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Fire Pot Bireme - Legionary Cohort RomeRome Melee Ship

Fire Pot Bireme - Legionary Cohort

Fire pots, hurled onto enemy decks, are a terrible threat to wooden ships.

The classic heavy infantry, with good armour and exceptional morale.

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.

(Legionary Cohort)
The military reforms of Gaius Marius in 104BC transformed the Roman army into a professional fighting force. Recruits were no longer required to own land in order to be soldiers: Roman citizenship was enough. Without farms to return to, men were willing to make the army their career, fighting lengthy campaigns in return for the pay, glory and retirement benefits. The Legions were equipped at the expense of the state, and each man carried a pilum, a gladius and a large 'scutum' shield, emblazoned with their Legion’s insignia. Under Marius men were expected to carry their own equipment, removing the need for large baggage trains manned by non-combatants. Unfortunately for the men this meant that they were carrying kit that weighed around 45 kilos, earning them the nickname 'Marius' mules'.

Fire Pot Bireme - Legionary Cohort

Unit Name

Fire Pot Bireme - Legionary Cohort

Main Unit Key

Rom_Legionary_Cohort_Two_Fire_Pots

Land Unit Key

Rom_Legionary_Cohort

Naval Unit Key

roman_fire_pot_two

Soldiers

60

Category

Light Ship

Class

Melee Ship

Custom Battle Cost

490

Recruitment Cost

490

Upkeep Cost

98

Missile Damage

30

├ Missile Weapon

rome_pilum_heavy

├ Projectile

pilum_heavy

├ Missile Damage

20

├ Missile Ap Damage

10

└ Base Reload Time

15

Accuracy

5

Range

40

Reload

0

Shots Per Minute

4

Ammunition

2

Ship Health

501

└ Ship

roman_two

Ship Speed

6

Melee Attack

47

Weapon Damage

35

├ Melee Weapon

rome_gladius_imperial

├ Melee Damage Base

30

├ Melee Damage Ap

5

├ Armour Piercing

No

├ Bonus vs. Large

0

├ Bonus vs Elephants

0

└ Bonus vs Infantry

0

Charge Bonus

14

Melee Defence

48

├ Base Defence

23

├ Shield

scutum_imperial

└ Shield Defence

25

Armour

90

├ Armour

segmentata

├ Armour Defence

50

└ Shield Armour

40

Health

60

├ Man Entity

rome_infantry_very_heavy

├ Man Health

45

└ Bonus Hit Points

15

Base Morale

55

Abilities

Fire Pot Bireme
  • Row Hard 10
    Increases speed for 10 strokes.
    Ship speed
Legionary Cohort
  • Attacking Testudo
    The troops of this unit raise their shields above their heads in a defensive formation.
    Protection against missiles
    Limited speed

Attributes

  • Disciplined
    This unit does not suffer a morale penalty when the general dies. It can also rally after routing more often.
  • Formation Attack
    The unit will try to stay in formation when in melee.
  • Hide (forest)
    This unit can hide in forests until enemy units get too close.

Strengths & Weaknesses

Fire Pot Bireme
  • Very poor hull strength
  • Very light crew
  • Fast speed
  • Very strong initial ramming
  • Good boarding
Legionary Cohort
  • Good attack
  • Average defence
  • Average damage but low armour penetration
  • Normal morale
Recuitment Requirement
Required Technology Professional Soldiery Cost 300 Upgrade From Fire Pot Bireme - Legionaries
Required Technology Professional Soldiery Cost 450 Upgrade From Fire Pot Bireme - Hastati
Required Technology Professional Soldiery Cost 300 Upgrade From Fire Pot Bireme - Legionaries