Parthia Melee Ship

Assault Hexeres - Pontic Swordsmen

These magnificent ships are both intimidating and extremely dangerous.

A volley of javelins announces these men; their swords eloquently make a general's point.

As centuries passed, naval tactics and needs changed across the Mediterranean. There was a move towards larger ships, partly as an expression of national or dynastic power: the Ptolemaic rulers of Egypt were particularly fond of large ships to show their wealth and influence in a physical way. These 'polyremes', a term meaning many oared, were not suitable for ramming work in battle. In practice many of them had no more oars than smaller ships; what they had were more rowers per oar than smaller ships. A Roman hexareme or Greek hexeres would have a couple of banks of oars with three men per oar, and appear to be an over-sized version of a smaller ship. Even so, thanks to being tremendously heavy and strongly constructed, they were slow moving, and hardly capable of the quick turns needed to take advantage of enemy mistakes. Instead the large ships made use of their wide decks and plentiful carrying capacities and became fighting platforms for infantry and artillery. Boarding or long-range bombardment were the methods to be used to defeat the enemy; naval warfare had come full circle in terms of fighting methods, even if ships had grown significantly.

(Pontic Swordsmen)
Employing Celtic shortswords or the xiphos, with its very similar blade-shape, these heavily-armoured elite swordsmen acted as frontline and shock infantry in Pontic armies. Garbed in scale armour and carrying thureos shields, they were equipped with javelins in addition to their swords. When charging or receiving a charge, they would throw their javelins at close range, draw their swords and attack before their enemy had chance to recover. This has led to them being referred to as imitation legionaries and the suggestion that they copied the fighting style of the Roman Legions. Over the course of the three Mithridatic Wars, waged between Pontus and Rome from 88-63BC, there was certainly time to recruit and reorganise the Pontic army on the Roman model. However, such infantry may equally have developed under the influence of the Celtic Galatian settlers or the Hellenic thorakitai, a more heavily armoured form of thureophoroi. Whatever the case, Pontic swordsmen were well disciplined and equipped, and highly effective in battle.

Abilities

Assault Hexeres

• Row Hard 30
  Increases speed for 30 strokes.
  Ship speed

Pontic Swordsmen

• Shieldwall
  The unit moves into a close formation and raises shields.
  Armour strength, bracing, melee defence, shield strength
  Limited speed

Attributes

• Disciplined
  This unit does not suffer a morale penalty when the general dies. It can also rally after routing more often.
• Formation Attack
  The unit will try to stay in formation when in melee.
• 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 Hexeres

• Very good hull strength
• Heavy crew
• Slow speed
• Strong ramming
• Very good boarding

Pontic Swordsmen

• Good attack
• Average defence
• Average damage but low armour penetration
• Normal morale

Parthia Units
General (2)
1.Noble Horse Archers
2.Royal Cataphracts
Melee Infantry (3)
3.Hillmen
4.Mob
5.Parthian Swordsmen
Missile Infantry (5)
6.Elite Persian Archers
7.Eastern Javelinmen
8.Parthian Foot Archers
9.Persian Light Archers
10.Eastern Slingers
Spear Infantry (2)
11.Persian Hoplites
12.Eastern Spearmen
Melee Cavalry (3)
13.Camel Spearmen
14.Median Cavalry
15.Noble Blood Cavalry
Missile Cavalry (5)
16.Camel Archers
17.Armoured Horse Archers
18.Horse Skirmishers
19.Noble Horse Archers
20.Parthian Horse Archers
Shock Cavalry (3)
21.Camel Cataphracts
22.Eastern Cataphracts
23.Royal Cataphracts
Elephant (1)
24.Indian War Elephants
Fixed Artillery (3)
25.Eastern Giant Ballista
26.Eastern Bastion Scorpion
27.Eastern Scorpion (Fixed)
Field Artillery (7)
28.Eastern Bastion Ballista
29.Eastern Ballista
30.Eastern Scorpion
31.Eastern Large Onager
32.Eastern Bastion Onager
33.Eastern Onager
34.Scorpion Pot Ballista
Admiral (2)
35.Light Artillery Penteres - Eastern Ballista (Ship)
36.Tower Hexeres - Hillmen
Melee Ship (5)
37.Tower Hexeres - Hillmen
38.Assault Hexeres - Hillmen
39.Assault Tetreres - Hillmen
40.Fire Pot Dieres - Eastern Spearmen
41.Assault Dieres - Eastern Spearmen
Missile Ship (7)
42.Raiding Hemiolia - Eastern Javelinmen
43.Scorpion Trieres - Parthian Foot Archers
44.Missile Trieres - Parthian Foot Archers
45.Scorpion Penteres - Persian Light Archers
46.Tower Penteres - Persian Light Archers
47.Missile Penteres - Persian Light Archers
48.Pursuit Trihemiolia - Eastern Slingers
Artillery Ship (2)
49.Light Artillery Penteres - Eastern Ballista (Ship)
50.Artillery Penteres - Eastern Onager (Ship)