This may go into the realm of "flights of fancy" but I have been considering an optional rule giving footsoldiers for each realm a special ability to add a bit of flavor to the most common piece in the game.
Karkoth Footsoldier - Death Strike: Whenever a Karkoth Footsoldier is destroyed in battle that Karkoth Footsoldier immediately rolls one d6 attack dice.
Vailin Footsoldier - Hail of Arrows: Vailin Footsoldiers have First Strike during the first round of each battle.
Iron Circle Footsoldier - Brutal Attack: When attacking, each Iron Circle Footsoldier can reroll one missed attack roll during the first round of the battle.
Nerath Footsoldier - Stalwart Defense: When defending, each Nerath Footsoldier can reroll one missed attack roll during the first round of the battle.
Each of these abilities give the footsoldier an opportunity to roll a single attack dice in a certain situation. I believe that given the less than 17% hit rate of footsoldiers these abilities do not make them significantly more powerful while providing some flavor for each individual realm. You won’t often see the special ability impact the game but when you do you will appreciate the undying persistence of the Skelton Warriors, the deadly bows of the Elf Archers, the devastating charge of the Hobgoblin Soldiers, or the brave heart of the Human Infantry.
I see the downside of this optional rule to be that it could affect balance by marginally increasing the effectiveness of footsoldiers and that it creates complexity by adding four special abilities that need to be remembered.
