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Gnoll Swordsmen
Tactical GnollSwordsmen
Race Gnolls
Req. Town Buildings Barracks,
Smithy
Construction Cost Icon Production 20
Upkeep Cost Icon Gold 1
Icon Food1
Unit Properties
# of figures Icon MultiFigureUnit 6
Moves Icon Movement Ground1
Melee Attack per figure Icon Melee Normal 5
Defense per figure Icon Defense 2
Resistance Icon Resist 4
Hit Points per figure Icon Hits 1
Unit Abilities
Ability LargeShield Large Shield

Gnoll Swordsmen are a type of Normal Unit that can be recruited in Gnoll Towns containing at least a Barracks and a Smithy. Swordsmen are a basic combat unit available to all Races. They are better defended against Ranged Attacks than other low-tier units, and can become somewhat stronger through Icon Experience Experience. Gnoll Swordsmen in particular have a rather high Attack Strength that can make them threatening even to mid-tier units, although their survivability is not exactly good and tends to ultimately limit their usefulness.

Gnoll Swordsmen have a Construction Cost of Icon Production 20, and require an Upkeep Cost of Icon Gold 1 and Icon Food1 to maintain. Failure to pay these costs will result in the unit being disbanded automatically.

Unit Properties[]

Physical Description[]

Gnoll Swordsmen are a group of fur-covered humanoids, more akin to jackals than to humans. They wear the blue tunics that are a standard part of the Gnoll army uniform. Gnoll Swordsmen each carry a sword for up-close-and-personal combat, and a large purple buckler which protects them from enemy arrows and other ranged attacks.

Gnoll Swordsmen are a Icon MultiFigureUnit Multi-Figure unit, containing up to Icon MultiFigureUnit 6 soldiers.

Attack Properties[]

Thanks to the Gnolls' racial bonus of Icon Melee Normal +2, Gnoll Swordsmen possess a rather impressive Melee Attack for a low-tier unit. Each Swordsman attacks with a strength of Icon Melee Normal 5, which has an average "raw" Icon Damage damage output of Icon Damage 1.5. With Icon MultiFigureUnit 6 figures, Gnoll Swordsmen have a high chance of scoring at least a couple of hits against most opponents, especially in the early game. This attack also improves with Icon Experience Experience. At the Icon ExpLevel 3 Elite level, the maximum normally attainable, it has an average "raw" Icon Damage damage output of Icon Melee Normal 7 × Icon ToHit 40% = Icon Damage 2.8 instead – nearly twice the initial value, and enough to put a dent even into heavier armor.

Defensive Properties[]

Gnoll Swordsmen are lightly armored, possessing a Defense score of Icon Defense 2. They can deflect about Icon Damage 0.6 points from Conventional Damage attacks, on average. Unfortunately, this is rarely enough to avoid anything but the weakest attacks. Like all Swordsmen however, they carry Ability LargeShield Large Shields, which grant an extra Icon Defense +2 against all types of Conventional Damage that is delivered at a range. This brings their average Icon Damage damage reduction up to Icon Damage 1.2 against Icon Ranged Bow Missile-, Icon Ranged Boulder Boulder-, and Icon Ranged Magic Ranged Magical Attacks, as well as Icon Thrown Thrown Attacks, Icon Breath Breath Attacks, the hidden Conventional component of most Gaze Attacks, and all spells and effects that deal Conventional Damage, including Area Damage.

As with most common foot soldiers though, each Gnoll Swordsman has only Icon Hits 1 Hit Point. In other words, each point of Icon Damage Damage inflicted on this unit will kill off one of its Icon Figure figures. Their base Resistance score is also quite terrible – with Icon Resist 4, they will easily fall prey to most Unit Curses and combat maledictions. Icon Defense Defense, Icon Resist Resistance, and even Icon Hits Hit Points improve with Icon Experience Experience however.

Other Properties[]

Gnoll Swordsmen move at a slow Icon Movement Ground1, and can only traverse land tiles. The unit has no special movement properties.

Basic Strategy[]

Gnoll Swordsmen are a step up from the basic Gnoll Spearmen. Even stronger on the attack, and better defended against spells and ranged opponents, they can serve as a decent main-line unit in the early stages of the campaign. The Barracks and Smithy required to recruit them are typically cheap enough to build in every Town, especially since the latter is also needed for some of the economical Town Buildings, and is likely to be constructed sooner rather than later.

Because of their defensive advantage, Swordsmen are often a better choice than Spearmen for garrisoning frontier Settlements and contested areas. However, it should be noted that unlike Spearmen, they also cost Icon Gold Gold to maintain in addition to Icon FoodFood, and their lower Icon Figure figure count makes enhancements effects slightly less pronounced for them. In the case of Gnoll Swordsmen though, their initial Attack Strength is so good for a low tier unit that it more than makes up for the extra Upkeep Cost. In early "rush" strategies, it's typically worth switching to them as soon as the recruitment speed stops becoming a limiting factor and either unit can be produced in a single turn.

Ability Overview[]

Ability LargeShield Large Shield[]

Experience Table[]

The following table illustrates how Gnoll Swordsmen improve with Experience. Any properties that are not listed here are not affected by Icon Experience Experience in any way.

Level Icon Level Name EP Melee To Hit Defense Resist Hits
Experience 0 Recruit Icon Experience 0 - Icon Experience 19 Icon Melee Normal 5 Icon ToHit 30% Icon Defense 2 Icon Resist 4 Icon Hits 1
Experience 1 Regular Icon Experience 20 - Icon Experience 59 Icon Melee Normal 6 Icon ToHit 30% Icon Defense 2 Icon Resist 5 Icon Hits 1
Experience 2 Veteran Icon Experience 60 - Icon Experience 119 Icon Melee Normal 6 Icon ToHit 30% Icon Defense 3 Icon Resist 6 Icon Hits 1
Experience 3 Elite Icon Experience 120 Icon Melee Normal 7 Icon ToHit 40% Icon Defense 3 Icon Resist 7 Icon Hits 2
Experience 4 Ultra-Elite Icon Experience 120 * Icon Melee Normal 7 Icon ToHit 50% Icon Defense 4 Icon Resist 8 Icon Hits 2
Experience 5 Champion Icon Experience 120 ** Icon Melee Normal 8 Icon ToHit 60% Icon Defense 4 Icon Resist 9 Icon Hits 3

* To achieve this level, either the Warlord Retort or the Icon LifeCrusade spell must be in play.
** To achieve this level, both Warlord and Icon LifeCrusade must be in play simultaneously.

Average Damage Output[]

The table below details the average amount of "raw" Icon Damage damage that each Icon Figure Figure in a Gnoll Swordsmen unit will deliver based on Icon Experience Level Experience Level. It can be used in comparison to the target's Defense rating to approximate the chance of hurting that target.

Select weapons:
Level Icon Level Name Melee Ranged * Thrown Breath
Experience 0 Recruit
Experience 1 Regular
Experience 2 Veteran
Experience 3 Elite
Experience 4 Ultra-Elite
Experience 5 Champion

<img src="Icon_Melee_Normal.png"><img src="Icon_Melee_Magic.png"><img src="Icon_Melee_Mithril.png"><img src="Icon_Melee_Adamantium.png">

Acquisition[]

Gnoll Swordsmen may be recruited in any Gnoll Town that has both a Barracks and a Smithy already built. The Construction Cost of this unit is Icon Production 20. Gnoll Swordsmen may also appear as Mercenaries, provided that the player has a presence on Arcanus. In this case, they cost between Icon Gold 40 to Icon Gold 60 to hire per unit, based on their Icon Experience Experience – or half that much for Charismatic Wizards.

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