‘There are three kinds of soldier, Sharpe [...] There are the damned useless ones, and God knows there's an endless supply of those. Then there are the good solid lads who get the job done, but would piss in their breeches if you didn't show them how their buttons worked...’
—Bernard Cornwell, Sharpe's Prey
In game[]
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Light infantry levies, useful as cannon fodder and defence. | |||||||
| Prereq: | Build time | HP | LOS | Attack | Attack speed | Movement speed | ||
|
11.3s | 135 | 9 | 17 | 2.9s | 23 | ||
| Cost | Created from | Armour | Weapon range | Specialty | ||||
| Base | Ramp | Pop | ||||||
 : 50; : 40
|
: 1;: 1
|
1 | 
|
2 | 1–9 | Doesn't need  to train
| ||
Overall strategy[]
A cheap but weak unit that can be levied from any Settlement, the Provincial Fencibles form a vital unit for the British, being cheaper but vastly inferior compared to the more highly professional Red Coats or Highlanders, and are only good for use as cheap cannon fodder. Even so, if they were accompanied by a General, you could make good use of them on the field in a defensive capability especially if you can entrench them on rocky ground.
Use this unit to round out your numbers, but do not let cavalry come too close to them, for they like the more professional Musketeers have a minimum range and suffer greatly if attacked by light melee units.
Unit summary[]
- Provincial Fencibles are best used in defensive operations or to swell your army's numbers.
- Keep light melee infantry and cavalry as far away from them as possible.
- Escort Provincial Fencibles with a General for better results.
History[]
Fencibles were militia units raised throughout Britain and its Imperial possessions throughout the late 18th century and beyond, with the last deployment of Fencibles in New Zealand during the many wars involving the Maori tribes.
References[]
- New Zealand Fencible Society Inc
- Niagara 1812 Legacy Council, Black Stump Brigade
Developer notes[]
Prior to the Ultima Ratio upgrade, this unit could be upgraded to the Blackstump Brigade, and did not have an attack penalty versus medium or heavy cavalry.