Skiritai

[vamrat]

How would you represent the Skititai in a Classical Greek (Spartan) list? They were a light unit that fought on the extreme left of the Phalanx. If they fought as part of the phalanx, I doubt they'd be classified as LF, so would they be MF? I was thinking Thracians with Offensive Spears would fit their historical description well, though a superior rating would fit nicely. As I don't have my copies of Herodotus, Xenophon, and Plutarch with me at the office, could someone point out if I am missing anything?

Thanks.

[Phaze_of_the_Moon]

LF sound right.

Xenophon:

- "they were placed as sentinels ahead of the army" (Constitution of the Spartans, xii. 3)
- "acted as scouts to open the way for the king" (ibid)
- "used simillarly to the Hyrcanian cavalry, the Assyrians rear-guard" (Cyropaedia, iv. 2)

[tadamson]

How would you represent the Skititai in a Classical Greek (Spartan) list? They were a light unit that fought on the extreme left of the Phalanx. If they fought as part of the phalanx, I doubt they'd be classified as LF, so would they be MF? I was thinking Thracians with Offensive Spears would fit their historical description well, though a superior rating would fit nicely. As I don't have my copies of Herodotus, Xenophon, and Plutarch with me at the office, could someone point out if I am missing anything?

Thanks.

Isn't the 'light infantry' bit an assumption based on Xenophon describing them as originally being the camp guard. Thucydides (v. 67), just lists them as another hoplite contingent, though with the honour of being on the left end of the line. In the Cyropaedia IV,2 Xenophon talks of the Spartans treating them badly and putting them in the most dangerous positions, but that doesn't require them to be anything other than hoplites.

http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/pt ... uc.+5.67.1

http://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/x/xenophon/x5po/

http://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/x/xenopho ... book4.html

Tom..