This unit can hide in forests until enemy units get too close. This unit’s melee attack and damage are increased against charging enemies. The troops of this unit raise their shields above their heads in a static defensive formation. Led by a 'comte', the root of the noble title ‘count’ - itself a Latinised version of 'companion' in reference to Alexander's friends and compatriots - comitatenses were professional soldiers every bit as dangerous as their Legionary forebears. Although originally intended to be the Emperor’s own elite palace guard, the Empire’s increasingly difficult border situation led to comitatenses becoming Rome’s main field armies. 'Comitatenses' were the late-Roman equivalent of the traditional Legionaries, designed to swoop in and decisively defeat enemy forces already pinned down by 'limitanei', the frontier garrison troops tasked with guarding the 'limes' - the borderlands of the Empire. The Emperor Constantine’s controversial solution was to divide the army into two halves. In the face of an increasing number of barbarian incursions, the effective defence of Rome’s now-sprawling territory became a serious problem in the 4th century AD.
"The very core of the late Roman army, these spear-armed infantrymen are Legionaries in all but name."
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