Warrior Monks
"Everyone of them worth a thousand men, not caring whether they met god or devil." — Heike Monogatari
In game[edit | edit source]
Warrior Monks — Vital statistics | ||||||||
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Powerful chivalric order unit that can function as heavy polearms infantry. Has stronger attack, and better overall robustness than Militant Clergy. Capable of healing nearby units within a fixed radius.
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Prereq: | Build time | HP | LOS | Attack | Attack speed | Movement speed |
Upgrade of | Upgrades to |
10s (150t) |
120 | 8 | 18 | 2.1s (32t) |
35 |
Apex unit | ||
Cost | Created from | Armour | Weapon range | Specialty | ||||
Base | Ramp | Pop | ||||||
1 | 1 | Melee |
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Overall strategy[edit | edit source]
Armed with the Japanese naginata or glaive, Warrior Monks are some of the more bizarre units of Rise of Kings. Not only do Warrior Monks have the ability to heal friendly units within their vicinity, they also have a very powerful splash attack which renders them more reliable compared to the somewhat ineffectual Militant Clergy who, despite having a strong constitution, must be shielded away from enemy units. Remember, however, that a Warrior Monk counts as a ranged heavy unit like the Dailamiyan and Almogaver mercenary units, so keep enemy archers from targeting him at all costs.
Unit summary[edit | edit source]
- Powerful unique chivalric order unit
History[edit | edit source]
The first warrior monks in Japan came into existence following increased political bickering between different temples competing with one another for government sponsorship. The decline of the Nara state soon resulted in the breakdown of centralised law in Japan, and with it came an escalation in violent feuds between different temples. These brawls were first enacted by paid armed men, but eventually even the clergy themselves were soon arming themselves. The naginata, a highly defensive weapon, was the favoured weapon of choice for many of these warrior monks or sohei, but archery was also a skill at which many others excelled at as well. By the 11th century, even Imperial courtiers were sufficiently frightened by the threat these armed (and certainly indignant) monks posed that they were denounced by the former as akuso or "evil monks".