[MetaOrg] The Blackmoor Military

[RobJN]

One thing that fantasy armies might have, that real armies don't, is spellcasters. Wizards and clerics have spells, and that gives them the ability to do as much damage as a number of soldiers. This might mean that they are considered to be a larger "unit" in an army (based on their ability) and they may well be put into the pyramid of power at a higher level and given pay and rank at that level. (I know that WWII pilots in the UK's Royal Air Force were mostly - but not totally - officers, despite not commanding privates when they fought. A WWII pilot had a "ground crew" that helped them get their plane ready. Perhaps a wizard might have a small "crew" to look after his needs and watch his back, but be the primary fighter within his own unit.)

Spellcasters have definately played a role in Blackmoorian warfare. The best known example might be the Mage Wars. Also, there is the Scroll & Blade Mercenary Company which consists to a large extent of Wizards.

In general, I see Wizards as having their own agendas outside the mundane needs of kings and princes though. If they do intervene in war, they are terrible and destructive, but most parties prefer them to stay out of it and let the mundanes fight it out alone. The comparison to Air Forces etc is interesting though

-Havard

In hammering out some notes for the various structures within the Grand Army of Blackmoor, I'd decided that shrikes were treated largely as infantry, grouped by platoon, whereas sirens were organized into flights, as is common in today's air forces. Whether or not either of the units ever truly flew or the designation merely served to differentiate the Gold from Silver is a matter of some heated debate among scholars of ancient societies. Certainly no known sirens or shrikes, neither modern nor classical, boast wings of any sort....