Swordsman

The swordsman is a heavy frontline European unit in the Stronghold series.

Description

Swordsmen are excellent fighters, who wear metal armour. Their equipment makes them very slow but well-protected against projectiles, and their tempered steel dishes out high damage to anything that gets near them.

The swordsman is trained at the barracks.

Information

• Stronghold Crusader
• Stronghold 2 & Legends
• Stronghold Crusader 2

Tactics

Due to their lack of speed, swordsmen are best used in the frontline of a tight formation, where they can steadily advance and repel enemy charges. Their high defense allows them to soak up a lot of damage before succumbing and repel enemies from the walls, and their high attack allows them to easily punch through enemy units and fortifications.

Swordsmen greatly benefit from other units' support during a siege. Overpowering the enemy's ranged capabilities and artillery bombardment from catapults can ensure that the swordsmen get close to their objective.

Weaknesses

Swordsmen are the slowest unit in the game. Most units can easily outmaneuver and/or distract them, as well as ranged units can simply move backwards to gain enough range and fire again. Evasive maneuvers can simply limit swordsmen's combat effectiveness by not fighting them.

Despite his durability, the swordsman is still vulnerable to concentrated fire and suffer heavy damage from siege equipments' projectiles. The penetrating bolts from crossbowmen take them out fairly easily from atop of a wall.

Trivia

• The swordsman's armour (in Stronghold 2) suggests he is modeled after a 12th to 13th century fighter. This was during the latter time of the Crusades, where chainmail was widely in use but some plate armour was available. The swordsman wears a great helm (or pot helmet), breastplate, greaves and cuisses. It is seen that he wears a drape of mail over his shoulders, known as the coif (layer of mail covering the head).

Unit quotes

• Stronghold Crusader
• Stronghold 2 & Legends