Foot Saburai
It is true: the son of a lion roars as a lion!
— Bukko, mediaeval Japanese zen master
In game[edit | edit source]
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Heavy infantry with better cross-country performance than normal Spear Sergeants and with a ranged charge attack, but costlier and trainable only from the Nobles' Court.
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| Prereq: | Build time | HP | LOS | Attack | Attack speed | Movement speed
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12.5s (188t) |
200 | 9 | 24 | 2.1s (32t) |
30 | ||
| Cost | Created from | Armour | Weapon range | Specialty | ||||
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1 |
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6 | Melee |
Can "charge" enemy units. | ||
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Overall strategy[edit | edit source]
Foot Saburai form the elite of Japanese armies, and are armed with the yari, a long barbed spear that grants them first strike capability. As infantry units go, these units are fairly capable and their speed, although nothing to shout about in comparison to Arab jundi infantry, will allow them to function better on the field when it comes to emergency situations. Equally, they are also capable of charging enemy units, so as a result attacking them from the front with weakened forces is not a wise option.
Yet do not fully rely on them all the time — Foot Saburai can only be mustered from a Nobles' Court, and they are still vulnerable to crossbow fire, so masters of Saburai are always advised to take a page from traditional Sengoku Jidai tactics: use missile attacks to soften and disorganise the enemy, and then attack with your Saburai and cavalry. Being better than the Shȫen Retainers, they also cost a fair bit more in metal, as well, although their better cross-country performance will always allow them to perform a banzai charge that is guaranteed to sweep aside any Saracen formations in their way.
Unit summary[edit | edit source]
- Keeping them at Armspan's Length — Foot Saburai are armed with long spears, granting them an early "first strike" capability against cavalry which can be crucial in a fight against melee cavalry civs.
- Speed Kills — The added speed of the Saburai means that the Japanese infantry army is one of the most flexible.
- Formidable, Not Invincible — Foot Saburai are difficult to amass, since building a Nobles' Court is rather hard to do, and you still need to research them.
- Rank and File — Foot Saburai are best used in tandem with other units, especially cheaper Ashigaru and Shȫen Retainers.
See also[edit | edit source]
History[edit | edit source]
Unlike Mediaeval Europe where there was a perceptible correlation between social status and specialisation (ie high-born knightly swordsmen versus peasant archers and pikemen), Asian military culture of the contemporaneous period placed greater emphasis on flexibility. The variegated terrain of Asia, classified by many mountains and near-lack of room for manoeuvre created a requirement for warriors proficient in various combat styles and not merely confined to either use of a fixed number of weapons. Japanese Bushi (and their later descendents, the Saburai) were thus skilled in the use of various weapons, notably with the yari (long spear) and in archery.
