| Notes |
Mounted Combat - This allows rider to ignore the skill cap placed on
combat rolls by the Ride skill.
Skirmishing - This style permits launching ranged attacks whilst at a run
(but not whilst sprinting).
Tribesmen: The bulk of the Tatar army were the nomadic tribesmen. These were horse archers who made a living by conducting slave raids into the neighbouring states.
Officially the Tatars used a decimal organisation but in reality it was all about clan affiliations. The smallest independent unit was the torhak of a few dozen men. The next higher formation was the chambul, which could have a few hundred men through to several thousand. To maximise the area covered by a raiding force, the army would set up a camp, then each chambul would ride out separately and send its own torhaks out further to raid independently. In open battle the Tatars attempted to outflank the enemy, to attack the flank or rear, so fought in a wide and relatively open formation. Most did not wear armour, but some had padded jackets, mail coifs, and/or vambraces. The preferred mode of operation was shooting from a distance, however, the Tatars were willing to close if necessary and individuals carried sabres, spears and/or javelins. Being horse archers they preferred to attack the enemy’s left flank as it was easier to shoot bows to their own left. They also favoured generally rapid movement and using surprise, ambushes, feigned flights, and quick withdrawals. Against the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth they had good success against the Pancerni and light cavalry but avoided the elite Hussars. Apparently lances increasingly replaced bows in the 17th century, however, they remained skirmishing cavalry and I have kept the unit type unchanged as Light Horse. |
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