Vardariotai (M2TW Unit)
Disciplined and highly trained, the Vardariotai wear light armour and fire a composite bow from horseback.
Overview
The Vardariotai are drawn mainly from the Magyars that settled in the Vardar Valley, and their descendents. Disciplined and highly trained, the Vardariotai are elite horse archers. They wear light mail or brigandine armour and fire a powerful composite bow from horseback. Able to relentlessly pepper their enemies with arrows and use their mobility to stay out of trouble.
Details
Simply put it, Vardariotai are the best missile cavalry unit available to the Byzantine Empire, and actually one of the best in the entire game. They have no equal in terms of both missile and melee stats. While they do cost a heavy 250 florins per turn to maintain, they prove their worth in giving the player a wide rang of tactical choices. The Vardariotai can also stand up against the elite missile cavalry that Eastern factions such as the Turks, Egypt and Hungary can field, though the outcome can vary from situation to situation. They do not, however, equal the very best missile cavalry in the game, such as Dvor Cavalry or French Mounted Archers. However, they require far less development and they remain an excellent cavalry archer unit, which provides the player with a potent mobile missile force.
They are available early on, requiring only a castle; however, their pool is very small. Upgrading the castle to a Fortress will increase it somewhat, but they are not available from Stables, so their recruitment pool will remain limited.