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HomeHome / Divide et Impera / Basileioi Skythai / Units / Trieres - Saka Tapabara
Trieres - Saka Tapabara Basileioi SkythaiBasileioi Skythai Melee Ship

Trieres - Saka Tapabara

A trireme is a 37 meter long oared warship (galley) with three decks of oars, developed from the bireme in the 5th century BCE. Popular with Carthaginian, Greek and Roman navies, this is the main warship of the classical age.

(Saka Axemen)

In addition to their iron sagaris axes, these warriors carry fire-hardened javelins. For protection, they carry square reed shields reinforced with leather, which, though light, are very resistant to missiles. They are best used for flanking already engaged foes or as lightly armoured shock troops, but if tied up in a lengthy melee against more organised or professional enemy warriors, they will soon break and flee.

Of all the warships found in the ancient world, it is the trireme, or trieres, that remains the most famous and recognisable. Nearly all Hollywood 'sword and sandal' movies will include a trireme somewhere. The vessel was entirely designed for war. Its name came from the three rows of oars carried on each side, stacked above each other in staggered columns to give the rowers some room to work. The top row of oars pivoted on a rowlock, or oarlock, mounted on an outrigger projecting from the hull. This allowed the top oars to pitch down at a sharper angle to reach the sea without getting tangled in the lower ones. The trireme was a greyhound of a ship, capable of high-speed dashes with a well-trained crew and, contrary to popular belief, not all rowers were slaves. Aboard Greek vessels they were citizens, and were given respect, not the lash. They were also largely fair-weather ships, and unsuited to rough seas such as the Atlantic; the lowest level of oars were, at most, less than half a metre above the waterline. That, however, did not stop the trireme being a superb weapon against other ships: a high-speed ramming attack could rip a hole in the side of almost any target. The type was also large enough to be used in other ways, which lead to it carrying archers and assorted light artillery pieces.

(Saka Tapabara)
Far from being simple, ignorant barbarians, the various steppe tribes had a great cultural wealth. Living in an area stretching from the Caspian Sea to the northern shores of the Black Sea; the Greeks called them 'Scythians' and the Persians 'Saka', while a western group became known as the Sarmatians. Wearing trousers marked them as barbarians as far as the Greeks were concerned, before their tall, pointed caps and swarthy appearances were even considered. Looks apart, they were, however, exceptional horsemen, highly-skilled with composite-recurve bows and deadly hand-to-hand fighters. Grave goods suggest that Scythian women were as warlike as their men, and probably fought alongside them in battle. This may well be the origin of the Greek myths of Amazon warrior women.

Trieres - Saka Tapabara

Unit Name

Trieres - Saka Tapabara

Main Unit Key

Bar_Assault_Trireme_Nomad

Land Unit Key

Bar_Marine_Nomad

Naval Unit Key

greek_three

Soldiers

80

Category

Medium Ship

Class

Melee Ship

Custom Battle Cost

1188

Recruitment Cost

1188

Upkeep Cost

297

Missile Damage

11

├ Missile Weapon

prec1

├ Projectile

prec1

├ Missile Damage

11

├ Missile Ap Damage

0

└ Base Reload Time

10

Accuracy

5

Range

80

Reload

0

Shots Per Minute

6

Ammunition

7

Ship Health

693

└ Ship

greek_three

Ship Speed

4

Melee Attack

23

Weapon Damage

11

├ Melee Weapon

axe3

├ Weapon Damage

11

├ Weapon Deadliness

0

├ Armour Piercing

Yes

├ Bonus vs. Cavalry

0

├ Bonus vs. Elephants

0

└ Bonus vs Infantry

0

Charge Bonus

15

Melee Defence

54

├ Base Defence

17

├ Shield

shield3

└ Shield Defence

37

Armour

1

├ Armour

arm0

├ Armour Defence

1

└ Shield Armour

0

Health

24

├ Man Entity

medium_light

├ Man Health

20

└ Bonus Hit Points

4

Base Morale

50

Abilities

Trieres
  • Row Hard 10
    Increases speed for 10 strokes.
    Ship speed
Saka Tapabara
  • Stamina (average)
    Governs how fast the unit tires and restores fatigue, and is dependent on type of unit, weight and approach to combat.

Attributes

  • Hide (forest)
    This unit can hide in forests until enemy units get too close.
  • Resistant to Cold
    This unit tires less quickly in snow.

Strengths & Weaknesses

Trieres
  • Poor hull strength
  • Light crew
  • Fast speed
  • Weak ramming
  • Poor boarding
  • Average missile combat
Saka Tapabara
  • Average attack
  • Poor defence
  • Low damage but good armour penetration
  • Poor morale
Requires Buildings
Trieres - Saka Tapabara Lv. 0 Port of Alexandria
Port of Alexandria
(dei_port_ALEXANDRIA_3)
Level 2
Port of Alexandria
Port of Alexandria
(dei_port_ALEXANDRIA_3)
Level 2
Port of Alexandria
Port of Alexandria
(dei_port_ALEXANDRIA_3)
Level 2
Port of Alexandria
Port of Alexandria
(dei_port_ALEXANDRIA_4)
Level 3
Port of Alexandria
Port of Alexandria
(dei_port_ALEXANDRIA_4)
Level 3
Port of Alexandria
Port of Alexandria
(dei_port_ALEXANDRIA_4)
Level 3
Cothon
Cothon
(dei_port_CARTHAGE_3)
Level 2
Cothon
Cothon
(dei_port_CARTHAGE_3)
Level 2
Cothon
Cothon
(dei_port_CARTHAGE_3)
Level 2
Cothon
Cothon
(dei_port_CARTHAGE_4)
Level 3
Cothon
Cothon
(dei_port_CARTHAGE_4)
Level 3
Cothon
Cothon
(dei_port_CARTHAGE_4)
Level 3
Port of Massalia
Port of Massalia
(dei_port_MASSILIA_3)
Level 2
Port of Massalia
Port of Massalia
(dei_port_MASSILIA_3)
Level 2
Port of Massalia
Port of Massalia
(dei_port_MASSILIA_3)
Level 2
Port of Massalia
Port of Massalia
(dei_port_MASSILIA_4)
Level 3
Port of Massalia
Port of Massalia
(dei_port_MASSILIA_4)
Level 3
Port of Massalia
Port of Massalia
(dei_port_MASSILIA_4)
Level 3
Port of Rhodos
Port of Rhodos
(dei_port_RHODES_3)
Level 2
Port of Rhodos
Port of Rhodos
(dei_port_RHODES_3)
Level 2
Port of Rhodos
Port of Rhodos
(dei_port_RHODES_3)
Level 2
Port of Rhodos
Port of Rhodos
(dei_port_RHODES_4)
Level 3
Port of Rhodos
Port of Rhodos
(dei_port_RHODES_4)
Level 3
Port of Rhodos
Port of Rhodos
(dei_port_RHODES_4)
Level 3