Weapons

Libyans were originally shown as infantry only, and armed with throwing sticks, javelins and/or simple hunting bows. By the time of the battles around 1200 the Libyans had access to both chariots and long copper swords, and the Egyptians recorded capturing some 603 bows and 2310 quivers (While these weren't on the same order of destructive power as the massed Egyptian bow units, they would still have been a significant military threat.

What Did They Look Like?

Bronze Age Libyans have to have some of the most dramatic costumes going. Nearly naked under an animal-skin or leopard-spotted cape, which was usually worn over the left shoulder, with an arm-hole to keep that arm free for a weapon as well. They didn't seem to use shields much, in favor of that cape. Hair was often plaited into strands, and seemed occasionally to have been daubed with mud. They are often shown with two (or more) Ostrich-like feathers acting like Rabbit ears (Funken shows these as dyed bright red). Hair color ranges from a red-brown through to a black (note 9). The fact that we are dealing with many small tribes means that we can let our painting imaginations run free, with common kinds of tattoos for each tribal group. This is a great place to use figures from various manufacturers to get some variety in the groups. Some web references are in (note 10).

While we have reasonable representations of some of the Libyan tribes, others are still a mystery, waiting for future excavations to rediscover their diversity.

Some Wargaming Thoughts

Most army lists show the Libyans as Light Infantry, and/or Light Heavy Infantry, with lots of skirmish bow (about 3 or 4 times the numbers of skirmish bow that the equivalent Egyptians would have, excluding the Egyptian line Heavy Infantry with bow). The Early Libyans are a good match against lighter Early Egyptian armies, where there is more emphasis on lighter Egyptian troops. If the Egyptian army has too many Heavy Infantry, they tend to get bogged down, and the faster Libyan Light Infantry units just swarm around the sides and avoid facing the Heavy Infantry line. Egyptians have to make good use of a smaller main line to create a place where their Chariots and Light troops can retire and rally, or recover from disorder. These battles are some of the best skirmish games that the Bronze Age armies have to offer.

Libyans are the perfect small-action complement to a New Kingdom (11th to 14th dynasty) army, which was mainly foot. Scenarios could include cattle raids, reprisals, ambush attacks, and intercepting Libyan raiders on the way back to their home ranges. One enterprising tournament on the web had Libyan civil wars! Just make sure as the Libyan commander that you have lots of terrain to hide behind!