Some thoughts about the unit variety in Antiquity (mainly for Greece and the Mediterranean civilizations) that was revealed in Pax Australia

[The Fanatical]

In my excitement for the game, I think I became overconfident that each civilization will have unique appearances for all of their units, but that doesn't seem to be the case. The Mediterranean Warrior and Phalanx that were presented at Pax Australia appear to look exactly how the Greek civilization's units will look like, and perhaps the Phoenician civilization's units will look the same as well, but Greek early warriors and phalanxes didn't look like that at all.

The Mediterranean Warrior is identical in appearance and weapons to early Italian warriors. The Mediterranean Phalanx looks exactly like a late Republican Roman Legionary. It is indeed true that some Greek and Hellenistic armies started adopting to an extent the weapons (Thureos) and armour (Mail) of the Romans and Celts after they came into contact with them, but the Phalanx and the other units (Warrior, Spearman, Phalanx, Horseman) for the Greeks at least and perhaps for other Mediterranean civilizations (Carthaginians) should have looked more Hellenic or Hellenistic and less Roman, especially when Rome is already in the game.

After the conquests of Alexander the Great, the Macedonian phalanx became the most popular and successful battle formation and was used in the Mediterranean basin and as far away as India, something the Legion never accomplished. The Hoplitic phalanx was also famous during its heyday and many civilizations adopted it in the Mediterranean, including the Romans. Since the unit is called Phalanx, it would have been more appropriate in my opinion to have a Hellenistic appearance. Sigh...back to modding I guess so that I can have my treatment for my "more historical appearance in units syndrome".

Instead of looking like an early Italian warrior with a Scutum and a Pectorale,

the Greek Warrior should have looked more like a Minoan or a Mycenaean warrior.

Early and Late Minoan Warriors

Mycenaean Warriors

Early Doric Warrior after the palatial collapse in Greece

Something else that troubles me is the fact that the Greek Commander is accompanied by standard-bearers that appear to carry a plain banner without any form of emblem on it. Other civilizations' standard-bearers carry fitting banners or standards.

Another peculiar thing is the appearance of the Phalanx for the Romans. Instead of looking like Triarii, it is comprised by Imperial Legionnaires that wield Hasta and Clipeus, and they also wear Lorica Segmentata. If the unit wore Lorica Hamata (mail armour) with Apulo-Corinthian helmets and carried Scutums, then it would have been more suitable.

 

[The Fanatical]

I really don't understand why additional effort was made for the Egyptians and the Romans to have a more unique Phalanx unit, but the same effort wasn't made for the Greek civilization despite the unit being named Phalanx. The Indians should also have a different version from the Middle-Eastern civilizations (Persians, Assyrians etc.), since it appears that they share the same appearance for some units like the Phalanx. The Indian Phalanx wearing a Pagri would have been enough to differentiate it, for instance. I know that any changes are unlikely to happen at this point when the game is so close to release, but I really hope more variety is introduced to civilizations' units in future expansions, exactly how it occurred when Gathering Storm was released for Civilization VI.

The Roman appearance of the Greek Phalanx in the game.

How more fitting it would have been if the Greek Phalanx was comprised by Hellenistic Phalangites.

The Roman Horseman indeed looks like an Eques which is reassuring,

and I have seen a small glimpse of Greek horsemen, but I can't see clearly their equipment.

Ideally, they should look more Hellenic.

 

[RedCourtJester]

1. I think this amounts to a bit of exceptionalism, as Rome and Greece are only two civs in a comparably larger roster which will presumably grow. Greece and Rome shared architectural and unit styles in VI, so it is logical that they hit on a kind of middle-ground for Greco-Roman/Mediterranean aesthetic. I mean, that lion-helm doesn't look very Roman either. The devs said they were trying to go for a general sense of authenticity to the region, not to custom-tailor units to each individual civ. Maybe that could happen in future expansions (like how civs got their own unique palaces down the line in VI), but I think this Greco-Roman hybrid is totally reasonable for a launch state when they needed to build out what looks like roughly nine regions, plus likely Polynesian units for a tenth region. So about ten cultural types per era, which is a lot of design and detail.

2. Are you referring to the purple and yellow screenshot you posted? I am not sure where that came from, but the color palette to me says those are probably Rome units because they have Augusts' colors.

 

[The Fanatical]

1. I think this amounts to a bit of exceptionalism, as Rome and Greece are only two civs in a comparably larger roster which will presumably grow. Greece and Rome shared architectural and unit styles in VI, so it is logical that they hit on a kind of middle-ground for Greco-Roman/Mediterranean aesthetic. I mean, that lion-helm doesn't look very Roman either.

The Commander with the lion helmet is the Mediterranean version, which probably only the Greeks will have at launch. The Roman Commander looks like an authentic Roman General. The Mediterranean Commander looking Greek for other Mediterranean cultures doesn't bother me, but I would like the Carthaginian/Phoenician to look more accurate. Nonetheless, the Greek units shouldn't look Roman. Greece and Rome sharing some units (Galley, Trireme, Archer, Ballista) is acceptable and looks accurate from what I have seen, but the Warrior, the Spearman, the Phalanx and the Horseman shouldn't look alike between these two civilizations. There can be some beautiful variation based on archeological finds.

Carthaginian General

Carthaginians fighting Romans

The devs said they were trying to go for a general sense of authenticity to the region, not to custom-tailor units to each individual civ. Maybe that could happen in future expansions (like how civs got their own unique palaces down the line in VI), but I think this Greco-Roman hybrid is totally reasonable for a launch state when they needed to build out what looks like roughly nine regions, plus likely Polynesian units for a tenth region. So about ten cultural types per era, which is a lot of design and detail.

That is understandable, and I really hope to see more unit variation in the future for new and existing civilizations.

2. Are you referring to the purple and yellow screenshot you posted? I am not sure where that came from, but the color palette to me says those are probably Rome units because they have Augusts' colors.

They indeed are Roman, but since the Greek Phalanx looks Roman, I suspect the Greek Warrior will look Roman too, and not like an Aegean/Minoan/Mycenaean warrior.

 

[AntSou]

They are already aiming for greater cultural diversity than what we had in Civ VI.

I'm not concerned by this. It looks like the sort of thing modders will have fun improving on.

The lack of symbol in the banner might just be because they haven't designed it yet.