


Assault Bireme - Auxiliary Arabian Spearmen
With a ramming attack that can break an enemy hull, these ships are deadly weapons.Silver buys desert guile, and some familiarity with the spear.
The waterline ram was first mounted on a vessel in around 850BC. Warships and naval tactics were transformed. Ships were no longer platforms for infantry battles on the water; the ship itself became the weapon. Galleys changed as the new reality sank in. Ramming at speed would hole and sink an enemy, therefore slimmer, faster, handier ships were required. More speed on demand obviously required more oars a fast ship with a single row of oars ended up being stupidly, impractically long. The solution, then, was to put in a second set of oars above the first, but slightly offset to allow for rowers' benches. These biremes, a Latin word meaning 'two oars', or dieres, the Greek equivalent, were no longer than previous designs but had twice the number of rowers. They were fast, manoeuvrable, and could carry a fighting contingent. Some nations also gave their bireme crews fire pots; these clay pots filled with oil and pitch were hurled at enemy ships in the entirely reasonable hope of setting them ablaze.
(Auxiliary Arabian Spearmen)
The Arabian Peninsula was not a state, but a land occupied by inter-related tribes and powerful families. The nomadic Bedouin raised sheep and traded goods across the desert, while farmers were settled around the oases. The camel helped the nomadic tribes to grow in power, and the variety among the tribes produced many different fighting styles, but infantry nevertheless remained important in Arab armies. Although unarmoured slingers were fast and effective skirmishers, and Arabs also prided themselves on their close-combat skills. Traditionally, they fought as raiders looking for loot rather than conquest. Raids or 'razzias' brought honour to the victors, as well as the spoils of livestock and goods for their tribes. Conflicts were usually small in scale and casualties were largely avoided, as a fighting retreat in the face of great odds was not considered shameful. After the conquest of Egypt, Rome had to cross the Arabian Peninsula in order to secure the lucrative trade with India, but the Romans never fully conquered the desert or the desert peoples.
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Unit Name Assault Bireme - Auxiliary Arabian Spearmen |
Main Unit Key 3c_Aux_Ara_Assault_Bireme |
Land Unit Key 3c_Aux_Arabian_Spearmen |
Naval Unit Key 3c_roman_two |
Soldiers 60 |
Category Light Ship |
Class Melee Ship |
Custom Battle Cost 320 |
Recruitment Cost 320 |
Upkeep Cost 65 |
Ship Health 501 |
└ Ship roman_two |
Ship Speed 6 |
Melee Attack 13 |
Weapon Damage 25 |
├ Melee Weapon rome_spear |
├ Melee Damage Base 20 |
├ Melee Damage Ap 5 |
├ Armour Piercing No |
├ Bonus vs. Large 20 |
├ Bonus vs Elephants 20 |
└ Bonus vs Infantry 0 |
Charge Bonus 11 |
Melee Defence 49 |
├ Base Defence 24 |
├ Shield oval |
└ Shield Defence 25 |
Armour 45 |
├ Armour cloth |
├ Armour Defence 10 |
└ Shield Armour 35 |
Health 45 |
├ Man Entity rome_infantry_medium |
├ Man Health 40 |
└ Bonus Hit Points 5 |
Base Morale 30 |
Abilities
Assault Bireme- Row Hard 10
Increases speed for 10 strokes.
Ship speed
Attributes
- Hide (forest)
This unit can hide in forests until enemy units get too close. - Resistant to Heat
This unit tires less quickly in the desert.
Strengths & Weaknesses
Assault Bireme- Very poor hull strength
- Very light crew
- Fast speed
- Weak ramming
- Good boarding
- Average defensive unit
- Low damage but average armour penetration
- Weak attack
- Poor morale
Recuitment Requirement | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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Unit Resouces | 3c_Arabian_Auxilia | |||||||||||||||||||||
Empire Divided Regions
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Requires Buildings | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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Military Wharf
(3c_rome_port_military_2) Level 1 ![]()
Drydock
(3c_rome_port_military_3) Level 2 ![]()
Portus Classis
(3c_rome_port_military_4) Level 3 |
Faction Availability | |
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Empire Divided |


























































































































































































