I still say the talent Born in the Saddle is inappropriate for an infantryman like a Centurion. I don't have an issue with them getting the Ride skill (although to my mind other skills like Intimidate or Empathy (read troop's body language) would make more sense. Just my opinion mind you, but it fits what we know about them.

Another thing to remember: A Coryani Legionnaire is NOT a Roman Legionnaire. In Rome, a Legion was a specifically heavy infantry unit. In Coryan (and possibly the First Imperium before it), it is simply a military formation title, like a Regiment. We know there are Legions which focus on cavalry, on magic, and on scouting, which means that a Coryani Centurion is just as likely to be "Born in the Saddle" as being trained in a shield wall.

If that's the case then the Former Legionnaire background needs to be revisited, because it perpetuates the idea that a legionnaire is a heavy infantryman. All you have to do is look at the skills, talents and equipment provided to see that. If as you say the legions had more variety then we should have more options available to us. Think about it, what does the equipment provided match? Pretty much a classic Roman Legionnaire. To be clear I am not taking issue with anyone's take on this, just saying the game mechanics don't match up in my opinion.

Mike, there are now several Backgrounds that count as Former Legionnaire:

1. Former Legionnaire (A:RPG)
2. Equestrian (CoH)
3. Former Scout (CoH)
4. Former Tribune (CoH - clarified on boards and in errata I believe)

Could a Centurion function without a horse? Absolutely. Centurions as officers are apparently trained to be skilled horsemen. Despite the title of the Talent there's no flavor text. It grants a +1 to all Ride and Beast Lore skills to ride, care for or train a mount. You could just as easily call the Talent "Trained Horseman" and it would be fitting.

You're trying to match game mechanics against a Roman Centurion rather than a Coryani Centurion. As long as you insist that they have to operate the same way, I expect you'll have this conflict in expectations.

Even if the powers that be agree with you, I wouldn't expect to see a change in talents short of a second edition. There are no game balance issues impacting the selection of skills and talents that would require errata.

With a sweep of his hat,

Paul

No problem Paul, I can live with what's written. I just think it would be nice to see a few changes based on my previous message. But I don't expect it short of a 2nd edition as you say. It's not that broken so there is no need to fix it. But I still think there could have been a better talent offered than Born In the Saddle. But we can move on to other topics at this point.