podcast 5 : battlefield

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Originally Posted by x-dANGEr

In BI:

Night Raiders = Scare enemy infantry.
Chariots = Scare enemy infantry.
Berserkers = Scare enemy infantry.
Arian Priests = Scare Christian and Orthodox units.
Orthodox Priests = Scare Christian and Arian units.
Christian Priests = Scare Orthodox and Arian units.

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ahh...

Well you know it is interesting but I don't really have a problem with some unit types intimidating the enemy (i.e. lowering their morale when close) when those units are just well 'ard and scary looking or have an intimidating reputation (i.e. Night Raiders). And i would not have an issue with Priests boosting friendly morale with their presence.

I do agree however that the magic chanting thing lowering the enemy's morale is a bit silly (not of mention that the chanting itself is not so much scary as just pain annoying)...

Did anybody else feel like rockin' out to AC/DC after listening to it? KnOYgts!!! (krikey). Oy! Oy! Oy! :drummer: :thrasher:

When does anyone NOT feel like rocking out to AC/DC???!!!

I don't have a problem with fearsome units causing morale penalties (but not for elite or disciplined units) but religious units? I can get them giving morale bonuses to your own units (god(s) is/are on our side) but morale penalties to the enemy? Surely they think exactly the same thing.


To be honest, I don't get the point of religious units on the battlefield at all...

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Originally Posted by Bob the Insane

A point that has not been mentioned and will make some people happy, they describe cannon balls bouncing through the enemy knocking down rows of men... It also sounds like you will have the choice between regular cannon balls and exploding ones...

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Exploding cannonballs will detract from the historical flavor. I would expect they can be easily modded out.

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Originally Posted by Vladimir

Did anybody else feel like rockin' out to AC/DC after listening to it? KnOYgts!!! (krikey). Oy! Oy! Oy! :drummer: :thrasher:

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RESPECT brother :hippie:

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Originally Posted by Furious Mental

When does anyone NOT feel like rocking out to AC/DC???!!!

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Respect to you too :hippie:

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Originally Posted by Myrddraal

I don't have a problem with fearsome units causing morale penalties (but not for elite or disciplined units) but religious units? I can get them giving morale bonuses to your own units (god(s) is/are on our side) but morale penalties to the enemy? Surely they think exactly the same thing.


To be honest, I don't get the point of religious units on the battlefield at all...

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Basically I agree... It would be better to have religous warrior types (if that has any historic basis) who fight and boost morale a little by their presence. It is certainly no less ahistoric than the existing religious units...

Elite units tend to have beeter morale anyway so the morale lowering effect would mean less to them anyway. As for disciplined units, I thought they simply held their formation better rather than any morale type of thing?

Those Danish War Clerics are interesting to say the least.

I'm Danish and I have been taking a liking to medieval Danish history, though it hasn't been so specific as to know all this. But one thing is certain, the Danish clerical class wasn't the only clergy to go to war. Remember Odo with William?
What I can accept is that the tradition for war among the Danish clergy was higher. For instance Copenhagen was founded by archbishop Absalon who built a castle near the current parliament. He also waged plenty of war on the Wends, which his successors followed up on andeven expanded on (by going to war in Estonia as well, the Northern Crusades as the wars are called). In fact there is prominent statue (at a square) of Absalon sitting atop a warhorse, armoured in maille (and helmet of course) and armed with a battleaxe. He was very much warlike.

Several important clergymen had also been killed previously and after him. For instance the battle of Fodevik in 1134 is renown as the battle where the most bishops were killed in battle. All the bishops of Jutland were killed as well as the powerful bishop of Roskilde. And even a Swedish exiled bishop fell (fighting on the side of the other bishops). In total five bishops and sixty priests were killed.

Pretty conclusive evidence that the clergy fought and fought hard and in the frontlines.
However, as I said that was hardly anything special as that happened elsewhere too. But perhaps it happened more in Denmark (it seems that Sweden also had that tradition of heavy involvement of clergy in warfare, but Sweden is not included).

So make of this what you want. Personally I both like the prospect of the unit and is a bit suspicious about it, for the basis is fairly weak (not terribly special compared to the rest of Europe), it smells like an excuse to create a factional unit. No doubt the War Clerics should be fighters, and not BI Priests. They should be good warriors that grant a moralebonus, not a supporting unit with not strength in fighting. But I guess we will see.

I don't think denmark had a higher propotion of fighting clerics than anywhere else i northern europe (or anywhere in europe, for that matter). Asides from the other scandinavians, who resembled the danes closely, we have the german and baltic church-principalities, italian communal priests partaking in militia units, norman clerics á Odo, and so on and so forth. The Salian line of HRE Emperors actively granted military fiefs to churchmen, taking them back upon the death of the cleric (this would eventually be one of the reasons for the the investiture conflict) to preserve imperial control of fiefs. Byzantine sources on the crusades often comment on the high proportion of armed and fighting clergymen in the crusading armies.