Medieval Arabs?

[Parrot]

I recently picked up some Gripping Beast arab spearmen and archers and also a box of light cavalry.  What I am curious about now is the difference between Arab groups, specifically Saracens in the middle east and Moors in Spain.  Would there have been a large stylistic difference between the two or would they look similar?

[MamlukRaider]

Hello fellow LAFer the gripping beast Arab spearmen boxset gives you a good base for any Islamic force from al Umayyad- al ayyubid sultanate. You could use the spearmen as Syrian levies, Nubians, berber/moorish militia and generic muslim infantry. The archers can be Nubian as well as Moor/berber etc but also if you buy say some CONQUEST Norman's you can mix them up for Andalusians (spaniards in African service).
Hope this helps I will answer more if you need me.

Good luck inshallah habibti
Omar

[Codsticker]

I think it depends on what period you are interested in. From what I understand, as time progressed fashion/styles became more distinct due to different influences. For example, in the east, early on, Persian styles influenced the Muslim Arab, then the Turks. Whereas in Spain western Europeans had influence, then the North Africans and as Muslim power decreased in the Iberian peninsula the Caliphate became more conservative. So... if you were building an 11th-12th army from Granada you would probably stay away from those light cavalry torsos and heads with distinctive Turkish dress and be better off with Conquest Norman Knights with heads swaps or a little conversion; however, later on, Turkish cavalry started appearing as mercenaries in Spain. The infantry with face veil (tagelmust?) look distinctly North African to me but would appear anywhere Jihad takes them- whether it is the Iberian peninsula or Persia.