Quote Originally Posted by Hurin_Rules
Just curious.

I'm near the end of my first campaign as Julii and have up till now been using town watch, as they seem to have some military value. But now my empire stretches from Spain to Asia, and some of my interior provinces will never be attacked. Peasants would be cheaper; do they have the same effect on order in cities? Are there any downsides to using them?
On a 'cost per man' basis, peasants are cheaper. But you can actually use militia in battle and have them not route instantaneously, which makes them more flexible. And for the same 'per unit' maintenance cost (100 Dinari for both peasents and and militia), I build at least 4 militia for each town, then mix it up depending on how much I feel threatened in the area and how much I need numbers.

I also agree with the statements about earlier armies. I tend to have hastati/regular archers left over after the Marius reforms that I put in backwater provinces to keep the peace and act as a defense force. My front line forces tend to be the hardest hitting I can make.