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The Dacians
A LOOk AT ThE LAST GREAT CONqUEST Of ROME By Paul Leach
The Dacians have the dubious honor of serving as one
of the last great conquests of Rome by none other
than Emperor Trajan.
His campaign memoirs are lost to us, but
his famous column gives us a glimpse
of the Dacians as they struggled against
the might of the empire: siege weapons
defend their forts, some warriors use
scythe-bladed weapons, and their capped
leaders would not look out of place in
Persian steles. Greco-Roman writers shed
limited light on this barbarian people
who don’t quite fit the classical barbarian
mold. Who were these Balkan tribes that
doggedly fought against the Romans at
the turn of the 2nd Century?
ORIGINS
The Dacians were an ancient people of
the Balkans region, concentrated in the
northern and western areas of modern
Romania. They, along with their Getae
cousins, descended from the Gáva-
Holihrad culture that emerged around the
Carpathians after 1,000 BC. Celtic tribes
proved a dominant influence upon the
Dacians, especially during their zenith of
the 4th through 2nd Centuries BC, and so
did the Sarmatians that migrated to the
European limits of the eastern Greco-
Roman world. Of course, other ethnic
groups left their marks, including Greek
and Thracian merchants and adventurers.
The Hellenistic kingdom of Pontus,
followed by the Roman Empire, brought
about significant alterations to Dacian
society, at least in regards to how the elite
lived and governed in the two centuries
before the complete demise of the Dacian
kingdom in 106 AD.
The Dacians were long believed to share
deep roots with the Thracians, according
to the earliest classical sources. Some
modern studies wholeheartedly disagree
Above: Dacians rush forward, falxes swinging overhead, to crash into the disciplined ranks of Roman Legionaires.
with this assertion, even disputing that
the Dacians spoke a Thracian dialect.
Iranian elements appear in some place
names and other words, but as the
Dacians left no written records and the
ancient ethnographers lack complete
credibility in this matter, this issue
remains unresolved.
MATERIAL CULTURE
The Dacians lived as agriculturists,
raising animals and growing crops.
Their economy benefited from extracting
mineral wealth such as iron, salt, silver,
and gold. While little gold has been
found in archeological finds, Trajan
reportedly captured an unbelievable
amount of it upon the final conquest of
the Dacian kingdom. Their villages were
little different from other contemporary
European barbarian tribes, mostly
consisting of wood-framed huts. Local
sources manufactured the typical
domestic accessories, such as pottery,
utensils, and tools.

The Tropaeum Traiani is a monument built in 109 in then
Moesia Inferior, to commemorate Roman Emperor Trajan’s
victory over the Dacians, in 101, in the Battle of Tapae. The
monument was erected on the place where legio XXI Rapax
had previously been crushed (92 AD).
The power centers of the Dacian elite
reflected strong relationships with the
great states of their day. Most visibly
this took shape in the form of stonework
citadels and temples, erected in strategic
river valleys and built in Hellenstic
styles. Imported Greek goods and coins
(likely from Black Sea tributary cities)
circulated to these strongholds during
the reign of the 1st Century BC Dacian
king Burebista, and noticeable trade
with Rome began around that time as
well. The last half of the next century
witnessed an increased influx of Roman
coins, tools, and craftsmen, especially
when the Dacians fell solidly within the
orbit of the empire as a client state.
SOCIETy AND RELIGION
Two classes ruled the Dacians: the
Tarabostes and the Capillati (also known
as Pileati and Comati, respectively).
The higher-ranked Tarabostes derived
their name from the headpieces they
wore, presumably both ornate helms and
Phrygian caps. The Capillati name means
‘long hair’. As the ancient sources only
mention the two elite strata, it has been
argued that they may be the only ‘true’
Dacians.
The Tarabostes exercised control from
the wealthy regional/tribal centers and
populated the limited ranks of royalty
and priests. They closely linked temporal
and religious power. The high priests
maintained some measure of independent
authority from (if not over) the nobility,
including kings. They worshipped
Zamolxis, a resurrected earth (or earthly)
deity and believed in the immortal soul.
The religion’s tenets espoused a purified
lifestyle that allegedly proscribed the
consumption of meat and wine. While the
greater Dacian population might not have
been monotheistic adherents of Zamolxis,
documentary and archaeological
evidence suggests his cult enjoyed state
sponsorship and the uppermost classes
set themselves apart spiritually as well as
materially.
The Capillati supervised “those
who work with oxen,” according to
Trajan’s physician, Kriton. Most likely
these lesser Dacian elite were village
chieftains, and possibly professional
warriors.
ThE DACIANS AT WAR
The Dacian arsenal is best known
for the falx, a curved blade set into
a wooden handle. Some were small
enough to be wielded in one hand, but
On the monument there were 54 metopes (two pictured
above) depicting Roman legions fighting against enemies;
48 of these metopes are now preserved in the museum
nearby. The monument was erected as a warning to the
tribes outside this newly conquered province.
the intimidating monsters were large
blades with 3’ handles, akin to some
kind of polearm. The terrible falx could
understandably deliver vicious blows
against even well-armored legionaries.
It has long been believed that Trajan’s
soldiers attempted to better defend
themselves against this weapon by
attaching ad hoc reinforcements to
their helmets and adapting gladiator
‘manicae’ (overlapping metal bands
protecting the length of the arm) for
military use. Recent reinterpretation of
archaeological evidence in other parts of
Europe suggests its use was not limited to
Rome’s last wars with Dacia.
The Dacians also used draco standards,
most likely inspired by their Sarmatian
neighbors. Open-mouthed metal-headed
beasts (such as wolves and dragons)
rested upon wooden poles, with
windsocks attached to their backs. The
Roman army utilized similar devices in
later centuries.
The Dacians defended their forts with
bolt-throwing scorpions, captured or
otherwise, during Trajan’s campaigns
(and possibly earlier). Other Roman
arms and equipment made their way into
Dacian hands as well.

Above: Dacia and some of the surrounding Roman provinces, circa 100 AD.
ThE AGE Of BUREBISTA
The Dacian kingdom reached its height
just prior to the middle of the 1st
Century BC, coinciding with collapse
of Mithradates Eupator’s Pontic realm
and the ascension of its greatest ruler,
Burebista. Positioned at the edge of
Greco-Roman world, the Dacian king
took advantage of the power vacuum
left by the Pontic state and assumed
control of Greek cities on the western
coasts of the Black Sea. Based on the
archeological evidence mentioned
previously, he assumed the role of Asian
Hellenistic royalty - a King of Kings. To
be sure, Burebista aggressively pursued
all that such a title implied, engaging in
diplomatic and martial conquests well
beyond the Dacian heartland during his
reign. His rule stretched as far east as the
Dnieper River in southern Russia, as far
west as Moravia, and - just possibly -
as far north as the Vistula River in
southern Poland.
Burebista’s aggressive policies touched
the Roman world on several occasions.
Through the subject Bastarnae tribe of
the northeast Balkans, he successfully
competed against Roman attempts to grab
Histria, one of the Mithradates’ orphaned
cities, in 61 BC. He also warred against
the Celtic tribes on his northwestern
reaches. Most he conquered, but the Boii
joined the Helvetians in their exodus to
Gaul, which initiated Caesar’s Gallic
Wars. Burebista wielded enough strength
that Pompey sought his friendship during
the Civil Wars and Caesar planned an
expedition against the fractured Dacian
kingdom after Burebista’s death during
an uprising in 45 BC.
DACIA AND ThE EARLy
ROMAN PRINCIPATE
The rebellion that claimed Burebista’s
life broke the core of the Dacian kingdom
into four or five smaller kingdoms and
the farthest reaches of the old kingdom
slipped away. This did not mean that the
Dacians and Romans ended their mutual
Balkan affairs. Octavius sought an
alliance with the Dacian king Cotiso prior
to his assumption of the imperial title,
but declared a more adversarial attitude
towards the Dacians off and on during
his 40-year reign. The Dacians and
Bastarnae suffered defeat at the hands of
Crassus the Younger, one of Augustus’
political rivals, in 29 BC. The Romans
victoriously fought against them again
in the Pannonian War (13-11 BC), and
reportedly settled 50,000 Dacians within
Roman territory after a major campaign
in 11-12 AD.
Above: The Dacians fought hard against the Roman invaders in 101 AD, staving off Trajan and his desire for personal glory.

The Dacians enjoyed mostly peaceful
relations with the empire for the next
70 years, benefiting from an increase in
imported Roman goods. The Sarmatian
Iazyges complicated things for all
parties, warring against and allying
with both the Romans and Dacians at
different times. The Dacian kingdom
retrenched in Transylvania before the
middle of the century, about 40 AD. To
Rome’s relief, they declined to interfere
in the imperial wars of succession that
originated in Nero’s death in the Year of
Four Emperors (69 AD), although they
couldn’t but help themselves to minor
raiding in Moesia.
ThE AGE Of DECEBAL
Decebal was the last great Dacian king.
He came to power at the beginning of
Domitian’s Dacian wars in the mid/late
80s and he fell with his kingdom 20 years
later to Trajan. Roman historian Cassius
Dio lauded Decebal for his diplomatic
and strategic talents. The wily king
managed to keep his power despite long
odds and refused to let Rome humiliate
him in its final triumph.
Emperor Domitian began his war against
King Duras and the Dacians in response
to their spectacular plundering of Moesia
in 86 AD (they even slew the provincial
governor in battle). Cornelius Fuscus,
the Praetorian Guard commander,
successfully led the Roman army in its
restorative operations in the devastated
province, completely repelling the raiding
warbands. In the wake of their reverses in
Moesia, Duras stepped down and Decebal
took the Dacian kingship and prepared
for the inevitable punitive campaign even
as he dispatched embassies to negotiate
peace.
The Romans invaded Dacia nevertheless,
and the armies decisively clashed at
a mountain pass in 87 AD. Decabal’s
showdown with Fuscus ended
disastrously for the Romans. The Dacians
inflicted massive casualties (including
Fuscus) on their enemy, and captured
many prisoners, standards, and weapons.
The following year Tettius Julianus
waged a promising campaign, defeating
the Dacians at Tapae (in Transylvania).
The Romans stopped short of absolutely
conquering Dacia and turned their
attention to the troublesome Sarmatians,
Marcomanni, and Quadi. Rome accepted
Dacia as a client state, re-establishing
peace and a flow of gifts, goods, and
skilled craftsmen.
Despite his submission to Domitian,
Decebal still stood in a position of power.
Friendship with Rome rarely failed
to elevate one’s status, and surely he
benefited from his client status. Cassius
Dio advises us that his onerous pride
and receipt of Roman stipends provoked
Top: The Dacians were one of the few “barbarian tribes” that employed war machines.
Above: As the Second Dacian War drew to a close only small pockets of resistance held out.
Trajan to war at the turn of the century.
Considering the lack of threatening
Dacian activity, the roots of Trajan’s
wars against Decebal sprang more from
his desire for personal glory and than a
necessary defense of the empire.
Trajan waged his first bloody war with
Dacia in 101-102, and the second in
105-106. Despite the harsh terrain and
foes, the massive Roman army (and its
many auxiliaries and mercenaries) fought
until much of Dacia accepted Trajan’s
authority and Decebal surrendered short
of his removal and the destruction of his
capital, Sarmizegethusa. The short-lived
peace witnessed both side preparing for
war again, and the following campaign
saw the destruction of the Dacian capital
and the transformation of the kingdom
into another Roman province. Decebal
committed suicide before his capture
and Trajan displayed his head in the
triumphal march in Rome.
GAMING ROME’S DACIAN WARS
The Dacians offer a lot of interesting
options to players who enjoy games
that match Roman armies against
barbarian opponents. Seriously, how
many of Rome’s tribal enemies normally
employed siege artillery in their own
defense? Any attempts to replicate
Rome’s Dacian campaigns should include
challenging elements such as rough/
wooded terrain and fortifications, plus
contingents of Sarmatian cavalry and
other auxiliaries.

DACIAN ARMy LISTS
A number of rulesets place the Dacians
in some kind of ‘other’ category when it
comes to interpreting how they should
work on the tabletop. Essentially, most
games focus on one or more of these
attributes when it comes to differentiating
them from other contemporary
barbarians: weaponry, discipline, and
adaptability.
The famous Dacian falx sometimes
assumes the role of a significant combat
factor, usually meaning that players field
at least one superior unit of warriors
armed with the weapon. De Bellis
Antiquitatis, Warmaster Ancients, and
Warhammer Ancient Battles both note
the falx in their army lists. The existence
WARhAMMER ANCIENT BATTLES
VARIANT DACIAN LISTS
The Dacians appear as variant Barbarian armies in WAB,
first under Mountain Tribesmen in the core rules, and in the
Barbarian Tribes appendix of Armies of Antiquity. Units of
these light infantry warbands may be armed with falxes,
which the rules equate with two-handed weapons or halberds.
Neither list allows the purchase of siege artillery. With a few
tweaks, players may create other playable versions of the
Dacian army. For example:
• Players do not have to build entire units of falx-armed
warriors, but may combine them with groups of infantry
equipped with mixed weapons. Purchase shields, heavy
of large Dacian formations strictly armed
with falxes remains debatable, leaving
the weapon’s impact on rules mechanics
open to interpretation. The bow features
prominently in many rules lists as well,
usually in the hands of skirmishers.
Warmaster Ancients and Warhammer
Ancient Battles (WAB) both allow
sizeable bodies of archers. Dacian army
lists lack siege artillery in most game
systems, with the notable exception of
Warmaster Ancients. Consider amending
the unit rosters for scenarios in which
the Dacians defend their homeland, and
especially if they garrison fortifications.
The most commonly addressed
characteristic regards the Dacians’
compatibility with the given game
system’s warband rules, which typically
give massed barbarian infantry an
advantageous hard-charging shock value
sometimes paired with tendencies toward
compulsive moves and attacks. More
often than not, the Dacians play the same
as other barbarians in this respect for
most miniature wargames. Some rulesets
do not require the Dacians to make
uncontrolled charges, differentiating them
from other warband types.
The Dacians fought well against the
Roman armies that invaded their
mountainous kingdom despite their
eventual capitulation. Some rules handle
them no differently from any other
barbarian warband in rough ground and
woods, while others treat them as light
infantry types well-suited to such
limiting ground.
Above: The Dacians were very familiar with fighting in rough, forested terrain, the kind of terrain that broke up Roman formations.
throwing spears, and javelins (+2 points per model).
Note that no actual heavy throwing spears enter play,
but their rules give the Dacians that extra punch.
• Players may use up to 25% of the Dacian army points to
purchase artillery, such as bolt throwers and catapults,
in a siege scenario. This is WAB canon, per
Siege & Conquest (p. 22).
• Finally, players may use the Early Slavs list from the
supplement Byzantium: Beyond the Golden Gate as a
viable substitute. The Leadership values seem a bit low for
the Dacians’ reputation, but the cavalry-to-infantry ratios,
equipment options, and the Balkan Ruse special rule do much
to commend its use.

COLLECTING A DACIAN ARMy
Gamers and modelers do not need too
look very hard to find miniature Dacians
in a healthy range of scales, molded in
metal and plastic (both soft and hard).
foundry, Old Glory, and Warlord
Games all market Dacian figures in
25mm/28mm. foundry and Warlord
Games also include actual Dacian
artillerists in their ranges, negating the
need to supply stand-in or converted
figures. Old Glory and Essex produce
Dacian figures in 15mm. Magister
Militum, Old Glory, and Pendraken
mold them in 10mm, and Baccus 6mm
has a Dacian range. haT Industries
manufacture soft plastic 1/72 scale
Dacian figures. Collectors may obtain
Sarmatian allies and foes as easily as they
can purchase Dacian miniatures.
Ancient Celt figures make great
additions for a Dacian army. Their
tribes not only existed at the edge of
the Dacian kingdom, but within it as
well. Many tribal German miniatures
pass can for rank and file Dacians so
long as one avoids things that seem out
of place (Suebian knots and fur jackets
especially). A few Sarmatian infantry
won’t spoil the look, either (Old Glory
make them in 25mm/28mm scale). A
good mix of appropriate miniatures
stands to turn any Dacian army into a
horde of barbarians that really sticks out
on the table.
CONVERSIONS
Hard plastic miniatures brim with
potential for easily creating awesome
25mm/28mm Dacian characters equipped
with Roman armor, shields, and weapons.
PRIMARy SOURCES
Cassius Dio (trans. Earnest Cary), Roman History (books
67 & 68), Loeb Classical Library Harvard University Press,
1914-1927
Online public domain work: http://penelope.uchicago.edu/
Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Cassius_Dio/home.html
MODERN REfERENCES
Gábor Vékony, Dacians-Romans-Romanians, Matthias
Corvinus Publishing, Toronto-Buffalo, 2000 (Originally
published by Akadémiai Kiadó/Budapest, 1989)
Online English translation: http://www.hungarian-history.hu/
lib/chk/index.htm
This book critically sifts through ancient sources and
modern studies of the Dacians, and presents some interesting
thoughts on Berobista’s kingdom and its relation to the
great Mithradates Eupator’s Pontic realm. It helps readers
understand why the Dacian kingdom was much more than an
exotic tribal confederation.
Kimberly Kagan, Redefining Roman Grand Strategy, The
Journal of Military History, Vol. 70, No. 2 (Apr., 2006), pp.
It could not be any easier to plunder
bits and pieces (including a helmeted
head or two) for cherished leaders and
champions. With a little work, one may
draft Roman miniatures into their Dacian
army. A suitably dynamic Roman officer
figure only needs a piece of barbarian
equipment to turn him into a chieftain or
king: a Dacian head, possibly wearing a
native cap or helmet; a falx or longsword;
or a Dacian oval shield. Roman arms
could make their way into Dacian
hands through gifts, battle trophies, and
deserters. Warlord Games manufactures
hard plastic Dacians, Celts, Early
Imperial legionaries (some of the Veteran
figures have manicae) and auxiliaries.
Wargames factory offer Caesarian
legionaries, Early Imperial auxiliary
cavalry, and Celts.
These are some of Magister Militum’s 10mm Dacian
range. Even at this small scale, the characteristic
falx and soft caps are clearly evident.
In addition to their hard plastic Dacian Warband, Warlord Games also
produces these great, metal Celtic Archers, perfect to use as Dacian allies.
333-362, Society for Military History.
Available online through JSTOR: http://www.jstor.org
This article reviews and measures numerous military policies
and actions of the Roman emperor, army, and state from
a high-level perspective. It recommends that readers view
Trajan’s campaigns against Dacia (as well as Mesopotamia)
as wars of conquest and personal/imperial glory, as opposed
to anything like a proactive defense against aggression or
improved (easily guarded) boundaries.
The Deva Museum of Dacian and Roman Civilization:
http://museum.worldwidesam.net/index.html
This interesting Romanian museum has a lot of online content
for students of the period and wargamers. Of special interest
is the virtual photographic and topographical map tour of
Dacian fortresses: http://museum.worldwidesam.net/en/
sarmi/contents.htm