Spartan Hoplite/Bio & Battles

"These are Sparta's walls."

- King Agesilaus, pointing to his army

Spartan soldiers are the infantry of the ancient Greek city-state of Sparta, typically citizens who were trained from an early age in the disciplines of the warrior society that the city-state represented. They are among the most notable in the military of ancient Greece, with warriors raised from childhood as part of a requirement for the male youth of Sparta to train from the age of seven, with weaker children receiving extensive training being supposedly discarded at a young age.

The first reference to the city state entering war with its soldiers was in Homer's Illiad, and in the early days of Classical Greek culture, utilized an arsenal of bronze weaponry. The typical strategy of early Spartans involved working through the side of an enemy's army before striking at the vulnerable flank. Following this 'golden age' of Sparta and the beginning of the Dorian wars, their military strength was greatly diminished, before experiencing a revival by the king Lycurgus, bringing about the typical Spartan military form and strategy and greatly expanding his territory.

Battle vs. Jacobites (by Urbancommando77)
In scotlnad, William Wallace and 3 highlanders were wondering through a plain. William spotted Leonidas and 3 Spartans marching twords them. One of the Spartans through a javelin, but missed. He through another javelin at the rebels, killing on of them.

HL: 3

Spartan: 4

William pulled his ball and chain out and threw it at the king. The heavy weapon struck Leonidas' shield, knocking him down. The spartans charged into battle with their spears and shields. William drew his claymore and his men drew Targes and Dirks. One of the spartans stabbed a highlander in the leg with his spear, but the highlander countered with a targe in the chest and a dirk in the neck.

Spartan: 3

William saw another spartan coming at him. He cut the Spartan's head off.

Spartan: 2

The last spartan pulled his Xiphos out and charged at the injured highlander. The injured rebel only retrieved his targe. The spartan stabbed the highlander in the wound. The highlander raised his shield and dodged another blow. The spartan smacked the highlander in the head with his shield and stabbed him in the groin The highlander coughed up blood and squirmed helplessly. The spartan kicked his down the hill until he fell into a pond and drowned.

HL: 2

The other highlander pulled a B&C out and hit the spartan in the head.

Spartan: 1

Leonidas pulled his sword out and his shield out and charged towards the highlander. The highlander drew his claymore out and swung at the king. Leonidas ducked and shoved the shield into the highlanders neck. The highlander fell. Leonidas stabbed him.

HL: 1

Leonudas walked over to William. William pulled his ball and chain out and threw it at Leonidas. the king dodged it with his shield, but it brock. Leonidas pulled a javelin out and threw it at William. The soear stuck in williams stomach. Leonidas walked over to William. The rebel stabbed him with his dirk. Leonidas pulled the dirk out of his leg and stabbed William Wallace in the chest. The rebel coughed up blood and rolled down a hill. Leonidas pulled his spear out and threw it into the rebel's neck.

HL:

Leonidas roared in victory as he raised his Xiphos.

Winner: Spartan

Expert's Opinion
To see the orginal battle, weapons and votes, click here.

Battle vs. Rajput (by Richard Starkey)
The Spartan walked through the forest when a chakram clanked of his helmet stunning him. The Spartan recovered and threw his javelin but the rajput blocked with his shield.

The Rajput drew his katar and the spartan his xiphos. The rajput used his katar to disarm the spartan and stabbed but the spartan blocked with his aspis.

The Rajput drew his Aara and slashed the spartan's arm and his aspis slid off. The spartan cringed in pain then he leapt forward and tore rajput's helmet off. The rajput swung his aara knocked the spartan's helmet off.

The spartan fell to his knees and the rajput sheathed his aara and drew his khanda. He swung his khanda but the spartan grabbed his helmet and used it to black the khanda. The rajput dropped it and drew his Aara while the spartan drew his dory.

The Rajput's aara wrapped around the dory attempting to disarm him, but the spartan yanked forward and impaled the rajput on his dory. He tore the dory out of the rajput raised it and shouted "SPARTA"

Winner Spartan

Expert's Opinion
To see the orginal battle, weapons and votes, click here.

Battle vs. Easterling (by Undead RVD)
No battle was written

Expert Opinion
This battle went strait to the Easterlings. While the two were even in Training, Brutality and Fearlessness and the Spartans had the edge in Physicality, the Easterlings were just too much. Their superior Tactics and Metallurgy got them far. They were too versatiley skilled and their steel weapons and armor outmatched the Spartan's bronze armor and iron weapons. At the end, the superior weapons, armor and tactics will lead to the superior victory. see the orginal battle, weapons and votes, click here.

Battle vs. Knight (by Jar teh marksman)
No battle written

Expert's Opinion
The Knight's superior armor, weaponry, and training got him a winning edge over his technologically inferior opponent.

To see the original battle, weapons, and votes, click here.

Battle vs. Tlingit Warrior (by Pygmy Hippo 2)
Carrizo Plain, California

A Hupa Tribe woman was picking acorns while she waited for her husband to return with the salmon he was hunting for. Unfortunately she heard him yell and saw a man in wooden armor break his spear with a copper shield before stabbing his stomach with a long blade. She screamed in horror and ran from the Tlingit but tripped and barely avoided a copper arrow hitting her leg.

The slave hunter drew his bow back again and firedbut this time he didn't miss, instead his arrow was blocked by a bronze shield. The Hupa woman took the opportunity to run away as the Spartan pulled out his javelin. The Tlingit was furious at his foe for letting his quarry escape but the phalanx soldier didn't care about the woman he saved, all he wanted was to kill this invader on his king's newly conquered lands.

The javelin was hurled with great force but was blocked by the Tináa shield and another arrow was fired but broke on the Aspis shield. Both armored warriors realized long range combat wasn't working and so drew their primary weapons, the Tlingit's double sword/dagger and the Spartan's Dory spear. The two circled each other for a couple seconds before the Greek stabbed forwards but it was blocked by the Tináa.

The Alaskan took advantage and attempted to cut through the spear's wooden shaft but was pushed backwards by the Aspis. The phalanx soldier stabbed at the slave hunter again with his Dory and this time he hit his mark, the iron tip punched through the hide and wood but was barely stopped from hitting skin by a coin. The Tlingit wasted no time in hacking the spear in two with the sword blade before stabbing the Spartan's chest with the dagger blade, it barely made it through the bronze cuirass and only made his foe bleed.

The Greek whacked the Alaskan's head with his Aspis, cracking and denting the wooden helmet, before shoving him back again, this time knocking him over. The phalanx soldier dropped what remained of the Dory and drew his Xiphos short sword as the slave hunter left his weapon and shield on the ground, pulling out his two-handed war club instead. The Alaskan got up and swung at the Greek's Aspis, causing no damage, but left himself open to a Xiphos stab.

This blow managed to get past the coins and cut deep into the Tlingit's innards, however the short sword wasn't easy to pull out and the Spartan had to take a blow in return. The two-handed war club smashed his weapon arm, breaking it, but the phalanx soldier smashed the hard wood blade with his Aspis, breaking it in two. Despite both armored warriors being in immense pain, neither showed any signs of it and just defiantly stared each other down as they walked back their primary weapons.

The Greek swung his Aspis at the Tináa and managed to not only get the Alaskan to drop it, he broke his arm as well. The Tlingit finally grunted in pain but still tried to cut the Spartan's throat but found that his foe was quicker than he was and lost that arm as well. Now defenseless, the slave hunter could only glare at the phalanx soldier as he dropped the Aspis and picked up what was left of his Dory before plunging it into his foe's throat, the wooden collar provided no protection against the iron tip.

As his foe topppled over, the Spartan left his other weapons in the Tlingit's body and held up his Aspis as he yelled in victory. "Sparta!"

Winner:Spartan

Expert's Opinion
While both warriors were equally well trained and experience, their armor proved to be the deciding factor. The Tlingit had the advantage at long range but his wooden armor couldn't stop most of his opponent’s weapons. The Spartan's bronze armor however proved to be very effective and more maneuverable along with his better short and mid range weapons giving him a lethal edge. The final nail in the Tlingit's coffin was the legendary Spartan Aspis not only being made of better materials than the Tináa but also being able to be used as a weapon.

To see the original battle, weapons, and votes, click here.