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HomeHome / Total War: Attila / Kingdom of Mercia (Age of Charlemagne) / Units / Select Axemen
Select Axemen Kingdom of Mercia (Age of Charlemagne)Kingdom of Mercia (Age of Charlemagne) Melee Infantry

Select Axemen

Picked precisely for their axe skills, you don't want to meet these men on the battlefield.

The 'fyrd' was, in the simplest terms, a levy of ordinary farmers - 'freemen', in the parlance of the times, meaning those not tied to a lord as vassals. The infrequent but bloody struggles between the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms during the early Middle Ages, and the Viking threat that followed, meant that the process of levying troops to fight was still necessary. If people are fighting for their very homes and livelihoods - not just a distant figurehead of a monarch - they tend to have a sense of purpose and urgency. Courage can come later, bolstered by massed ranks in the mean time, as can proficiency - there was rarely much time set aside for training amateurs before a battle. Originally, every able man was recruited to fight but this revealed a flaw in that if a war or struggle became protracted, or if too many people died, then there would be nobody to work the fields at its conclusion. To this end, the Anglo-Saxons developed what we now call the "select" system, where only those deemed most able would be chosen to join the fyrd. The remainder would stay at work, creating a surplus of provisions and equipment for both the marching army and those left behind in order to sustain the realm and improve the army's chances of victory. In practice, the majority of men were not levied, so many were expected to service the war machine in other practical ways. The fyrd were called upon on many occasions during the years of the Viking invasions, most famously to fight the Norwegian king Harold Hardrada at the Battle of Stamford Bridge in 1066, just weeks before the cataclysmic Saxon defeat at Hastings.

Select Axemen

Unit Name

Select Axemen

Main Unit Key

cha_eng_select_axemen

Land Unit Key

cha_eng_select_axemen

Naval Unit Key

cha_longship_transport

Soldiers

160

Category

Melee Infantry

Class

Melee Infantry

Custom Battle Cost

350

Recruitment Cost

350

Upkeep Cost

105

Melee Attack

41

Melee Damage

32

├ Melee Weapon

cha_axe

├ Melee Base Damage

12

├ Armour-piercing Damage

20

├ Armour Piercing

No

├ Attack Against Cavalry

0

├ Attack Against Elephants

0

└ Attack Against Infantry

0

Charge Bonus

32

Melee Defence

30

├ Base Defence

5

├ Shield

cha_round

└ Shield Defence

25

Armour

10

├ Armour

cha_cloth_helmet

├ Armour Defence

10

└ Shield Armour

0

Health

100

├ Man Entity

cha_infantry_medium

├ Man Health

100

└ Bonus Hit Points

0

Morale

36

Abilities

Select Axemen
  • Shield Wall
    The unit moves into a close formation and raises shields.

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
Recuitment Requirement
Required Technology Select Fyrd Cost 100 Upgrade From Fyrd Axemen
Garrison Buildings
Select Axemen x 1 Muster Hall
Muster Hall
(cha_bld_barracks_1)
Level 0
Barracks
Barracks
(cha_bld_barracks_2)
Level 1
Garrison Encampment
Garrison Encampment
(cha_bld_garrison_2)
Level 1
Garrison Quarters
Garrison Quarters
(cha_bld_garrison_3)
Level 2
Select Axemen x 2 Royal Barracks
Royal Barracks
(cha_bld_barracks_3)
Level 2