Historical Makedonian / Epriote Recruitment

[Midnj]

I'm looking to start a new campaign and want to come up with house rules to mirror what we know to be actual recruitment practices.

So far I've adapted some house rules from various other threads and primarily I am going to be recruiting "provincial armies" in each settlement based on that settlement's income with certain ratios (eg 1:3:1 peasant/regular/elite). My standing armies will be drawn directly from whatever is available in my provincial armies... so this should give me a reasonable mix of troops based mainly on regulars with the odd elite / peasant unit in the mix.

But I'm looking to adapt it further, however I am lacking the proper historical context/info on how these factions historically recruited. If anyone has any resources or knowledge and can assist it'd be much appreciated.

Thanks.

[Cyclops]

My dim impression is that the Mac system was part standing professional army (especially elites), part "feudal" where (for example) line pikemen were obligated to answer the king's summons for a defined period of service, part tribal alliegance where a barbarian leader's followers were "given' to the king for a set period of service.

I believe athens kept a standing force of skythian and cretan archers as a garrison as well as using them as auxilliaries to their hoplites 9who were raised in large groups only in wartime): perhaps archers should be a typical garrison unit? At least in Hellenic type 2 govts.

You might want to reflect that by only raising pike units for set campaigns and disbanding them at the end of hostilities (or every winter, depending on conditions). Elites could be stationed at the capital and barbaroi like the Agrianes stationed only in their homeland provinces.

Were the medium and elite pikes recruited from the basic pike units in Macedonia? if so, you might keep one or two experienced basic pike intact after each campaign and designate them your Pezhetairoi. Their increased experience can simulate their elite status very well, and you wouldn't need to raise a bunch of different pike units, just top the chosen phalanxes up from the cream of the locals after each war.

[konny]

So far I've adapted some house rules from various other threads and primarily I am going to be recruiting "provincial armies" in each settlement based on that settlement's income with certain ratios (eg 1:3:1 peasant/regular/elite). My standing armies will be drawn directly from whatever is available in my provincial armies... so this should give me a reasonable mix of troops based mainly on regulars with the odd elite / peasant unit in the mix.

In most cases none of your settlements will be able to support elites when they also have peasant and citizen units at the same time. I use 1/2 of the cities' income to raise the local militia and, for example, in my Karthagian campaign even Karthago herself in 239 BC is not able to maintain one unit of Elite Pikemen or Sacred Band infantry, leave alone Sacred Band Cavalry or Elephants, when maintaining a reasonable number of levy and avarage units before.

With the Maks I did the following: I divided all factional units into "militia" and "royal" units. The cheaper "militia" units were maintained by the 1/2 income of the towns and the better "royal" units by the overall income from mining and the money the towns did not use up, for example when 100 mne were missing for the next unit in that settlement. Having two or three towns with well developed mines, you'll be able to maintain some decent core units that are supported by local militias.


Adding the mining income to the individual town's income doesn't really do because that would often require you to raise, for example, tons of Illyrian horsemen from a remote 800-souls village, that has nothing but the mine. Very odd, and not much fun in the long run.

[Midnj]

Hmm, thanks for the tips konny. I guess I should say these house rules are subject to revision :).

i guess all elites count as royal for you there then? what about regulars?