Heavy infantry

Interpretation of Heavies by slaine69

Heavy infantry referred to heavily armed and armoured ground troops, as opposed to relatively lightly-armoured medium or light infantry. In the Malazan Army, they were referred to as "heavies" and were counted upon to hold the line during battles.

They wore scale armours, chain vambraces, gauntlets, and visored helmets with cheek guards and lobster tails. They were armed with kite shields, weighted long swords, and stabbing spears strapped to their backs. Dirks and 'pigstickers' were sheathed at their belts.

The heavy infantry of Onearm's Host had slightly different equipment loads as they threw their long-headed, barbed spears at enemies during a charge and used thrusting swords, instead, for melee combat.

Heavies were trained to form a line of locked shields in the face of an enemy. If an attack attempted to charge the line, heavies responded with a perfectly timed answering push with their shields and lashing swings of their swords. Any gaps in the line could prove fatal.

Heavies had a reputation for not thinking "normally". Tough and stubborn, they were thought by some to be not quite human and more like something between a flesh-and-blood Imass and a Barghast.

Selected heavies

• Sergeant Mosel
• Sergeant Sobelone
• Sergeant Tugg
• Bellig Harn
• Bowl
• Corabb Bhilan Thenu'alas
• Drawfirst
• Flashwit
• Hanno
• Lookback
• Mayfly
• Nefarias Bredd
• Ramp
• Reliko
• Saltlick
• Scant
• Shoaly
• Shortnose
• Uru Hela
• Vastly Blank

Notable heavy infantry units

• High Fist Dujek Onearm's bodyguards - a group of elite Untan heavy infantry who protected Dujek with their lives.
• Iron Legion - an elite heavy infantry regiment that took part in Emperor Kellanved's invasion of Unta.

Trivia

• Steven Erikson says "the usage of 'slopebrow' among the [Malazan] soldiers refers to Heavy Infantry. It may initially come across as insulting or dismissive, implying that the Heavies are thick, but that's just a cover adopted by the Heavies themselves that everyone else is happy to play along with. They're a droll bunch, these Malazan soldiers."

Notes and references

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