Uji Chieftain

Overall strategy
Japan may not be considered the best place to raise horses — a luxury in the early Middle Ages, yet the fracticious nature of Japanese society means that where riders are concerned, there can never be a lack of skill - or courage, for that matter. Most of these men often form the leaders of the many tribes or clans scattered across the Japanese islands, and it is from this pool of people that Uji Chieftains are recruited.

In the field, an Uji Chieftain functions mostly as a ranged medium cavalry unit, capable of attacking both at range and melee. Unlike most other ranged cavalry units which have a minimum range, the Uji chieftain is capable of attacking at range, yet can defend itself in melee if so needed. Of course, the inferiority of his mount, compared to others such as those of the Turks' leaves plenty to be desired, but being capable of attacking at range and melee means that Uji Chieftain can be highly deadly in the right hands utilising their speed and their unique ability to great effect. If that was not enough, Uji Chieftain are consummate warriors with an anti-infantry attack, so anyone who thinks that attacking Uji Chieftain with archers will most likely be committing a grave mistake — this unit is idea for attacking BOTH spearmen AND archers, even in melee.

There is one issue however, and that is the speed of this unit. Even if Uji Chieftain can be powerful and versatile, there are two things they simply don't have. The first is their cost: they are minor nobility after all, and so their pricetag is also elevated to reflect this.In addition, Uji Chieftain, while versatile, aren't the best cavalry units - they are of medium strength, so assault cavalry and Scorpions can work rather well against them. An Uji Chieftain this is meant to work as an infantry support unit and never an assault unit on its own.

History
In pre-Heian Japan, the uji was a form of social organisation which consisted of a single clan or tribe, centred around the worship of an ujigami, or clan spirit. Chinese sources state that they were the primary form of local government, with an uji responsible for matters of taxation or administration within a single domain, with conflicts between the clans moderated by a monarch.