Machimoi Akontistai (Native Egyptian Skirmishers)

Machimoi Akontistai (Native Egyptian Skirmishers)
Machimoi Akontistai (Native Egyptian Skirmishers)
Primary Weapon	Type: Javelin Attack: 13 Charge: 0 Lethality: 1 Range: 70 Ammo: 5 Attributes: Thrown Missle
Secondary Weapon	Type: Knife Attack: 2 Charge: 1 Lethality: 1
Defence	Armour: 1 Shield: 1 Skill: 3
Recruitment	Soldiers: 64 Cost: 320 Upkeep: 60 Turns: 1
Mental	Morale: 2 Discipline: low Training: untrained
Climate Fatigue	Hot climate : 1
Ground bonuses/Penalties to attack	Scrub: -1 Sand: 2 Forest: -4 Snow: -5
Other	Hit Points: 1 Mass: 0.35 Attributes: Can board ships, Can hide in forests, Hardy, Peasant, Free upkeep Formation: square Side/Back spacing: 1.8/1.8 Ownership: Ptolemaioi

These Machimoi are the native levies of Aigyptos. Like their counterparts in other nations they are skirmishers only. Do not expect them to stand up against line infantry.

Description

The Machimoi were an important part of Aigyptian society long before the arrival of the Hellenes and the new Pharaonic dynasty of the Ptolemaioi. Aigyptian society consisted, aside from the royal family, primarily of the priests, the warriors--or Machimoi, and the farmers.

These men are drawn from the lowest, pentarouroi (5-aroura) class of makhimoi or even from landless makhimoi renting small plots from the many temple estates in Aigyptos. They hence come armed only with a simple clutch of javelins. Some carry small shields, but none have more than a short sword or knife for personal defence. On campaign, they are expected to serve mainly as attendants, baggage handlers or arms bearers, although they may serve as skirmishers if they are required to make their own contribution on the battlefield. It would be wise not to expect much more of them: the makhimoi may once have been a warrior class, but for hundreds of years many of them have spent most of their lives farming or trading, not fighting.

Historically, the makhimoi were a hereditary land tenure class that both existed long before the Ptolemaic regime and changed considerably under the regime. Makhimoi seem likely to have been present at the battle of Gaza in 312 BCE, probably as both light and medium infantry, shortly after the establishment of the dynasty. Most landed makhimoi held allotments of 5 or 7 arouras (a unit of land equivalent to 100 square cubits or 2,756 metres squared each) in size, with only a select few receiving 10 (elite infantry) or 20 to 30 (cavalry) arouras. Landless makhimoi on the other hand likely rented smaller plots associated with their class in temple precincts, as they had done in pre-Ptolemaic times. Regardless of status, makhimoi filled all sorts of liturgic roles in the Aigyptian state: police, crop guards, irrigation guards, contract witnesses, and security, in addition to their military roles. On that front, the 5-aroura class acted mainly as attendants and servants, rather than serving as frontline troops themselves, while landless makhimoi could be assigned to paramilitary tasks rather than their usual enlistment for public works as needed.

While the first Ptolemaic Pharaohs managed to establish fairly good relations with the makhimoi clans, the military and land reforms undertaken in the context of the Raphia campaign provoked significant unrest. Makhimoi abandoned their posts in droves to join the Great Revolt of 207 BCE, and they formed a large part of the rebel forces to which the Ptolemaic dynasty lost control of Upper Aigyptos for about two decades. In response, many 10-aroura plots were repurposed by giving them to loyal phylakitai (policemen) of now-increased standing instead.

Despite their part in the Revolt, makhimoi remained part of the Ptolemaic military infrastructure until the end of the dynasty. The system of tiered land allotment survived intact: all allotments sizes known from earlier times are attested into the late Ptolemaic era. The surviving evidence indicates that makhimoi were active in a variety of roles, from wartime mobilizations to frontier guard posts to regional paramilitary jobs and marine status. At least some makhimoi could be mobilized for pay for about 8 months per year, a considerably longer service period than that of Hellenic kleroukhoi. It is likely, based on a couple of artistic sources, that dekarouroi (10-aroura) makhimoi carried thureoi by this time, and even the heptarouroi (7-aroura) makhimoi may have adopted them, but evidence on other parts of their equipment is scarce. The makhimoi were not the only type of Aigyptian troops in Ptolemaic service, however. In the absence of any significant immigration after the early 2nd century BCE, proven "Persian" (in reality Aigyptian or Noubian) soldiers were one of the main recruitment bases for new Hellenic troops for the Ptolemaic dynasty, building on a tradition of similar ethnic fictions in the army that was at least a century older. Thus, as the Hellenic portion of the army began to decline in the 2nd century, makhimoi and Persians, two different types of Aigyptian soldier, came to play growing roles in all military matters.