Wilzi (Age of Charlemagne) Melee Ship

Sagena - Slav Boatmen

The 'sagena' - meaning 'arrow' - and its smaller cousin the 'kondura' were the vessels of choice of the Narentine pirates, Slavic pagans who switched fishing for piracy and the slave trade during the 8th and 9th centuries AD. Probably based on the Nordic drakkar, these ships were long, slender and shallow, which made them considerably faster than the opposition. The sagena could carry up to forty warriors and the kondura half that number. The ability to outrun the Byzantine Roman authorities, coupled with their capture of Papal emissaries on their way to Constantinople in AD870, intimidated them to the point where Emperor Constantine VII ordered a large amount for use in his own fleets. The most famous example to be discovered is the so-called 'Condura Croatica', found buried in the town of Nin in 1966, and dated to the 14th century - indicating that the kondura and sagena were hardy and effective enough to remain in production for many centuries.

(Slav Boatmen)
In the past, naval warfare was just another way for infantry to fight one another. The earliest documented naval battles are those of ancient China, 'grapple and hook' battles where boarding operations and close-quarters combat decided the victor. During the early Middle Ages, the Frankish navy was of no real distinction, yet Charlemagne did maintain a sizeable navy to defend against Viking raids, which was something other kingdoms generally failed to do. At the time, the distinction between fighting on land and at sea was small, yet chiefly a matter of 'sea legs' - maintaining balance whilst toppling your opponent.

Unit Name Sagena - Slav Boatmen

Main Unit Key cha_slav_longship_boatmen

Land Unit Key cha_slav_boatmen

Naval Unit Key cha_sagena

Soldiers 128

Category Light Ship

Class Melee Ship

Custom Battle Cost 500

Recruitment Cost 500

Upkeep Cost 150

Hull Strength 1800

└ Ship att_shp_light_longship_melee

Speed 7

Melee Attack 24

Melee Damage 40

├ Melee Weapon att_spatha

├ Melee Base Damage 36

├ Armour-piercing Damage 4

├ Armour Piercing No

├ Attack Against Cavalry 0

├ Attack Against Elephants 0

└ Attack Against Infantry 0

Charge Bonus 14

Melee Defence 54

├ Base Defence 29

├ Shield cha_round

└ Shield Defence 25

Armour 6

├ Armour cha_cloth

├ Armour Defence 6

└ Shield Armour 0

Health 100

├ Man Entity cha_infantry_medium

├ Man Health 100

└ Bonus Hit Points 0

Morale 36

Abilities

• Douse Fire
  Sacrifice your ship's mobility for a short time to focus effort on putting out the blaze.
• Use the Whip
  Improved defence and fatigue resistance for a short time at the cost of overexertion.

Attributes

• Resistant to Fatigue
  Fatigue has less of an effect on this unit.
• Hide (forest)
  This unit can hide in forests until enemy units get too close.

Strengths & Weaknesses

No Strengths and Weaknesses

Requires Buildings
Lv. 0	Dockyard (cha_bld_port_military_1) Level 1 Shipwright (cha_bld_port_military_2) Level 2

Garrison Buildings
x 1	Dockyard (cha_bld_port_military_1) Level 1 Shipwright (cha_bld_port_military_2) Level 2

Faction Availability
Age of Charlemagne	Bohemia (Age of Charlemagne) Obodrite (Age of Charlemagne) Slavic Rebels (Age of Charlemagne) Slavic Separatists (Age of Charlemagne) Wilzi (Age of Charlemagne)