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::::::::: GENERAL RESEARCH :::::::::
Initial research quickly showed me that the armor at the time (late 1100's) rarely consisted of anything more than mail, and even that was only for warriors of a certain pedigree. Furthermore, because of armor technology of the time, few soldiers ventured into battle without a shield. As a result, the bulk of the army consisted of spear infantry which acted as fodder and as the anvil at the same time.
I did however encounter paintings depicting battles with two handed polearms and the voulge was a common enough weapon even among the nobility to be worth including. I custom made a long voulge for this purpose which is somewhere between a voulge and halbard even though the latter isn't a thing until later in the 14th century.
Next, the French were famed for their Cavalry. As such, they have access to light cavalry starting at T3, all the way to heavy shock cavalry at T5.
In addition I only tweaked their noble tree to reflect the armament of a mounted knight at the timme. The 12th century saw the rise of Religious Knight Orders and so the names of the elite Vlandian troops reflect the ranks of such orders for flavor (without the religious aspect). Sadly, no great helms in the game for some Crusader Vibes but one can only hope.
Finally, the French relied on Crossbowman until their crushing defeat at Crecy in 1346 and most notably at Azincourt in 1415 before subsequently returning to the Crossbow after experimenting with the longbow. As such, I will not add longbows to this tree. However, Vlandia will have access to Crossbowmen starting at T2 all the way to T5 with the Vlandian Rhodok, a nod to Warband.
::::::::: GENERAL PHILOSOPHY :::::::::
First, most infantry units in this tree have 6 equipment sets to reflect the diversity of feudal armies at the time.
After doing research, I tweaked the units to fit the bill needed by Vlandia who's main neighbors are Battania and the Empire.
Battania relies heavily on skirmish troops and archers and is primarily a raiding nation. As a result, it made no sense for most of Vlandia's armies to walk around without a shield when defending their homeland from encroaching Battanian raiders.
On the other hand, the Empire has a very diverse roster given their size but the general theme remains their thick armor. It made sense for Vlandians to have some troops dedicated to counter this heavy armor with powerful weapons such as the billhook and my custom made Halbard meant to counter both infantry and heavy cavalry.
I had to give the Vlandians some nice crossbowmen with the obligatory wink to Warband with the T5 Vlandian Rhodok. It fit the theme of both the mod and of M&B, so no questions there.
Finally, Vlandia is after all a cavalry focused nation with its large plains and grasslands, ideal for the mobility of cavalry and the devastating effect of the couched lance. Starting at T3, you will have access to the Vlandian Hunter all the way to the fearsome Vlandian Gendarme at T5. Add to that that only slightly tweaked noble tree and you have yourself Vlandian armies with a heavy does of mounted troops. The hammer to match the previously mentioned anvil.
::::::::: TROOP TREE OVERVIEW :::::::::
Spear Infantry Line:
The backbone of the Vlandian Army, meant to act as the anvil. They focus on spear and shield and are meant to buy time for the cavalry to bring the "coup de grace".
Heavy Voulge Infantry Line:
Stick them with the pointy end. If that doesn't work, swing it like an axe. Need I say more? in all seriousness, if you can keep these guys in reserve and away from missile fire, you should enjoy unleashing them on the enemy. Very effective in formation and very difficult to defeat head on.
Cavalry Line:
Start light with the hunter until you reach the Gendarme at T5. This tree and added cavalry tier will give Vlandia even more access to horsemen than in Vanilla but beware. Lightly armored horses are easy prey to missile fire and spear infantry if you aren't careful. However, if managed right, few armies will survive a rear charge from the combined cavalry of Vlandia.
Crossbow Line:
Crossbows hit hard and Vlandia adept of these deadly toys. The Vlandian Rhodok is no slouch in melee too so don't underestimate the ranged ability of the Vlandians
Noble Troops:
Big Heavy Horsemen bringing death at the end of a long pointy stick. Need I say more? Oh and banners. Banner Bearers actually have banners now. You're welcome.
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