Upgrade your account to a Community Supporter account and remove most of the site ads.
Enchanted Trinkets Complete--a hardcover book containing over 500 magic items for your D&D games!

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Voobaha" data-source="post: 730005" data-attributes="member: 2741">a few ideas on a few of the questions#1) a lot of the above advice (1 man per 6 families) is pretty good.  Some other factors to take into account include:- population of the country- wealth and ability to pay the troops (or at least offer them loot and/or incentives to join up- logistics and administrative technology (once you've got the men mobilized, how do you manage them and keep them functioning as a coherent force) for example: Alexander the Great's Army was about 40,000 strong; the armies from the small feudal kingdoms of the Braveheart movies were only about 8,000-15,000; the Pike & Shot armies of the early renaissance of the 1500s & 1600s mobilized 20-40,000 men.  In populous Japan, the well oiled military machines of the Shoguns in the 1500s typically fielded 40,000-60,000 men... in one case a combined army of 100,000!  With the institution of a draft, the invention of modern accounting and paperwork practices, and literate generals, Napoleon even fielded an army of 200,000 men.Note that the bigger the army, the more hangers on and camp followers moved in the army's wake.  This slowed armies down and made them less maneuverable until ways were invented in the 1800s that allowed armies to speed up and maneuver (one of the reason Napoleon won so many battles is that his well administered French Army kept flanking, surprising and surrounding the old-fashioned, ponderous professional armies of his enemies...A medieval force would be small due to the small size and population of the kingdoms.  Lack of funds to pay troops led to limited service times and led to regular desertions.  Medieval armies were mobilized according to the Feudal system, in which Nobles were "honor bound" to serve their king in the army and pay and provide additional men-at-arms (henchmen) who were more loyal to the Knight than the king.  Sometimes, due to politics or personal reasons, Knights wouldn't always show up to fight.  They might pay the king instead of joining the army, or simply came up with excuses to not show.  The ability of the King to command and control thousands of independent nobles with their own private troops was difficult.  It was hard to mobilize, pay, manage and order around more than 10,000 men.#3)  There were'nt many special troops, but you could invent your own (it's a fantasy world after all).  Perhaps magically armed "ninja assassins" might exist in your world who specialize in killing the enemy generals...#4)  In medieval armies, equipment was based on the wealth of the individual soldier.  - Peasant levies used padded/quilted or leather armor, and used simple weapons adapted from farm implements for military use.  Usually this meant some kind of spear or other pole arm.  Typical pole weapons:  Glaive (spear with a knife blade on the end), Bill (spear with a chopping knife on end), Hook (spear with a pruning hook or scythe for dismounting riders), Guisarme (spear with an axe blade on end).  High tech combinations of these were invented (Bill-Hooks had chopping blade with a hook sprouting out the top; Halberds combined a spear point with a short hook and and axe blade).  Peasants also used military flails (flails are traditionally used to thresh wheat), crossbows (armor piercing weapons that took little skill or time to train), spiked clubs and axes (peasants chop wood).- Mercenaries and Men at Arms were armed better than peasant levies.  Usually they operated on foot.  Sometimes they would specialize in certain weapons and tactics.  Examples:  Geonese Crossbowmen, Swiss Mercenaries (they used a mix of long pikes insterspersed with Halberd armed men in case enemy footmen infiltrated into the pikes).  These troops were better armed, had weapons training, wore padded thru chain armor (depending on how rich the noble lord who equipped them was).  Some specialized troops, english longbowmen for example, were peasants allowed to train in a weapon in return for extra rights.  Though peasants, they were expert marksmen.- Professional Armies were established in the larger, wealthier ancient kingdoms, especially Ancient Rome.  The Roman Republic standardized their troop types into Skirmishers, Cavalry, medium infantry and heavy infantry.  All troops bought their own equipment, so poor guys were the skirmishers out front, wealtheir guys wore leather and ringmail w/shield in the middle, and the richest wore chain and shield in the rear ranks.  After the Emperor Marius reformed the Roman Army about the time of Jesus' the army became uniformly equipped:  Banded mail or ring mail and shield, standard equipment packs, and javelins and gladius.  The uniforms of the legionaires in Ben Hur or Gladiator are examples of this standardized uniform.  A powerful empire in your campaign might be able to afford standardized troops of this sort with equipment funded by the state- Noble Knights in medieval times had the most money and a culture that dictated they bear arms, as a duty and a privilege.  Knights wore ring, scale, chain and plate + shield.  They were armed with lances and equipped with stirrups and strong armored warhorses (think clydesdales).  Knights would charge en masse at the enemy and plow into them.  They were the expensive armored tanks of their day.  Once the charge was over, knights wielded mace, sword, axe and flail in hand to hand combat to kill anybody who didn't flee after the initial charge.</blockquote>

Verification