Roman War Machine Scorpio COBI 20079 - Imperium Romanum

 Did you know:

• The war machine Scorpio (Scorpion) was first described by the imperial Roman architect Vitruvius in the 1st century BC.
• Preserved records mention three types of arrow-launching devices: Ballista, Polybolos, and Oxybeles. The Ballista is the machine represented by this construction set.
• Even Ballista-type launchers were not all the same. They shared the firing method using a tensioned rod called Stillus, but the frame and base varied by manufacturer.
• Roman legions used machines of simple construction, as well as painted and copper-decorated heavy equipment referred to as Catapulta.
• Scorpio even existed in a naval version adapted for galleys and a version for wheeled transport.
• The tension ropes were made from a combination of horsehair and animal sinew.
• Scorpio was a widely used weapon. Julius Caesar mentioned its use in 52 BC as a significant tool during the siege of Avaricum.
• The Roman army had fifty-five launchers per legion, one for each century. Ten men in each century were trained to operate them.
• Launchers were very expensive for the Roman Empire. Accordingly, the soldiers operating them enjoyed certain premium benefits.
  
  
  

Technical specifications:

• dimensions: length 2.2 m, width 1.5 m, height 1.8 m
• machine weight 100 - 150 kg
• arrow length 80 cm
• arrow weight 0.1 - 1 kg depending on machine size
• effective range in direct fire 100 m, ballistic range 400 m
  
• drive: torsion horsehair ropes
• tension force up to 8,900 N (907.5 kg)
• projectile energy 200 - 4005 J depending on machine size
• projectile speed up to 400 m/s (typically 245 m/s)
• crew: 1–2 men

Flavius Vergetlius Renatus writes in his book Outline of Military Art:

 “If properly adjusted according to the rules of mechanics and operated by experienced personnel, it pierces everything it hits.”