Royal Hounds

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"Cry Havoc! and let slip the dogs of war."

— William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar (Act iii, Scene i)

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Salukis icon.png
  • Costs food, but has a steep ramp cost in wealth. Dogs trained by Catholic and Byzantine factions all require Foraging from the Foundry.
  • Lethal against infantry (counts as an "archer"), but easily taken out by cavalry - as strong as peasant levy but deals THREE times as much damage, and runs as fast as pikemen on the march.
  • Royal hounds: trainable only from the Nobles' Court. Accessible to Asian and Islamic factions with Monarchy installed. royal hounds move faster and have better LOS.
  • Welsh mastiffs are trained only by England and Wales, and are recruited from the Peasant Commune, and require attrition research instead.

History[edit | edit source]

Being fast, agile and intimidating due to their appearance and behaviour, dogs could be trained to maim, rend and kill, while staying staunchly loyal to their masters. One Chinese story tells of a dog who upon seeing a brushfire threaten its sleeping master, gave up its life to save him by repeatedly jumping into a stream and then shaking off the water on bushes around him until it died of exhaustion. As a result, humans have spent centuries trying to breed the perfect dog — one that would be loyal yet efficient at its work, regardless of what it was. Such "wonder dogs" could sometimes be well worth their weight in gold and could be given as diplomatic gifts or tribute, but would be difficult to raise, such as salukis which were preferred by Islamic civilisations because they were fast, intelligent and seldom drooled (in Islamic law dog drool is considered ritually unclean), making them highly prized by Arab potentates seeking companions and assistants in hunting trips.

References[edit | edit source]