Avars (Age of Charlemagne) Melee Ship

Sagena - Avar Heavy 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.

(Avar Heavy 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 - Avar Heavy Boatmen

Main Unit Key cha_avar_longship_heavy_boatmen

Land Unit Key cha_avar_heavy_boatmen

Naval Unit Key cha_sagena

Soldiers 128

Category Light Ship

Class Melee Ship

Custom Battle Cost 600

Recruitment Cost 600

Upkeep Cost 180

Hull Strength 1800

└ Ship att_shp_light_longship_melee

Speed 7

Melee Attack 49

Melee Damage 32

├ Melee Weapon att_spear

├ Melee Base Damage 24

├ Armour-piercing Damage 8

├ Armour Piercing No

├ Attack Against Cavalry 20

├ Attack Against Elephants 20

└ Attack Against Infantry 0

Charge Bonus 35

Melee Defence 36

├ Base Defence 11

├ Shield cha_round

└ Shield Defence 25

Armour 46

├ Armour cha_mail

├ Armour Defence 46

└ Shield Armour 0

Health 100

├ Man Entity cha_infantry_heavy

├ Man Health 100

└ Bonus Hit Points 0

Morale 43

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

• Hide (forest)
  This unit can hide in forests until enemy units get too close.

Strengths & Weaknesses

No Strengths and Weaknesses

Requires Buildings
Lv. 0	Shipwright (cha_bld_port_military_2) Level 2

Garrison Buildings
x 1	Shipwright (cha_bld_port_military_2) Level 2

Faction Availability
Age of Charlemagne	Avars (Age of Charlemagne) Avar Rebels (Age of Charlemagne) Nomad Separatists (Age of Charlemagne) Avar Separatists (Age of Charlemagne)