Kartli Shock Cavalry

Mkhedroba

Macedonian Companion cavalry, known in Greek as the hetairoi, were the foremost shock troops of their age. Originally formed from the Macedonian nobility, esteemed friends and companions of their kings, these elite horsemen evolved under Philip II and Alexander the Great into a highly disciplined and formidable force with the adoption of the wedge formation that increased not only their manoeuvrability, but also their impact. Eventually their numbers were extended to include not just nobles, but in fact anyone who had been a friend to the king. Early Greek cavalry had been limited to skirmishing scouts and archers, as square formations of heavy cavalry up until this point were difficult to direct and wheel. However, the adoption of the wedge formation enabled the companions to exploit weak points or break the flanks of enemy infantry with precision. To achieve this they were armed with the 'xyston', a fearsome double-ended lance, designed to counter-balance itself and be reversible should one end break, plus a straight sword or curved kopis for close-quarters fighting. Armour took the form of a shaped bronze corselet, with optional greaves, and an open Boeotian helmet, which afforded some protection without hampering vision. The horse itself was unarmoured. The rider sat on a blanket, as neither saddle nor stirrups were used at this time.

Unit Name Mkhedroba

Main Unit Key kar_medium_cav

Land Unit Key kar_medium_cav

Naval Unit Key pel_transport

Soldiers 120

Category Cavalry

Class Shock Cavalry

Custom Battle Cost 2034

Recruitment Cost 2034

Upkeep Cost 407

Melee Attack 36

Weapon Damage 9

├ Melee Weapon lance2

├ Weapon Damage 9

├ Weapon Deadliness 0

├ Armour Piercing No

├ Bonus vs. Cavalry 0

├ Bonus vs. Elephants 0

└ Bonus vs Infantry 2

Charge Bonus 31

Melee Defence 49

├ Base Defence 23

├ Shield cshield2

└ Shield Defence 26

Armour 18

├ Armour carm9

├ Armour Defence 18

└ Shield Armour 0

Health 20

├ Man Entity heavy_heavy

├ Man Health 20

├ Bonus Hit Points 0

├ Mount cataphract_half_horse_colchis

├ Mount Entity rome_horse_spc_cataphract_half

└ Mount Health 0

Base Morale 55

Abilities

• Stamina (average)
  Governs how fast the unit tires and restores fatigue, and is dependent on type of unit, weight and approach to combat.
• Flying Wedge
  The unit assumes a wedge formation that increases charge speed and bonus

Attributes

• Fire Whilst Moving
  This unit can fire when mounted and moving.
• Disciplined
  This unit does not suffer a morale penalty when the general dies. It can also rally after routing more often.
• 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

• Very poor hull strength
• Very slow speed
• Weak ramming

• Very good attack
• Average defence
• Low damage but average armour penetration
• Good morale

Requires Buildings
Lv. 0	Animal Breeder (rom_EASTERN_stables_1) Level 0 Heavy Horse Studs (rom_EASTERN_stables_heavy_2) Level 1 Royal Stables (rom_EASTERN_stables_heavy_3) Level 2
Lv. 1	Nisean Stables (rom_EASTERN_stables_heavy_4) Level 3

Faction Availability
Grand Campaign	Ardhan Kartli
Imperator Augustus	Ardhan (Imperator Augustus) Kartli (Imperator Augustus)