Nikreti Legion - Post Herateijus' Reforms

As a fairly millitaristic nation, Nikreti scribes has written a lot about their millitary and their battles. I therefore know about the legions of Nikretai to quite a great extent. One very importaint thing to keep in mind when reading about the Nikreti army is that it has never been entirely stagnent. As when they were fist established by Nabateijus in 1282 AC, they were 4.000 men strong and had very little standardization. Most of the soldiers just sort of came with what they were good at, and one legion was seen as one whole army. Most were spearmen and all had exdelent training and a lot of armor. Both the cavalery and artillery however were only part of the army as auxiliary forces, this was due to the limmited amount of trained horsemen and the expense of horses.
However, this piece is about the army after the reforms of Herateius. Herateius did as much great as Nabateijus had before him. He changed the size of the formation from 4.000 to 10.000, as by then the armies were so large, 4.000 wasn't an effective army size anymore. This new legion had both an artillery and a cavalery component, and everything was standardized. Each infantery had the same equippment (after the years, mor and more people had just started using spears), and each cavalery too. Each cannon wasn't the same size, but they would become. At a start the disspossition looked like this: 8.000 infantery, 2.000 cavalery and 20 cannons. The cannons didn't have standard crews, but rather, every infantery was also trained as an artilleryman. Later the cannons would become 40 per legion instead of 20.

Composition

Manpower

In a Nikreti Legion there are 10,000 men. Of which 8,000 are infantery and 2,000 are cavalery. On top of this, there are 40 cannons included, but these only extended to 40 from 20 after Herateijus had already died. The cannon crew in the legion are made up of units of cavaery or infantery as every member of the military formation knows how to oporate the cannons. This means that the crew are less vulnerable to attack and that a small, random force of any men in the army of Nikretai can capture enemy guns.

Equipment

I have found that the equipment used by a legion is as follows: Infantery, per man: 1 long spear - 2,4 m. 1 short sword - 70 cm blade leanth. 1 large oval shield - 115 cm tall, 40 cm wide. (about the size of a roman scutum shield) 1 set of armor including:  A steel helmet, covering the whole head and some to most of the face.  A chainmail body armour going down the shoulders and the genetals, as well as covering either basic hardened leather protection or a gambison.  Solid steel plate over the right thigh and bothe lower legs.  Steel plated armour to cover the right arm. Shoes according to the climate. Clothes are one's own. The shield is held in the left hand, and the weapon in the right.
Tools: 1 smaller shovel. 1 hammer. 1 wood chopping axe. 3 pouches for holding. 1 sleeping bag. 1 leather belt. Per regement: 50 large cooking pots. 50 large tents. Possible amount of local transport animals. Cavalery. per man: 2 horses. 1 helmet covering the whole head and most of the face. 1 cavalery sword-spear. 1 small hand-held kite shield. A set of steel plate armor on the front and back of the body. Stopps at the waist. Almost full coverage of segmented steel armor on the outsides of both legs. 1 set of chain mail horse armor. A pair of styrrups. 2 saddles. 1 cloak. 1 hammer. 2 iron spikes. 1 sleeping bag. 1 leather belt. Shoes for the weather and climate. Clothes are ones own. Per regement: 500 wagons. 20 iron pots. 20 large tents. 2.000 roaps.

Structure

The legion have 12 regements. 8 infantery regements of 1.000 men each, and 4 cavalery regements of 500 men each. Each infantery regement has 50 companionships of 20 men each, and cavalery regements have 20 companionships with 25 men each.
5 infantery companionships make an inantery company of 100 men, and 4 cavalery companionships make a cavalery company of 100 men also.
Men in companionships are trained together and are expected to divide into groups of 5 closer friends during training. After that they decide themselfs who sleeps with who and in which tents. They do this under their training, so that if they have complaints or want to switch up their tent mates, they can. The tent-mates will also fight close to eatch other in the army.

Tactics

There exists evidence for the formation being able to digg tremches and build barracades. The formation can deploy in shieldwalls of the following types: counter-projectile, counter-cavalery and mobile counter projectile. The formation can also for phalanx and they can spread out in a loose formation.
The long spear is most commonly used, however, when fighting on uneven terrain, close quarters or in loose formation they use their swords instead. They also have a few different lines. The thinnest is two men deep, but this is so thin that it doesn't really have much of staying power and so it's not used often. The deepest is only 8 ranks deep. The thinness here is because of the danger of cannonfire.

Training

The training of a legionaire depends on if it's a cavalery or an infantery warior.
Inantery. An infantery warior is in training for about 2,5 years. In which they learn how to fight skill fully with their trademark spear, as well as the short sword. The shields they train with are slightly smaller and a bit more heavy than the standard issue infantery shield, this is so that the recriuts will build up strength and be faster with the use of the shield as well as so that they will try to move the shield a little moer than necessary so that they won't accidentaly move it to little. They are taught all the various formations as well as dualing. They are also taught to have propper form as well as how to walk in various terrains in the best way. They are taught how to clean their equipment in the best way if it's dirty, how to prepare where they sleep in both cold and hot climates as well as how to dig and build fast. Really all the things you would benefit from being taught, as a foot-soldier, except for what they're expected to know already. And they become very good at it. They often do marches in intensionaly too mutch or to little clothing to harden them. They are sometimes awaken at irregular times in which case they are to find command and set up in battle lines, they are being timed. They are also sometimes put through pain endurance tests, where they need to awnser increasingly harder logical questions while being exposed to some sort of harsh pain. Though the harsher trainings are only present in the last 6 months of training. They are also being taught how to opporate an artillery piece. The training can be broken up like this. Combat + Menial tasks (building, digging, setting upp tents etc.): 12 months. Combat + Marches + Psychological training - pain tollerance: 12 months. Combat + Marches + Pain tollerance: 6 months. On the marches they would do the menial tasks, and the artillery training was just whenever they could find the time. They would also learn basic medical presegeurs.
Cavalery. The training for cavallery men was similar to infantery. But with a few changes. They did not practice pain tollerance or artillery usage. Their training was also longer with 5 years instead of 2,5 as they needed to learn how to ride and take care of a horse as well, to a great degree too. This is how their training was broken up. Menial tasks + Taking care of horses and learning to ride: 12 months. Learning to ride + Combat + Desensitizing the horses + Menial tasks: 24 months. Marches + Combat + Desensitizing the horses: 12 months. The marches would often be following the 8.000 Infantery of which they trained with on patrolls. They would also learn medical presegeurs, basic.
Purpose of the training. The training was harsh for the individual, and designed to produce soldiers who rarely panniced, were disciplined and followed orders. The abillity to construct and dig fast was very crusial to the general style of campaing the soldiers usualy found themselfs on. Because they didn't have much in lerms of logistics companies, they carried a lot of their food by themselfs and though any logistics lines were good, they were also vulnerable. So, if you found yourself attacking a fortified possition you'd want to be able to end it quick, just in case. Their ability to march on through harsh weather and condisions also went to this end as well as to surprize the enemy. It wasn't all that uncommon for Nikreti armies to complete very difficult marches, that no normal army would without mass dessertion. The soldiers werent trained in eating food that had gone slightly bad, as it was expected that they could stommach it anyways, as by the youngest age to start the training of 16, it wouldn't be to uncommon for many recriuts to have had to eat bad food in lacking years. They were also not always given propper food at the barracks as to teach them this, as well as that they also suffered from lacking years. The pain tollereance was to make them think clearly, even in distressful and even painful situations. If they were to suffere a wound, they should be able to either fight on and keep themselfs from dying.

Logistics

Logistical Support

The formations logistics were never seen as it's own part of the formation, but was integrated into the fundamental structure in only small amounts. The Nikreti legion has always relied on living off the land and with the provisions they themselfs braught whenever possible. They had a lot of animals, as every cavalery man had a reserve horse, that was used to carry heavier supplies on large wagons. So they could bring a lot of food. They also looted food and water every time they could as a number one priority.
Though, sometimes the legion could not finnish a campaign without more food. At which point a sizeble detatchment would take the wagons, empty them, and send a message to the supply base set up for the campaign. Here food would come in to make sure the peole didn't starve with their food sorces being looted. And here the wagons would fill up, and go back to the force. This was possible as the supply base was ordered to always have a lot of food stocked up, and they would then send for extra food. This supply base was pretty mutch allways a city of some sort, but could also be a fortress. If a strong base didn't exist, the legion would build one.

Auxilia

As far as auxiliary forces go, these are my finds. The legion sometimes take on allied soldiers to fight along side them, if there are voulentreers. However this usualy didn't happen. Though, it was very common before Herateijus' reforms, as all the cavalery and artillery was auxiliary in form.

Upkeep

Long I have thought of how the state could both such a large army, and have so much money to do other things with. The reason I found, was because of the provence system. The province system was established by Herateijus, after his conquests around the inland sea. This is how Nikretai has been able to prosper with maintaining an army 120.000 of only 20.000.000 citizans, and at such a high quality. The provinces are to maintain one legion per province with everything but the pay (but half of that is payed for by just more tribute taken from the provence).
As for the cost, it's whatever the cost of making sure 10.000 men has amunition and equipment. On top of this, each man gets (.........) (.......) per month.

Recruitment

The legions get their recriuts from citizans of Nikretai, however, sometimes the emperor has decided to give special allowence for non citizans for political reasons. Ever recriut had to a man of at least 16 years old. They also "couldn't be dwarves", I haven't figgured out exactly what this meant. How tall was considered the tallest a "dwarf" could be, or if there was any defined hight limit. We can probbably guess there was a hight limit though, just using common sense.

History

The Nikreti legion has been changed and moddified for centuries, but always been the same legion. It's adaptability is it's character and thus, it's character is not changing.
Because of this, the legions have been through a lot of battles and a lot of campaigns. It's cultural impactwas therefore absolutely huge.

Historical loyalties

All Nikreti armies have been loyal to the king of Nikretai.

Founding

Nabateijus - 1282 AC & Herateijus - 1426 AC

Overall training Level

Professional

Assumed Veterancy

Experienced

Parent Formation

Nikreti Legion - Post Herateijus' Reforms

Used by

• Nikretai