Archers for Rome

[Xipotec]

Hello Everyone,

can somebody give me a hint on what's the fastest way to get some archers as the roman faction? Historically Rome was nerver good at archery so i guess i've to use auxiliaries or mercenaries but where can i go or which area do i've to conquer to get them fast?


Oh and while i'm at it ... why has Osci Infantry better or the same stats as principes?

[Antiokhos Euergetes]

Hello Everyone,

can somebody give me a hint on what's the fastest way to get some archers as the roman faction? Historically Rome was nerver good at archery so i guess i've to use auxiliaries or mercenaries but where can i go or which area do i've to conquer to get them fast?


Oh and while i'm at it ... why has Osci Infantry better or the same stats as principes?

You get some merc' archers in Sicily, I think !
As for Roman stats...the Romans were not supermen, their political and social system helped facilitate their victories, not unbeatable soldiers

[Xipotec]

Ah thx for your quick answer, Sicily prepare to be conquered

I didn't expect the roman's to be supermen, but i've read in other threat's that the roman principes are the best unit in game. So i wanted to know if there are any disadvantages that you can't see on the unit card, like lower morale or something like that. Because i'm asking myself why should i march principes all the way from rome, expect for style ... historical accuracy ... the thrill to see them charge the enemy, when i can recrute better or equal units in the lesser towns.

[Deathkorpsman]

The mercenary archers Demetrius referred to are called Misthrophoroi Kretikoi Toxotai, or Cretan Archers. They the best archers you can get in the game by a fair margin and should be available in any of the Greek provinces in Sicily. I'm not sure why they aren't available in the Greek cities of southern Italy, but they don't show up on my game.

You should also be able to create Greek Toxotai units in Rhegion, Tarentum, and Kroton on the main Italian peninsula as auxiliaries and these are a good, cheap, archer option for Rome. Keltoi archers are also an option, further north in Bononia and Mediolanum if memory serves.

Scorpions are also an option, but I find their lack of mobility to be a real problem on the battlefield. They do awful things to heavy infantry and cavalry though.

The differences between Pedites Osci and Principes may seem small, statwise, but Principes scale better with experience and equipment upgrades than the Osci do. They also have the Tetsudo ability, which has some limited utility.

In a vacuum, walking Principes all the way out to the warzone is very time consuming and may not be the best option unless you have a well developed navy to transport them around. Lacking a good navy, raising armies from locally available auxiliaries may save you time and allow you to capitalize on some early game conquests or stave off invasions until your cities are developed enough to start producing Principes themselves. If the choice of which unit to build is simply a side-by-side comparison, I'd always choose the Principes. Historical accuracy, stats, and scaling are just better with them than with the other auxiliaries meant to fill the same role.