Catapult

“Walls are merely suggestions to those who command the engines of war.”

The Catapult is the earliest siege weapon, a lumbering war machine capable of hurling heavy stones at enemy fortifications from a safe distance. Though slow and vulnerable, it fills a role that no other Classical Era unit can: breaking down city walls.

Stats

Special: +50% attack bonus vs cities (siege bonus).

Abilities

• Ranged Attack – Can bombard enemy units and cities up to 2 hexes away.
• Siege Bonus – Deals 50% additional damage when attacking cities.
• Setup Required – Must remain stationary for a turn before firing.

Available Promotions

• Combat I – +10% attack (5 XP)
• Siege – +50% attack vs cities (stacks with innate bonus).

Upgrade Path

Full chain: Catapult –> Cannon –> Artillery

Strategy

Without Catapults, taking a well-defended city in the Classical or Medieval Era is a bloody and often futile endeavour. Their siege bonus is essential – it effectively gives them 12 Attack against cities, enough to steadily batter down walls while your infantry waits to storm the breach. Bring at least two Catapults on any serious offensive campaign.

The Catapult’s crippling weakness is its fragility. With only 3 Defence and 2 Movement, a Catapult caught in the open by cavalry or even aggressive infantry is as good as dead. Always keep Catapults behind your front line, protected by melee units and ideally on a hill or behind a river for additional defensive terrain. Think of them as expensive, irreplaceable assets that need a bodyguard at all times.

Historical Background

Siege warfare was transformed in the 4th century BCE by the development of torsion-powered artillery. The earliest catapults were essentially oversized crossbows (gastraphetes), but engineers soon developed the onager and the ballista, which used twisted skeins of sinew or hair to store enormous mechanical energy. These machines could hurl stones weighing up to 25 kilograms over distances of 300 metres or more.

The most famous siege engineer of antiquity was Archimedes of Syracuse, who devised ingenious defensive engines during the Roman siege of his city in 213-212 BCE. His machines reportedly included cranes that could lift Roman ships out of the water and drop them, though some ancient accounts may be embellished. The Romans, for their part, became the ancient world’s foremost practitioners of siege warfare, systematically reducing fortified cities across the Mediterranean with batteries of catapults, siege towers, and battering rams.