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HomeHome / Total War SAGA: Thrones of Britannia / Gwined / Units / Longbowmen
Longbowmen GwinedGwined Missile Infantry

Longbowmen

Few other weapons can propel an arrow a hand’s width into an oak door.

Long before the prominence of archers as staple regiments in the English army during the Hundred Years' War, there had already been an extensive tradition of archery in Wales. The historical record relates that in AD 633, five centuries before its earliest known use by the English, a Welsh longbow was used to kill Prince Edwin of Northumbria in a confrontation with the army of King Cadwallon of Gwined. Early Welsh bows were constructed from wych elm, as opposed to yew or horn used in the English adaptations which came later, and designed not for distance but to inflict severe wounds in close quarters. This was suited to a landscape in which the main fighting tactic was a quick charge followed by a feigned retreat into the woods, with the intention being to trap pursuers in a lethal short-range ambush.

Welsh longbows required considerable training to operate, but were far more powerful than any other ranged weapons of the era. As the historian Gerald of Wales put it, their arrows could penetrate ‘a hand’s width into an oak door’, ‘through a man’s armour and thigh, into his horse’, and ‘through an armoured horseman’s hip into his saddle’. The aptitude of the Welsh archers in ranged warfare was also reflected by the obvious difficulty in mastering the later longbows they became known for. They were highly unwieldy weapons, bulky but capable of a draw-weight exceeding 50 kg. In fact, archaeological finds of skeletons belonging to longbow archers almost always show recognisable deformations, with enlarged arms and bone spurs commonly seen on the wrists, shoulders, and fingers.

Longbowmen

Unit Name

Longbowmen

Main Unit Key

wel_longbowmen

Land Unit Key

wel_longbowmen

Naval Unit Key

vik_corwg_mis

Soldiers

80

Category

Missile Infantry

Class

Missile Infantry

Custom Battle Cost

350

Recruitment Cost

350

Upkeep Cost

70

Missile Damage

36

├ Missile Weapon

vik_longbow

├ Projectile

vik_longbow_normal

├ Missile Damage

26

├ Missile Ap Damage

10

└ Base Reload Time

30

Accuracy

25

Range

170

Reload

65

Rate of Fire

6

Ammunition

14

Melee Skill

8

Melee Damage

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

Melee Defence

8

├ Base Defence

8

├ Shield

vik_none

└ Shield

0

Armour

7

├ Armour

vik_cloth_helmet

├ Armour Defence

7

└ Shield Armour

0

Health

100

├ Man Entity

vik_inf_mis_med

├ Man Health

100

└ Bonus Hit Points

0

Morale

30

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]]Ignore Terrain[[/col]]
    Speed penalties caused by the terrain are ignored by this unit.
  • [[col:yellow]]Snipe[[/col]]
    This unit remains hidden while firing.

Strengths & Weaknesses

No Strengths and Weaknesses
Recuitment Requirement
Required Technology Trained Skirmishers Cost 150 Upgrade From Welsh Archers
Garrison Buildings
Longbowmen x 1 Patrols
Patrols
(vik_garrison_1)
Level 0
Long Hall
Long Hall
(vik_great_hall_1)
Level 0
Ship Camp
Ship Camp
(vik_longphort_1)
Level 0
Trading Post
Trading Post
(vik_market_1)
Level 0
Monastic Community
Monastic Community
(vik_monastery_1)
Level 0
Long Hall of the Mountain
Long Hall of the Mountain
(vik_mountain_hall_1)
Level 0
Offa's Hall
Offa's Hall
(vik_offas_hall_1)
Level 0
Rock of Caisil
Rock of Caisil
(vik_rock_caisil_1)
Level 0
Church of St Ciaran
Church of St Ciaran
(vik_st_ciaran_1)
Level 0
Church of St Columbe
Church of St Columbe
(vik_st_columbe_1)
Level 0
Church of St Patraic
Church of St Patraic
(vik_st_patraic_1)
Level 0