Archer militia armed with bows, hand axes and a small buckler. According to the standard military manuals of the time, each provincial ruler in the Empire had to keep a certain number of militia armed as archers to defend the province's cities. As they are merely peasants, they are not armed with more powerful composite bows, so the damage they can inflict is limited compared to other archers in the Empire's armies. In order to improve their survivability on the battlefield, some local rulers provide padded armour to their Toxotae, in addition to the standard bow, hand axe and small buckler.