery.

[Haegemon]

Originally posted by hulkster225
Are Boyars actually units in the game? Because if they were really the ruling elites I would wager that they didn't do too much fighting themselves. I'm sure they would rather hire/force other people to do it for them.


yes, they are in units the game.

[Elewyn]

VBoyars are eastern equivalent of western knights. Do you think that knights didn't fight themselves as you wrote about eastern nobility?
There is also unit called "feudal knights" which actually represent western nobility :)

[Haegemon]

Originally posted by Elewyn
VBoyars are eastern equivalent of western knights. Do you think that knights didn't fight themselves as you wrote about eastern nobility?
There is also unit called "feudal knights" which actually represent western nobility :)

I supose you directs to hulkster225.

Btw we have 2 units "feudal knights" and "knights and his guards", which from my point of view are the same as I wrote.

Only suposition:
"Knights" are the leaders we select in the game and "feudal knights" and boyars are vassals of that leader "knights". But all are nobility, and made a "knight" as unit is the way to represent a nobel leader of other nobels.

[Bagpipe]

Wait... I don't know if there was a similar question before, but, anyway, I'd like to ask...

Don't you think we have an important missing unit in The Game? I mean spearman, well we have such unit, which could be called "light spearman" (or sth like that), with only light armor and no helmet and we have halberdier with heavy armor and ferocious weapon. But IMHO there should be a... in-between unit, with a long spear, heavier armor and helmet. I found many such warriors in Elewyn's given link, and as far as I can remember, in Age of Kings we had following polearm units: 1.Spearman, 2.Pikeman, 3.Halberdier. Maybe names were a bit incorrect there, but I think you understood me.

You know, I was doubting about it, but yesterday I watched "Braveheart" one more time, and saw there many such spearmen in English army:D So... what do you think?

[Emhyr var Emreis]

Yes, I agree that there should be some "medium polearm unit"

[Angryminer]

I just want to throw in a question:
Is a medium polearm-unit essential? Would it add something to the game? Something more important than the loss of overview on the battlefield?

In my opinion not, but I'm not a dev...

Angryminer

[Haegemon]

I don't think so. Btw you can compare yourselves.

Polearms
Bill (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_(weapon)). English infantry used it.
Halberd (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halberd). Used by halberdiers.
Lance (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lance). Used by lancers.
Pike (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pike_(weapon)). Used by pikemen.
Scyte (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scythe). As the fork used by farmers, serfs and peasants.
Spear (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spear). Used by spearmen.
War-hammer (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_hammer). Used by Thor who borrowed it from Odin. :D

[Ixyedam]

I've a question!

A Men at Arms is a improvement version a Swordmen. (as in "Age of Empires II") or are they separate military units?

[Jarlabanke]

A warscyhte differs from a normal sycthe. Anyone having played Shogun and used the Naginatas would know how they look. The blade is exstends straight up from the handle.

[Angryminer]

A Men at Arms is a improvement version a Swordmen. (as in "Age of Empires II") or are they separate military units? No, they are seperate units.

Angryminer

[Haegemon]

Originally posted by Jarlabanke
A warscyhte differs from a normal sycthe. Anyone having played Shogun and used the Naginatas would know how they look. The blade is exstends straight up from the handle.

Normal sycthes were used by civillians, those who worked the land. In the game those units who uses forks.

[Jarlabanke]

Isn't a normal scythe rather useless in battle?

[Angryminer]

It's sharp. So it's better than a stick, I guess.

Angryminer

[Jarlabanke]

:rolleyes:

[Haegemon]

Farmers don't had military weapons, instead they commonly used farming tools. A well balanced scythe can be harmfull cutting arms and legs, and necks.

[Havoc]

farmers have axes too i think they would be better in battle

[d'Honaire]

I think that the Templars should be used for their intended purposea; safeguarding Christian interests in the Holy Land and guarding traveling pilgrims to the Holy Land. :cheers: