English Usurpers Melee Infantry

Earl's Thegns

As the kingdoms of Britain expanded, royal deputies were needed to deal with the routine business of the land on behalf of their kings. Such men were referred to as ealdormen in the early Saxon period, but by the eleventh century the title was superseded by Scandinavian influence and they came to be referred to as earls and jarls, with the latter term used more in places more populated by Danes. An earl or jarl was not necessarily just a royal official, but could also be an upper-class man with land, estates, and a military retinue, likely by virtue of being descendant of a family that had previously ruled as kings, but subsequently had their lands absorbed into a larger kingdom.

Being well-to-do men, earls could fund the training and equipment for their own bands, so they were often made up of more elite soldiers than those who merely fought in the fyrds. Militarily, their thegns were their most important servants. In the earliest times of Saxon migration, they were exclusively defined by their military service, with the first Anglo-Saxon nobles keeping ‘gesiths’ as they were formerly known in their retinues, who were better trained and more highly motivated due to a close relationship with their warmongering lords. In the later Saxon era, they became a middle-ranking land-owning ‘officer class’ with major roles in organising and leading the fyrds. Danish rule over conquered English lands meant that some thegns even fought for their conquerors, in return for being able to keep their lands within the puppet kingdoms.

Unit Name Earl's Thegns

Main Unit Key eng_earls_thegns

Land Unit Key eng_earls_thegns

Naval Unit Key vik_draca

Soldiers 160

Category Melee Infantry

Class Melee Infantry

Custom Battle Cost 700

Recruitment Cost 700

Upkeep Cost 200

Melee Skill 36

Melee Damage 38

├ Melee Weapon vik_sword

├ Melee Base Damage 32

├ Armour-piercing Damage 6

├ Armour Piercing No

├ Attack Against Cavalry 0

├ Attack Against Elephants 0

└ Attack Against Infantry 0

Charge Bonus 24

Melee Defence 66

├ Base Defence 36

├ Shield vik_medium

└ Shield 30

Armour 27

├ Armour vik_mail_long

├ Armour Defence 27

└ Shield Armour 0

Health 100

├ Man Entity vik_inf_heavy

├ Man Health 100

└ Bonus Hit Points 0

Morale 47

Abilities

• Shield Castle
  "Heads down, lads, things are about to get a little hairy around here!"
  Units cannot move in this formation.

Attributes

• [[col:yellow]]Expert Charge Defence[[/col]]
  This unit’s melee attack and damage are increased against charging enemies.
• [[col:yellow]]Disciplined[[/col]]
  This unit does not suffer a morale penalty when the general dies. It can also rally after routing more often.
• [[col:yellow]]Hide (forest)[[/col]]
  This unit can hide in forests until enemy units get too close.

Strengths & Weaknesses

No Strengths and Weaknesses

Recuitment Requirement
Required Technology Cost 150 Upgrade From
Upgrade
Required Technology Cost 150 Upgrade To

Faction Availability
Thrones of Britannia	Cent Defena Dorsaete East Seaxe Hwicce Mierce Northleode English Rebels English Usurpers Mierce Usurpers West Seaxe Usurpers Suth Seaxe West Seaxe Westernas Westmoringas