I can see your logic with the knight training thing, Khit. I really depends on whether or not Dragoons are required to train as knights before training as Dragoons. Since there seem to be some very distinct divisions as far as the Ishgardian military goes I tend to think they are not. We know from old 1.0 lore that they have a standing army that was second only to Ala Mhigo's, which is further divided into more specialized units, Temple Knights and Dragoons. We also have to throw in the knights that are attached to the various noble houses. I tend to think that while the Dragoons are specialized, they are snatched up after basic military training in the standing army, which would probably not take that long. They take potential Dragoons from the best performers in Basic taining, and train them specifically to be Dragoons. Those not selected, or who wash out of the Dragoon training move on to become knights for their houses, or the Temple Knights.Â
I mostly get this impression from the fact that we see teenager Dragoon recruits and that they it is specifically mentioned they are Dragoon recruits. It points toward branched training beyond the basic. While knights of old did have a long period of training, they were not just learning the arts of warfare. Administration of lands, how to behave at court, the specifics of how their place under their Lord/specific knightly order, law, and other specialized training was part of the package. Knights were a professional soldier class. Dragoons seem to be the same thing, just more specific to Ishgard's needs in the Dragonsong War. Where I am coming from is that Knight and Dragoon are effectively equivalent, just with different tasks.
But as you say, we do not know for certain yet. Yar. ^ ^
I mostly get this impression from the fact that we see teenager Dragoon recruits and that they it is specifically mentioned they are Dragoon recruits. It points toward branched training beyond the basic. While knights of old did have a long period of training, they were not just learning the arts of warfare. Administration of lands, how to behave at court, the specifics of how their place under their Lord/specific knightly order, law, and other specialized training was part of the package. Knights were a professional soldier class. Dragoons seem to be the same thing, just more specific to Ishgard's needs in the Dragonsong War. Where I am coming from is that Knight and Dragoon are effectively equivalent, just with different tasks.
But as you say, we do not know for certain yet. Yar. ^ ^
