Early Hayastan Gund (Army of Armenia - early Yervanduni host)
Hayastan’s style of warfare emphasises damage infliction through missile exchange. They field sizable contingents of long-distance missile troops and thus have a superior firepower to most other armies they encounter. Their infantry too, has a large amount of projectile-armed troops. The arms and armour of their earlier period footmen are typical of indigenous Anatolian cultures - they are mobile but overall lighter than the cream of their Greco-Macedonian counterparts. Armenians make up for it by fielding some of the best cavalry and proportion of the mounted troops in their armies is somewhat greater than in other sedentary societies. That said, the amount of horsemen Hayastan fields is no match for the nomadic hosts to their north. Hayastan’s key to success is a combination of mobility, firepower and a presence of solid mounted force.
Historically, combined Hayastan Gund of this period amounted to some 40,000 footmen and 7,000-8,000 cavalry. It was composed of a large number of archers and slingers. Infantry was present in roughly the same measure and most of it carried javelins, although some missile-free spearmen are also featured. Yervanduni supplemented their armies by some mercenary contingents and had access to a range of local cavalrymen of excellent quality.
Hayastan has a long history of fielding expeditionary forces, first in support of Persian conquest then in defence of the Achaemenid Empire. The crown prince led the Armenian contingent and they were one of the few peoples that had the expertise and resources to provide Persian forces with siege engines. After destruction of the Achaemenid rule, Yervanduni used their expeditionary force to advance the dynastic interests and assist their allies in Anatolia, as was the case with aiding Cappadocian potentates in their struggle against the Macedonians. Yervanduni thus occasionally meddled in affairs of the neighbouring states and provided armed assistance to their allies. Yervanduni expeditionary contingent could be as large as a halved version of overall strength of Hayastan Gund and would have a similar composition but on a smaller scale.
Leadership – 1-2 units:
FL and/or FH accompanied by a FM - Armenian Bodyguard (Tiknazor)
Missile footmen – 7-8 units:
3-4 units of Anatolian Archers (Kamandar i Kappodakiya)
2-3 units of Eastern Slingers (Payadag i Falakhanan)
2 units of Western Iranian Archer-Spearmen (Eranag Payadag)
Other footmen – 7-8 units:
2-3 units of Armenian Spearmen (Hai Nizagamartik)
1-2 units Anatolian Spearmen (Nezagdar i Kappodakiya)
1-2 units Anatolian Tribesmen (Arvadni i Kappodakiya)
1-2 units of mercenaries including some of the below:
Chaldian Pikemen (Khaldilae)
North-Western Caucasian Infantry (Phęzęghashkha)
Akkadian Heavy Infantry (Erin-mesh Uriki)
Hellenistic Medium Infantry (Hemithorakitai Peltophoroi)
Mercenary Hellenistic Hoplites (Misthophoroi Hoplitai)
Horsemen - 3-4 units including some of the below:
Armenian Horse-Archers (Netadzik Ayrudzi)
Armenian Cataphracts (Aznvakan Aspet)
Anatolian Light Cavalry (Mudunup i Kappodakiya)
Anatolian Medium Cavalry (Aswar i Kappodakiya) or
Iranian Medium Cavalry (Eranag Aswar)
Imperial Hayastan Gund (Army of Armenia - post-imperial reform)
Having expanded well beyond its homeland, armies of imperial Hayastan evolved to include a plethora of peoples, each bringing their native fighting styles and expertise. A great host of the King of Kings features a rich selection of new troop types but a trained eye can still discern presence of some of the traditional elements that made up Armenian armies of old. Cavalry thus still form an important arm in Hayastan’s arsenal and are now present in somewhat greater numbers. A considerable number of archers and slingers are still fielded, but their importance has rather declined and they are not as numerous as they used to be. The main change is a substantial increase in amount of melee footmen and an overall heaviness of the army. This shift was brought about by both reforming of the regional footmen and Armenia's expansionist thrust south. Taking over large areas formerly controlled by the Seleucid and Parthian empires, imperial Hayastan Gund features a wide selection of heavy melee infantry organised into phalanxes as well as the more flexible formations increasingly adopted by Hellenistic armies of later period. Even though King of Kings can now field a substantial contingent of miscellaneous mercenaries and Greco-Macedonian footmen, the backbone of his armed forces is still formed of the Armenian cavalry. Various allied leaders and sub-kings are also summoned and these beef up the army with the contingents of crack horsemen of their own.
Historically, the average imperial Hayastan Gund totalled some 70,000-80,000 soldiers. In emergencies about the same amount could be raised in Greater Armenia and its environs.
Leadership - 2-3 units:
1 FL - Armenian Bodyguard (Tiknazor) + allied kings - 1-2 x Iranian Heavy Cavalry (Aswar i Khweshawandan)
Missile footmen – 3 - 4 units:
Eastern Slingers (Payadag i Falakhanan)
Anatolian Archers (Kamandar i Kappodakiya)
Western Iranian Archer-Spearmen (Eranag Payadag)
Persian Archers (Kamandar i Pars)
Other footmen – 10 - 11 units:
Armenian Royal Guard (Dranik Gund)
Galatianised Swordsmen (Machairophoroi kata Galaton)
Galatianised Spearmen (Doryphoroi kata Galaton)
Mercenary Hellenistic Phalanx (Misthophoroi Phalangitai)
Hellenistic Native Phalanx (Pantodapoi Phalangitai)
Armenian Spearmen (Hai Nizagamartik)
Chaldian Pikemen (Khaldilae)
Kartvelni Mehomni (Kartvelian Warriors)
North-Western Caucasian Infantry (Phęzęghashkha)
Akkadian Heavy Infantry (Erin-mesh Uriki)
Northern Arabian Thureophoroi (Arabes Thureophoroi)
Mercenary Hellenistic Hoplites (Misthophoroi Hoplitai)
Hellenistic Heavy Spearmen (Thorakitai)
Horsemen – 4 - 5 units:
Iranian Medium Cavalry (Eranag Aswar)
Armenian Horse-Archers (Netadzik Ayrudzi)
Median Cavalry (Aswar i Mad)
Caucasian Lancers (Hayots Ayrudzi)
1-2 Armenian Cataphracts (Aznvakan Aspet)
N.B. Armenians aside, some units may be interchanged for other regionals, i.e. Anatolians, Iranians, Arabs... of similar class.