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Assault Bireme - Auxiliary Sabaean Spearmen Rome (Samnite Wars)Rome (Samnite Wars) Melee Ship

Assault Bireme - Auxiliary Sabaean Spearmen

With a ramming attack that can break an enemy hull, these ships are deadly weapons.

A man at home in the desert has his uses.

The waterline ram was first mounted on a vessel in around 850BC. Warships and naval tactics were transformed. Ships were no longer platforms for infantry battles on the water; the ship itself became the weapon. Galleys changed as the new reality sank in. Ramming at speed would hole and sink an enemy, therefore slimmer, faster, handier ships were required. More speed on demand obviously required more oars a fast ship with a single row of oars ended up being stupidly, impractically long. The solution, then, was to put in a second set of oars above the first, but slightly offset to allow for rowers' benches. These biremes, a Latin word meaning 'two oars', or dieres, the Greek equivalent, were no longer than previous designs but had twice the number of rowers. They were fast, manoeuvrable, and could carry a fighting contingent. Some nations also gave their bireme crews fire pots; these clay pots filled with oil and pitch were hurled at enemy ships in the entirely reasonable hope of setting them ablaze.

(Auxiliary Sabaean Spearmen)
The warriors of the Sabaean region were light infantry, cavalry and archers as mercenaries and auxiliaries for the Roman Empire. Dressed desert-fashion, they were entirely familiar with and comfortable in arid places. This was secondary however, to their reputation as mostly reliable fighters, of far more worth than ordinary citizens or levies. This was due to the independence that the Sabaean kingdom maintained from the 8th century BC to AD275. This record was based on military might as well as diplomacy and the spice trade including frankincense and myrrh. Never conquered by Rome, Sabaean warriors still found work as mercenaries and auxiliaries in Roman service.

Assault Bireme - Auxiliary Sabaean Spearmen

Unit Name

Assault Bireme - Auxiliary Sabaean Spearmen

Main Unit Key

Aux_Afr_Spr_Two

Land Unit Key

Aux_Afr_Spr

Naval Unit Key

roman_two

Soldiers

60

Category

Light Ship

Class

Melee Ship

Custom Battle Cost

230

Recruitment Cost

230

Upkeep Cost

46

Ship Health

501

└ Ship

roman_two

Ship Speed

6

Melee Attack

13

Weapon Damage

25

├ Melee Weapon

rome_spear

├ Melee Damage Base

20

├ Melee Damage Ap

5

├ Armour Piercing

No

├ Bonus vs. Large

20

├ Bonus vs Elephants

20

└ Bonus vs Infantry

0

Charge Bonus

11

Melee Defence

34

├ Base Defence

24

├ Shield

tower

└ Shield Defence

10

Armour

45

├ Armour

cloth

├ Armour Defence

10

└ Shield Armour

35

Health

45

├ Man Entity

rome_infantry_medium

├ Man Health

40

└ Bonus Hit Points

5

Base Morale

30

Abilities

Assault Bireme
  • Row Hard 10
    Increases speed for 10 strokes.
    Ship speed
Auxiliary Sabaean Spearmen
  • Square
    The unit moves into a close square formation.
    Bracing, morale, melee defence
    Can't move

Attributes

  • Hide (forest)
    This unit can hide in forests until enemy units get too close.
  • Resistant to Heat
    This unit tires less quickly in the desert.

Strengths & Weaknesses

Assault Bireme
  • Very poor hull strength
  • Very light crew
  • Fast speed
  • Weak ramming
  • Good boarding
Auxiliary Sabaean Spearmen
  • Good defensive unit
  • Low damage but average armour penetration
  • Average attack
  • Normal morale
Recuitment Requirement
Unit Resouces Auxilia_Sabaean
Requires Buildings
Assault Bireme - Auxiliary Sabaean Spearmen Lv. 0 Shipwright
Shipwright
(rome_port_patrol_2)
Level 1
Docks
Docks
(rome_port_patrol_3)
Level 2
Coastal Patrol
Coastal Patrol
(rome_port_patrol_4)
Level 3