Editing Estalia (section)

==On The Tabletop==
Whilst [[Tilea]] sort of kinda got a tabletop presence with the [[Dogs of War]], Estalia is similar to [[Cathay]] or [[Ind]] in that it never had an official army book ([[Nippon]] and [[Araby]] at least had fully fledged armies in 2e and 3e). [[Games Workshop]] was content to leave Estalia blank. Cue the [[Warhammer Army Project]], which took it upon itself to correct this void, even creating an entire roster of special characters for a nation that had never been detailed enough to have one before.

But that's not really telling you anything useful, so let's try and break things down a bit, shall we?

Similarly to [[The Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|the Empire]] - and, since this is another European-based pseudo-historical [[human] faction, expect a lot of comparisons between the two here - the ultimate leaders of the Estalian forces are drawn from the vast and sprawling ranks of the aristocracy; as Estalia is basically the Border Princes with a coherent greater national identity, there are, in effect, hundreds of "kings" in Estalia, though how potent those "kings" are varies from place to place. The Hero-tier leader is called a '''Captain''', answering to a Lord-tier '''Grand Commander'''.

The core of the Estalian army invites more comparisons to the Empire, consisting as it does primarily of regular human men equipped with specific weapons... well, that's kind of inescapable when you're doing a [[Low Fantasy]] human force. All are united, however, in their willingness to face the [[Skaven]] and the [[Undead]] with only strength of arms and a big set of brass balls.
'''Pikemen''', '''Crossbowmen''' and '''Handgunners''' are fairly self-explanatory, and little different to their Imperial counterparts to the north. But then we start getting into the realm of the semi-exotic.
* '''Rodeleros''' are the Estalian equivalent of Imperial Swordsman, specialized in the use of sword and buckler.
* '''Caballeros''' are the landless [[knight]]s who swarm through the fractured, feudal landscape and make up the backbone of the Estalian cavalry forces.
* '''Genitors''' are their javelin-armed light cavalry counterparts, though even Caballeros prefer speed and mobility to the heavy armor of the Empire and [[Bretonnia]].
* '''Almogavars''' are fearsome infantry skirmishars drawn from the ranks of the near-tribal hunter-gatherers from the monster-haunted Miramar Hills.
* '''Marines''' are the specialist troopers that support Estalia's considerable fleet.
* The '''Royal Guard''' are the elite arquebus-wielding warriors that protect the many petty kings of Estalia.
* '''Conquistadors''' are Estalian-born mercenaries, legendary for their love of adventure and loot.
* '''Grenadiers''' carry pistols and primitive frag grenades, as the name suggests.
* '''Mountain Bandits''' are a plague throughout Estalia, whose feudal society echoes some of the darker elements of [[Bretonnia]], but they may be pressed into serve as scouts.
* Estalia has two '''Knightly Orders''' of its own; the ''Knights of the Righteous Spear'' are the largest and most widely spread, whilst the ''Knights of the BLazing Sun'' are devotees of [[Myrmidia]].
* '''Diestros''' are elite sword-wielding master duelists, capable of using the sword to incredible effect.

The Cult of [[Myrmidia]] is even more prevalent in Estalia than the Cult of [[Sigmar]] is in [[The Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|the Empire]]; Sigmar is merely "First Amongst Equals", with Imperials freely worshipping an older pantheon, whilst Myrmidia's cult is the one true and accepted religion of Estalia, and likewise has its presence amongst the armies.
* The '''Myrmidian [[Inquisition]]''' is effectively Estalia's euivalent of the Empire's Witch Hunters, striving to root out the secret forces of [[Chaos]] and the [[Undead]] - true, the former is much rarer in Estalia, but as far as the inquisitors are concerned, that makes their job all the more important! That said, the Inquisition also serves as a tool for political control by Estalia's legion of petty kings. On the tabletop, they function much like [[Warrior-Priest of Sigmar|Warrior-Priests]] of [[Sigmar]], except they must purchase their holy miracles rather than having a small but defined miracle list.
* The '''Priestesses of Myrmidia''', on the other hand, are basically female Warrior-Priests who focus more on holy magic than on cracking skulls. They have access to a trinity of standarized holy prayers, can dispel enemy magic, and may even go to battle riding a holy Altar of Myrmidia.
* The '''Sisters of Fury''' are Myrmidian nuns; in peace time, they administer to the sick, poor and needy, similarly to the Sisters of [[Shallya]]... but in times of war, they don armor and take up spears, following their goddess in her militant aspect.
* The '''Black Watchmen''' are the elite warrior-servants of the Inquisition, serving as its military arm and characterized by their blackened full plate and iconic halberds.

Standing apart from all the rest, there are the '''Battle Magi''', the [[wizard]]s of Estalia. Whilst many travel to [[Altdorf]] to study at the Colleges of Magic, others study in local schools. However, use of battle magic isn't as accepted as in the Empire; the Inquisition keeps a close watch on their resident mages (to the point it's a game rule you must have at least as many Inquisitors as you do Battle Magi), whilst Estalians utterly forbid the use of [[Ulgu|Shadow Magic]], [[Shyish|Death Magic]] or [[Ghur|Beasts Magic]] - presumably, Estalian [[wizard]]s attuned to these three Winds go to the Empire for their training and never come home.

Whilst Estalia hasn't embraced gunpowder and technology to the same level of [[The Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|the Empire]], they have adopted the use of two lighter forms of cannon; the '''Culverin''' and the '''Mountain Gun'''.

Lastly, there are the exotic animals that may be fielded by an Estalian army. These range from the humble war dog, outfitted with armor to protect it in battle, to the use of [[pegasus]] and [[griffon]] as exotic steeds for the Estalian commanders, and finally the so-called "Fire Bulls", which are ordinary bulls attached to logs that are soaked in tar before being set alight, resulting in a terror-fueled stampede fit to squash enemies flat.