Can't ask fairer that - we are never going to "know"; we can only provide scraps of evidence for speculation - thanks

That is fair caution, but I think the Barbarossa episode is doing too much work here. The Byzantine tradition was not “seek a chivalric test of arms”. It was almost the opposite. The military manuals, from the Strategikon through Leo VI and later tactical writing, repeatedly warn against offering pi...

The issue is not whether Niketas Choniates admired Latin knights — he plainly did, at least in military terms. The real question is whether the sources imply that *native* Byzantine cavalry under Manuel I Komnenos had evolved sufficiently to meet western cavalry on roughly equal terms in shock comba...

Would somone kindly humour me - later C12 Byzantine lancers - reign of Manual Komnenos - are massively underpowered and will be beaten by any knights going. The primary sources suggest that they were in fact, as good as most knights, if slightly less impetuous, more resilient, after the mid C12th re...

If during a game I switch say to chrome or word when I Alt-tab back to the game, I have a black screen, though if I move the cursor a few descriptive words appear eg rough or stream. How can I remove this problem please?

Thanks

David

So would the right answer be to raise hands, admit that with so many lists error is possible, and revert to the previous and historically accurate interpretation of allowing both Tagmatic and Thematic cavalry to be in two ranks or one. It’s one small humans error for FOG kind but a bigger deal for B...

In the new lists first class thematic cavalry are allowed to fight as a single rank of cavalry armoured drilled bow* Lance swordsman, but elite Tagmata units have to fight in two ranks, one of Lance, one bow The Byzantine military manuals point to exactly the contrary, that thematic cavalry usually ...

I have just upgraded to windows 8, don't know whether or not this is connected. At the same time bought Chancellorsville. Now all text appears as a red block, with no text visible so the game is not playable Dx file below thanks for help David Harvey ------------------ System Information -----------...

one of the non loads is

Error: could not load figure: ottoman/w010-Ottoman-azab-turk-heavy-archer (required by formation Ottoman/ottoman-LF-azab-turkish-archer-a)

This happens as soon as the game is opened thus:

On the opening screen - "Error could not load figure..." then several figures are listed

Various Ottoman and persian units do not load "error could not load figures"

Bought decline and fall and eternal empire this morning, no receipt and serial number received, have checked junk mail, receipt received on previous occasions and obviously I'd like a financial record and a copy serial number

thanks

David Harvey

As you may groan I have commented many times on Byzantine armies i also run Turkish, Abbassid, Hamdanid and other Arab armies, Marians and Successors - any chance of an opportunity to peek as and comment on the new beta

David

Here's hoping my comments on the later Komnenon list noted in the player designed lists section will be taken up, with the later Komnenon army still having options for a substantial proportion of mercenaries eg latinikon and Skythikon but being a essentially Byzantine army with the option to have a ...

Phil wrote: Surely a fifth, per file, would be 2 ranks of HF Def Sp, 1 rank MF bow, 1 Rank MF def Sp. 12 figs Def Sp, 3 Figs Bow. Perfect. Nik replied I'd be much more minded just to make them 2/3 spearmen 1/3 LF archers - the latter have a very limited effect in the game and so can be argued to be...

responding to Nik's points above History shows that dismounted cavalry (or mounted in general) were often used for just that - there are examples from Assyrian charioteers to the TYW (to cover the period of history I actually know something about, after that it is murky for me <g>). As an argument, ...

Following Nik's comment 1) as usual performance for the poor bloody infancy is difficult to substantiate . Skylitzes gives limited battle reports but para 19 of the chapter of Romanus 1 focusses on the capture of many "fortreses, strongholds and cities of the barbarians" by John Kourakouas...

Few additional observations to the existing list from reading the new George T Dennis translation - the major ones are: 1) As noted in other discussions, troops equipped to the ideal standard described must have been fielded on occasions, thus the option to upgrade some skutatoi to armoured. The arm...

but how many "y"s in Arabic ?

D

i suppose i would add to Nik's last point the PS - how is the interaction where the Byzanines have, say no option to upgrade some protected to armoured kontaratoi and some Kavalliaroi to superior armoured knights right ? the lists as published tend to non historical interactions where crusader / Hun...