Heavy Scorpion

Where the light scorpion was a precision instrument of field battle, the heavy scorpion of the Early Medieval period is a formidable siege and defensive artillery piece — a ballista reinforced with iron fittings at its key stress points, stretched with heavier torsion bundles, and mounted on a frame capable of handling the increased forces without tearing apart. The larger arm and greater draw length launched bolts of exceptional mass at velocities that penetrated layered linen or chain armor and still carried enough energy to wound the man behind it. Byzantine and early medieval siege engineers used such machines to defend walls and suppress attackers attempting to scale or undermine fortifications. A well-placed heavy scorpion could deny an entire gate approach to infantry. In game it delivers powerful armor-piercing ranged damage ideal for sieges and defensive positions, but its weight slows relocation and it is helpless in close combat.