"Iphikratean peltasts" Topic

Looking for some suitable figures or conversion ideas for 28mm Iphikratean peltasts I can use as part of my Later Achaemenid Persian Army.
Could I use plastic Victrix Athenians and replace the shields with smaller shields and longer spears ?

Cheers

it rather depends on what you think they were.

(sorry, couldnt resists)

If JJ doesnt come along with anything more useful…

No idea about specific figures, but the things I would want to see were boots, peltast shields and long spears.

linen armour maybe (maybe) and variation in the helmets including bare headed – they were basically marines originally, I think, if that helps.

Thanks Keraunos. Sounds like later Thorakitai types might suit… although if there isn't clear evidence of what they looked like I can probably do whatever is to hand..

Cheers

There is a lot of debate about the shape of the shields they carried but they are unlikely to be a thureos as carried by the thorakitai. I should think Keraunos means a wicker peltast shield, possibly crescent shaped.

not thorakatai – there should be no chain mail in sight.

I have always had the impression that Iphikratean Peltasts were one of those imaginary constructs that intellectuals in the Ancient world dreamed of. "Wouldn't it be Kool if…?"
Then, the godfather of Ancients Wargaming (you would recognize his name in an instant…) made up a troop type and gave them bad ass weapons.
REGULAR LMI! Far out, Man! Long thrusting spear AND javelins! Even Kooler.

WRG basically took a troop type that was too poor to afford armor, but were given javelins to throw to make them feel useful. Then, they found things that they could actually BE good at!
WRG then turned them into super mobile shock troops. I really doubt that such troops in that role ever existed.
Note how the weapon factors against HI and MI are basically the same? No need to call them LHI, then.
And, don't get me started on the imaginary LHI…

However, we are wargamers, so we are always scanning sources for those super troops that give us an edge.

I think there was a bit of that in the initial tabletop definitions of what an iphikritean peltast was, especially in the old WRG days.

But they did exist.

Chris Webbers Gods of Battle (mostly on the thracians) has a good bit on them, and Luke Ueda-Sarson's notes are still available here

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Thanks all. In DBMM they are classified as Pike (Fast) so perhaps unarmoured Thracian peltast types with longer spears might do the trick

cheers

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Luke's ideas make a lot of sense… the term 'peltast' often is simply based on small round shields.. so there are 'peltast' javelinmen (who are skirmishers until around 350), 'peltast' spearmen, and even 'peltast' pikemen, so confusion abounds.

The mercenary peltasts that Iphicrates employed at Corinth were not the same type of dude rearmed and employed later as his reformed light hoplite….

The only difference in gear is a rather specific boot, and wearing a spolas, instead of a cuirass… whatever a spolas is… which can be anything from linen armor to a close fitting jerkin depending on the interpretation… and the long swords… so actually it is a figure that can be made from Victrix bits… with some ingenuity.

Hold on there, Victirx are looking to bring out Peltasts and unarmoured Hoplites so…..before you go converting, if you can wait a few months you will have a a great opportunity to buy some….