Byrdingr - Eastmen Archers
This transport ship is light and easy to manoeuvre, but almost defenceless if attacked.A rain of arrows can lead the enemy into rash decisions.
For most of history the only way to move cargoes and people over long distances at any kind of reasonable speed was by water; this remained true until the invention of the railway. Trading vessels carried goods, following the coastlines for the most part, and up navigable rivers. The pattern of settlement and colonisation was almost entirely based on where ships could go. It was also considerably easier to move armies by sea than march them long distances. Trade ships were hired or requisitioned for such tasks, and this was an added incentive for generals to reach a quick conclusion to a campaign: war hurt trade, and used up ships needed for vital food supplies.
(Eastmen Archers)
In the centuries following the eighth-century appearance of the first recorded Viking raiders in the Irish Sea, those of the Norse who chose to settle in the region came to be known as the ‘Ostmenn’, or more literally, ‘the men of the east’. This was how the settled Norse-Gaels contrasted themselves from the native Gaels, who they referred to as ‘Vestmen’, unsurprisingly, ‘the men of the west’. Combining local traditions with their own, the Norse-Gaels were culturally distinct from both the Gaels and their Scandinavian forefathers. Their hybridisation of traditions took place against the setting of their coastal defensive strongholds, many of which were the nuclei of the powerful independent kingdoms of later years. Norse-Gaelic powerbases would eventually be established in places like Dublin, Galloway, and Mann, amongst other places.
As with many facets of their culture, the martial traditions of the Norse-Gaels retained both Viking and Gaelic elements. Although archery wasn't considered the most ‘warrior-like’ of practices, it was still a specialisation chosen by some for the purposes of war. The prevalence of hunting and the past presence of stationed Roman archers around Britain meant that it was by no means an unknown discipline, with archer regiment tactics varying between the warring groups of the day. Battles often saw periods of missile volley exchanges before the initial melee engagements, so the skill of the bowmen could really turn the tide of battle, as seen with the success of English longbow regiments of later centuries during the Hundred Years War.
Unit Name Byrdingr - Eastmen Archers |
Main Unit Key shp_est_archers |
Land Unit Key est_archers |
Naval Unit Key vik_byrdingr_mis |
Soldiers 80 |
Category Light Ship |
Class Missile Ship |
Custom Battle Cost 200 |
Recruitment Cost 200 |
Upkeep Cost 50 |
28 |
├ Missile Weapon vik_bow_levy |
├ Projectile vik_bow_levy_normal |
├ Missile Damage 24 |
├ Missile Ap Damage 4 |
└ Base Reload Time 30 |
Accuracy 15 |
Range 150 |
Reload 35 |
Rate of Fire 3 |
Ammunition 14 |
└ Ship vik_byrdingr |
Speed |
Melee Skill 7 |
9 |
├ Melee Weapon vik_dagger |
├ Melee Base Damage 7 |
├ Armour-piercing Damage 2 |
├ Armour Piercing No |
├ Attack Against Cavalry 0 |
├ Attack Against Elephants 0 |
└ Attack Against Infantry 0 |
Charge Bonus 2 |
7 |
├ Base Defence 7 |
├ Shield vik_none |
└ Shield 0 |
7 |
├ Armour vik_cloth_helmet |
├ Armour Defence 7 |
└ Shield Armour 0 |
100 |
├ Man Entity vik_inf_mis_very_light |
├ Man Health 100 |
└ Bonus Hit Points 0 |
Morale 26 |
Abilities
No Ability
Attributes
- [[col:yellow]]Resistant to Fatigue[[/col]]
Fatigue has less of an effect on this unit. - [[col:yellow]]Hide (forest)[[/col]]
This unit can hide in forests until enemy units get too close. - [[col:yellow]]Snipe[[/col]]
This unit remains hidden while firing.
Strengths & Weaknesses
No Strengths and Weaknesses