Sharpshooters (Fall of the Samurai)

For the similarly named technology from The Warpath Campaign, see Sharp Shooting. For the Napoleon: Total War unit, see Sharpshooters (Napoleon: Total War).

Sharpshooters
Appears in	Fall of the Samurai
Belongs to	Most factions except the Aizu
Type	Light Infantry
Ammunition	20
Soldiers per unit	30/60/90/120
Attack skill	4
Charge bonus	10
Anti-cavalry skill	0
Armour	2
Defense skill	2
Range	150
Precision	45
Loading speed	25
Morale	6
Tech requirement	Arms Deals
Produced from	Barracks
Special abilities	Suppression Fire
Cost	840 SP/1000 MP
Upkeep	110
Turns to train	1
Unit cap	None

Sharpshooters are a type of light infantry in Fall of the Samurai.

Description

A few bullets, in the right targets, can turn the course of battle.

Sharpshooters are best employed to protect the flanks of an army, and to specifically target dangerous enemy units from a safe, for them at least, distance. They are armed with very accurate rifles, and can shoot targets at very long range. Anyone hit is almost certain to be taken out of the fight. They are right to consider themselves a cut above ordinary infantrymen, and this attitude gives them good morale. However, due to their low numbers, they can be vulnerable to being swamped by enemy units in close combat, or ridden down by cavalry. A wise commander keeps them out of such immediate dangers as much as possible.

Many European armies had employed skirmishers, often armed with rifles, from the Napoleonic Wars onwards. Referred to as “rifles” or as some variant of “hunters” such as “chasseurs” or “jaegers”, these men were often elites within their respective army. They were selected on the basis of intelligence and resourcefulness, and often because of a background as poachers or gamekeepers! During the American Civil War units of sharpshooters were raised from among “back country boys” who relied on their skill to feed their families in times of peace. Sharpshooters, whatever they were called, were not expected to fight in open battle in the normal way of things, but to pick off officers and leaders among the enemy ranks. As technology and weaponry improved and telescopic sights became available, their ability to plunge enemy units into disarray grew too. Individual snipers were limited only by the mechanical reliability and quality of their guns, something that came as a terrible shock to many officers supposedly safe behind the lines!

Strengths & Weaknesses

• Good accuracy but average reload rate.
• Long range.
• Weak in melee.
• Weak against cavalry.
• Good morale.

General Information

Sharpshooters are the standard (and for most factions, only) light infantry in Fall of the Samurai. As light infantry, they have the longest range of all infantry, tied with Bow Kachi. However, they have much greater kill rates than Bow Kachi. Due to their low numbers, sharpshooters cannot stand up to line infantry or cavalry if their opponents can close the gap. Sharpshooters operate best when firing from an elevated position, comfortably shielded from enemy troops so that they can deal their damage effectively. They are also superb at both attacking and defending fortresses during sieges, as their longer range allow them to pick off defenders off walls with impunity if attacking, or to soften enemy numbers without having to worry immediately about counter fire when defending.

The Aizu lack sharpshooters, putting them at a range disadvantage later in the campaign. The Tosa have superior Tosa Riflemen that they can recruit alongside sharpshooters, while the Jozai can supplement their sharpshooters with limited numbers of superior Yugekitai.