Northymbre Melee Ship

Draca - Sword Hersir

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.

(Sword Hersir)
When the Vikings first set out to pillage the coasts of Europe in the eighth century, those who led the raiding parties were not kings, earls, or jarls, but a lesser rank of war leaders known as hersirs. They were superior warriors who commanded small bands of men, organising them into the shield walls used to defeat the armies that opposed their early incursions into places like Britain. In the Norse context, a hersir was typically an independent landowner or chieftain, but by the tenth century their role had changed into something much less autonomous with many becoming regional military servants of Scandinavian kings and nobles. Many also still gave their military services to earls and jarls as battlefield companions, making them the rough equivalent to the huscarls of the late Anglo-Saxon period.

Being military commanders, hersirs typically donned superior equipment to the men they led on their raids. Many of them strove to master the broadsword, given its unique ability to maim and kill in the right hands. Sword fighting was generally practised by men of status who could afford the costly weapon, with blades commonly passed between generations as symbols of family honour. The dominant types of swords in north-western Europe were the broad-bladed two-edged forms that were up to 90 centimetres long. Most included a pommel on the hilt to keep the sword from slipping out of the hand when used from horseback, and also handy to dish out blunt-force trauma when the situation required it.

Unit Name Draca - Sword Hersir

Main Unit Key shp_dan_sword_hersir

Land Unit Key dan_sword_hersir

Naval Unit Key vik_draca

Soldiers 160

Category Heavy Ship

Class Melee Ship

Custom Battle Cost 700

Recruitment Cost 700

Upkeep Cost 225

Hull Strength

└ Ship vik_draca

Speed

Melee Skill 36

Melee Damage 38

├ Melee Weapon vik_sword

├ Melee Base Damage 32

├ Armour-piercing Damage 6

├ Armour Piercing No

├ Attack Against Cavalry 0

├ Attack Against Elephants 0

└ Attack Against Infantry 0

Charge Bonus 24

Melee Defence 66

├ Base Defence 36

├ Shield vik_medium

└ Shield 30

Armour 27

├ Armour vik_mail_long

├ Armour Defence 27

└ Shield Armour 0

Health 100

├ Man Entity vik_inf_heavy

├ Man Health 100

└ Bonus Hit Points 0

Morale 47

Abilities

• Shield Castle
  "Heads down, lads, things are about to get a little hairy around here!"
  Units cannot move in this formation.

Attributes

• [[col:yellow]]Expert Charge Defence[[/col]]
  This unit’s melee attack and damage are increased against charging enemies.
• [[col:yellow]]Disciplined[[/col]]
  This unit does not suffer a morale penalty when the general dies. It can also rally after routing more often.
• [[col:yellow]]Hide (forest)[[/col]]
  This unit can hide in forests until enemy units get too close.

Strengths & Weaknesses

No Strengths and Weaknesses