Medieval Units
A potential unit list for the Danes. Not really finished, and a mix of swedish, norwegian, icelandic and danish sources have been used for it.
The Danish (Scandinavian) army consists of a lot of solid infantry with missile infantry mixed in, but is weak in cavalry before the high medieval period, when some elements of it may fight mounted.
5) MILITARY UNITS:
Name of military unit: Ting-Hlídmennr
Description of military unit: Royal retainer, early period (1052-1150). The guard infantry of the Danish kings and greater nobles, comparable to the Anglo-Saxon Huscarls.
Unit Type: MEDIUM TO HEAVY INFANTRY
Estimated Combat Characteristics
Melee Attack: 6
Defence: 8
Charge: Medium
Armour: “Norman” helmet, with the occasional aventail, Padded Vápentreiyu, Maille Hauberk, the occasional lamellar on top of the maille. Some leg and arm splint defenses.
Melee Weapons: Swords, Axes, Two-Handed Axes
Missile Weapons: None
Defensive Panoply: Kite shields, the occasional poached-egg shield
Speed: Slow
Morale: Excellent
Discipline: Excellent
Notable abilities: Can form wedge, can form shieldwall
Name of military unit: Gestír (early and late period)
Description of military unit: Light professional infantry of the retinue, used for police duties in peacetime. Commoners.
Unit Type: LIGHT INFANTRY
Estimated Combat Characteristics
Melee Attack: 5
Defence: 7
Charge: Medium
Armour: Helmets and, Padded Vápntreiyu, the occasional maille.
Melee Weapons: Axes/Swords
Missile Weapons: Bows
Defensive Panoply: Round or kite shields
Speed: Fast infantry
Morale: Excellent
Discipline: Normal
Notable abilities: Can form shieldwall
Name of military unit: Leiðangsmennr (early period)
Description of military unit: The ship-levy of the norse, primarily called out for the defense of the kingdom
Unit Type: LIGHT INFANTRY SPEARMEN
Estimated Combat Characteristics
Melee Attack: 4
Defence: 7
Charge: Medium
Armour: None, the occasional “Norman” helmet AND maille to represent a rich farmer
Melee Weapons: Spears + axe or sword
Missile Weapons: None or bows (or separate unit)
Defensive Panoply: Large round shield, the occasional kite shield or poached egg shield
Speed: Fast infantry
Morale: Weak to average
Discipline: Normal
Notable abilities: Can form shieldwall, can form “phalanx”
Name of military unit: Leiðangsbogimennr (early period)
Description of military unit: One-half of the Leiðang was required to bring bows to war.
Unit Type: LIGHT INFANTRY ARCHERS
Estimated Combat Characteristics
Melee Attack: 3
Defence: 6
Charge: Weak
Armour: None, the occasional “Norman” helmet AND maille to represent a rich farmer
Melee Weapons: sword or axe
Missile Weapons: war bow
Defensive Panoply: Large round shield, the occasional kite shield or poached egg shield
Speed: Fast infantry
Morale: Weak to average
Discipline: Normal
Notable abilities: Can form shieldwall, can fire flaming ammo
Name of military unit: Skutilsveinr (high period)
Description of military unit: Scandinavian knights and king’s top hirdmenn who often fought on foot
Unit Type: HEAVY CAVALRY can dismount to HEAVY INFANTRY
Estimated Combat Characteristics
Melee Attack: 8 on horse, 7 on foot
Defence: 7 on horse, 8 on foot
Charge: Strong on horse, Medium on foot
Armour: Padded Vápentreiyu, Padded Brýnbrok (chausses), Maille hauberk with mittens, maille leggings, helmet (either chape-de-férs, cervellieres or great helmets) with maille coif underneath, Pláta (coat-of-plates), some of them under the maille. Some Pannzara outer textile armours. The horses are also covered with padded armour and/or maille – the typical high medieval knight.
Melee Weapons: Lances, swords/axes/maces
Missile Weapons: Crossbows
Defensive Panoply: Heater shields
Speed: Normal cavalry, slow infantry
Morale: Excellent
Discipline: Excellent
Notable abilities: Can form wedges, can form shieldwall (on foot)
Name of military unit: Hirdmennr (high period)
Description of military unit: The rank-and file men-at-arms of the king, the main body of his retainers.
Unit Type: HEAVY INFANTRY
Estimated Combat Characteristics
Melee Attack: 6
Defence: 8
Charge: Medium
Armour: Padded Vápentreyiu, Maille or Pannzara, Chapel-de-fer (Stálhufvu) helmet
Melee Weapons: Spears, swords/axes/maces
Missile Weapons: Bows or Crossbows
Defensive Panoply: Large infantry heater shields
Speed: Normal infantry
Morale: Good
Discipline: Good
Notable abilities: Can form shieldwall, can form “phalanx”
Name of military unit: Leiðangsmennr (high period)
Description of military unit: Richer men of the later Leiðang. Better equipped, some may be mercenaries
Unit Type: MEDIUM INFANTRY
Estimated Combat Characteristics
Melee Attack: 5
Defence: 8
Charge: Medium
Armour: Stálhufvu helmet, vapentreiyu, maille hauberk, the occasional pannzara.
Melee Weapons: Spears or other polearms, swords/axes/maces
Missile Weapons: None
Defensive Panoply: Large infantry heater shields
Speed: Normal infantry
Morale: Normal
Discipline: Normal
Notable abilities: Can form shieldwall, can form “phalanx”
Name of military unit: Leiðangsbogimennr (high period)
Description of military unit: The later archers of the leidang
Unit Type: MEDIUM INFANTRY ARCHERS
Estimated Combat Characteristics
Melee Attack: 4
Defence: 6
Charge: weak
Armour: Vápentreiyu, stálhufvu, the occasional maille or pannzara
Melee Weapons: swords/axes/maces
Missile Weapons: Bows
Defensive Panoply: bucklers
Speed: Normal infantry
Morale: Normal
Discipline: Normal
Notable abilities: Can form shieldwall
Name of military unit: Riddere (late)
Description of military unit: late medieval knights of the emerging professional army
Unit Type: SUPER-HEAVY CAVALRY can dismount to SUPER_HEAVY INFANTRY
Estimated Combat Characteristics
Melee Attack: 9 mounted 8 dismounted
Defence: 8 mounted 9 dismounted
Charge: Strong
Armour: Full plate mail in the german style
Melee Weapons: Lances, longswords/axes/warhammers/maces/poleaxes
Missile Weapons: None
Defensive Panoply: Small shields or none
Speed: Slow
Morale: Excellent
Discipline: Excellent
Notable abilities: Can form wedge
Name of military unit: Knægter (late)
Description of military unit: Men-at-arms, mercenaries and recruited men
Unit Type: HEAVY INFANTRY
Estimated Combat Characteristics
Melee Attack: 7
Defence: 7
Charge: Medium
Armour: Late medieval plate-and-mail and helmets
Melee Weapons: Longswords, Axes, Poleaxes, Halberds
Missile Weapons: None
Defensive Panoply: Large shields or none
Speed: Slow
Morale: Excellent
Discipline: Good
Notable abilities: Can form phalanx
Name of military unit: Armbrøstskydtere
Description of military unit: Professional crossbowmen
Unit Type: HEAVY MISSILE INFANTRY
Estimated Combat Characteristics
Melee Attack: 5
Defence: 7
Charge: Weak
Armour: Late medieval plate-and-mail and helmets
Melee Weapons: longswords/axes/maces/picks
Missile Weapons: Heavy Crossbows
Defensive Panoply: None or pavises
Speed: Slow
Morale: Excellent
Discipline: Good
Notable abilities:
Name of military unit: Leiðangsmennr (late period)
Description of military unit: MEDIUM MISSILE INFANTRY
Unit Type: Late medieval militia and levy.
Estimated Combat Characteristics
Melee Attack: 5
Defence: 7
Charge: Medium
Armour: Helmets
Melee Weapons: “Sword-spears”, halberds
Missile Weapons: Bows
Defensive Panoply:
Speed: Fast infantry
Morale: Normal
Discipline: Normal
Notable abilities: Can form “phalanx”
Name of military unit: Valslynge (early)
Description of military unit: Early man-powered torsion catapult
Unit Type: ARTILLERY
Estimated Combat Characteristics
Melee Attack: 1
Defence: 2
Charge: weak
Armour: Padded vápentryiu, helmets
Melee Weapons: swords, axes, or spears
Missile Weapons: Light catapult
Defensive Panoply: round shields
Speed: Slow
Morale: Weak
Discipline: Normal
Notable abilities:
Name of military unit: Valslynge (high)
Description of military unit: A mangonel or trebuchet, likely crewed by foreign mercenaries.
Unit Type: ARTILLERY
Estimated Combat Characteristics
Melee Attack: 1
Defence: 3
Charge: weak
Armour: Padded vápentreiyu, helmets.
Melee Weapons: swords, axes or spears
Missile Weapons: Trebuchet/Mangonel
Defensive Panoply: large infantry heater shields
Speed: Immobile or slow
Morale: Weak
Discipline: Normal
Notable abilities:
Name of military unit: Kanon
Description of military unit: A late medieval cannon, of the banded metal type. While the earliest reference to gunpowder in scandinavia come from 1250 or so, and a fellow named Paal Fisiler definitively demonstrates it, and explains it as a psychological weapon - "One often uses such hærbrest in war in order to make those who do not know of it flee in all directions" - in Bergen between 1292 and 1296, real siege artillery did not become common until the later middle ages.
Unit Type: GUNPOWDER ARTILLERY
Estimated Combat Characteristics
Melee Attack: 3
Defence: 4
Charge: weak
Armour: Helmets, Jacks.
Melee Weapons: longswords, poleaxes, halberds
Missile Weapons: Cannon
Defensive Panoply: None
Speed: Immobile or Slow
Morale: Normal
Discipline: Normal
Notable abilities: Boom!