Slitherine

What was the rationale for defining movement rates by troop type? Would have thought armour class would have made more sense.

Hoplites, for example, cost less points if not armoured, even though some city states deliberately chose to wear less armour because of the increased mobility.

Similarly would imagine celtic warriors wearing nothing but trousers would be able to cover more ground than legionaries.

Happy to be corrected though!

Eques wrote:What was the rationale for defining movement rates by troop type? Would have thought armour class would have made more sense.

Hoplites, for example, cost less points if not armoured, even though some city states deliberately chose to wear less armour because of the increased mobility.

Similarly would imagine celtic warriors wearing nothing but trousers would be able to cover more ground than legionaries.

Happy to be corrected though!

A couple of points of thought:

Firstly, just because someone THINKS "maybe we should wear less armour - we'll move quicker" doesn't mean that they WILL move quicker, and moving quicker when? On the battlefield, or getting TO the battle field? I don't think that hoplites without a breastplate would move THAT much quicker than hoplites with a breastplate.

Secondly, keeping formation is critical to heavy foot (otherwise they would be medium foot - who do move quicker). If I try to put myself in your mindset, you're thinking something along the lines of the opening scenes of 'Gladiator' where the Legionaries are 'trump trump trump' and the barbarians are flowing. In reality, the barbarians would have had their shields locked together the same as the Legionaries... unless they were medium foot. I don't think Legionaries would move much slower than Napoleonic musketeers. Shoulder to shoulder - you can only really go at the 'quick march'.

Ian

I think it is entirely a perceived function of maintaining formation.

LF= Loin cloth and carrying a few sticks trot along and line up ragged.

MF lack of formed nature makes the vulnerable to mounted. people tend to form up at last minute.

HF = disciplined tight order, phalanx, legion, keeping shoulder to shoulder is prized by the army.