Catapult

The catapult was the ancient world's first dedicated heavy siege engine — a torsion-powered machine that transformed a walled city from an obstacle into an engineering problem. Greek engineers of the fourth century BC refined the design into weapons capable of hurling stones of ten kilograms or more with destructive force no individual weapon could match. Philip II of Macedon and Alexander deployed catapults as part of combined-arms forces, suppressing defenders on walls while infantry assaulted gates and breaches. Beyond physical damage, the psychological effect on defenders was immense — hours of unrelenting bombardment that could not be answered in kind. In the game the catapult is the first true siege unit, effective against buildings and grouped troops, but slow-moving and vulnerable to cavalry raids.