Cavalry

[Flavius_Belisarius]

I often asked myself the question if it is realstic that such cavalry like cataphracts are owning every cavalry in melee, even the famous companions of alexander, the hetairoi. I know that arabian cavalry which is actually very ligthly armored mangaged to defeat the byzantine cataphractoi many times but i think that only happend because those heavy cavalry runs out of stamina too fast in desert...

[Fluvius Camillus]

If you are talking about the EB timeframe... Big Kontos charges, followed up by AP weapons (like maces), decimate any opposing cavalry, not to mention they are armoured from top to toe.

~Fluvius

[Alsatia]

If you are talking about the EB timeframe... Big Kontos charges, followed up by AP weapons (like maces), decimate any opposing cavalry, not to mention they are armoured from top to toe.

~Fluvius

Kinda reminds me of those Constables of Jerusalem you get in M2TW:K... (No Jewish pun intended)

[Exosus]

The Catraphacts took everything that was great about the Companions and then added on to it. They were the most fearsome cavalry in ancient history; sources are in almost universal agreement on that point.

[Andy1984]

I don't think cataphracts are overpowered. Place scythed chariots, concentrated missile fire or masses of low level infantry against them and see what happens. :)

About light cavalry winning over heavily armoured cavalry: this had perhaps something to do with the numbers of the historical light cavalry?

[antisocialmunky]

The Catraphacts took everything that was great about the Companions and then added on to it. They were the most fearsome cavalry in ancient history; sources are in almost universal agreement on that point.

They were an independent development. Also, Companions were used to outmaneuver the enemy where as Cataphracts were used to charge through a disordered enemy frontally.

[Flavius_Belisarius]

And this outmaneuver isnt possible in eb because the companions have the same crappy stamina like cataphracts :\

@Andy

Im quite sure that the Byzantines were at the most times more when the fougth against the arabs. I read that the arab light cavalry defeated the cataphracts of byzantium several times, maybe the outmanveuvered the cataphracts, and thats sure easy because cataphracts will be very fast tired in a desert.

[AqD]

I often asked myself the question if it is realstic that such cavalry like cataphracts are owning every cavalry in melee, even the famous companions of alexander, the hetairoi.

No.

I think the early cataphract armours are so clumsy that they're unsuitable to do anything but frontal charge .... Didn't one Armenian King get dragged down by the lasso of Sarmatian riders? And both of Parthians/Armenians army was destroyed by Alans during their invasion of Armenia (and their cavalry are much lighter!)

[Watchman]

"Early" cataphracts would usually mean relatively *light* iterations of the theme in most cases, though. Which specifically would be less "one-trick ponies" than the latter, heavier versions, on account of less weight and hence greater maneuverability...

But yeah, specialist heavy frontal-assault cavalry like that needs a lot of support from lighter and more versatile (and cheaper and more numerous) troops to be really effective. This is by no means restricted to cataphracts though - Medieval knights, who long actually went pretty lightly armoured, in their frontal-assault role similarly depended heavily on various forms of lighter cavalry for support and follow-up. (Though they could usually do many of the same things themselves by switching war gear and formations/tactics if need be - commonly enough done outside set-piece battles.)