War of the Dark God military units

These unit descriptions for "War of the Dark God" are provided by Niels Lademark. [Morten's note: Thanks, Niels, for taking the time to write the prose I have far too little time to write myself!]

The descriptions of strengths and weaknesses are based on the Beta test games.

Note: When I stress the importance of size (and terrain familiarity) in the unit descriptions below it is based on experience (sometimes hard earned experience). I have witnessed 90 (ninety) dwarven infantry (size 2 and c.r. 41) kill off 300 Heavy cavalry (size 12 and c.r. 74) and reduce another unit of 100 Heavy cavalry to 78 individuals with half their original wound points before (finally) succumbing to the enemy. Nominally the small dwarves had 12 % of the combat potential of the units they defeated. However the fight took place in hills terrain that favour dwarves over heavy cavalry and the cavalry could only attack one-on-one due to size restrictions whereas the dwarves could gang up...nuff said.

All performance comparisons below assume that the troops fight in terrain in which they both perform 100 percent unless otherwise stated. So don't assume that your heavy infantry can defeat black snakemen in swamp just because I write that HI is slightly stronger. Please note that I rate combat effectiveness based on experience and the online documentation available to all the web. I do not have access to the actual code (actually: unit database) and hence cannot give a rock solid description of the relative combat strength of the units I describe. However I am fairly confident that most of it holds (otherwise I am certain Morten would have been more reluctant to host my ravings....).

Niels

[Morten's note: Niels wrote all this before the "hard" unit type information was made generally available in the "Unit type tables" which you can and should download and use as reference]

Human units
Elven units
Dwarven and Gnomish units
Trolls and goblins
Snakemen
Undead Units
Demonic units
Beastmen and Monstrous units
Animal Units
Special Units

Human units

Militia: Militia units are formed by peasants with crude home-made weapons such as flails and pitch forks. Rulers do in general not wish to spend precious arms or training on peasants. This is reflected in several ways on the performance of militia in combat: They are without doubt the least effective troop type available and their lack of combat experience and proper training makes them very nervous in combat unless lead by a strong leader. Your manpower is better spent on keeping a sizeable taxbase generating the gold to buy you some useful troops. On the other hand if you are out of gold and arms militia is the only option.
Light Infantry: Light Infantry is the weakest regular troop type available to human nations. Light infantry is cheap in gold and requires but a single arms unit per man. A light infantryman is equipped with leather armour and a spear or perhaps a shield and a short sword. This light equipment makes light infantry relatively weak in combat (about half as strong as Medium infantry), but it makes for fast movement in all terrain types. The low encumbrance allows the light infantryman to operate in difficult terrain (like woods and swamp) with greater relative effectiveness than heavier troop types. Although light infantry can be effective in superior numbers most rulers are better off recruiting heavier troops if they can afford it.
Medium Infantry: Medium Infantry are fair fighters, with adequate equipment and much better training than militia or light infantry. Medium infantry is the scale used for comparison of all other massunits. The medium infantry man is equipped with both weapons and armour, typically boiled leather armour and a polearm or a shield and a shortsword, the specifics vary from region to region. The better equipment and longer training also makes for higher costs in arms and gold, but the cost is usually well worth it when battles are fought. The heavier load reduces the mobility of the medium infantry somewhat, making them less useful for controlling new territory compared to light infantry.
Heavy Infantry: Heavy infantry are elite human footsoldiers, they are given the best arms and training that can be brought. This makes them expensive in both gold and arms but also effective in combat. Heavy infantry are twice as effective as medium infantry on a one to one basis. Heavy infantry are good at what they do and the troops know this, heavy infantry are therefore less likely to flee from battle. A heavy infantry man is usually equipped with ring or scale armour and a sword and shield or a pole arm. The heavy equipment is an advantage in open terrain such as farmlands or plains, but the encumbrance can actually be a liability in difficult terrain such as jungle, swamp and mountains. Nevertheless Heavy infantry are the best human footsoldiers you can hire and well worth his pay when facing your foes. Heavy infantry is the most common troop type by far since heavy infantry provides the best combat skills per gold spent. They are somewhat weaker in combat than Gray snakemen or Dogmen and a little stronger than Black snakemen.
Pikemen: Human Pikemen are a variety of the light infantryman equipped solely with extra long but light polearms (called pikes). Although they are experts with their pikes they lack training in other areas and lacking armour altogether makes them rather vulnerable, resulting in an overall combat efficiency only marginally above standard light infantry. The unwieldy pikes are difficult to use in close quarters such as inside cities and castles, however when used in open terrain such as plains or farmlands the pikes are very effective. A small company of pikemen can prevent a charge from a large horde of cavalry and the pikemen are usually used to this effect, but they should not constitute the bulk of an army. In a castle storm or within the confined quarters of a keep the pikes are more of a hindrance than an asset.
Archers: Human archers are skilled missile units equipped with bows and arrows (and possibly a dagger) but lacking armour. This light equipment makes them as mobile as light infantry. Archers have a fairly long range, but the effectiveness of the arrows tend to decrease rapidly with the range to the target. Once the troops meet in melee the archers will be at the mercy of most of the stronger troop types, they are neither trained nor equipped for close combat where they are an easy match for all but militia. If the archers get to use their missile attack before they engage in melee the archers perform only slightly worse than medium infantry. If they don't get to use their bows before they engage in melee they can be bested by light infantry. Therefore human archers should never be used alone, they will need infantry to cover for them. Archers are best used for defence, since the troops cannot advance and shoot at the same time, enemies that take defensive positions will either result in a stand-off with neither party advancing or melee combat which is often fatal for the archers. In general the effectiveness of missile attack are independent of terrain. However, some terrain types obscure vision and hence missiles. Therefore the range of missiles in Woods, Wooded hills or Jungle is only one, regardless of the unit's normal range in clear terrain.
Crossbowmen: Crossbows are easy to operate and have a powerful impact but they are hard and slow to reload. Because of this crossbowmen only tend to get off one shot before melee. This is rather unfortunate (for the crossbowmen) which is the reason they are also equipped with soft leather armour and daggers. The combination of a missile attack and better resistance in melee combat makes for a stronger soldier than the archer. If they get to shoot at their opponents before they engage in melee their overall efficiency are equal to medium infantry otherwise crossbowmen are at pair with light infantry. Crossbowmen are a bit more expensive in gold and requiring two arms per man. They are also slower than the archers due to their heavier load. Like all missile units it is only their melee ability that is affected by their current terrain whereas their missile attacks are independent of terrain.
Mounted archers: Mounted archers are skilled riders equipped with powerful shortbows and light spears. Archers on horseback have several advantages over those on foot. Their higher mobility gives them a much better defence and when forced to fight in melee the speed and power of their mount increases their melee capabilities. However, the restless mounts are not optimal platforms for missile combat, limiting the range to one. Mounted archers are very fast troops and are best used when speed is of the essence. They are fairly cheap costing only one arms unit per man and little gold (in addition to the mounts and men of course). If a mounted archer is prevented from utilising his bow his overall performance decreases to that of a Heavy infantry, but if he can pelt his enemy with arrows before melee he is almost at par with elven infantry and marginally stronger than a Dogman.
Light Cavalry: Light cavalry consists of men on horseback equipped with light weapons and no armour. Light cavalrymen rely on speed for defence and the added power the horse gives to their thrusts for attack. That this is a powerful combination of speed, skill and agility can be witnessed by many a footsoldier whose last sight was that of a horde of charging light cavalry. On a one to one basis light cavalry in open terrain is stronger than any human foot soldier and equal to a Dogman in melee. But if facing superior numbers all types of cavalry are at a disadvantage as multiple smaller opponents can gang up against one rider. The main resources for light cavalry are men and horses. Light cavalry are relative cheap in gold and requires only one arms unit per man. Light cavalry is very fast in open terrain and fairly fast where the terrain is more difficult such as jungle, woods and mountains, hence they are very useful for controlling new territory.
Medium Cavalry: Medium cavalry sacrifices speed for arms. The result is a mounted soldier, slower than his light counterpart, but faster than footsoldiers in most terrain. This is a tough opponent for anyone but the most skilled demihuman footsoldiers Medium cavalry can best elven pikemen and dwarven infantry on a one to one basis and even stand a fair chance vs. Wolfmen and Hobgoblins. The Medium cavalryman requires three arms units and more gold than the light cavalryman, but he is worth every penny on the battlefield. Medium cavalry are best utilised in open terrain; plains, farmlands, wastelands and hills whereas in more difficult terrain such as swamps, jungle, mountains and even castles the rider must dismount and fight in his heavy equipment on foot. In these circumstances his effectiveness is severely reduced. A medium cavalryman can never match a bullman, an elven wolfrider or a goblin wolfrider.
Heavy Cavalry: The Heavy Cavalry mostly consists of minor nobility and the most experienced warriors. These are the only ones that can afford the arms, gold and training that it takes to create these fearsome warriors. The result is a devastating combination of power, skill and equipment. The single most powerful individuals most human (and demi-human) nations can muster. The situations which can hamper a heavy cavalryman are storming castle or city walls or fighting in rough terrains such as mountains, swamps or jungle. This means he must dismount and either climb the walls in heavy full plate armour carrying his battleaxe or longsword on the back or fight on foot. Needless to say this is not the best way to utilise a mounted knight. The bane of a heavy cavalryman is armies with superior number of troops (especially if these opponents are small in stature) and difficult terrain. Even the best cavalryman is in dire peril if forced to fight on foot in a swamp or jungle. In neutral terrain a heavy cavalryman can best bullmen and wolfriders (both elven and goblin).
Human Engineers: Human engineers are skilled troops but not in combat where they tend to cover behind ... well everything near at hand. A unit of engineers has two special abilities which when utilised correctly can be of immense value in battle. Engineers can construct temporary fortifications "Forts", giving a minor defence bonus to those units inside. Forts can be improved though, and end up yielding quite respectable defence advantages to those inside. The second special skill engineers have is the ability to construct siege engines on the spot, causing damage to fortifications. It takes lot of engineers to get the job done though, and they are an expensive lot who are as reluctant to fight as militia and about as skilled.
Woodsmen: Woodsmen are dwellers of the forests. They are hunters and gatherers and know the forest's secret paths as the back of their hand. They can usually only be found in woods or perhaps wooded hills, and they tend to follow the heroes of the land rather than the generals. Woodsmen are skilled archers, better than both human archers and crossbowmen. If they can use their bows before they are engaged in melee woodmen range somewhere between medium and heavy infantry in overall effectiveness. They are stronger in melee than light infantry although they are not quite up to the standard of medium infantry. They are used to the harsh environment of the wild, making them less likely to flee from combat. They are fairly cheap to recruit and only require one arms unit per man. In forest woodsmen are a fair match for human heavy infantry or stronger troops. As garrisons their missile attack and average melee abilities makes them slightly better (but much cheaper) than medium infantry despite the terrain advantages infantry have in city and structure. Unfortunately they cannot help control hexes limiting their overall use.
Mountain men: Mountain men are tough highlanders, adept in the nature and terrain of mountains (even the highest peaks). They are used to living off the land which explains their toughness and fierce instinct for survival. In a mountain skirmish they are the second best to heavy infantry, but they require less arms and are much cheaper to recruit. They have no missile attacks but they are slightly better fighters than the average medium infantry man and much braver in combat. The major disadvantage is that they can only be recruited in mountains or high mountains by the heroes of your nation. Like woodmen they cannot act as helpers when controlling.
Desertmen: Desertmen are raised in the northern desert regions of the continent. They are expert fighters on their own turf and equals or surpasses medium infantry in most other terrain. They can only be called to holy war in the desert by your heroes. As it is the case with Woodsmen and Mountain men they are cheap to recruit and require fever arms that medium infantry, however like other of their kind they cannot help with control orders. They lack the missile attack of the Woodsmen but they are as brave in combat.
Hillmen: Hillmen are tough clansmen living off and in the hilly regions. They war constantly with the monsters roaming the lands and are therefore good fighters, slightly better that medium infantry on neutral ground, but requiring only half the arms and also less gold. Hillmen are very good fighters in hills but are also adequate in wooded hills and even mountains. Like their cousins the woodsmen they a brave in combat but can with few exceptions only be recruited by heroes. Like the Woodmen and other clansmen they cannot help your leader control.
Elephant riders: Picture five armed men riding on an armoured and war trained elephant. This is what troops confronting the Queen of Wey might end up facing in war. >From a platform on the back of the elephants the men hurl spears and javelins at the troops below them, while the elephants trample small opponents (size 2 and below). The units are so fearsome that cavalry armies are reluctant to fight them (or even together with them if allied). Creating elephant riders requires training both mounts and men to work together, not an easy thing to accomplish and hence costly. The amount of arms needed is also staggering all in all 50 men, 10 elephants and 150 arms are required to create a standard unit of 10 elephant riders. The result is the toughest mass unit in existence on a one to one basis, effectively about equal to two horned demons in neutral terrain. The bane of elephant riders is their enormous size, up to 32 normal sized footsoldiers can attack each individual elephant rider. Even if each attacker is a mere light infantry man this will overwhelm the elephant riders. Care should be taken to provide some support by either cavalry or infantry in battle, but when support is provided small opponents had better look out (or up).
Bandits: Bandits are men who have taken to the hills instead of paying taxes or working in villeinage to a lord as it is most men's due. Bandits prey upon the weak and have an ill disposition toward the World in general. Etching out a living in the wilderness is tough and most bandits are as skilled fighters as average medium infantry. Living in constant poverty makes bandits easy to to recruit with a little gold, they even bring their own crude weapons. Considering their lack of efficiency in battle they are best left alone, though, and your gold is better spent on some heavy infantry.
Pirates: Pirates are organised bandits. They are about as skilled in melee and fight as fiercely (if they loose the gallows await). They are comparable to medium infantry in melee combat where they can hope to win in a pitched battle, but they are not as strong as regular heavy infantry. In addition to their melee skills pirates are also equipped with an assortment of throwing knives, daggers, darts, javelins and even small one hand crossbows. This gives a pirate unit a short range missile attack about as good as that of archers. If they get to use this missile attack before melee pirates become only slightly weaker than woodmen. Like bandits, pirates bring their own arms and they also have a fairly low gold cost, but unless you cannot spare the gold or arms you are better off with heavy infantry.

Elven units

Elven Infantry: Elves are (slightly) magical beings, a fact that is reflected in their enormous lifespans and their higher resistance to damage. Elves put pride and artistic skill into everything they do, this includes the fabrication of arms and their use in combat. This inclination towards artistry combined with the long time given to practice and refection makes the elven infantry better than human heavy infantry (and with better all-round terrain familiarity) even if the elves prefer lighter equipment. The low arms requirement (a mere 1 arms per elf) makes all elven footsoldiers about as fast as light human infantry (but about three times as effective as medium infantry in combat). The magic nature of the elves enable the units to weave minor enchantments that can harm opponents so fierce or alien that normal arms cannot damage them. Another benefit from elven magic is the natural resistance toward hostile enchantments and total immunity to the ravings of fear. Because elves are a dedicated people the cost to hire the troops are lower than human heavy infantry. Elven infantry can expect to best gray snakemen and dogmen in battle but cannot expect to best hobgoblins on neutral ground.
Elven Pikemen: Elven pikemen are elven troops equipped with pikes. Pikes are difficult to handle and they are therefore only issued to the best and most skilled elven warriors. This also makes them marginally more costly to hire. Elven pikemen are therefore generally better fighters than the infantry, although difficult terrain or cramped quarters will even the grounds. In neutral terrain they can battle eaglemen, frogmen and demons and hope to prevail, whereas enemies such as hobgoblins and catmen will get the better of them. The long pikes can easily prevent enemy cavalry charges and are very effective in open terrain such as plains, farmlands, desert and hills. Like the regular infantry the pikemen can stand their ground when facing magical creatures not easily harmed by normal weapons. They are immune to all kinds of fear or charm and are generally fast as footsoldiers go.
Elven Archers: Elven archers are the best archers available, anywhere. The enchanted elven longbows have a range of three in clear terrain and the elves are expert marksmen as it has been witnessed by many a goblin and troll warrior. Decades of practice with the longbows does however not seen to affect the average archer's melee skills negatively. Although elven archers are weaker in melee than both the infantry and pikemen they are at par with human heavy infantry. The combination of a devastating missile attack and good melee skills results in the one of the best all-round footsoldier available. High elven archers are surpassed by the troll warriors, the stronger demon types, wraiths and some of the monsters wandering the land. But such foes are few and far between. Compared on a one to one basis, light cavalry, wolfmen or skeletons cannot expect to win. The gold needed to recruit these fearsome warriors is equal to the cost of the elven pikemen.
Elven Cavalry: Elven cavalry are in most ways equal in strength and weaknesses to human heavy cavalry although they are superior in many ways. The cost and upkeep in gold is much lower than that for human heavy cavalry. The elves substitute superior skill at arms for heavy and cumbersome armour giving the elven cavalry a superior edge in difficult terrain. The lower arms requirement (3 arms per elven knight) also results in much faster movement rates. Elven cavalry is about as fast as light human cavalry in difficult terrain and equal to medium human cavalry in open terrain. Elven cavalry fights slightly more effectively than human heavy cavalry. In open terrain elven cavalry is stronger than the dreaded goblin wolfriders, but when the terrain obstructs the movement of the horses the reverse is often true.
Elven Engineers: Contrary to their human counterparts elven engineers are skilled fighters equal to the human heavy infantry. This is because of the elven perspective of acquiring the ultimate skills in anything they do. In addition to their respectable combat skills elven engineers can build forts and construct siege engines to damage enemy fortifications. This is the one area where elven troops are not superior to their human counterparts but merely have comparable skill. Elven engineers are somewhat more expensive to train than the infantry, thus the cost is somewhat higher.
Wood Elves: The forest dwelling elves have many of their more civilised cousins' strengths and advantages over the more fragile and shotlived humans. They are more resistant to wounds suffered in combat, they have the long lifespans needed to become expert fighters even if lightly equipped. A woodelf fighter requires but a single arms unit and very little gold. Every woodelf is a hunter and hence adept with the longbow; they are almost as skilled as the high elven archers and have the second best missile attack available. Unlike the high elves the dense forest have learned the woodelves to hold their missiles until the last possible moment. Such a volley fired at point blank range by expert marksmen is truly devastating. Combined with their considerable melee skills, wood elves are almost as good all-round fighters as high elven archers. On neutral ground wood elves are better warriors than human medium cavalry, skeletons and are almost but not quite at par with goblin wolfriders. Wood elves also excel in woodcraft and know the woods and wooded hills terrain better than most others, they are fearsome opponents if encountered in the woods. Their familiarity with woods also enables them to construct temporary fortification in wood or wooded hills much like engineers, but often faster.
Elven Wolfriders: The wood elves breed huge wolves for war and as aides during hunting. The largest wolves of this breed are so huge and strong that the elves can use them as mounts. When used in combat wolfriders rely on their mounts to provide extra speed and agility, however the war trained wolves also attack by biting and tearing at their riders' enemies. The huge wolves scare horses and consequently cavalry units are often at a disadvantage when near the huge wolves, alas this goes for allied cavalry as well. In neutral terrain elven wolfriders are comparable to bullmen and but still weaker than human heavy cavalry or goblin wolfriders. The agile wolves are less hindered by difficult terrain than the human cavalry and are much faster in most terrain. Even though the wolves are huge (pony sized) they are still smaller in stature than a human warhorse. This is important when facing superior numbers of small enemy footsoldiers: In this situation the wolfriders have an advantage over cavalry.

Dwarven and Gnomish units

Dwarven Infantry: The dwarven race is a highly resilient and hardy. Although smaller than humans dwarves are tougher, more long-lived, more persistent and not easily frightened not even by magic means. Dwarves are born miners and tinker with all kinds of artifice, but especially armour, weapons and constructions work. Only two of their superior arms are required for each dwarven soldier, so fine is their workmanship. The dwarves' superior equipment (ring mail and heavy battle axes) combined with their natural endurance and the time to truly excel at what they do, makes the dwarven infantry stronger in melee than most other foot soldiers up to and including hobgoblins but with the exception of the stronger beastmen units, troll warriors and demons (if such abominations can be termed footsoldiers). Their small stature often gives them the advantages in combat. Dwarves can swarm larger opponents (such as cavalry) overwhelming them, but really large opponents (elephant sized) can trample the small dwarves. The small stature of the dwarves does not allow fast movement, dwarven movement rates are comparable to human heavy infantry, except in mountainous and hilly terrain where the dwarves are much faster. The amount of gold needed to draw the dwarves away from their mines and beloved arts and crafts are considerable, but fortunately the dwarven nation is rich. They are very much at home in the mountains and hills that constitute their nation, but they are not at loss in other terrain during a fight.
Dwarven Crossbowmen: Dwarven crossbowmen operate superior (dwarven made) crossbows, This makes their missile attacks stronger than their human counterparts, even if the range is limited to the same. When they have the opportunity to get a shot off first the are comparable to elven infantry. Dwarven crossbowmen are much better in a melee skirmish than their human equivalents, they are almost as good as human heavy infantry in a hand to hand brawl. Like their brothers in the infantry they are slow movers and like the infantry crossing a river can occupy them for a looong time. Like all dwarven troops the high resistance and endurance of the crossbowmen makes these dwarven troops heal much faster than humans. Wound suffered by a dwarf tend to heal in little more that a third of the time a human would need. Their intricate but superior crossbows are a bit more expensive that the arms issued to the infantry, hence their initial cost is somewhat higher.
Dwarven Engineers: Dwarven engineers are the most skilled engineers available, they can handle more siege engines than both the elves, trolls, and humans and they are even more expert at sapping. These skills are valuable and hence dwarven engineers are the most costly of all dwarven troops. There is one additional thing that dwarven engineers do better then their human counterparts: They are much better in a fight. These troops are superior to medium human infantry but they not quite up to human heavy infantry standards. Considering that dwarven engineers are equipped with but one arms unit per dwarf this is not too surprising.
Gnome Warriors: Gnomes are as small in stature as dwarves, like dwarves they have a great affinity for mining, earthlore and artifice. Beyond these characteristics the two races do not have much in common. Gnomes are not as stout as dwarves (although they are not exactly fragile), their life spans are comparable to humans, they proliferate faster and they have a great affinity for magic. This affinity makes them the only race totally immune to illusion and charm. Even when equipped with one unit of arms of superior make the average gnome warrior is ranging between light and medium infantry in combat. However the light equipment compensates for their small size and makes the gnomes about as fast as light infantry. The gnomes are familiar with hills and mountains, but also know their way around in cities and castles as well. The gnomes are rather costly to recruit given their efficiency in battle and they eat a lot, at least compared to dwarves. Although they are weak on an individual basis gnomes units very effective vs. large opponents (such as cavalry).
Gnome Archers: Gnome archers have a shorter range than human archers as they use shortbows instead of the humans' larger and more powerful composite bows. However, this disadvantage is offset by the fact that they tend to be better marksmen and they are marginally better in a melee skirmish. So when all comes to all the gnome archers are about equal to human medium infantry in combat (if they can get of a shot from their bows before melee). Like the gnome warriors the archers are issued only one unit of arms which makes for fast movement even in difficult terrain. Like all gnomes the archers have a high affinity for hilly and mountainous terrain, but they are also at home in their cities and castles. Gnome archers are best used for defence.
Gnome Engineers: The gnomes tinker with all things mechanical so is is not surprising that the gnome engineers are as good at siegeing fortifications as their human counterparts and unlike their human counterparts they can sap fortifications in mountains. They can construct forts in two thirds of the time it would take a unit of human engineers. Gnome engineers are also slightly better than human engineers in a fight, no weaker than human light infantry. Their cost is high, they are best recruited when needed, they are simply to costly to have standing by waiting for an opportunity that require their special skills.

Trolls and goblins

Trolls: Trolls are the toughest and most fierce unmounted troops in existence. A troll warrior can defeat almost all other standard units on a one to one basis on neutral ground, except the fearsome elephant riders, winged demons, wraiths and dzarek riders, luckily all of these troops are allied to the troll nation. The troll race have several attributes that makes the trolls one of the most versatile troop types in existence: Their skins are hard to penetrate and acts as natural armour thus they only require two units of arms per soldier. They heal with extreme rapidity, a troll who survives combat will be fit to fight again in no time. Their size (6) makes for fast movement, they move about as fast as medium cavalry in most terrain. Their great strength enables them to pick up large rocks from the ground and hurl them at advancing enemies, although the range is short and the methods primitive, the attack from a troll warrior is about as strong as than that of a human crossbowman. A standard unit of trolls can construct a crude siege engine or dig under enemy fortifications, if enough trolls participate a considerable amount of damage can be done. The biggest problem with the trolls are that it takes a long time to recruit even small units and that huge losses are hard to replace. Trolls are best used together with weaker troops which can attract the enemy to relieve the trolls from the brunt of the enemy's attack.
Hobgoblins: Hobgoblins are recruited from the strongest, bulliest, and meanest stock of goblins. They are given strict training, filtering out the weak (there is a high mortality rate amongst hobgoblin recruits) and are issued with two units of arms usually in the form of crude ring armour and either a bardiche or crude broadsword. The result is a creature that has had to fight its entire existence in order to survive, issued with troll wrought arms. They are very very effective in combat (the knowledge that the weakest member of the company are tonight's dinner helps to keep them motivated). Hobgoblins are as tough as dwarven infantry on neutral ground, but the bullwhips applied to the rear guard makes them much faster (about as fast as light infantry). Hobgoblins have a good affinity for woods, hills, wooded hills, and to some extend even mountains, this probably makes hobgoblins the best all-round fighters with the the exception of their troll masters of course. Training hobgoblins requires more gold that human heavy infantry (the "training camps" are rather expensive), but once drafted (or caught) the upkeep are somewhat lower than that of heavy infantry.
Goblins: The weak and cowardly goblins can best be described as a mob issued with arms. Mobs tend to follow the path of least resistance and that is usually not where the enemy is waiting. Goblins are best used as labour in the mines, unless the lifelong "training" hobgoblins receive is applied. They are comparable to human medium infantry in combat effectiveness (that is; when their leader can persuade them to stick around during the fighting). Their light equipment is somewhat offset by their small stature so they are not faster than hobgoblins on the march. They are cheap to recruit and maintain and even cheaper to feed. Their terrain preferences are the same as those of hobgoblins, but even in terrain in for which they have a high preference they can be defeated by heavy infantry.
Goblin wolfriders: In the war pens of the trolls dark arts have been applied to natural wolf stock resulting in a breed of fierce wolves the size of ponies. The trolls themselves are too large for such smallish creatures but it is fully adequate for the small goblins, who can sit two apiece on each great wolf. One goblin is equipped with a heavy spear the other with a bardiche and the wolves are fearsome opponents in their own right. It takes no small amount of gold to train the wolves not to eat their riders (although accidents do happen from time to time, it keeps the goblins motivated) and the continuous diet of human and demi human flesh is also rather expensive. The combination is a small (for mounted troops), fast and very deadly unit. The wolves' agility and speed give the riders excellent defensive capabilities and add power to the riders' thrusts and cuts. In their favourite terrain, hills, woods and wooded hills, only the high elven cavalry and the wood elven wolfriders can hope match goblin wolfriders. In hills the mounted goblins usually win over the wood elves whereas the high elven cavalry get the better of the goblins. In woods the goblin wolfriders tend to win over the high elven cavalry whereas the woodelves can take out the goblin wolfriders. in wooded hills the woodelves have a slight edge over the goblins as has the elven cavalry. In more open terrain it still takes human heavy cavalry to defeat a goblin wolfrider unit. The wolfriders are fast in most terrain and are therefore good as helpers when controlling new territory.

Snakemen

Swamp snakemen: The snakemen are a race of humanoids with a racial disposition for bad temper and worse looks. Their skin is scaly and leather like, they eyes yellow and their hands are very claw like. The snakeman nation is composed of several tribes. The swamp snakemen live in the marshes and have slowly adapted to this life. They are able to move in the bogs and rives on small reedboats. The swamp snakemen can even sail in these near the coast if the need arises. The scaly skin, clawlike hands and powerful bite of snakemen make them adequate fighters even with no equipment whatsoever which is fortunate since arms in swamps are extremely rare. The swamp snakemen require very little gold when drafted and they remain in the armies for the promise of the next meal (never a certain thing in the swamps) and a better life. In a fight they are comparable to medium infantry in most terrain except swamp where they can match heavy infantry and city/structure/plains/farmlands where the familiarity of medium infantry gives them a superior edge.
Desert snakemen: Like their brethren from the swamps the desert snakemen fight as they stand. They have the same scaly hide (though it is sand coloured) and strong claws. They also fight with crude home-made weapons (clubs, wooden spears and such). Like all snakemen, Desert Snakemen are fanatics, they cannot be bribed but as it is often the case with fanatics they can loose heart and flee combat if their losses are too great, they are not braver than ordinary troops. On neutral ground the desert snakemen are about equal to medium infantry in melee strength. In the desert they rate equal to human Desert men in combat but they are not as brave. The snakemen leaders often prefer gray snakemen to do their fighting for the very same reason.
Black snakemen: Black snakemen are a subcaste of the swamp snakemen. They are issued with arms and are trained in combat. The retain the terrain familiarity of swamp snakemen but af more fierce in combat. on neutral ground they are equal to Heavy infantry. If encountered in swamp they are very bad news as on familiar ground each black snakeman is equal to dwarven infantry or two human heavy infantry men. Black snakemen are known to employ poisoned weapons in combat, which is especially effective vs. human opponents.
Gray snakemen: Gray snakemen are not a subspecies of snakemen but rather a war caste within the snakemen society. They are given training in martial arts and are issued arms. Since their though scaly skin and training gives them a decent defensive bonus they never carry armour preferring light equipment and encumbrance. This gives the gray snakemen fighting power comparable but slightly superior to human heavy infantry although the snakemen's all-round terrain familiarity is better and they move somewhat faster. Their training is twice as costly as that of the unarmed snakeman troops but even so they are way cheaper than most human troops and they only require food for upkeep. Their special training also makes for brave troops as they know that few unmounted troops can match them in combat.
Dzarek riders: The huge lizard like dzareks are native to the cold swamps in the north. The snakemen use them as mounts and only the best and most well equipped snakemen troops are issued dzareks. Two gray snakemen are mounted on top of the dzarek, who is itself protected by light armour. This makes the dzarek riders tougher than the best human cavalry (except for elephant riders) on neutral ground, but they are not especially fast and they are unable to charge. In the swamps each dzarek unit can take on three heavy cavalry men and expect to win. In open terrain the heavy cavalry is better on a two to one basis. Like the gray snakemen the dzarek riders are brave in combat and even better: the dzareks' huge bulks tend to scare enemy cavalry. The bane of the dzarek riders are their enormous size. Even though dzarek riders are better than most other units on a one to one basis they often lose when facing a superior number of enemies. The huge units can only attack one opponent at a time whereas the smaller opponents can swarm the dzareks. The best way to avoid this is to include some gray or black snakemen with the dzareks' force to even the numbers and attract the brunt of the enemy's attack.

Undead Units

Zombies: Zombies are the weakest of the undead troops. They are the animated remains of the rotten corpses found in ruins and wasteland. Since they are already somewhat decomposed they are fragile and not very resistant to damage. Their rotting smell tends to scare horse cavalry even if the units belong to an allied nation. Zombies attack with their hands and by biting and clawing at their opponents. All in all they rate marginally better than light human infantry in combat. Since zombies are mindless they generally ignore damage to themselves and fight at full efficiency (if it can be called efficient) regardless of the wounds sustained or the terrain. On the down side they do not heal unless additional effort and mana is expended. They are fairly slow and being mindless no use for controlling territory. Zombies are best avoided, the mana is much better spent on some skeletons or greater zombies.
Greater Zombies: Greater zombies are created from the corpses of large animals and monsters and they are of quite another stock than the ordinary zombies. They are generally somewhat bigger and both monsters and animals are equipped with some kind natural armour and or weaponry (horns, tusks, fangs or whatever) which they retain when animated after death. They also require a far greater amount of mana to animate. All in all greater zombies are in league with hobgoblins, wolfmen or dwarven infantry with regard to combat strength. Like their lesser brethren they are slow, mindless, scare horses and do not regenerate. They are totally indifferent to their environment fighting equally well in all terrains (except ruins where they excel).
Skeletons: The hard bones and rusty weapons of reanimated skeletons make them a bit tougher than the greater zombies although not quite as strong as the high elven archers or woodelf warriors. They are also a bit faster than zombies, but they are mindless and thus cannot help controlling new land. Like zombies they ignore their wounds and fight at peek efficiency regardless of sustained damage. They are equally efficient in all terrain types. Being dead they cannot regenerate damage but must be reanimated by their creator or his minions. They do not scare horses as do zombies and rumour has it that they are very vulnerable to lightning strikes. They cost a considerable amount of mana to animate but they do not require any upkeep.
Wraiths: Unlike the weaker animated undeads, wraiths are sentient. This means they can actually help controlling territory. They are almost non-corporal, being partly ethereal (evil) spirits. Their magical nature makes them very hard to damage with normal weapons and they attack very efficiently draining the heat from their victims or using innate death magic. This makes them tougher than even the most fierce demons and even a troll warrior will lose in a pitched fight. The only creatures known to have bested wraiths in personal combat are giants and treants. Being only partly of this World and partly from a plane best left unmentioned, the wraiths move swiftly over all terrains effectively ignoring normal obstructions, shifting in and out of normal "existence" with only one (albeit important) limitation: They cannot cross running water (i.e. rivers). Their connection to unspeakable other planes also enables them to call upon energies not available to other undead and hence they regenerate lost energy (wounds). All normal living creatures rightly fear these evil spirits and hence all troop types (enemies and allies) experience fear when fighting near them. It is no surprise that summoning wraiths is most expensive and contrary to the mindless units, wraiths require an upkeep to be paid.

Demonic units

Hordlings: Hordlings are the weakest servants of Ozzaxytl. Like all demonic troop types they do not require gold, arms or food. Instead great amounts of Dark God Mana is required to summon them and bind them to an existence in a plane which is not their own. They are grotesque creatures and even though they are merely dwarf sized they are hideous to behold. Their overall combat efficiency is close to medium infantry. This is not to be slighted however in combination with their small size it is deadly efficient. Their origin from another dimension means that almost all terrains in this World are equally familiar (or unfamiliar), thus they perform the same in combat regardless of the terrain. One can perhaps infer something of their original (home) environment from the fact that they perform slightly better in wasteland, desert, caves and. . . . volcanoes. They are about as fast as medium infantry. Due to their low status in their home dimension they are not allowed to help control foreign soil.
Demons: Demons are the most commonly seen of Ozzaxytl's servants. They are stronger in stature than hordlings and perform much better in combat. Their melee skills range somewhere between elven infantry and elven pikemen. They require double the amount of mana to control and summon compared to hordlings, but the extra mana is well spent. Their bigger size makes for faster movement; demons are about as fast as human light infantry. As all demons these regenerate faster that human troops although not twice as fast. Their robust physique makes them better able to deal with the stress this strange environment poses, hence their overall terrain familiarity is better than hordlings, especially in city and structure.
Horned demons: The dreadful Horned demons are so named because they are covered in horned plates and varying numbers of horns protrude from their joints and what passes for a head on these creatures. They use their horned surface for both attack and defence to great effect. In combat they are superior to heavy human cavalry, high elven cavalry even in plains or farmlands. Horned demons may even best troll warriors on a one to one basis in neutral terrain. They may sprout fire over large areas which is very effective vs. small opponents. Their native fierceness makes them hard to summon and bind, however. The costs of summoning and binding horned demons is twice as high as the cost for "ordinary" demons. They are larger than human size towering over men and elves alike. Their huge size (6) makes for long strides hence they move about as fast as medium cavalry in open terrains and only slightly slower than this in more difficult terrains such as caves, jungle or woods. Only mountains seems to provide some sort of obstacle for these creatures. Horned demons can use their powerful claws to literally crack stones. They can employ this ability to damage fortifications as do engineers.
Winged demons: Although winged demons have, as their name implies, wings, and are able to fly over short distances they cannot fly over long distances. Effectively their huge batlike wing enable them to jump over obstacles and hover across rivers, forest undergrowth and chasms with ease. This means that they can and will be intercepted by ground based armies and that they cannot cross the ocean unaided. However, they still move very, very fast in most terrains (about as fast as light cavalry moves in open terrain). Likewise most fortified locations poses little hindrance when they attack, they simply glide over the walls. Luckily they require three times the mana that normal demons does to summon and bind. In combat they are even stronger than the dreaded horned demons. Although not as strong as giants, wraiths or Treants they are still stronger than any human or elven troop type regardless of terrain (even plains and farmlands). They are also more resistant to damage and regenerate about twice as fast as humans. As horned demons, winged demons can damage enemy fortifications and shoot fire at many small opponents at a time.

Beastmen and Monstrous units

Dogmen: Dogmen constitutes the bulk of the Beast Master's armies as they are fairly abundant and can be found in both hills and mountains. Dogmen have a stronger resemblance to men than to dogs. They move on two legs and although their fur and tails reveal their species they are clearly humanoids. They fight as they stand without weapons or armour. The stray magic that created the race provided them with strong tusks and they possess extraordinary agility in combat. They are stronger in combat than human heavy infantry (about as skilled in melee as woodelves) and they are faster when on the move, about as fast as light infantry. They are fairly familiar with most natural terrain types, especially hills, whereas cities and structure are foreign ground. Since dogmen are "native" to the environment they can scour whatever food they need to survive from the countryside, thus they do not require upkeep. They are pariahs and scorned by the civilised races, hence they are only motivated by their thirst for revenge and cannot be recruited by anyone but the Beastmaster, who in turn does not pay for their recruitment or upkeep.
Frogmen: Frogmen are residents of the northern swamps of the continent. The are native to these swamps and are reluctant to leave them. Frogmen have the head and torso of a huge frog and the legs of a human. They are equipped with webbed hands and feet and can swim the rivers of the land with relative ease but they shun the salty waters of the ocean. Their skin needs constant moisture and therefore frogmen are at a disadvantage when out of their natural environment. This is also reflected in their movement rates the constant search for bodies of water tend to slow them down when outside their swamps. Thus they are only about as fast as zombies. Frogmen perform well in combat; they are marginally stronger than human heavy infantry in melee and they have a powerful missile attack: They can spit a deadly poison at their enemies at short range. When the frogmen can use this ranged attack they become comparable to demons or high elven pikemen in overall combat strength on neutral ground.
Wolfmen: Wolfmen are "native" to the woods and wooded hills. They have many of the physical attributes of the dogmen but they are heavier framed and with a stronger physique. This is an asset in combat where the average wolfman performs better than a dwarven infantryman or a hobgoblin - actually they are comparable to medium cavalry. Compared to the dogmen the wolfmen tend to be somewhat slower when moving around. Although wolfmen have the same overall terrain familiarity they are slightly better attuned to the land, especially in woods, hills and wooded hills. Like all beastmen they do not require food or gold but they are only found in the remote wilderness.
Bullmen: Bullmen are found in plains. As opposed to most other beastmen bullmen can move on four legs. They are about as large as a small pony and are equipped with horns which they use to great effect in combat. They are the strongest of the beastmen races; a fact that is reflected in their combat strength: Bullmen are weaker than heavy human cavalry but still about as strong as wood elven wolfriders. Bullmen favour the open terrain types where they can charge their opponents. Even though the perform much better than human heavy cavalry in difficult terrain such as wooded hills, wood, mountains and jungle they are still weak compared to heavy cavalry when in plains or farmlands. They are about as fast as heavy cavalry when moving in the open, when moving in more difficult terrain such as woods or wooded hills bullmen are faster than medium cavalry yet slower than light cavalry.
Eaglemen: The elusive eaglemen can only be found near the highest peaks. Eaglemen are the most rare beastmen race by far. This is lucky for the civilised races as eaglemen have a unique ability: They one of the two mass units capable of true flight. Eaglemen are the most mobile massunits available. Regardless of terrain they move as fast as a light human cavalryman galloping in plains. Eaglemen resemble huge birds of prey standing 6 feet tall. The only thing that gives away their origin are their overly large heads with intelligent looking eyes and two human arms protruding from their chest. Eaglemen swoop over their enemies attacking with their claws, beaks and home-made spears relying on their power of flight to provide defence. They have developed and refined these tactics to an artform resulting in units as effective in combat as high elven pikemen. The ability to fly makes most defences close to useless, especially city walls are for naught as the eaglemen can land behind the walls before attacking the defenders.
Catmen: Catmen only breed in the southern jungles and are therefore rare anywhere else. However bands have been known to roam the lands far from the jungle. Catmen stand on their hind legs and are covered with soft fur they even have tails. The are equipped with retractable claws and their heads resemble the feline carnivores they are named after. They stand 5-6 feet and are both strong and extremely agile. In melee they fight with claws and fangs and rely on their agility for defence. They can face most opponents in melee and expect to win up to and including dwarven infantry in neutral terrain. In jungle they are unsurpassed on a one to one basis only the strongest demons, Treants or the most powerful undead can prevail fighting catmen in jungle. Catmen are also fair fighters in most other terrains and thus have an advantage over most human troops in difficult terrain.
Darklings: Darkling are a race of small (dwarven sized) demi humans that dwell almost exclusively in caves, mines and other underground sites. Thus they are familiar with and have a huge combat advantage in caves, a terrain unfamiliar to most other troop types. They are rather weak individuals (comparable to light infantry or militia) but their small size (and usually large numbers) enable them to attack larger opponents very effectively. They are known to use poisoned weapons. A group af 200 darklings in a mine is no easy pushover.
Minotaurs: Minotaurs are bull-headed giants seen roaming hills and mountainous regions. They tower above normal men standing as tall as a mounted man. They use huge but crude clubs (often spiked) for weapons and animal hides for armour. They are hostile toward all intelligent creatures with the exception of the Beastmaster and his unnatural minions. Luckily the Mage Wars did not leave many behind, but they have begun to breed in the wilderness after the collapse of the empire. They are fearsome opponents only a pair af fully equipped heavy cavalrymen can hope to prevail over. They scavenge what they need from the countryside as they wander about and this tends to slow them down. Thus regardless of their size they only march with the speed of light infantry in flat terrains although they are somewhat faster in mountainous terrain. They feel equally at home in all terrains but each band tends to roam a limited area.
Bog Crabs: Bog Crabs are mostly found in swamps. They resemble their smaller brethren but they are 4 feet across and equipped with claws that match their size. Bog Crabs are equipped with natural armour equal to the finest human platemail and natural weapons designed to tear living opponents apart. They tend to view anything that moves as a prospective meal, a disposition that makes them greatly feared when they are encountered in their home terrain (and they rarely venture outside the swamps). In swamp a Bog Crab can best two heavy cavalrymen on a two to one basis, whereas in neutral terrain they are comparable to High elven archers or wood elves. Fortunately they are unsuited to life (and combat) outside swamps and although still serious adversaries to heavy infantry medium or heavy cavalry will get the better off them. Outside the swamps they move rather slowly akin to skeletons but they are one of the the fastest moving units in swamp.
Centaurs: A Centaur resembles a small horse with a human torso instead of the horse's head and neck. Centaurs are strong and enduring and have human level intelligence - this means they are tool users. They roam the forested regions in bands of up to forty individuals. They shun the civilised races whom they believe have driven the centaur race from lands that rightfully belonged to them. They are armed with shortbows and spears which they use for hunting and war. They have slightly better melee combat abilities than human heavy cavalry and in addition to their good melee abilities they have a respectable bow attack (range two) comparable in efficiency to the ranged attack of a frogman. They are as fast as light human cavalry but have a better overall terrain familiarity especially in the wilderness.
Giants: Giants are the bane of all other troops except elephant riders. They stand twice as tall as a large man and are very muscular. They are equipped as light or medium infantry but weapons and armour are twice normal size. Their huge size also gives them added stamina and enables them to pick up huge boulders which they can hurl at their enemies. Luckily they can only do this on a short range as the boulders tend to do more damage than even the High Elven longbows. Only elephant riders are more fearsome in melee; a giant can best the strongest human and demihuman troops as well as the strongest undead and demonic units. Their only disadvantage is their huge size which makes it possible to swarm them with superior numbers. Their size makes it possible for them to move as fast as winged demons (i.e. faster than most other creatures save eaglemen and wraiths).
Giant Scorpions: Giant scorpions resemble their lesser cousins but are 6 feet long. They use a very potent poison but can also attack with their large claws. They are covered in natural armour that is comparable to scale mail. All in all their natural "equipment" makes them range between medium and heavy cavalry in combat. They are also fast with a high movement rate in most terrains. Luckily they don't tend to move about very much. They are no more intelligent than ordinary scorpions, thus if recruited they must be lead.
Giant Ants: A bring half the size of a dwarf with an attack weaker then a militia man does not sound very frightening. . . but picture 400 at a time swarming over a unit of much larger opponents, then consider that the hapless opponent cannot attack back effectively due to size restrictions, and then you ought to be afraid. A unit of 400 giant ants can easily chew up 50 heavy cavalry men and have been known to do so from time to time. Never mind what they all say: Size does matter! The cavalry are twice as strong (in theory). Avoid giant ants unless you bring units with area attacks, small units, or a huge number of troops. Luckily their size impairs their movement, giant ants cannot cross rivers even fords are impassable to them. They are also stupid.
Giant Spiders: Unlike giant ants giant spiders are not small. Giant spiders are 4 feet tall (the size of goblins) and they are fierce predators. Giant spiders often live in colonies of up to fifty individuals. Each spider can stand up to a high elven pikeman, a hobgoblin or a lion on neutral ground. The innate fierceness and small size is a deadly combination. Unfortunately they are rarely encountered on neutral ground but more often in terrain that favours the spiders such as forests, ruins, caves or other dark and gloomy locations. They are rumoured to be poisionus but like all giant versions of smaller animals they are unintelligent.

Animal Units

Wolves: The wolves of the wild can be summoned by druids and wood elves. These are natural wolves, not the giant variety used as mounts by goblins and wood elves; hence they are as big as large dogs. The Wolves attack with their fangs and are only protected by their fur. This makes them relatively weak in combat, only a little better that human light infantry. They only possess animal level intelligence and wolves must therefore be directed by an intelligent leader in order to move or perform any other action. This means that they must be included in a force lead by an intelligent unit (usually the one that summoned the wolves in the first place). Although small in stature wolves are very fast in most terrain (about as fast as light cavalry in plains). Like all animals they are stupid and must be lead in order to perform any orders.
Lions: Although normally thought of as fairly lazy, lions are powerful and quite awesome opponents in combat. They can face down high elven pikemen in melee. Lions use their fearsome claws and great fangs in combat and have a high stamina and agility to account for their defensive capabilities. As wolves they only possess animal intelligence and thus they must be led (usually by a druid or minor druid). Lions are fast (as medium cavalry in plains) in almost any terrain and have a good all-round terrain familiarity. Lions are for example one of the rare units with fair terrain familiarity in jungle.
Buffalo Herd: A trampling herd of buffaloes is a sight best avoided and although only the druids know the arcane arts needed to summon the great beasts, free herds are known to roam about. Luckily buffaloes (and other animals) are neutral towards most nations unless provoked by attack. If roused, buffaloes tend to charge (to great effect). A herd of buffaloes can overrun an equal sized unit of hobgoblins or dwarves in neutral terrain and they are most effective in plains and farmlands all in all you can compare them to medium cavalry. Buffaloes favour flat terrains but are not at loss in more difficult terrain. They are fairly fast in most terrain; about as fast as heavy cavalry in the open and as fast as light ditto in more confined terrain types.
Crocodiles: Crocodiles are rarely found outside swamps or rivers. If encountered in these locations they can be quite a nuisance however. They are compact creatures with natural armour equal to boiled leather and fierce attacks using the tail as a mace and biting with their powerful jaws. On neutral ground they can defeat high elven infantry, and in swamps they can chew up heavy cavalry. They have fair terrain familiarity in wood, wooded hills, plains, jungle and surprisingly caves, in more rough terrain they are more at a disadvantage.
Giant Eagles: It is rumoured that there exist a race of intelligent and huge (for eagles anyway) eagles. This is unverified but travellers report that these alleged animals move as fast as an infantryman on road and fight as capably as elven infantry.

Special Units

Treants: Some believe that the Treants were the first sentient beings to walk the Land even predating the elves. It is a fact that Treants that are more familiar with the woods than wood elves are. Treants are the woods. Treants resemble short but robust trees; their "trunks" are branched and they can wield tools with their handlike "branches". They are very powerful in combat, actually they can stand up to a giant and (with luck) even win. They use waves nature mana against small opponents. Their attunement to the countryside and their huge size makes them able to traverse great distances very fast. Treants are as fast as eaglemen in most terrain although jungle, mountains and swamps tend to slow them down. Treants have good all-round terrain familiarity outside forests. They can use their gnarled limps to tear at fortifications as effectively as any human engineer. Their bane is their size and (possibly) fire (scholars debate the topic and the Treants themselves are rather woodheaded and refuse commenting the issue).
Dark Guardians: Dark Guardians are a special type of demons sent by The Dark God to protect the obelisks once raised. This is the only known way to summon a unit of Dark Guardians. Dark guardians are utterly black and those fortunate enough to survive a battle with them report that their shape and features are hard to discern. They fight fiercely and equally well in all terrains and can defeat heavy cavalry on neutral ground.

Last update: February 21, 2000.