There are always people wondering about what is best to arm their core regiments with. Many boxed sets come with the option of either hand weapons and shields or Spears and shields. On the surface, Spears seems the better option as they allow the second rank to fight and “hey more attacks means more wounds and more wounds mean better combat resolution right?” But under the current rules spears for foot troops are not all that great compared to the bonus given to the combination of hand weapon and shield.
Scenario 1
Let’s assume the generic unit has WS3; S3; T3 and no other equipment. This allows the direct comparison between the two weapon options to be compared.
Generic unit
A of 20 with hand weapons and shields vs identical generic unit
B of 20 with spears and shields. Both are ranked 5 wide and 4 deep. Both have full command.
If
A attacks first then the combat will end up with 1.25 (1 through rounding) casualties caused on
B.
B then strikes back causing 1.67 (2 through rounding) casualties on
A meaning that
B will win combat slightly more often than
A on the balance of probabilities. Combat resolution has
B winning by 1.
If
B attacks first then we will see a result of 1.83 (2) casualties to 0.83 (1). So we see there is even more likelihood that
B will win combat. Combat resolution has
B winning by 1. We can see that spears are slightly superior but there is not really much in it so the points could be saved and not affect the overall combat ability.
As spears cost more this is not a fair match up so we should give unit
A light armour to compensate (usually costed the same).
Scenario 2
Unit
A attacks first causes 1.25 (1) casualties as before and then takes 1.25 (1) casualties in return. Drawn combat.
Unit
B attacks first causing 1.38 (1) casualties and then takes 1.04 (1) in return. Drawn combat again.
So for all that you have almost twice the number of attack coming in, the extra armour mitigates it.
Scenario 3Bringing the generic units from before back (without the extra armour on
A), let’s imagine them taking a charge from 5 light cavalry
C with WS4; S3; T3 armed with spears.
Odds are
C will charge
A so we get 1.85 (2) casualties from the riders and 0.83 (1) from the mounts or 2.68 (3) total.
A strikes back causing 0.83 (1) casualties. Due to banner, outnumber and ranks
A wins by 2.
When
C charges
B we will see 2.22 (2) casualties from the riders and 1.04 (1) from the mounts for 3.26 (3) total.
B strikes back causing 1.67 (2) casualties. Due to banner, outnumber and ranks
B wins by 3.
Not a huge advantage to the extra cost spent on spears. Spend the same on light armour and the result would be
A winning by 3, same as spears but the benefit to ranged defence is better.
Of course these are simplistic mathematical models and don’t take into account the wide variety of possible combinations available to a Warhammer general. In most case the option to arm with spears is offered to the core block infantry that is intended to win combat through static combat resolution rather than wounds in which case it is better to reduce the number of wounds received than increase the number of wounds caused.
Mathematically the chance to hit wound and kill with hand weapons vs spears is the same, spears just allows the 2nd rank to fight as well, increasing the number of potential hits. Most spear armed foot troops will only hit 1/3 to 1/2 of the time, wound 1/6 to 1/2 of the hits and with most opponents having at least a 5+ save kill only 4/6 of the wounds.
Best case scenario against an equal opponent an average trooper will only cause a casualty 1/6 to 1/8 of the time. Against superior troops this chance drops even lower. Whereas a +1 to armour save will mitigate an extra 1/6 of all attacks that hit and then wound. So if you are choosing between light armour or spears (generally the same points cost – around 1 pt per model) the extra save should be more valuable. Light armour, shield and hand weapon equates to 4+ (50%) save in combat and will swing the combat far more in your favour than shield and spear (6+ save) and 5 or six more attacks. Plus more armour will help out of combat; more models left alive means more to attack back as well.
In conclusion, when given the choice and under the current rule set, the marginal advantage that spears have over hand weapon and shield is not worth the cost. It is far better to give your core troops more protection than more attacks as most of the extra attacks will not have a noticeable effect.
I got what may be the start of a new facet of my gaming hobby today. My Captain Phineus Shae arrived today in the mail. Over the last few weeks I have become increasingly interested in Warmachine/Hordes and the Privateers in particular.
