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RomeCarthageCeltic TribesGerman TribesParthiaMacedonMercenariesRebelsIn this section... |
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RomeCarthageCeltic TribesGerman TribesParthiaMacedonMercenariesRebels |
Rather than creating separate nation files for all the various tribes and minor rulers of Europe, what we've done is have one set of units for each definitive style of warriors. So far, these are Romans, Parthians, Macedonians, German Tribes, and Carthaginians. Celtic Tribes will be added in Beta 4.
Thus, instead of having separate nation types for Visigoths and Vandals, we have one nation type, German Tribes, which can be used twice in a scenario to create the Visigoth and Vandal nations.
For example, you could set up an eight player game with the Aedui and Bretons (Celts), Visigoths and Vandals (Germans), Parthia (Parthia), and the factions of Octavian, Lepidus, and Marc Antony (Roman).
There are three variables associated with each nation.
Nation loyalty: Some courts breed more treachery than others. Generally, the higher a nation's sophistication, the more potential exists for backstabbing.
Nation growth: This affects the birth rate. Barbarians breed more quickly than others.
Espionage: Espionage is a subtle art, not well suited to an honest barbarian. It's best left to the decadent civilized peoples.
| Loyalty | Growth | Espionage | |
| Rome | |||
| Carthage | |||
| Germans | |||
| Celts | |||
| Parthia | |||
| Macedon |
Some historians consider the Roman legion to be the most effective military force before the invention of gunpowder. 
The two greatest innovations of the Roman legion were their mixed armament and their battle formations, which were rigidly disciplined yet fluid and adaptable. Each legion was divided into three lines of troops, the hastati, principes, and triarii. These in turn were arranged in square formations called maniples. Each maniple was divided from its neighbour by an area of empty ground, so that the entire legion resembled a checkerboard. This organization gave the legion a flexibility never seen before. Maniples could advance to form a solid phalanx, or react and turn independently to deal with an unexpected threat.
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Legionaires were armoured and equipped with the pilum (plural: pila), a heavy spear with an iron head for the first third of its length, a gladius, a short broad-bladed stabbing sword, and a large shield. The hastati, advancing first, would bury their foes under a storm of pila, which were made to bend or break upon impact so they couldn't be thrown back. In the ensuing confusion the hastati would advance with gladius drawn for down-and-dirty butchery. If this first charge didn't break the enemy, and it usually did, the hastati would retreat through the gaps in the principes' maniples. The principes would then advance, hurl their pila, and charge forth to melee again. The triarii were usually held in reserve for defensive purposes, but were sometimes employed as yet a third attack in especially grave circumstances. Thus we have the Roman expression "It has come to the triarii" to describe an extremely desperate situation.
It is somewhat of a travesty to attempt to reflect the Roman legion's many strengths in an abstract strategic-level game. Its powers can truly be appreciated only on a tactical level. But one does what one can.
Summary: the Roman legion has a rare combination of strong missile and melee attack values. Since both values increase with experience levels, the legion is especially dangerous with elite troops. It has good defense and morale and the highest discipline rating in the game. With a reasonable cost and upkeep, it's probably the best all-around unit in the game. Its only drawback is its speed and the fact that it may only be produced at capitals. Beware an intelligent foe with heavy cavalry.
Velites were lightly armed troops used by the Romans to harass and probe an enemy before a general engagement by the legions. They were usually the youngest and poorest of their soldiers. Velites wore no armour except perhaps a helmet and were equipped with a number of light javelins. They would advance before a battle, hurl their javelins, and hastily retreat to join the triarii. Their main purpose was to sow disorder in enemy ranks, especially among cavalry, rather than racking up kills.
Summary: Velites are cheap and fast for infantry. Use them to probe an area, to soften up a powerful enemy unit (especially if it's heavily armoured), or as an inexpensive garrison for areas deep within your empire. They can be skillfully used around rivers, since they can cross a river and still move one grass or road hex. Don't expect them to fare well in melee combat – they'll run away as soon as they get a chance – and don't expect too many to survive. What do you care? There are always more poor and desperate citizens to enlist.
Equites were the units of Roman cavalry. They wore body armour and carried long spears and were drawn from the richest segments of Roman society.
Equites weren't pushovers, but all the same, the Romans never quite got the knack of using cavalry effectively. The numbers of mounted men in their legions were always small compared to other empires and they never approached the brilliance of the cavalry of Carthage, Parthia, or, especially, Alexander. Even the hairy barbarian cavalry hung a beating on the Romans a number of times. Scipio did quite well with them, once he smartened up and ripped off Hannibal's tactics, but he was an exception rather than a rule.
Summary: Equites are mediocre cavalry, and they're expensive. What can you expect from a bunch of spoiled rich kids? About all that can be said about them is that they're fast. Use them sparingly to guard your flanks and as scouts, but never forget that the fate of Rome ultimately rests on its legions.
Romans were unequaled in the use of siege equipment, including rams, catapults, and ballistae. These weapons, which are shared only with the hated Carthaginians, will help greatly in reducing cities for addition to the glorious Roman empire.
Summary: Engineers, represented by a catapult in the military view, have the special ability to ignore a city's defensive bonus. Don't let them be caught by enemy units in open space. The best way to use them is to guard the approach to your target by placing a couple of legions adjacent to the enemy city and then bring up the catapults the next turn. Engineers are also useful to garrison cities.
Romans were inexperienced sailors so they employed the best tactic in such a situation – shamelessly steal from the competition. The men of Carthage were the world's premier sailors, so the Romans took a Carthaginian ship that washed ashore during a storm, dissected it, and quickly manufactured a fleet of similar but slightly smaller ships.
Roman sea tactics were different from Carthage's, though. Realizing that their greatest strength was their armoured legions, Rome packed their ships with marines and relied on boarding enemy ships far more than the usual ramming tactics. They added a crude refinement to their ships for this purpose, the corvus, which was a large spiked plank which slammed down into the enemy deck to form a bridge for their smiling butchers. The clumsy Roman sailors managed to sink half their fleet every time there was a storm but they could always replace their losses and eventually overwhelmed the more skillful Carthaginians.
Summary: your only challenger for mastery of the seas is Carthage, so you must smite their fleet ruthlessly. Carthaginian ships will maul you during the approach, but if you can survive their initial attack you'll have a good chance of victory. Biremes are slightly more powerful than Quinqueremes at low levels of experience, but the Quinqueremes gain the advantage with more skillful captains. Sink the other empires' ships at will.
These are your merchant class ships used to ferry troops. A unit will "transform" into a transport if it has the capability (that is, if it has sufficient movement points). Roman transports are fairly seaworthy, compared to other nations, though they aren't as useful as Carthage's. Be sure to protect your transports with biremes, especially if Carthage is in the game.
The Liby-Phoenician infantry were Carthage's elite troops and drawn from Carthaginian citizens. Their numbers were not great, though, as the wily Carthaginians preferred to use mercenaries and the troops of tributary tribes and nations. It was a great scam – not only did the Carthaginians avoid risking their own lives, but every loss their "allies" took was one more sack of gold they could keep on payday.
Originally, Carthage's heavy infantry was based on the Greek hoplite style of warfare, fighting in phalanxes. When Hannibal came along he incorporated Roman tactics and organization into the troops and armed them with Roman weapons, including the feared pilum. Thus Carthage's infantry is very similar to a Roman legion, though not as superbly trained. They were smart dressers, though, spendid in their worked iron breastplates, great white shields, and plumed helmets. That should count for something.
Summary: Consider Liby-Phoenician infantry to be a second rate Roman legion. They have good missile, offensive, and defensive ability. They're fairly expensive, though, as the wealthy Carthaginian citizens were used to soft living. Keep them on grass or roads if you can.
Carthage relied more upon the lightly-armed Numidian cavalry than on their own forces, but they could field units of heavy cavalry drawn from their own citizens when required. These were armoured much like the heavy infantry and equipped with a lance. Their horses were lightly armoured in vital areas like the breast and head. They were also well decorated, almost as well as their stylish masters.
Carthage seemed to have more success with their cavalry than the Romans did with their equites. They were useful as shock troops, but expensive to equip. Generally, Carthage was better served by their skillful Numidian allies.
Summary: These are powerful units, both fast and well-armed, though lacking any missile ability. They're best used to break the centre of an assault or to chase down routed units. They're expensive, though, and have a high upkeep. Keep a few around for emergencies, but in general rely on your less costly troops.
The Numidians were a nomadic people from the north coast of Africa and practically born in the saddle. They went into battle lightly armed and almost naked, but they were skillful and fearless and cast their javelins with great effect, retreating before the enemy could retaliate. They served Carthage well on many a foreign battlefield.
Numidian cavalry are also very good scouts. Their small, nimble horses can negotiate most terrain easily, and they're capable enough to survive contact with unexpected enemy forces. Use them for patrols of borders and keep a group of them for rapid reaction to invasions.
Summary In some ways the Numidian Cavalry are your most important pieces. They are mounted missile troops, an ability shared only with the Parthian horse archers. Don't use them as shock troops – they're useless in that role as they'll run from a general engagement at first opportunity. But they're great to weaken a Roman legion in preparation for an assault by heavy infantry the next turn.
These tough infantry from southern Spain served as mercenaries throughout Europe. Their most regular employer was Carthage, who used them to wreak havoc on their hated Roman neighbours.
The Iberians most notable aspect was their distinctive weapon, the falcata. This was a slightly curved, long heavy sword. The first third was single-edged with a heavy back. The final two thirds were double-edged and flared out, giving the weapon some characteristics of an axe. It had a sharp point, and thus was
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Summary: Iberian swordsmen, along with Celtic swordsmen, are your expendable shock troops. After all, if they die, you don't have to pay them, and they're only barbarian scum, right? The Iberians have a high attack value but not much defense, though they're less foolhardy than the insane Celts. They're best used directly against heavy infantry, though you'd be wise to have another unit or two to back them up, espeically if you're going against the Romans.
Don't expect these guys to listen to you once they smell some blood.
Celt barbarians are the best kind of allies. They take the lead in an assault joyfully, thinking its the position of honour, and won't mind dying in droves. These maniacs will charge naked against a Roman column, swinging their longswords with glee while racking up a body count. The best thing about them is you rarely have to pay them, since they have a habit of dying. 
They tend to screw up a battle plan, though, as their concept of strategy is charging en masse and killing until there's nothing left to kill. Anything more subtle than that simply doesn't interest them.
Summary: Celt mercenaries are fairly deadly with their swords, but they rely a little too much on their gods to protect them. You probably won't be able to control them, so just point them towards an enemy, send them in, and take advantage of whatever arises. They do work cheap, though, and they certainly enjoy their profession.
Slingers from the Balearic islands were known as the best missile troops in the ancient world and were hired as mercenaries far and wide. Carthage used them extensively and to great effect against the Romans, whose javelin-armed velites were simply outclassed by the greater range and power of the slingers. Arrows could be expected to bounce off a sturdy breastplate, but a lead sling bullet could knock anyone silly, even a Parthian cataphract.
Summary: The Balearic slingers know their value and don't come cheap. They also don't believe in hand-to-hand combat. Advance these for one preparatory strike against a powerful foe, then follow up the next turn with infantry. Don't let them be charged by enemy cavalry. Like most mercenaries, they aren't terribly disciplined.
Being island people, Balearic slingers are more familiar with the sea than most folks. This gives them the rare ability to depart in transports and move in the same turn. This also means that they can come in from the sea and strike several hexes inland in the same turn as well.
Elephants were the most characteristic component of Carthaginian legions. These weren't the enormous creatures you're thinking of. They were drawn from a species of forest elephants which were considerably smaller and are now extinct in that part of the world.
They were too small to carry the "turret" mounted on Indian elephants but they were large enough to frighten any men or especially horses who hadn't been trained to deal with them. Elephants are dangerous to use, though – they're hard to control and may desert you when you need them most. They're also hideously expensive to maintain.
Summary: Elephants have the special ability of Cause Fear, which forces an immediate morale check to any unit engaging them. When fresh, they can be expected to devastate any foe, especially if they have a high experience. Elite elephants are the most dangerous unit in the game. They're not too durable, though, and are especially susceptible to attack by missile troops. When they're badly wounded, they'll forsake the battlefield in any direction they can. Carthage used to equip their elephant riders with a large mallet and chisel to drive through the skulls of routed elephants, though this seemed to be a generally ineffective idea as the riders had all they could handle just trying to avoid being thrown and trampled to death.
The Carthaginians were fairly adept in the science of siege, though not quite as brutally efficient as the Romans. Carthaginian engineers are represented on the map by a ballista, though in reality an engineering corps would also contain catapults, siege engines, and other useful tools for destroying fortifications.
Game terms: In their implementation Carthaginian engineers are no different than their Roman counterparts. Bring them up for an initial strike against a strong unit in a city, then mop up with an elite unit. Do not let the enemy attack your engineers in open space.
The Carthaginians were once known as the masters of the seas. They had a number of different types of warships, but perhaps the most characteristic was the massive Quinquereme. As the name implies, they had five sets of oars. They were able to engage other fleets with impunity, at least until the Romans found a beached Quinquereme and "borrowed" the design.
Summary: One thing the Romans couldn't steal was the vastly superior skill of the Carthaginian sailors. You should still have a fair advantage in combat. Don't allow the Romans to gang up on your ships, and try to keep your green captains out of combat until they've gained a little more skill. In the classical scenario, you'll need a fair-sized fleet if only to prevent the Romans from ferrying their superior troops across the Mediterranean and smashing your empire. If the Romans aren't playing, you'll just need a few Quinqueremes to casually annihilate the ships of the other empires. They won't venture out on the sea for long.
Carthaginian transports are the fastest transports in the game. They have a creditable missile attack and a sturdy structure, though they aren't quite as good as the Roman transports when it comes to hand-to-hand. They'll be sunk easily enough by a Roman warship, but at least the warship will know it was in a fight.
The majority of the German warriors were equipped very poorly, carrying only spears, wooden shields, and crude garments of fur and hide. 
Spearmen have a weak missile attack and a moderate melee attack. Their main advantage is their costs. Wooden spears and rags are the perfect accessories for the tyrant on a low budget.
German spearmen also have the Forester special ability, which gives them a +2 to their melee value while in forests.
Summary: With an upkeep of only one gold, you can afford an entire horde of these hairy and smelly brigands. They tend to wallow in bloodlust, though not as badly as the berserkers or the crazed Celts, so don't expect to maintain control of them. With their expendability, they're excellent troops to conduct sieges.
One drawback you might not initially notice: the German troops weren't as sophisticated at gathering intelligence as the civilized nations. This translates into a pathetic one hex spotting range. If you have a lot of spearmen, it won't really matter, but be aware that it's relatively easy for other armies, especially mounted troops, to evade your hordes of spearmen.
The German archers weren't that bad. They developed a crude longbow which was quite effective for harassing Roman invaders. They're cheap but they're not very disciplined, especially compared to the superb archers of the Parthians. Typically they'll loose a flight or arrows and then run away in confusion.
Archers also have the Forester special ability, which doesn't affect their missile attack, but does give them a creditable melee attack while in forests.
Summary: Like the spearmen, the German archer's greatest trait is his expendability. They're very useful to soften up powerful units like legions and heavy cavalry. Like the spearmen, they have only a one hex spotting range.
One area where the Germans excelled was in cavalry. Equipped with lances and longswords, the German cavalry cut up the Roman legions more than once, especially if the legions were already in disarray. Usually drawn from the nobility, these were the few German warriors who could afford armour. They're also considerably more disciplined than other German troops. Their drawback is their cost. You can keep three units of spearmen in the field for the cost of one unit of horsemen.
Summary: Despite the cost, you must maintain several units of cavalry. They're extremely useful for patrolling borders with their increased movement and spotting range of two hexes. You'll also need them to capitalize on the damage inflicted by your hordes of spearmen and archers. Use them to chase down wounded units, especially those in rout. They're also the only troops you'll be able to depend on for more complicated manoevres, as the other Germans tend to be more interested in bodycounts than strategy.
The most characteristic German troops, Berserkers were the terrors of the battlefield. Chewing their shields and whipping themselves into a psychotic frenzy, they would charge any number of foes, doing without protection or support, counting on their bravery, their longswords, and the favour of the gods to slaughter their foes.
It takes a special type of lunatic to become a berserker. As such, they're the elite of German troops, and may only be recruited in capitals.
Summary: Berserkers have a bad defence, but one of the best melee attacks in the game. They're fantastic to spearhead assaults, as long as you don't mind losing most of them. As their name suggests, they're utterly uncontrollable in battle. Mercy is not an option to them; they will ruthlessly chase down every army they rout. Berserkers travel quickly for infantry, and they're good in a wider variety of terrain than most troops, though it's best if they avoid grasslands and roads. Out in the open, they'll get mowed down by cavalry and missile troops.
Berserkers rarely retreat, but when they do, expect them to be an uncontrollable mob. Their extremely low discipline also makes them a very poor choice to take enemy cities, since they tend to slaughter half the inhabitants. This isn't only inhumane, it's also bad for business. After all, what's the point of conquest if you can't exploit the conquered peoples? Use them to wipe out enemy forces defending cities, but use your considerably saner horsemen to occupy the city itself.
These are minimal warships. They're cheap and quick to make. All you need is some wood and a few barely trained scumbags with oars. Don't confuse these ships with the masterful Dragon ships of the Vikings.
Summary: Use longboats to protect your troop transports if you absolutely must venture out to sea. They're also useful for sinking enemy transports. Don't expect to get too far if facing real warships, though.
One other note: the german longboat is a rare village caste warship, which means you can make a ton of them very quickly if you want to. Another consequence of their caste is that even a besieged city can produce a longboat.
The Germans weren't a seafaring people. Catch them while at sea and they're fish food. They're slow, too. Take a land route if you can.
These are horse tanks. 
A cataphract is an elite warrior in full armour just like a medieval knight. They appeared in the middle east several centuries before their "discovery" in Europe. Sort of like medicine, arithmetic, and sanitation.
Cataphracts wield a 12 foot long lance called a kontos. The head of a kontos is considerably larger than those of European lances, more like a sword on a stick than a spear. Their armour was a full body encasing of mail (even the socks) with additional plates on vital areas. They were mounted on powerful chargers specially bred to carry the weight of all that hardware. The horses themselves were also draped in steel.
The Parthian cataphracts were the heaviest cavalry in the world and could be expected to devastate any troops in a frontal charge. Their numbers were never that great, though, as they were so hideously expensive to equip. Usually they were held in reserve until the enemy had been ventilated profusely by horse archers. The cataphracts would then deliver the death blow.
Just ask Crassus.
Summary: If the enemy is unsupported, spare them no further thought and simply mow them down with your cataphracts. Be wary of traps.
If you're dealing with a total invasion, hold the cataphracts back until you've adjusted the enemy's attitude considerably with horse archers. If you commit your cataphracts too early, you'll probably gain a pyrric victory.
The corollary, of course, is to ruthlessly seek out and destroy cataphracts at any opportunity if you're playing against the Parthians, because the Parthian ruler probably won't be able to replace them, particularly if you keep the pressure on him.
The Parthian mounted archers filled the nightmares of many a Roman commander. They constituted the main strength of the Parthian legion and in open terrain were almost unbeatable. They could approach from any angle on their swift horses, sweep one's flanks with flights of arrows, and retreat before retaliation was possible. 
Horse Archers were weak hand-to-hand fighters and could be destroyed if enclosed, but this was most difficult to do, especially for infantry. At Carrhae a force of 1000 cataphracts and 10,000 horse archers annihilated a force of over 30,000 roman troops. Of course, the Parthians were led by the masterful Surena while the Romans were led by the supreme bungler Crassus, which no doubt had something to do with it.
One can imagine the skill it takes to fire a bow accurately from a galloping horse. These troops were the products of a lifetime of training and could not be replaced easily, though they weren't as costly as the fully armoured cataphracts.
Summary: Use horse archers as outriders on the fringes of your empire. They're fast and quite capable of defending themselves, as they'll simply retreat after their first volley of arrows if they have a chance. These are disciplined troops which rarely lose control and can be employed in rather complicated manoevres. Give them a lot of space so they can attack your enemy several times to weaken him before you must commit to a protracted melee.
The best way to deal with horse archers if you're on the wrong side of their arrows is to force a battle by driving straight for a critical city and capturing it. But whatever you do, do not underestimate the danger of the desert itself.
These tough mercenaries were mainly hired by the Parthians to fill out their ranks, though some found service in armies throughout the ancient world. They carried small shields and long daggers, but their main weapon was their slings. They weren't as good as the famed Balaeric slingers, but they were pretty capable in a fight, and weren't afraid of going toe to toe.
Anatolian hillmen have the Mountaineer special ability. This gives them a +2 to their attack while in mountains. Added to their already considerable melee ability, this makes them very dangerous. These troops also have the rare ability to move two mountain hexes per turn. Note that this can be used to quickly retreat into mountains where other troops won't be able to immediately follow you. This is perfect for harassing, guerilla-style attacks.
Summary: With a moderate melee and missile attack, Hillmen are well suited to taking out enemy missile troops. If you're on the other side, think long and hard before pursuing them into the mountains.
These pathetic slobs were "volunteered" by their Parthian masters in droves. Their equipment consisted of a cheap spear, often supplemented by ankle manacles to prevent their running away in battle. 
Summary: Peasant levies are appropriate in situations where presence is valued over performance. They fill especially well the time-honoured roles of "trap finder" and "bait". They're good for the megalomaniac on a tight budget, though, as all they expect at the end of a day is a crust of hard bread and a dozen strokes of the lash.
The warship available to the Parthians is modelled after the Persian warships such as those that accompanied the Persian invasions of Greece. They will give a Parthian player a sea presence, but not a very powerful one. Parthian warships are superior to German longboats, but not as capable as Quinqueremes, Biremes, and Triremes.
Summary: Use these ships as scouts and to harass enemy troop transports. They're also good to lay siege to coastal cities, in the unlikely event that you mount a creditable naval attack.
You don't develop good sailors in the desert. The Parthian skill at archery gives their transports some ability to defend themselves, but for the most part, travel at sea is a bad idea.
Peltasts were light troops with bucklers and javelins, similar in form and function to Roman velites. In most cases they're slightly inferior to velites as they don't have the rigourous training and discipline that characterized Roman armies. They will outperform velites in hill terrain, due to their land of origin.
Summary: Use peltasts to weaken your foes, especially those that don't have missile attacks of their own. If you can inflict a point or two of damage with a peltast, the following strike with your stronger units will go much easier. Peltasts are also good in a scouting role, since they're expendable.
The phalanx -- a wall of spears -- is one of the oldest and most common military motifs. It reached its height of sophistication in the army of Alexander. The Macedonian phalanx uses a much longer spear, more like a pike, which allowed troops as far as six ranks back to still contribute their weapons to the front line. This resulted in a forest of spears which was virtually impossible to face in a frontal assault. Macedonian pikes also had a spike on the butt-end which made it possible to plant the pike more solidly in order to face a charge. This spike could double as a weapon of final desperation if the soldier's pike was broken.
The phalanx had two potentially fatal vulnerabilities. The first was that it was solely an open terrain formation. Those pikes need lots of space. The second is the inherently static nature of a phalanx. This is not a unit which can reorganize itself quickly to adapt to fluid battle conditions. This means, for instance, that a phalanx could not quickly turn to deal with an attack from the rear or flanks, the way a Roman legion could. Once a phalanx is thrown into disorder, it is doomed.
Summary: Phalanxes are handy units. They only have a moderate attack, but they share with Cataphracts the highest defense value in the game -- at least in open terrain, where you must keep your phalanxes. Do not succumb to the temptation to walk your phalanx into other terrain types until you've scouted the area and are sure that you won't be jumped by attackers. If you are attacked in rough terrain, kiss your phalanx goodbye.
Phalanxes are also fairly cheap relative to their value. You should make them the backbone of your army. One final note: phalanxes have the rare trait of taking a defense penalty while in cities, rather than a bonus.
Hypaspists were a special troop type developed by Macedon to attempt to deal with the vulnerabilities of the phalanx. Hypaspists were fast, flexible units with shorter spears so they could react to changing circumstances quickly. Macedonian armies typically arrayed themselves with a phalanx in the middle, calvary on each end, and hypaspists bridging the gap between the phalanx and the cavalry. As the cavalry advanced, the hypaspists would fan out in a staggered formation, forming a loose "hinge" between the cavalry and phalanx. Hypaspists would also probe for weakness in an enemies flanks and exploit them if possible, leaving the enemy open for a final, crushing charge by the phalanx.
Unfortunately, few records remain of the actual weapons and armour of hypaspists. For game purposes, we've made them similar to greek hoplites, but faster with slightly less armour.
Summary: Hypaspists are fast for infrantry units and make good scouts. They're also an all-terrain unit. Use them in advance of your phalanxes when you have to enter rough terrain or cross rivers. They also make good city garrisons, and they're slightly less expensive to equip than phalanxes.
Historically, The Companions were the elite heavy cavalry of Alexander. They were fast, heavily armed, and supremely disciplined. All in all, probably the most effective heavy cavalry of the ancient world. Alexander often used the Companions as the hammer to his phalanxes' anvil. Any enemy caught between both forces was not long for this world.
For game purposes, Companion cavalry represents all heavy cavalry of Macedonian units. Their cost is prohibitive, however, and should ensure that their numbers are never that great.
Summary: Companions are extremely useful units. Good armour, moderate speed, very high attack value, and almost unbreakable morale and discipline. Companions also suffer fewer defensive penalties in rough terrain than most cavalry units. To top it off, they have a scouting range of four hexes, which means in almost any confrontation they'll have the advantage of forcing the enemy to react rather than vice versa.
The drawback, of course, is their cost, a hefty 15 gold per unit. Only elephants are more expensive. Their upkeep is considerable, as well -- you could support five units of peltasts for the price of one Companion calvary. Be sure you have a few of these to chase down foes and rapidly react to new threats, but rely on your phalanxes to provide the bulk of your muscle.
The Macedonian navy employs the classical Greek trireme. This is a capable ship (they certainly did a number on the Persians) but are weak and outdated compared to the Roman bireme and Carthaginian quinquereme.
Summary: Triremes will at least give you a naval presence. You should be able to inflict a lot of damage on troop tranports with them. Think twice before engaging Rome or Carthage in a general naval war, though. If facing these enemies, it would be better to occupy their forces on land first, then use your reserve of triremes to besiege their cities at a crucial moment.
The greeks were familiar with sea travel, though their shipwrights weren't as skilled as the Romans or Carthaginians. Macedonian transports aren't pushovers, but they should be well defended by triremes all the same.
Mercenaries are attracted to your fame. Each turn, there is a chance that a band of mercenaries will offer service to you.
Unlike regular units, mercenaries always begin as either regular, veteran, or elite units. They are correspondingly more expensive to initially hire, but their upkeep is the same as a regular unit of the same type.
Most mercenaries are drawn from the regular nation rosters. The armies which can become mercenaries are:
You will notice that Hoplites do not appear on any nation's roster of units. Currently, they are the only type of army that exists solely as a mercenary. More will come, certainly.
Hoplites arose in Greece. They were men trained to fight in formation with spears and were equipped with large shields, heavy greaves and thick breastplates. Hoplites dominated the battlefield for centuries before they were supplanted by phalanxes, legions, and combined arms tactics. 
Perhaps the archetypical hoplites were the forces of Sparta, which several times defeated drastically larger armies through their superb training and superior armour.
Summary: Hoplite mercenaries are always good to hire. They're durable, dangerous, and not too expensive. They share the Macedonian phalanx's weakness in rough terrain, but not to the same degree.
Mobs of citizens are no match for regular troops. But they're bad for business, as they'll lay siege to nearby cities, disrupting your income. It's best to deal with them immediately.
Catch them in the open, and they'll scatter quickly. They're troublesome when defending their own homes, though. Worse yet, they always have sympathetic friends in nearby cities, allowing them to negate the city terrain bonus for your defending armies. You might also catch a few sporadic arrows from the hunters in their ranks.
These happy killers rob from the rich, and rob from the poor when they can't rob from the rich.
They have a good missile attack and a moderate melee attack so don't underestimate them. Due to their jovial natures they have extremely high morale as well. They're especially lethal in forests. Deserts are no place for men of such high spirits.
Brigands like to prey on weary travellers. They'll usually run from a strong display of force, but they'll definitely attack wounded units.
Brigands' equipment, including their horses, are of low quality, but they're fast enough to pin down a fleeing unit of infantry so it can be slain by other rebel scum. They'll take a city if they can, but they don't have the siege weapon special ability that Mobs and Patriots do.
Independent cities are a much more serious matter than a few discontented farmers. They can provide the equipment and training to produce troops that can stand against your forces and win.
Patriots are more than a match for your weaker units, but can usually be crushed by your shock troops. Like Angry Mobs, they fight especially well in cities, enjoying a large bonus when defending their own walls and negating the defence bonus of loyalist troops within loyal cities.
Once a coastal rebel city is well defended, it will become a haven for piracy. Pirate ships are a serious menace, ruthlessly sinking every transport they see. They'll run from a warship, unless the warship is severely damaged.
Pirate ships will also lay siege to your coastal cities if they have a chance. If they blockade all your ports, you will soon lose control of the seas forever.
Next section: Appendix I -- Combat algorithms