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I did not find this clarified in the FAQ (through Sept. 2014) so figured I would ask here, as I am almost certain to be missing something obvious.*

Page 10 of The Raven's Shadow indicates Irish Warlords and Hearthguard fighting on foot are armed with Danish axes or javelins. But the 4-point starter army includes only swords and single-handed axes for the Hearthguard. And the Warlord that comes with that army is equipped with sword and shield. Unlike, say, the entry describing the Anglo-Danes, the language does not seem to indicate this armament is optional (e.g., taking a sword/shield in lieu of javelins or Danish axes). Does the starter army violate the rules?

*Example: a model that can be armed with a javelin is also armed with a shield/standard handweapon (as opposed to a model armed with a Danish axe).

I just assumed that "armed with javelins" means that they carry other hand-weapons as well (such as swords and axes). This doesn't violate the rules in any way, since javelins are really only discussed in the shooting phase.

Saga doesn't scream for model-by-model accuracy like a lot of other games. If you look at the Welsh in the core book, you'll see that even though they are primarily armed with javelins like the Irish, the models depicted show a mix of javelins and hand-weapons.

I built my Irish warband mostly using what came with it in the box, but I did buy some javelins for a few of the warriors to better indicate to my opponent that they had them. I went and bought separate models for the Danish-axe armed Hearthguards as well, since visually I wanted my two-handed axemen to look distinct.

Thanks thalcos, I think part of what confused me is that the Warriors that came with the starter army came with spears rather than javelins (as far as I can tell).

 Manchu wrote:
Thanks thalcos, I think part of what confused me is that the Warriors that came with the starter army came with spears rather than javelins (as far as I can tell).

That's more on Gripping Beast than anything else. I run a Pagan Rus list using GB's figures, and all of the "spears" and "javelins" that were included in the package were pike-length. The easiest solution is to just cut the shaft to the appropriate length. Or use something else for the weapons (I've replaced my javelins with broom bristle).

My warriors are armed with the spears they came with just as they came, although in hindsight I wish I had cut them down a bit. I guess they will just be stuck looking extra dramatic, which suits the heroic Irish theme.