| High Elf Swordsmen | ||
|---|---|---|
 | ||
| Race | High Elves | |
| Req. Town Buildings |
Barracks, Smithy | |
| Construction Cost |
 30 | |
| Upkeep Cost |
 1 1 | |
| ||
| # of figures |
 6 | |
| Moves |
 1 | |
| Melee Attack per figure |
 3 | |
| Defense per figure |
 2 | |
| Resistance |
 6 | |
| Hit Points per figure |
 1 | |
| ||
|
 Large Shield | ||
High Elf Swordsmen are a type of Normal Unit. This unit may be created at a High Elf town, for the Construction Cost of 30. The town must already contain both a Barracks and a Smithy for this to be possible.
Like all Swordsmen, High Elf Swordsmen are a fairly basic combat unit, capable of holding its own in a fight with other Normal Units, especially after gaining some Experience. It also enjoys a Large Shield bonus which gives it some protection from Ranged Attacks. While slightly more expensive than other Swordsmen, High Elf Swordsmen possess a To Hit bonus of 
+10%, a higher-than-average Resistance score, and the Forester ability which in theory allows them to navigate through Forests with ease.
High Elf Swordsmen require an Upkeep Cost of 1 and 1 to maintain. Failure to pay these costs will result in the unit being disbanded automatically.
Unit Properties
Physical Description
High Elf Swordsmen are a group of tall humanoids with blond hair, slender and majestic. They are colorfully dressed in yellow shirts, white breeches, and a lively green cloak. They each carry a sword for up-close-and-personal combat, and a large dark-green buckler which protects them from enemy arrows and other ranged attacks. A hint of magic surrounds them at all time, guiding their weapons and allowing them to be more in-tune with the natural world.
High Elf Swordsmen are a Multi-Figure unit, containing 
6 figures when fully healed.
Attack Properties
High Elf Swordsmen use a Melee Attack that is somewhat decent - at least against other Normal Units. As they gain 
Experience, this attack can become strong enough to actually threaten the weaker Fantastic Units.
Each Swordsman makes a Melee Attack with a strength of 3. In addition, this attack enjoys an innate To Hit bonus of +10%. This delivers an average damage output of about 
1.2, so with 6 Swordsmen attacking in unison it's very likely that several hits will connect - though this is before the target gets to make its Defense rolls to block damage. This attack is useful primarily against lightly-armored units, such as other low-tier Normal Units.
Defense Properties
The High Elf Swordsmen possess a Defense score of 2 - just slightly weaker than their attack score. They can deflect about 0.6 points of Damage from any damage source, on average. This is barely enough to save them from anything but the weakest attackers.
On the upside, Swordsmen are equipped with Large Shields. These bestow a Defense bonus of +2 against certain types of attack:
Ranged Missile Attacks- Ranged Boulder Attacks
- Ranged Magical Attacks
- Thrown Attacks
- Breath Attacks
Extra Defense will block more incoming damage, and as the High Elf Swordsmen gain Experience they can eventually become decently resistant to those attacks.
As with most Normal Units, each High Elf Swordsman possesses only 1 Hit Point. In other words, each point of Damage inflicted on this unit will kill off one of its figures.
For purposes of defending against Curses and other combat maledictions, the High Elf Swordsmen have an above-average Resistance score of 6. This can protect them from some ill effects, but will probably fail about as often as it succeeds. With Experience however, High Elf Swordsmen can become surprisingly resistant to a large variety of ill effects.
Other Properties
High Elf Swordsmen move at a slow 1, and can only traverse land tiles.
Like most other High Elf units, High Elf Swordsmen possess the Forester trait, which theoretically allows the Swordsmen and any units stacked with them to move through Forest tiles at a cost of 1 Movement Point per tile. Unfortunately, because High Elf Swordsmen only have a Movement Allowance of 1 anyway, this gives them no real advantage. If the unit's Movement Allowance is somehow increased, it will be able to "cruise" through Forest tiles like they were Grassland.
Basic Strategy
High Elf Swordsmen are a step up from the basic High Elf Spearmen. Stronger on the attack, with the added bonus of resistance to Ranged Attacks and certain Special Attacks, the High Elf Swordsmen can serve as a decent main-line unit, bolstering the strength of larger armies.
High Elf Swordsmen are usually not strong enough to fight on their own, though Experienced Swordsmen are capable of facing down most low-tier Normal Units with ease. Still, in the early game, a line of advancing Swordsmen can stand up fairly well to the foes it's likely to meet. It can weather Ranged Attack volleys to close with the enemy and batter it down - though it's still recommended to mix in some other units to aid the Swordsmen in their fight, decreasing casualties.
In an empire based mostly on Normal Units, Swordsmen tend to form the majority of armies, especially in garrisons, a good way towards the mid-game.
Ability Overview
+10% To Hit
- This unit has an extra 10% chance to hit its target with every attack. This improves its statistical chance to inflict more Damage with each attack it makes.
Forester
- This unit may move through any Forest tile at a rate of 1 Movement Point per tile.
- When this unit is stacked with other units, the entire stack may move through Forest tiles at a rate of 1 Movement Point per tile.
Large Shield
- This unit receives a temporary Defense of +2 against all types of Ranged Attacks, Thrown Attacks and Breath Attacks.
Experience Table
The following table illustrates how High Elf Swordsmen improves as they gain Experience. Any properties that are not listed here do not improve with Experience in any way.
| Level Icon | Level Name | EP | Melee | To Hit | Defense | Resist | Hits |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Recruit | 0 - 19
|
3
|
40%
|
2
|
6
|
1
|
|
Regular | 20 - 59
|
4
|
40%
|
2
|
7
|
1
|
|
Veteran | 60 - 119
|
4
|
40%
|
3
|
8
|
1
|
|
Elite | 120
|
5
|
50%
|
3
|
9
|
2
|
|
Ultra-Elite | 120 *
|
5
|
60%
|
4
|
10
|
2
|
|
Champion | 120 **
|
6
|
70%
|
4
|
11
|
3
|
* To achieve this level, either the Warlord Retort or the Crusade spell must be in play.
** To achieve this level, both the Warlord Retort and the Crusade spell must be in play simultaneously.
Average Damage Output
The table below details the average amount of damage that each Figure in a High Elf Swordsmen unit will deliver with each type of attack, based on 
Experience Level. It can be used in comparison to the target's Defense rating to figure out the chance of hurting that target.
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">Acquisition
High Elf Swordsmen may be produced in any High Elf Town.
A town must contain both a Barracks and a Smithy to be able to produce High Elf Swordsmen. Should a town lose an existing Barracks or Smithy, it can no longer produce High Elf Swordsmen until replacement structures are built.
The Construction Cost of this unit is 30.
High Elf Swordsmen may appear for hire as Mercenaries. They may already have some Experience on being hired, and several units may be hired simultaneously. Hiring these units requires a certain cost in Gold that depends on many different factors. High Elf Swordsmen Mercenaries have the same Upkeep Cost as a normally-constructed unit.