Ancient Nation/state/peoples
Sumerians 3000 BC - 2000
BC
This is the oldest-known army, covers the earliest period of civilisation
in the Fertile Crescent. The Sumerian cities fo Southern Iraq first introducing
writing and many other refinements that make up civilisation. The base
of the army is an enormous number of spearmen, armed with extremely long
spears, counting as pike. As the front ranks were often shielded, these
may be used as pk(X). There are a number of inferior skirmishers
and archers. The mounted arm consists of a smallish number of Onager-pulled
Chariots on 4 wheels. The Onager is not a horse, but a desert donkey -
check the Web for Pryzialkowski's Horse if you need more detauls.
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New Kingdom Egyptian 1550 BC
- 1070 BC
This is the Army of the middle Period Pharaoh's, from the addition of chariots
(introduced by the Hyksos) to the complex infantry tactics of the Middle
Kingdom. Despite its aristocratic attachments, the chariots did not dominate
the army functions, unlike the other kingdoms of the period, but continued
to rely on the interaction and support of spear, bow and chariot together.
As such,it's strength is in its dense, well-formed infantry, high quality
and manoeuvrable Chariots, and numerous Bowmen: these are all Regular,
giving a solid, well-rounded force adequate to almost any opponent. Its'
primary weaknesses are to gigantic spear, pike or blade armies, and sometimes
to elephants.
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Hittite Empire 1380
BC - 1180 BC
This covers the area of Eastern Turkey / Lake Van / Anatolia, from the
accession of Suppiluliumas, until the break-up of the empire under attack
by the "sea peoples". After the defeat of the Hurrian/Mitanni kingdom,
this was incorporated about 1345 BC (roughly North Iraq / Kurdistan). The
Hittites competed with the Assyrians and the Egyptians for control of Syria,
Lebanon and Palestine, usually successfully. This army is heavily dependant
on the striking force of Heavy Chariots, supported by a lesser number of
vassal-state Light Chariots. It has large quantities of rough-terrain infantry
and skirmishers available, but few if any solid infantry who can stand
up to a mounted charge in the open.
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Middle Assyrian Empire,
Early New Assyrian Empire 1365 BC - 745 BC
This covers the north Mesopotamian plains, from the freeing of Assyria
from Hurrian domination, until the reforms of Tiglath-Pileser III (Tukulti-apli-esar
3). During this period, the influence of the Mitanni/Hurrians was still
strong. This is a strong, aggressive army, with excellent infantry, and
high quality chariotry, balanced by large quantities of cheap archers and
hordes, if desired, together with a large number terrain-capable infantry
(also optional). Its weaknesses are a paucity of Light Horse, and some
vulnerability to massed archery.
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Libyan Egyptian 946
BC - 712 BC
This covers Egypt from the fall of the New Kingdom
to the invasions of the Libyans from the west. The successors of Ramses
II were weak rulers, and Egypt was riven into northern and southern domains.
The priests of Amunh gained contorl of the south, and the kings of the
north were unable to resist waves of Libyan immigration that augmented
the Libyans and Sea Peoples allowed to settle earlier in return for military
service. Eventually, a chieftain named Shesonk made himself Pharaoh of
the north. The next three dynasties were all of Libyan descent, but largely
Egyptian culture. They were unable to conquer southern Egypt which was
under the influence of the Kushite rulers of Nubia. A final attempt at
conquest led to their overthrow. By the end of this period the north was
riven into a patchwork of tiny principalities. Armies at this period would
have consisted of contingents from several of these principalities, supplied
by the semi-independant rulers.
The Sea Peoples settled in Egypt supplied a considerable
contingent of the infantry for the army, while the bulk of the army is
Egyptian chariots and skirmishing horse, and a smaller contingent of old-style
Egyptian close-order foot, plus a large number of Libyan javelinmen.
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Spartan and Early Hoplite Greece
700 BC - 450 BC
This is the Classical army par excellence - the period
of the birth of Greek civilisation, up until its' full flowering, and the
repulse of the Persians. It covers Greece from the emergence of the Hoplite
soldier, until the time when good supporting troops became common. Armies
from this era depend almost exclusively on the Hoplite Sp, and are either
a network of allied troops drawn from different city states, or a disciplined
Spartan force under coherent control, possibly with an allied contingent.
Spartans, being a cut above the rest of the hoplites,
are graded as being superior to them, and make incredibly tough opponents:
however, being better, they cost more, so are more vulnerable to being
flanked. The real problem with this army is the lack of much decent supporting
foot, and the almost total absence of decent mounted. This makes it both
slow to advance, and short on skirmishing screens.
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Later
Hoplite Greek 450 BC - 275 BC
This ocvers the armies of the Greek city states from the initial use of
good light troops and cavalry to support the hoplites, until the replacement
of hoplites by thureophoroi and/or pike. Numerous variations are permitted,
including Spartans with elite Superior spearmen, Phokians with an abundance
of heavy Artillery, Aitolian with immense quantities of psiloi, Athenians
with an extensive naval presence, and other states dependant on Irregular
spear in large quantities, backed by numerous Auxilia & psiloi, and
smallish quantities of very ordinary mounted.
The principle deficiencies of these armies are (a) a shortage of mounted,
other than LH, and (b) slowness - it can be hard to get a result in a single
day, unless your opponent presses forward to engage you.
Later
Achaemenid Persian 450 BC - 331 BC
This covers the Persian Empire under the Later Achaemenid
Kings, from the death of Xerxes, to the final defeat by Alexander the Great
and the dissolution of the Empire. The core of the army is a large number
of variable quality Cavalry, and an impressive core of hoplites (Irr SpO).
It has a wide range of supports: psiloi, Light Horse, Auxilia, and Expendables,
but is hampered by an awkward command structure, a large number of Inferior
Cavalry, and a lack of sufficient striking power to exploit enemy weaknesses.
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Gallic
400 BC - 50 BC
This covers the branch of the western Celts that took over and defended
Gaul and North Italy, from the rise of the La Tene culture, until the complete
conquest of Northern Gaul by Caesar. During their aggressive period, up
to 225 BC, they repeatedly crushed the Roman armies, and were greatly feared
by them. The bulk of the army is made up of warbands, impetuous hard-charging
infantry with little resilience, but over the time span the number of cavalry
gradually increases, making a large potential presence by the end of the
timespan.
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Alexandrian
Macedonian 355 BC to 320BC
This covers the armies of Philip II, and of Alexander the Great up until
his conquest of the Persian Empire and his Skythian campaign, as well as
that of the Regent Antipater down to the death of Alexander. During this
period the Macedonian infantry were drilled to a high standard, and equipped
with pikes, becoming the best infantry in the era. It forms an excellent
combined-arms army, with disciplined Companions (Knights), excellent foot,
good terrain troops, and adequate numbers skirmishers, both horsed and
afoot. Its' biggest weakness is the need for close cooperation of all arms
to achieve a win, which demands a high level of skill and cunning from
its' commanders, while it loses easily if the horse and foot become separate.
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Sarmatian and Bosporan 310
BC to 375 AD and 310 BC to 100 AD
The Sarmatians were steppe nomads, who displaced the Saka/Skythians from
the lands of the Ukraine and the plains of Hungary. They depended almost
exclusively on their formidable fast charge with a heavy lance, the Kontos
or barge-pole. Their character is best illustrated by the following description
of a Roman general: "Although a Sarmatian by birth, he was prudent and
cautious". Their primary tribes were the Siracae, the Rhoxolani, the Iazyges,
and the Bosporans. The army is essentially composed of fast charging Knights,
with a very few skirmishers in support. In the right terrain (none) they
can be devastating, but will generally get confused & broken up in
impetuous pursuits by any cunning opponent, and are gravely handicapped
by terrain.
The Bosporans were the tribe that conquered and (more or less) settled
the Crimean peninsula, and lasted until absorbed by the Roman Empire. It
consisted of a Hellenized aristocracy, ruling Greek colonies. Their army
differs from the standard Sarmatian army by virtue of including large numbers
of auxilia, both irregular and regular, of good quality. As such, they
are much more comfortable dealing with terrain, and have sufficient skirmishers
to shield their lancers from enemy interference until it is time to unleash
them.
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Polybian Roman 275 BC - 105
BC
This is the army of the Middle Republic - the classic Roman army of the
Carthaginian wars. It covers the period from the approximate time of the
wars with Pyrrhus of Epeiros, until the reforms of Marius. The strength
of the army is the large number of Legionaries (Blades), together with
its Triarii (Superior Spear), and large quantities of adequate skirmishers
and terrain troops. Its' weaknesses are a lack of subgenerals, few and
poor quality cavalry, and a shortage of Light Horse, rendering the army
somewhat clumsy and unwieldy.
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Seleucid 320 BC - 83 BC
This is one of the Successor States - Seleukos was one of Alexander the
Great's generals, and when Alexander died, his Empire fell into pieces,
called the Successor States. This particular state was based in Mesopotamia
and Iran, and later expanded into Syria and the Mediterranean littoral.
The strengths of the army are in numerous powerful weapons - plentiful
Elephants, Scythed Chariots, Warband, Cataphracts, Lancers, and Pike. Its
weaknesses are primarily the difficulty of combining these diverse weapons
usefully, and the shortage of troops resulting from so many different and
expensive troops. The army in subdivided into several historical periods,
constraining which troops may be used together.
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Kushan
135 BC - 477 AD
The Kushan were one of the central asian nomad tribes who overran Sogdia
and Bactria during the fall of the Seleucid empire. In the 1st century
AD, they established themselves as pre-eminent, and established their empire
over north India, east Iran and much of Central Asia. They were subdued
for a century by the Sassanid Persians, but revolted and established
their independance again around 390 AD, with the aid of the Chionite Huns.
It was finally defeated by the incursion of the Hephthialite Huns (or White
Huns) who went on to conquer India. It's strength lies in its numerous
horse archers, backed by an excellent array of cataphracts and elephants,
and supplemented if desired by some adequate foot skirmishers, and Indian
allies.
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Dacian
60 BC - 106 AD
Dacia was the Balkan successor to the Thracians. It was always a source
of irritation to the Romans occupying Thrace, by making raids across the
Danube, but under the kings Burebistas and Decebalus, it became a greater
menace. The army list covers from the accession of Burebistas until the
death of the latter, following the invasion of the Emperor Trajan, who
conquered it and made it a Roman province. Remnant tribes continued
to appear long after 106 AD, as Carpi, and "tattooed Geloni".
The bulk of the army consists of fierce-charging warbands, with a large
number of Falxmen, counting as Blades by virtue of the long scythe-like
iron falxes they used. There is a plenitude of archers and skirmishers,
and a small number of skirmishing cavalry, but for any serious mounted,
the Dacians must rely on their close allies, the Sarmatians.
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Early Imperial
Roman 25 BC - 193 AD
This is the army of Augustus and Trajan, covering Rome from the end of
the Republic, until the accession of Septimus Severus. It is divided into
an Eastern and a Western army, with slightly differing options as to allies
and supporting troops. The army is a well-balanced combination of Legionaries
(Blades), Auxilia, Psiloi, Artillery, Cavalry and Light Horse. It is primarily
vulnerable to large quantities of charging Knights and other such Lancers,
but its manoeuvrability can provide a counter to this.
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Sassanid
Persian 220 AD - 651 AD
This covers the Sassanid dynasty of Persia, from their revolt against
the Parthian empire under the Arcasids, until their extinction by the Arabs
during the Conquest Period. The strength of the army lay in self-equipped
armoured horsemen, called asavaran (asawira in Arabic). These were essentially
feudal, and recruited from the nobles & gentry, except for a brief
flirtation with a standing army in 531 - 579 AD. The army also has
access to some cataphracts, elephants, and a very limited amount of poor
quality infantry.
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Late
Imperial Roman 307 AD - 425 AD
This covers the Roman armies from the reforms of Constantine the Great
until the accession to power of Aetius. The reformed army was once considered
much less efficient than its' predecessors, but this view has been reversed
in more recent years with additional research. Legions were much reduced
in size, and optimised to fight their opponents of the time, barbarian
cavalry and infantry. New Auxiliary units (infantry and cavalry) were raised
to support these legions in field armies, while the former units were left
as static garrisons. Many of the troopers within the field forces were
of barbarian origin, but held to Roman discipline, and much use was also
made of barbarian allied contingents.
Given the wide range of army composition in this period, the Late Imperial
Romans is one of the toughest armies to face, as its' composition can vary
hugely, between a discplined Roman infantry force, a mixed cavalry force,
or a series of barbarian tribes with a small smattering of Romans to unite
them.
Patrician
Roman 425 AD - 493 AD
This covers Roman armies from Aetius' assumption of power until the
Ostrogothic invasion of Italy, which destroyed the last vestiges of pretence
at Roman civilisation. It is a period in which generals struggled not to
be Emperor, but to be the Commander for a puppet Emperor, with the title
"Patrician".
This is essentially a continuance of the Late Imperial Roman list (qv),
but more exaggerated. Legions have almost disappeared, and the proportion
of troops in roman-style auxiliary and cavalry units has diminished, but
both warbands and barbarian cavalry are now an integral part of the army,
and all the Patrician armies included one or more contingents of barbarian
allies in addition. Its extreme variation and huge choice of troop types
makes it a hard army to face, but also a difficult army to use, as the
number of temptations often leads to a "bits and bobs" army.
Christian
Nubian 550 AD - 1500 AD
With the conversion of the Nobades to Monophysite Christianity, three
christian kingdoms arose in the Sudan/Nubian area: Nobatia, Makouria, and
Alwa. Nobatia was conquered by Makouria circa 650-700 AD, and thereafter
the combined kingdom was sometimes just called Nubia. The Nubians intermittently
fought successive Muslim Egyptian regimes, but also enjoyed prolonged periods
of peaceful trade with Egypt.
The army is mobile but very brittle: the main strike force is made up
of Cm(S), which can be devastating, but can also break like straw, and
Wb(F) which are always fragile. The supports for these are excellent -
plentiful CvS and LH, Bw and Ps, but the army works best if the strike
force is held back as long as possible, to allow the supports to soften
the enemy up beforehand.
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Khazar 568 Ad - 1083 AD
This is one of the dark-ages Steppe Armies. The Khazar Khanate covered
southern Russia, from around the Volga to the Carpathians (more or less),
from the 6th to the 11th Centuries. The Khazars were unusually devious,
even for nomads, and adpoted Judaism in the 8th century as a political
ploy to counterbalance their Christian and Moslem neighbours. It's army
is primarily a steppe army - lots of horse archers, backed up by a smaller
number of heavy 'noble' cavalry. However, it has 2 unusual features: during
the middle period of their empire, the 'Royal Army' which formed the core
of their field armies, consisted of trained, uniformed & drilled cavalry,
a precursor to the later Mongol discipline: and they can have moderate
numbers of close-formed infantry, from the cities under their control
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'Umayyid
661 AD - 750 AD
THis covers Araba armies from the accesion of Mu'awiya following the
death of Ali, until the final success of the 'Abbasid revolt. Mu'awiya
was the first of the secular Caliphs: he had once been Mohammed's secrtary,
and put the organisation of the new Arab empire on a secure footing. He
founded the first hereditary dynasty of Caliphs, with a capital at Damascus.
The Ummayids expanded their empire to encompass as far as Uzbekistan, Sind,
North Africa and Spain, but failed to take Constantinople.
The army consists of a core of excellent cavalry, backed up by plenty
of good archers, and some shaky spearmen. Supports are few in number (especially
terrain troops), but of good quality. Lacking in much shock power, it is
an army that demands subtle play from its' commander.
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'Abbasid Arab Empire 747 AD
- 945 AD
This covers the Mesopotamian region from the revolt against the Umayyid
Empire (the original Caliphate of Baghdad), through until the rise of the
Buyids relegated the Caliphate to a purely non-secular role. The capital
of the 'Abbasids was at Baghdad.
The army in its early phase consists of a large foot contingent, mostly
spear-armed but some archers, and a lot of irregular cavalry, but changes
through the period to become more regular and less dependant on infantry,
and to expand the range and quality of what infantry is desired. Supports
for these troops are ample and varied.
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Normans and Western Frankish
888 AD - 1072 AD
This covers the Western half of Charlemagne's Frankish Empire, from the
death of his immediate successors, until the rise of the Feudal French,
and the conquest of England by the Normans. It consists primarily of a
large number of charging knights, fast but not very heavily armoured, supported
by adequate foot and a few Light Horse, and some bow. It is fast and decisive,
and a tough army overall, as befits the army of William the Conqueror
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Anglo-Danish
1014 AD - 1075 AD
This covers the Danish Kingdom in England, from the overthrow of the Mercian
and Saxon kings, until the conquest of the land by the Normans. It consists
in large part of huge numbers of spearmen, of average or lower quality,
backed up by a fair number of Huscarles wielding Axes (Blades). It is severely
limited by its lack of mounted troops, and a paucity of troops able to
cope with terrain, although this can be countered by taking a Welsh Ally,
who can alleviate both shortages somewhat.
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Nikephorian
Byzantine 963 Ad - 1042 AD
This covers the army of Rhoum, or Rome, or Byzantium/Constantinople, the
eastern part of the former Roman Empire, covering the Balkans, Turkey,
and parts of Syria/Palestine, plus occasionally parts of Sicily and/or
Italy. It ranges from the reforms of the Emperor Nikephorus Phokas, made
to the prior Thematic Byzantine army, until the military economies of Konstantinos
IX, and covers the army used by the famous Basileious II Bulgaroktonos.
The strength of this army is in the strength of its mounted arm - plentiful
cavalry, a few DBE Kataphractoi, and a reasonable amount of Light Horse
- with a solid basis of resistant (if not over-potent) infantry, revolving
around a large bloc of BwX Skutatoi, whose shooting can be very damaging,
and a few Varangian Blades. NB under the expected new rules, the
infantry should present a stronger danger than it has so far.
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Khurasanian Dynasties 821
AD - 1003 AD
This covers the various dynasties ruling Eastern Persia, Khorasan, and
the southern edge of the Great Steppes - basically from the Persian mountains
to the Afghan mountains. It covers the period from freeing itself from
the Abbasid Empire, until its' subjugation by the Mongols during their
Conquest of the East. The strength of the army is in its large numbers
of Superior Cavalry, backed by a couple of Elephants, a scattering of Light
Horse, and an adequate supply of both Auxiliaries (for terrain) and cheap
Spearmen (who give a resistant centre to the army). It has trouble dealing
with large numbers of Knights and Bowmen, and Elephants who have good infantry
support.
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Feudal
French 1072 AD - 1330 AD
This covers the French Kingdom from its' nadir
and near-disintegration under pressure from Normans, Germans, and Provencales,
through the period of rebuilding and expansion of the power of the Crown,
up to the eve of the Hundred Years War.
The power and glory of this army is the large
number of superb knights. Sadly, this is virtually the only strength of
the army - there is almost no supporting mounted, and the infantry varies
from poor-quality to utter rubbish. When used carefully, the charge of
the Knights is both irresistable and decisive: but they are very vulnerable
to being disorganised, distracted, and destroyed piecemeal.
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Medieval
German 1106 AD - 1519 AD
This covers the core of the Holy Roman Empire from the accession of
Heinrich V until that of Karl V. The army varies widely over this time,
but always consists of a core of moderate-to-poor quality knights, with
a selection of close foot of indifferent fighting ability. It's advantage
lies in the insanely complex army list, which obscures the actual composition
of the army from any opponent. Its disadvantages are (a) the same, (b)
the poor quality of troops, (c) the dearth of skirmishers, and (d) the
guarenteed vulnerability of at least some of its' knights (due to extreme
overpricing
for DBE's of Knights).
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Teutonic
Knights 1201 AD - 1522 AD
This covers the Orders of Warrior Monks fighting
in the North of Europe, whether as Teutonic Knights, Sword Brethren, or
other lesser orders. The Ordensstat was founded in northeast Prussian,
and expanded to take in much of the Baltic lands, Prussia and parts of
Russia, destroying the pagan Balts and Pruss successfully, before eventually
falling to Russian and German enmity, and the power of the Reformation.
The army has a small number of superb disciplined
Knights, supported by a sufficiency of lesser quality knights and cavalry,
and a large number of horse archers. It need not include infantry at all,
and if it does, has a small number of good quality foot, and a considerable
number of poor quality foot available. Flexible, tough and resilient, it
is a difficult army to defeat. Its weaknesses are vulnerability to dense
terrain, and to being grossly outnumbered, as the cost of its' core Knights
always limits its' overall size.
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Later
Hungarian 1245 AD - 1526 AD
This covers Hungarian armies from the disaster
of Mohi against the Mongols, until the disaster of Mohacs against the Ottomans.
The combination of high quality knights and ample skirmishing Light Horse,
together with an optional addition of good quality infantry protected by
wagons, makes this a formidable army in attack or defence.
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Aztec
1325 AD - 1521 AD
This covers the people of the central Mexican plateau, variously known
as Mexica, Colhua or Azteca. They originated in the deserts of the north,
and emigrated thence, absorbing culture from the Tolteca, Mixteca and Zapoteca
en route, founding the lake island city of Tenochtitlan in 1325. It covers
until the conquest and rape of Mexico by Hernan Cortes with his Spanish
conquistadores and Texcalan allies in 1519-1521.
The Azteca have been moronically misgraded as an enormous mass of horde
infantry, supported by some indifferent nobles, and small contingents of
warbands. As such, they are not really a viable army.
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Medieval
French 1330 AD - 1445 AD
This covers the classic French armies of the
Hundred Years' War, until the institution of a standing army (the French
Ordonnance). It's strength lies in its' formidable knights, able to dismount
and act as excellent infantry, and its' mass of poor quality filler to
ensure the knights will fight to the death. Its' weaknesses are the impetuosity
of its' knights, who can be defeated in detail if broken up, the inability
to deal with broken ground, and the vulnerability of the foot to most other
troops if the knights are eluded.
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Medieval Spanish
1340 AD - 1485 AD
This covers the Christian armies in Spain in the later Medieval period.
It covers the Kingdoms of Aragon, Castile and Portugal. The strength of
the army is in its knights, together with large numbers of skirmishers
(both horse and foot), excellent terrain troops, and valuable allied commands,
which can include a large English contingent of high quality archers. The
close foot are neither numerous enough nor of sufficient quality to be
worth using however. It is handicapped in dealing with large numbers of
Superior Light Horse, better quality Knights, and cunning opponents using
manouevrable Regulars.
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Early
Burgundian 1363 AD - 1471 AD
THis covers Burgundian armies from the break with the Holy Roman Empire
until the reforms of Charles the Bold. It is marked by the inferior quality
of its knights and infantry, and heavy reliance on allied contingents from
France and England. The strong points it has are from the number of infantry
it can afford, and the Burgundian knights being able to dismount to become
elite infantry, for relatively little cost.
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