Sakers (ETW Unit)

Sakers (ETW Unit)
Class	Fixed Artillery
Unit Size	24 men
Weaponry	6 pdr cannon
Morale
Melee Attack
Ranged Attack
Defence
Charge Bonus
Accuracy
Range
Ammunition
Region	Global
Recruitment Cost	660
Upkeep Cost	160
Turns to Build
Unit Limit
Building Requirements	Cannon Foundry
Technology Requirements	None
Attributes	Can Hide in Woodland;

A saker is an old-fashioned style of light cannon, deployed in a fixed position.

Overview

Artillery pieces are expensive to cast; as a result, they tend to be in service until captured, destroyed or rusted away. Sakers are a prime example of this, as many of the barrels date back to the 17th Century, even if they have been taken from dust-covered warehouses and mounted on refurbished carriages.

They are relatively light cannons in terms of the shot fired, which is much the same as a six-pounder. Some sakers are even old enough to have been intended for stone ammunition, and this is reflected in the fact that the windage (or difference between the barrel bore and shot size) is often quite large. This “rattling” of a shot down the barrel when it is fired does not help accuracy.

Despite the light weight of shot, these are anything but lightweight guns. Saker gun carriages are large, awkward and tactically immobile. Gunners and draft animals can drag them into place before a battle, but there is little chance of moving a gun to a better firing position once the action has commenced.

Although obsolescent, there were 14 sakers in the “Blenheim train” of artillery in 1704 available to the Duke of Marlborough – guns were expensive and he took what was available.

Details

Sakers are some of the earliest cannons most factions can field. They are immobile and lack firepower. However, they may have practical applications early on if canister shot is researched speedily. They lose their prevalence as better artillery such as horse and foot artillery become available.

If they remain immobile for more than two turns on the world map, sakers (as well as other fixed artillery) gain the option to deploy sandbags around them as a small measure of protection.