"At the right range, armour is no defence against a crossbow bolt."
By the time of the Migration Period the crossbow was commonly used in the west, it having been a battlefield fixture for several centuries elsewhere in the world. Although developed independently by the Chinese, some 5th century BC examples have been discovered in Greece, where the western version was probably invented. Certainly by 300BC handheld crossbows began to appear, and it wasn’t long after that the Romans fielded their large torsion-sprung scorpion and ballista bolt throwers for the first time. Although not mentioned by name, by the 2nd century AD the Romans were training cavalry to use handheld, repeating crossbows on the battlefield, their use being recorded by Arrian in his ‘Tactica’. Eventually, the crossbow reached the barbarian tribal confederations of northern and western Europe, where it was used in deadly combination with the pike tactics emerging at that time, also becoming a popular hunting weapon for centuries to come.
Strength and Weaknesses[]
Very Poor Armour
Low Health
Poor Rate of Fire
Base Stats[]
Germanic Crossbowmen
Unit
Number of Men:
160
Morale:
43
Bonus HP:
9
Melee Attack:
11
Melee Defense:
7
Charge Bonus:
7
Reload:
50
Ammunition:
17
Very Light Infantry
Human
Hit Points:
75
Mass:
70
Walk Speed:
16
Run Speed:
40
Charge Speed:
55
Charge Distance:
35
Weapons and Gear[]
Sax
Melee Weapon
Damage:
10
Armour Penetration Damage:
1
Bonus vs Infantry:
0
Bonus vs Cavalry:
0
Bonus vs Elephants:
0
Building damage:
0.033
Crossbow
Missile Weapon
Normal Shot
Flaming Shot
Heavy Shot
Whistling Shot
Damage:
15
75
5
15
Armour Penetration Damage:
50
25
75
5
Base Reload Time:
43
60
60
60
Range:
125
125
125
125
Bonus vs Infantry:
0
0
10
0
Bonus vs Cavalry:
0
0
0
0
Bonus vs Elephants:
0
0
0
0
Special Effects:
Cloth
Armour
Armour:
3
Abilities[]
Precision Shot
Target:
Self
Initial Recharge:
0
Active Time:
30
Recharge Time:
210
Improved missile weapon damage for an extended period. These values are further modified by the unit itself.
Precision Shot (30s):
+50% Missile Damage
Fatigue (1s):
+100% Fatigue
Barrage
Target:
Self
Initial Recharge:
0
Active Time:
30
Recharge Time:
210
Loose projectiles more frequently for an extended period of time.
Quick Reload (30s):
+50% Rate of Fire
Freeze Fatigue
Fatigue (1s):
+100% Fatigue
Attributes[]
Resistant to Fatigue
Fatigue has less of an effect on this unit.
Hide (forest)
This unit can hide in forests until enemy units get too close.