Norse Archers – A unit discussion
I just can’t get over these units, so I thought I would channel some of my satisfaction into something, everybody else can (hopefully) use.
To say the least, I like the Norse Archer (NA). They’ve made my Danish campaign on M/H a walkover, by the fact that they act as both infantry and archer and I generally consider them they best unit in the game in terms of versatility and tech level.
(sorry, no interlinking, still new at this)
- Breakdown
- General Use
- Offence Siege
- Defence Siege
- The long run
- The bottomline
breakdown
They are a lvl2 range unit (castle), which means you can start pumping them out pretty early on.
7 ranged is no crossbow, which many factions get instead on lvl2 range, but it does beat or par most standard archers. They do however suffer from the lack of AP missiles, so they are best used on low armor, low/no shield troops (defence skill is ignored in missile attacks, so always aim for the unit with the highest exp).
And still with the flaming arrows for that devastating moral effect.
11 melee, that’s a standard (Norse-) swordsman right there. Most factions (including Denmark) don't get decent swordsmen before yet another castle upgrade, and in melee terms, they are a great fighters and a perfect supplement for your other Norse-foes AP/high attack infantry. Worth mentioning, that they can’t be upgraded at swordsmen’s guild as they are technically an archer unit.
16 defence (4 armor / 6 skill / 6 shield), that makes them the second best armoured missile unit, only surpassed by Ottoman Infantry and Scots Guard (who are both at 17 and far above in tech-lvl) and equal to they annoyingly strong Mongol Infantry (who by the way, besides from a much more efficient bow, has exactly the same stats). Also their 6 shield makes them gain an edge on the archer vs archer situations, also including crossbow unit with no range advantage, since the AP proficiency, does not include shields.
Their moral of 5 is fairly good, and equals most same-tech swordsmen and is better that most low/mid level archers. This finally, both completes and underlines their all-round usefulness.
And to top it all of they will only set you back 480 florins and additional 125 each turn. Compared to other lvl2 units, 480 is a steep price, but you most certainly get what you pay for in terms of swords, bows, armor/shield and man-training. Its upkeep cost is on the other hand extremely reasonable with on of the cheapest stat-point pr florin upkeep and a full 100 bucks less the DFKs)
General use
Ultimately the Norse Archers biggest advantage, are their early entry into your armies. They are neither great archers, nor are they great infantry, but they are available almost from the start and they are pretty decent units when compared to both infantry and archery alternatives individually from other nations on same tech level and that is quite a feat.
Versatility is the key concept here. They aren’t great at handling high defence unit and chivalry charges (thou decent defence make them hold lines quite well), but other then that they take on most tasks with devastating results. Another key point is they army that they are supporting. The Danish unit base has a lot of high attack, low defence infantry and the fact that the Norse Archer is the best defended unit in the Danish army until the arrival of swordstaffs, swordsmen and DFKs makes them a fairly wise choice for line holders, as your high powered AP infantry manoeuvre round for a flank attack.
Especially in sieges (both offence and defence) I think they have some neat feats:
Offence Siege- Give them some ladders and rush the walls. Their good shields and decent armor make them great ladder-holders as it will minimize casualties from tower/archer fire and if you send up 2-3 ladders with 2 units pr ladder, you'll have the walls in no time. On top of that, when the enemy routs, you can shoot arrows in their backs all the way to the town square (and even on some maps, hit the town square from the walls). In fact, unless the enemy has some tough cav's that you can't possibly hit while standing on the walls, you can quite easily complete a siege with nothing but these guys and ladders.
Defence Siege
Ohh what a gorgeous combo you have here. First you flame their face and ignite their equipment while parrying incoming arrows with your shield. Then you slash the walltakers to confetti with the sword and then light a fire in their B-hinds, when they turn tail and run.
This, combined with their low upkeep, makes them a great garrison units, where garrisons are a military necessity and not just a happiness factor.
The long run
They armor-upgrade at 1&2 and the fact that they work as both archers, offence and defence (and make short work if routing enemies trying to run through them) make them fairly quick to gain exp, toping them of at 14 melee and 21 (6/9/6) defence, possibly even before you are ready to upgrade to fortress (next castle level).
This makes them very tough melee unit and thou they might need a AP proficiency or a better range attack to really make it, in the end game offence, their low upkeep and wall defence capabilities, makes them ideal as castle and frontline city garrison even in the late era. They are of cause vulnerable to long range siege equipment (but then again, who isn’t) and if placed strategically, can still cause a good deal of panic and flaming casualties on an invading force, storming a hole in the wall.
The bottomline
Let me say this again, the Norse Archer is not a great unit in any one way, but it’s a fairly good unit in many ways, and that makes it a great unit overall. They are fast to gain exp, they are early upgradeable and they give almost anything that goes against them, a hard victory, if not a defeat.
And just to state the obvious. The Norse Archer, if mass produced from the start, will make the Danish campaign much easier as they will enable an extremely fast expand across northern/central Europe and/or the British Isle putting them in command right from the start. Denmark lacks they über strong late tech units, but an early expansion really makes up for it and, at least in my case, the Norse Archer was the key to succeeding.
Comments, discussions and criticism is most welcome.
Special thanks to brandybarrel for the FAUST which made the unit comparisons a cakewalk.
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