Hannibal's Army

I figured I may as well post up something I worked on recently to do with Hannibal's army. From these threads in other forums, plus unit descriptions, I put together a roster. While not completely accurate, it is a good representation of that legendary army. This is what I came up with:

Attachment 8874

You should know these units by sight now. ~;) In writing, the unit roster is:

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

1 General (Somrei HaMepaqed)
Heavy Infantry:
2 Libyan Heavy Spearmen ('Hanatim Libim Kbedim)
2 Iberian Heavy Infantry (Loricati Scutari)
1 Asturian Axemen (Clona Tekonac) / Iberian Medium Spearmen (Iberi Scutari)
1 Gallic Heavy Swordsmen (Neitos)
1 Iberian Assault Infantry (Dorkei Hatqapa Iberim)
1 Gallic "Naked Fanatic" Infantry (Gaesatae)
1 Elite African Infantry (Dorkim Alupim)
Light Infantry:
1 Maure Infantry (Dorkim Maurim)
1 Balearic Light Infantry (Dorkim Balearim)
1 Iberian Light Infantry (Iberi Caetrati)
1 Balearic Slingers (Qala'im Balearim)
Cavalry:
1 Iberian Heavy Cavalry (Iberi Lanceari)
1 Gallic Noble Cavalry (Brihentin)
1 Liby-Phoenician Cavalry (Parasim Libi-Ponnim)
1 Iberian Medium Cavalry (Iberi Curisi)
1 Numidan Nobles (Gldgmtk)/ Elephantes / Numidian Cavalry (Parasim Numidim)
1 Numidian Cavalry (Parasim Numidim)

Many of them were mentioned in Hannibal's inscription left in Italia, while others were well known to have been with him at the time. The Gaesatae, for example, served as Hannibal's personal guard. Elephants are not depicted because many did not survive the Alps and were not around for too much longer after that, being significant at Trebia only. One obvious change by me is the inclusion of Numidian Noble cavalry, while another is the Asturian Axemen. The latter were certainly there with Hannibal, but there was only a small contingent rather than the sizable unit represented in that roster. They're awesome, so they get a free pass from me. As far as I know, it is up to debate whether Balearic Slingers were there in significant numbers, but it just made sense to give the army one missile unit, and they were the obvious choice. Other units that were probably there in some capacity, but are not represented, are regular Gallic troops, probably more Liby-Phoenicians, perhaps some Lusotannans and Celtiberians, and other varieties of Iberian troops. Most of his infantry was Iberian, but their numbers were eventually worn down and replaced over the course of the campaign by the likes of Samnites, Bruttians (veterans of which formed the third line at Zama), Lucanians and native Greeks, amongst others. One can also assume that the Campanians supplied cavalry, as the male population was put to the sword by the Romans for aiding the Carthaginians. Cavalry was an eclectic mix of Numidians, Gauls, Iberians and Liby-Phoenicians. You could mix and match quite a bit if you wished, but I wanted Hannibal's best represented at the early stages of his campaign. If you wanted the roster to more faithfully reflect history, you could replace the Numidian Nobles with a unit of elephants or another regular Numidian cavalry unit, and replace the Asturians with, for example, some Iberi Scutari. The chevrons reflect the army's experience and good equipment.

I decided to put this army through its paces, and what better way to do that than to pit it against a force it never had to test itself against? Namely, an Imperial Romani legion. Harsh, but this is an army of legend after all. To keep it impartial, I gave myself a single unit of cavalry, and then withdrew it and watched the two opposing AI forces clash. The result was surprising: the Carthaginians were the clear victor, despite being outnumbered by 577 men. They repeatedly encircled and cut down the legions, unusually smart for AI behavior. Perhaps the spirit of Hannibal was with them. Shown below is the Romani's roster (Historically accurate? No idea, but it is powerful), and the 'victory' screen.

Attachment 8875
Attachment 8876

The legend never dies.

That is an impressive roster - and an impressive result in your test! Thanks for posting.

The units I would disagree with are:

The Numidan Nobles (Gldgmtk) - as you mentioned, they are your non-historical addition), I would have Gallic Leuce Epos light cavalry in their place.
The Gallic Heavy Swordsmen (Neitos) - I view them as an alternative to Gaesatae, not an addition to them. I would put Gallic Southern Swordsmen or Gallic Southern Spearmen in their place.
The Maure Infantry (Dorkim Maurim) - they look out of place somehow, maybe because of their very dark skins. To me they are a 'desert' unit that would really struggle in the Alps. Did Hannibal really have them?

Thanks! It is an impressive roster because it was an impressive army. ~;)

I can understand the Leuce Epos, but from what I read he had more Numidian and Iberian cavalry than Gallic so I opted against them. I put in the Neitos to reflect how Hannibal's Gallic troops might have re-armed themselves after stomping the Romani a few times, as his Libyan troops did the same thing, but regular swordsmen or spearmen are perfectly historical. If you wanted, you could also swap the Heavy Libyan Spearmen for some lighter ones to represent them as they arrived in Italia. The Maures, I was surprised to find, were some of Hannibal's favourites: he mentioned them specifically in his inscription according to their unit description, and they are mentioned in one of those links. I would have thought Numidian Skirmishers would be in their place, but it seems they largely fought from horseback (perhaps fighting dismounted when necessary).