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HomeHome / Total War: Rome II / Rome (Samnite Wars) / Units / Assault Bireme - Auxiliary Arabian Spearmen
Assault Bireme - Auxiliary Arabian Spearmen Rome (Samnite Wars)Rome (Samnite Wars) Melee Ship

Assault Bireme - Auxiliary Arabian Spearmen

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

Silver buys desert guile, and some familiarity with the spear.

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 Arabian Spearmen)
The Arabian Peninsula was not a state, but a land occupied by inter-related tribes and powerful families. The nomadic Bedouin raised sheep and traded goods across the desert, while farmers were settled around the oases. The camel helped the nomadic tribes to grow in power, and the variety among the tribes produced many different fighting styles, but infantry nevertheless remained important in Arab armies. Although unarmoured slingers were fast and effective skirmishers, and Arabs also prided themselves on their close-combat skills. Traditionally, they fought as raiders looking for loot rather than conquest. Raids or 'razzias' brought honour to the victors, as well as the spoils of livestock and goods for their tribes. Conflicts were usually small in scale and casualties were largely avoided, as a fighting retreat in the face of great odds was not considered shameful. After the conquest of Egypt, Rome had to cross the Arabian Peninsula in order to secure the lucrative trade with India, but the Romans never fully conquered the desert or the desert peoples.

Assault Bireme - Auxiliary Arabian Spearmen

Unit Name

Assault Bireme - Auxiliary Arabian Spearmen

Main Unit Key

Aux_Ara_Spr_Two

Land Unit Key

Aux_Ara_Spr

Naval Unit Key

roman_two

Soldiers

60

Category

Light Ship

Class

Melee Ship

Custom Battle Cost

280

Recruitment Cost

280

Upkeep Cost

56

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

49

├ Base Defence

24

├ Shield

oval

└ Shield Defence

25

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 Arabian 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 Arabian Spearmen
  • Good defensive unit
  • Low damage but average armour penetration
  • Average attack
  • Normal morale
Recuitment Requirement
Unit Resouces Auxilia_Arabian
Requires Buildings
Assault Bireme - Auxiliary Arabian 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