Siege Workshop

Stone Thrower
	Cost - 180W 80G First Available - Bronze Age Speed - Slow Fire rate - Once/5 seconds Special - Small damage area; minimum range 2
The stone thrower was an artillery weapon based on the principle of the lever. The stone thrower fired a heavy missile, usually a large stone or stone wrapped in burning oily rags. The missile was placed in a large basket at the end of the throwing arm. Tension was built up on the other end of the arm while the throwing basket was held taut against a fulcrum. When released, the throwing arm swung up and forward until checked, throwing the missile. Stone throwers were used primarily against fixed positions, especially cities and fortifications. Stones were used to knock down walls to open the way for an infantry assault. Fireballs set wood rubble on fire, burning out the defenders. Small stone throwers were also used on the battlefield to disrupt massed enemy formations, although the enemy rarely offered easy targets within range. The stone thrower was invented around 400 BC by Greeks seeking to capture an island fortress off the coast of Sicily.

Catapult
	Cost - 180W 80G First Available - Iron Age Speed - Slow Fire rate - Once/5 seconds Special - Medium damage area; minimum range 2
The stone thrower continued to evolve over time following its invention around 400 BC. Improvements increased the size or range of the missile and the mobility of the catapult (how fast the weapon could be assembled).

Heavy Catapult
	Cost - 180W 80G First Available - Iron Age Speed - Slow Fire rate - Once/5 seconds Special - Large damage area; minimum range 2
The heavy catapult was a powerful siege weapon, representing the greatest advance in siege weaponry during ancient times. It was employed against fortifications and on the battlefield. It broke down fortification walls, allowing attackers to break in. On the battlefield, smaller missiles could be fired in a shower against dense formations of soldiers to cause casualties and disrupt morale at long range. Enemy armies that could be softened and shaken before the hand-to-hand clash of infantry were at a decided disadvantage.

Ballista
	Cost - 100W 80G First Available - Iron Age Speed - Slow Fire rate - Once/3 seconds Special - Minimum range 3
The ballista was an early artillery weapon that fired missiles, primarily large bolts or spears. It was used in attacks on cities or fortified positions because it could cause structural damage and casualties from a great distance. When it could be deployed on a battlefield, it was especially useful against dense formations of troops. In this situation, one shot could cause multiple casualties. The ballista was invented in the second half of the first millennium BC, probably by Greek engineers. It functioned like a large crossbow. Tension was built up in the engine by twisting leather, and then released, propelling the missile down a guided trough and into flight.

Helepolis
	Cost - 100W 80G First Available - Iron Age Speed - Slow Fire rate - Once/1.5 seconds Special - Minimum range 3
The Helepolis (Greek for "city killer") was one of the most advanced weapons of antiquity and a remarkable demonstration of ancient engineering ingenuity. It was in fact an automatic siege weapon that fired ballista bolts. The top loading magazine of the helepolis was a horizontal funnel in which were laid bundles of bolts. These were fed by gravity into the chamber of the weapon. A clever gearing mechanism automatically recocked the helepolis and fired. Human operators needed only to keep it loaded and aimed, plus provide power by cranking. The original of the machine was abandoned outside the city of Rhodes when a besieging army withdrew. It has been reconstructed on paper from contemporary sketches and descriptions of that only known example.

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