Songhai

The articles by Alan Todd in Slingshot 216, 217, & 218 inspired me to begin to look at African armies other than the Blemmye, Noba, and Auxumite armies. His articles were so good that I felt that I could not improve on his efforts in my lifetime. Therefore, I used his source material and, primarily, his articles to develop a Songhai list.

Era: Age of Chivalry 1335-1493 A.D. Songhai CR: H: 4 L: 3   BP: 2 Init: 5    
Core
Number Type Description Key FV PROT Weapon Cost
1 HC Royal Guard K 5(1)0 +1 Various 11
1 HC Bornu or Hausa K 4(0)0 +1 Various 10
2 LC Bornu, etc. K 2(0)0 +1 Javelins 14
1 FT Fulani K 6(1)2 +1 Bows 10
1 FT Dogon, Hausa K 5(1)2 +1 Various 6
1 LI Dogon   4(1)2 +1 Javelins 7
1 SI Dogon   2(1)1 +2 Bows 2
Bonus:
1 FT Royal Guards K 6(1)0 +1 Various 8
3 HC Bornu or Hausa K 4(0)0 +1 Various 10
4 LC Bornu, etc. K 2(0)0 +1 Javelins 7
2 FT Fulani K 5(1)2 +1 Bows 8
3 FT Dogon K 5(1)2 +1 Various 6
4 LI Dogon, etc   4(1)2 +1 Javelins 7
3 SI Dogon, etc.   2(1)1 +2 Bows 2
2 SI Dogon, etc.   3(1)2 +2 Javelins 2
2 CM Camels (Tuareg) K 4(0)0 +1 Javelins 9

Terrain:

Core: 1 GR

Bonus: Max. 3: 2 GR, 1 SH, 2 RG, 2 W

Notes:

This is intended to represent the Songhai army of the Sonni dynasty of West Africa, The army was noted for steady infantry and strategically fast moving cavalry. The list is shamelessly cribbed from the articles of Alan Todd in Slingshot together with a review of those sources cited in the articles. The Songhai army experienced a wide diversity of geographic conditons across the breadth of the Sonni Empire with armies campaigning in near jungle conditions, woodlands, near desert conditions, and traditional savannah.

The special FV of most of the FT is 2 rather than the more usual 1 due to the great deal of experience these troops had in fighting in difficult terrain.

List Author: Subodai Bahadur's best efforts to translate Alan Todd's work into an Armati army.