Greetings Europa Barbarorum fans!
The last couple of weeks have been full of hard labor for the EB team. Unfortunately, we were not able to show you a preview last week. We weren't going to have one this week either, but we changed our minds due to the team's hard work. This week we really have to thank Aymar de Bois Mauri, he has been working non-stop and if we can show this to you today it is very much because of him. He wasn't the only one involved with the making of the Getic units, thanks must also be directed to Spartan Warrior, alin, The Samnite, ThePandaCenturion, webbird and sergiu. A very collaborative work, if you ask me.
The faction icon is the work of Dux Corvanus, and has received a lot of attention and many remakes.
We sure miss all the work that was done on this faction by Nowake. The current Getai faction leader, Urnamma has been working hard lately, along with Cronos Impera, sergiu, Sarcasm and Teleklos Archelaou to bring this faction up to speed. The faction unique buildings were developed by TA and sergiu, and the traits are a gift from the Traiters.
I need to announce, sadly for some of you, that this will be our final faction preview. In fact, it may be the last preview post we make prior to asking for your help in testing and fixing our beta version. While we have made good progress in solving the issues that have plagued us, we are not quite ready to have everyone testing our mod. Things are looking brighter than ever, however.
So without further ado, here is what you've been waiting for:
This week the Europa Barbarorum team is proud to present...
Ion-a-tarabostes, we are your people. Yet we are divided.
The Marisus flows through our country into the Great Donaris, the river of the Argonauts. The language of the Daci is the same as that of the Getai. Among the Hellenes, however, we are better known because the migrations we make are continuous, and because we are intermingled with the Thraikes and Mysoi (Mysians). Also, the tribe of the Triballoi, likewise our brothers, have admitted migrations into this country, because the neighbouring peoples force them to emigrate into the countries of those who are weaker; that is, the Skythai, Bastarnai and Sauromatai on the far side of the river often raid our settlements. They will be tamed--by the wolf we swear. The king of Epeiros plots from the Haimos to humiliate our ancestors. He is dangerous from the length of his sarissa spears. The gorges shall not fall and nor shall we. Skythia borders our land as far as the source of the river Ister and the expanse of the Morsian Swamp. Their lands stretch as far as the eye can see. Their warriors fight valiantly on horseback, fleeing like the wind when threatened. Will their women be a match for the manliest of Thraikos? They should be struck with Gebeleizis's thunder while they fight their cousins, the Sauromatai. In Pannonia, where the sun sets, lie the Boioi and Tauriskoi. Should these new tribes look for war and raid our sanctuaries they will die from the scythed blades of Heros. We and our wild Skythian kin allowed the Hellenes to build towns such as Olbia and Chersonesos, so we might profit from their trade. They know to fear us, even as they call us "barbaroi." Can these arrogant "polis dwellers" teach us secrets of the Pontus Euxeinos and build a fleet of our own? We think not.
Their world ends at the mouth of the Donaris, and from there their end will come, shall their strategos defy us. We are immortal, as Zalmoxis promised. He is our prophet and your master. Should your men fall ill our healers will heal them for you. Should you lack wealth, the mountains will flow with gold from our mines. They are the key to your independence. Protect them as the "civilized men" try to steal them.
Fight them in the Desert of the Getai. There Dareios the son of Hystaspes was crushed by a handful of Thraikes and Skythai. He turned back. Later Lysimachos, a Thraikian lapdog of Megas Alexandros, in his expedition against our late King Dromichaites, was captured alive; but he again came off safely, because he found the "barbaroi" kind-hearted. Now Makedonia uses our brothers for thieir armies. As I say, Herodotos was right. Triballoi from the south and Tylis are pathetic raiders and opportunistic dogs. We harvest the wheat of Bendis; they steal it from wealthier lands. We protect our children; they sell them as slaves. We are free in our lands; they are puppets to the successor of Alexandros. Tarabostes foolishly fight each other rather than uniting for all komatai. Kogaionon, our holiest of sanctuaries, has received so many messengers that the godly gates are sealed. We must be worthy of our gods before we ask for their help. Choosing a new high priest and impaling a few rebels should please them. Be that as it may, our people once attained very great power, so that we could actually send forth an expedition of two hundred thousand men. Now we find ourselves reduced to as few as forty thousand, spread through twenty or so tribes.
To rule us you must unite the tribes of the Karpathoi. Treat your pilleati as equals or they will stab you with the cold knife of traitors. Give them false dreams of glory and plunder so you may gain them as subjects. Should you manage to unite all davas under your dracones, the world will tremble before your might. You may need to burn the vines. They flow with poison for the manliest virtues.
We are one people. We are divided.
Historical Situation of the Getai in 272 B.C.:
At the end of the Aeneolithic Age, around 3500 BC, an important ethnic and cultural synthesis took place that led to the appearance of new peoples and cultures in Central Europe and the Balkans. These peoples can be identified with the traditional ethnic groups of Old Europe: the Hellenes, the Illyrioi, and the Thraikes. The Thraikes came to inhabit the vast territory from the south of Poland, to the north of Hellas and from Slovakia to north-western Anatolia. The Hellenic historians related that "The population of Thraike is greater than that of any other country in the world except India. If the Thraikes could be united under a single ruler in a homogenous whole, they would be the most powerful nation on earth and no one could cope with them."
The next historical period, the Bronze Age (3500 to 1200 BC) also includes the development of the Thraikes. A spectacular demographic growth occurred, as proven by archeological discoveries of many large settlements, some of them fortified. The metallurgy practiced in Bronze Age Getia, although not of local region, attained high levels as evidenced by the rich deposits of bronze items found in parts of Transylvania. Along the tribal aristocracy, a class of priests may have also existed. Their rituals ware preformed in sanctuaries. The lower classes engaged in mining, metallurgy, handicrafts, agriculture, and commercial activities.
Beginning in 1400 BC, important ethnic and cultural developments took place in the Carpathian-Danubian territory. Nomadic tribes from the Sabatinovka culture moved towards the west while the creators of the mound tomb culture (hugelgraber-kultur) came from the regions of central Europe toward the east and southeast, causing the dislocation of some tribes of the Thraikes and the massive movement of peoples toward southeastern Europe, to north-eastern Anatolia and beyond to Aigyptos, Phoinikia, Syria, and Palestine. Being in contact with advanced civilizations such as those of the Hellenes, Persai and Makedones the southern tribes of the Thraikes experienced a more rapid development, while those living north, including the Getai, had a slower development, due in part to the continuing invasion of nomadic tribes, and the natural barrier of the Haimos Mountains dividing the northern tribes from their southern cousins, and their civilized contacts.
As Strabo records: "the Getai are those who occupy the territory toward the sea and the east, while the Dakoi are those who live in the opposite part toward Germania and the source of the Donaris." Despite this they spoke the same language and belonged to the same ethnic group. The last phase of the first Iron Age (650 to the latter half of the fifth century BC) and the first two phases of the second Iron Age (the latter half of the fifth century BC to the beginning of the second century BC) denote a distinct historical period in the evolution of these northern Thraikes. They were still divided, passing through stages of political development that differed from region to region. They were greatly influenced by the people with whom they came in contact.
One such people, the Hellenes, founded in the mid-seventh century BC several colonies (apoikia) and commercial settlements (emporia) such as Histria on the shore of Lake Sinoe, Tomis (today Constanta), Argamon, Kallatis (today Mangalia), and Tyras (today Cetatea Alba), on the western and northern shores of the Black Sea. These settlements belonging to the "Hellenes beyond the seas" played a vital role in the development of the Getai and Skythai due to their multiple economic contacts, political relationships, cultural developments, and economic exchanges with the local communities. Close relationships formed between the Getai and Hellenes that led to the gradual Hellenization of the native tribes. Hellenic ceramic goods, luxury items, and superior oils and wines spread throughout Dobrogea and beyond to Moldavia, Muntenia, and Oltenia. Rapid cultural progress took place. Some tribes, including the Getai, founded powerful political organizations led by dynasts during the sixth to the third centuries BC. Herodotos relates in his "Histories" that during the expedition led by the Persai King Dareios I against the Skythai north of the Black Sea, in the year 513 the Getai resisted the advance of the Persian Army, but were enslaved though they "were the most manly and law-abiding of the tribes of the Thraikes." Later, Thoukydides speaks of the same Getai fighting alongside the Odrysian King Sitalkes adgainst the allies of Athenai in the Peloponesian War of 429 BC.
Philippos II of Makedonia, in order to punish the Skythai king Ateas for his treachery, concluded an alliance with the Getic King Kothelas. This alliance was consecrated by the marriage of Kothelas's daughter Meda to Philippos in 339 BC. The Getai and Makedones drove the Skythai from Kallatis and Kothelas became the master of the Black Sea colonies. Philippos's son, Megas Alexandros, undertook an expedition against the Triballoi in the year 335 BC, in preparation for his great Persian campaign. The legendary general defeated the Triballoi and made a brief expedition north of the Istros (Danube) against the Getai who mustered an army of 4,000 horsemen and 10,000 infantry. The peace was short-lived, however, as around 325 BC the military governor of Thraike was killed together with his entire army by a Getic-Skythian combined force.
This victory, combined with the death of Megas Alexandros in 323 BC, weakened Makedonian control in the area and allowed the Getai to become the dominant political power of the region. The tribes offered vital assistance to the Hellenic colonies on the Black Sea coast, led by Kallatis in their struggle against the Makedonian Lysimachos, the King of Thraike. But the most important episode, related by several ancient authors (Diodoros Sikilios, Strabo, and Trogus Pompeius) was the conflict between Lysimachos and the Getian kingdom of Dromichaites. The kingdom of Dromichaites was located in Eastern Muntenia, having its capital at Helis (Piscul Crasanii). The Makedonian king tried to make Donaris his northern frontier, while the Getian tried to mentain his control over the colonies on the Black Sea coast. Lysimachos organized two campaigns north of the Istros, in 300 and 292 BC. The result was a military disaster as both Lysimachos and his heir Agathokles ware captured. The Makedones finally recognized Getic supremacy over the lower Istros and Black Sea. A royal marriage concluded the alliance between the two powers. Two Getic rulers (Zalmodegikos and later Rhemaxos) continued to exercise control of Histria. Around the year 200 BC King Oroles from southern Moldavia opposed the advance of the Bastarnai. Another king, Rubobostes, ended the Celtic domination in Transylvania. The Getai aquired significant political experience and this allowed them to become among the most advanced "barbaroi" in the centuries to come, as they made the transition from tribal society to a state society.
By the middle of the second century BC, the Getai entered a new period of development, the most advanced in their entire history. The most interesting part of this period is the apppereance of proto-urban settlements known as davas. They were organized areas, being political, commercial, religious and military centers of the Getic tribes. Some used Roman, Celtic or Hellenic fortification techniques known as Murus Dacicus. The Getic fortresses found north of the Danube, like the complex of fortifications in the Sebes mountaines, formed some of the very strongest defensive systems in the "barbarian" world. The Getian craftsmen had ties with the Roman and Hellenic worlds, which brought an unprecedented level of economic development. The Getic goldsmiths even exported to far-off Scandinavia. The society becomes clearly divided into two social groups: the cometai (the free people) and tarabostes (the nobility). The leaders of state were elected from the nobility, which was distinguishable by characteristic fur caps. A class of priests developed to serve as intermediaries between god and man. This was part of the transition to the cult of Zalmoxis, which became fully incorporated into the state structure. Like noblemen, priests wore fur caps to express their position. The high priest was an important position second only to the king. It was this cult that allowed the unification of the Getian tribes to occur.
During the first century BC they were finally united under the rule of King Burebista (70-44 BC). As his power increased, he opposed Roman supremacy north of the Balkans. He is referred to by the people of Dionysopolis as "the first and the most powerful among the kings who ever reigned in Thraike, master of the entire region this side of the great river." His kingdom centered at Arcidava gradually expanded in all directions. Getian armies crushed the Boioi and Tauriskoi in the winter campaign of 60 BC. He later (in 55 BC) conquered the Hellenic colonies on the Black Sea coast, defeating the Bastarnai and securing the shoreline from Olbia in the north to Apollonia in the south. Now Getia was a force to be reckoned with. Previous military succeses inspired the Getai to mount a campaign south of the Istros around 48 BC. The result of this was contact between the Roman and Getian worlds. Burebista could afford to interfere in the Roman civil war by supporting Pompey in his struggle against Julius Caesar. Thus, the Getians were now united against a common foe. When the threat of an invasion ended with the death of Caesar on the Ides of March in 44 BC, the sense of national unity collapsed, as the tarabostes assassinated Burebista. His successor, the high priest Deceneus, failed to keep the tribes in line. In the following decades four minor kingdoms emerged from the civil war, and none of them were individually strong enough to halt the Roman advance in the Balkans.
A capable strategist, diplomat and politician, King Decebalus united the Getians once more under his rule (87-106 AD). He introduced a centralized administrative system, which led to the development of the most well-organized barbarian states in the first century AD. The fledgeling Getic state became a menace to Roman authority as Decebal mobilized the tribes in a raid against the Roman garrisons of Moesia Inferior in 87 AD. Oppius Sabinus, the Roman governor, along with his entire legion, were slain. He later repelled the Roman counter-offensive led by Cornelius Fuscus, capturing the Roman eagle. The line of victories ended at Tapae, where the Roman army of Tetitus Iulianus finally defeated the raiders. The Roman Emperor Domitian was forced, however, to conclude a peace treaty with the Getai in 89 AD. Getia became a client kingdom and received Roman war machines, engineers and even financial assistance to improve the Getic fortresses. When Marcus Ulpius Traianus became emperour in 98 AD, he decided to eliminate the Getic kingdom. Apart from desire for vengeance, the new ruler needed to secure his flank along the Istros and gain the rich gold mines of the Apuseni mountains.
The result was a series of Dacio-Roman wars (AD 101-102, 105-106), at the end of which Getia would become a Roman province, bringing about the end of Zalmoxianism. The emperor's 150,000 men from Illyria and Moesia crossed a bridge of boats at Berzovia. The Getai suffered a crushing defeat at Tapae. Only the break of winter halted the Romans from reaching the Getian capital of Sarmisegetuza. In the spring the Getai, aided by Roxolani Sauromatai, went on the offensive to relieve their capital. They failed as the Romans defeated them at Tropaeum Traiani and Nicopolis. Decebalus sued for peace. The peace terms ware so humiliating for the Getai that a new conflict was inevitable. Three years later the conflict broke out as Decebal refused to dismantle his fortresses. Marching his troops on the bridge across the Danube, Trajan reached the walls of Sarmisegetuza a second time. The capital fell to the Romans and Decebalus was forced to retreat north. Pursued by Roman cavalry, the king chose to commit suicide rather than fall prisoner. Getia was no more; Rome became the sole authority in the Carpatho-Danubian region.
-Unit Descriptions-
Komatai Sphendonitai: (Skirmishers)
These skirmishers are a valuable addition to any Getai army, and perform superbly in rough terrain. Although a wise leader would not engage them in prolonged melees, they can hold the line in close-combat. They are usually very young men and their role is merely to try and force the enemy into acting rashly, even though unarmoured troops could pay much more dearly the encounter with them.
Historically, these slingers had no distinct ability from their counterparts, though they acted more independently on the battlefield and were probably more accustomed to flanking attacks than forming a loose fore-front as the Hellenic psiloi. Their numbers were never great, as the bow was almost as common and a much more praised weapon by the Getai. The akinakes and small shields offered them enough protection to not fear acting as support troops.
Komatai Agrianai: (Archer Warband)
Recruited from the Getai mountain tribes, these men are superb archers, well able to use every piece of terrain in order to pepper the enemy with arrows. Their incessant fighting against Celtic tribes materialized in their fondness of the long sword, which was very deadly when closing in for the kill.
Historically, these highlanders were a strange synthesis between the old and the new. While they were quick to learn the methods of Celtic metallurgy, they held ferociously to their traditions, and probably impressed the Celts through their beliefs, as many of these seem to start adopting the Getai cremation rituals by the third century BC.
Komatai: (Warband)
These daoi (wolves), as it is with those the Getai identify with, mantain the bulk of the tribal forces. Untamed warriors capable of versatile maneuvers on the battlefield, they fight bare-headed to assure the gods of their fervor and willingness to arrive at their side. The Getai troops are rough terrain troops who used the hilly, heavily wooded countryside of their lands, which “the Romaioi feared to enter because of its dark hoods," to good advantage. Nevertheless, even focusing on hit-and-run tactics, one should not underestimate their capacity for endurance, for they may form a resolute shield wall if forced into defensive positions.
Historically, the komatai were the perfect example for the transitional process of the tribal communities to a state structure. They were free men, still gathering at the tribe's calling, but the tribe itself integrated now more and more into tribal unions or pledged loyalty to a king. The southern Getai were heavily influenced by the traditions of the Hellenized Odrysai kindom, and often revindicated its inheritance. By the middle of the third century BC, large unions of tribes had begun to fight for hegemony in the Carphato-Danubian area, while the disparities between komatai and tarabostes grew to a large extent. Not only that, but by now, the Getai priesthood, organized in fashion similar to the Druids and devout practitioneers of complex eastern mystery rituals, was already acting as the consciousness of ethnical unity. The religious Getai were always heedful of their call; as Poseidonos of Apameia affirms, considering "the entire history of the Getai", that "in their nation, the zeal for the sacred was capital." In the battles they fought they approached with the same religious fervor, in the mentality of the common warriors being based upon a deep belief in the immortality of their soul.
Drapanai: (Warband)
The drapanai contingents comprise resolute warriors, well aware of their role on the battlefield as shock troops. The Roman historian Fronto, writing about the campaign of Trajan against the Parthyaioi, noted: "he went to war with experienced soldiers who despised the Parthyaioi, our enemies, and couldn't care less about their arrows after the horrible wounds inflicted upon them by the curved swords of the Getai." The valor of these warriors was confirmed during the (to the Romaioi) Second Dacian War, when the Romaioi soldiers adopted another type of armor, helmet, greaves, and arm guards, in order to protect themselves from the falx.
Historically, the falx was developed from the rhomphaia of Thraike, and it became a traditional weapon among the Getai warriors. The ones wielding it were probably often young vigorous warriors, striving to achieve recognition. The religious aspects should not be overlooked, as these men formed the frontline, and they fought with devout abnegation in order to gain their place at Zalmoxis' side.
Komatai Toxotai: (Light Infantry)
The bow had an important role in Getai rituals and thus experienced archers would always be appreciated within their community. Also, hunting was a primary occupation and their widely forested lands provided them with all the game they needed. Harassment tactics were preferred because of the same reasons, and thus the bow was looked upon highly by the tribal warriors. While more than excellent archers, they should not be expected to perform equally well in close-combat, as their short spears impede closing in safely on the enemy in the absence of a shield.
Historically, Getai archers were a robust force, superior in skill to all their neighbors, except, possibly, the Skythai. Herodotos notes an account where, when clouds darkened the sky, the archers would release their arrows toward it and threaten the god (just which god is not clearly identified). Archery reached its pinnacle probably around the first century AD, when the composite bow was also adopted on a large scale, but one cannot overlook the long and proud tradition the Getai had in mastering this weapon.
Getikoi Stratiotai: (Medium Infantry)
The Getai is the Hellenic name given to the people of the region. Nevertheless, the tribes that came into contact with the Hellenic poleis founded on the western shores of Pontos Euxeinos formed a distinct breed. These men were renowned for their fierceness, and all Makedonian expeditions sent against them effectively disappeared in the "Getai wasteland," as Strabo called it, while Makedonian kings like Lysimachos even suffered Getai captivity. Given these facts, they are well familiarized with the phalanx, and their terrorizing raids into Makedonian and later Roman Thraike made them used to the helmet.
Historically, the Getai were the most Hellenized of the people of the region, and by the third century they were already claiming the inheritance of the Odrysai kindom. They were praised and feared as mercenaries. They adopted the more relaxed form of the phanlax, favoring it because of their light armor. This meant that the Hellenes often engaged them with peltastai. Polyainos, in his work on strategies, notes that 2,000 of them gained admiration when they participated, this time as mercenaries of the Odrysian king Seuthes, in a battle against the Atheniaoi, somewhere in the Chersonesos. Herodotos wrote that "they are the bravest and most righteous of all Thraikes," and there are different hypotheses on the meaning Herodotos gave to the last attribute. Closest to the truth, "most righteous" probably meant the most conformist, most dogmatic of all Thraikes; it would also link very well to the common Getai zealotism. On the other hand, they showed cunning and pragmatism when dealing with the Hellenic colonies, often forcing these into a protectorate status; their direct commercial and cultural contacts with the polis helped them to rapidly advance to high degrees of civilization, although their tribal traditions still held strong and their enemies knew these Getai are not to be trifled with.
Komatai Thorakitai Stratiotai: (Heavy Infantry)
These troops were raised once the Getai state reached a strong level of organization. The rank and file of the Getai professional troops, these men are well adapted to dense, forested areas, thus their cohesion does not suffer from fighting in rough terrain when in close formation. Nevertheless, after throwing their spears, their small daggers and large oval shields allow them to perform on the battlefield similar to Roman legionaries, spreading in loose lines for close-combat and using their short curved swords for fast thrusts that would aim for the abdominal area from behind their large shields.
Historically, the Thorakitai Stratiotai were assembled when the Getai kings decided they had enough strength to counter the tarabostes' ambitions. Professional troops, they garrisoned the most important dava, securing the vital strategic points the king needed to impose its authority. Well-armed and armoured, they filled the role of nucleus for the Getai pedestrian troops on the battlefield.
Komatai Hippeis: (Light Cavalry)
These horsemen form the mounted counterparts of the komatai war bands. Their fast horses allow for very good performance in any type of terrain, being usually used to screen flanks, charge home, and for pursuit once an enemy is broken. On the other hand, they are expert scouts and perfectly suited for the scorched-earth tactics commonly used by the Getai, while instilling fear in the enemy march columns with their Drakontes (Dracones). While they can pose problems to heavy cavalry when using javelins, they'll also carve a bloody path through most medium cavalry with their falces.
Historically, these horsemen were nothing more than komatai that could afford losing their horse on the battlefield. Falces were prefered to the common siccae due to their effectivness on beheading fleeing enemies. Their numbers were not great, the Getai feeling better when fighting on foot in their thick hoods.
Getikoi Hippotoxotai: (Horse Archers)
The Getai horse archers have a long and proud tradition, having developed superb skills in confrontations with the Skythai and Sauromatai. These Getai "who believe they are immortals" were the only tribes of the Thraikes whose horsemen confronted Dareios in his expedition against the Skythai in 514 BC, and for their "recklessness they were immediately subdued and forced to follow the huge Persai army, even though they are the bravest and most righteouss of all Thraikes", as Herodotos notes. Their task is to kill, wound, disrupt, or simply reduce the morale of enemy infantry with endless showers of arrows, but they have problems like all horse archers in wet or damp weather. Their Skythai akinakes, a type of straight sword commonly used south of the Istros, and their fast horses, allow them swift thrusts into the enemy flanks, but one should never engage them in prolonged conflicts with heavy cavalry, nor even medium, for that matter.
Historically, the Getai horsemen won the admiration of the Hellenes when they decided to engage Dareios in Mikra Skythia; and they must have won the admiration of Dareios, as after their eventual defeat, they were pressed into service within the Persai army. Their numbers were large; Thoukydides notes, refering to the great army of supposedly 150,000 men, a third of it cavalry, recruited by the Odrysian king Sitalkes: "the largest part of the cavalry was provided by the Getai." Regarding their weapons, the composite bow transformed them into efficient killers while their horses kept them out of harms way.
A few screenshots of the Getai in action:
Getai Religion
Ares
Ares was the embodiment of the spirit of war, and worshipped by the Hellenes but especially by the Thraikes. He was the son of Zeus and Hera and was disliked by the entire Olympian pantheon with the exception of Aphrodite, who loved him as a god of action and determination.
Sacrifices were offered to him before a battle to gain his favour, and while these often consisted of animals such as a warhorse, prisoners or their fallen enemies were offered to the bellicose god as well. Such practices were not confined to the Thraikes however, as the Keltoi, Persai, Skythai and even Hellenes, who were so proud of their own high morals and principles, performed these in the period of recorded history.
The Hellenes viewed the Thraikes as the ultimate aggressive and warlike culture, and therefore attributed the presence of Ares in their own pantheon to their barbarian neighbours. An Hellenic poet refers to them as ‘gods of battle’ and was not ashamed to admit leaving his shield behind as he ran from battle. He is represented as a naked man with a Korinthian helmet, a spear and a shield on foot or on a war-chariot. In latter periods and especially in Thraikian territory, he is represented wearing a chain-mail and followed by heads of men and horses alluding to its offerings attested by Livy’s description of victorious Thraikes parading with their enemies heads stuck on their spears, as a pledge and offering to their war god.
Heros
There is one sign of worship that is absolutely ubiquitous to the Getai and Thraikian religion, and that is the cult of the god simply known as Hero, or the God Hero. His role seems to be mainly a protective god and dedications to him include simple matters as protection from dog bites to more serious affairs as protecting city-gates, though other roles can be inferred through its representations, such as fertility, underworld-god or even sun and horse cult.
The mysterious figure is represented mainly as a hunter horseman, sometimes with other figures like an attendant, an altar, a snake coiled around a tree, three women, a dog or a lion and a boar. For the Thraikes the horse is sacred to the sun-god and at the same time denotes a superior military, economic and social status, as does the attendant who carries the lord’s weapons and the dog who accompanies them to the hunt.
The other representations are thought to be related to fertility iconography. The tree is common to both Hellenic and Thraikian stelai (funerary, votive, commemorative, and boundary slabs of stone or wood with inscriptions, paintings or reliefs) and represent obvious symbols of rebirth as is the boar which can be a giver of life as well as a taker and the snake whose hibernation and skin-change might also be considered a sort of resurrection. The women represent the hero as perpetuator of the Thraikian people.
The hero itself might have carried a local name to each small settlement as an ancestor who watched over the community. All of this finds a parallel to Phrygian, Skythai and even Persai culture with which the Thraikes are thought to be culturally closely related, and all we can be absolutely sure is his role as protector of its people.
Bendis
Bendis was the most common personification of the Mother-Goddess among the Thraikes. Together with the Hero she insures order in the world, him fighting life’s inimical forces (represented by the boar) and her stimulating fertility (represented by the sow). Therefore she was also the protectoress of marriage.
She is commonly represented as a woman on foot with two spears in her hand and dressed in a short chiton, with an animal skin thrown over her shoulders and with a Phrygian cap or on horseback armed with a bow.
She was also worshipped by Bithynoi, Phrygians, and Hellenes, who were introduced to this deity during the Peloponnesian War when Thraikian auxiliaries, in service of the Athenaioi, settled in Attike. Naturally the Goddess had different local epithets and functions. Classical authors commonly link her to aspects of a large number of their own goddesses such as Selene, Artemis, Hekate, Hera, Thyone, or Persophone.
Gebeleizis
Gebeleizis plays the role of the patriarchal-god who presides over the pantheon of the Getai, and the Hellenes associated him with Zeus as he also possessed the power over lightning. He is most often represented on horseback and wielding his characteristic staff of power. Its origin can be traced to Asia Minor but he was worshipped on both sides of the Hellespont by the Thraikes, Hellenized Getai, Phrygians, and the Bithynoi.
Dionysos
For the Thraikes as well as the Hellenes, Dionysos was the god of wine, of agriculture, and theatre. He was called the “Twice Born” as according to some accounts he was the son of Zeus and Semele and carried by his father as a fetus in his leg after he looked upon the true nature of Zeus which is deadly to mortals. Or according to others, he was the son of Zeus and Persephone, and recreated through his heart after being completely eaten by Titans except for that single vital organ; in this version he was reimplanted in Semele’s womb, in which case, the name still applies.
Although ancient authors believed that the origin of the god was in Thraike, modern scholars tend to place the origin of the worship on the other side of the Hellespont and having spread, eventually, to the Balkans through Thraike, Makedonia, and finally Hellas. It is thought it was not a friendly conversion as there is an abrupt change in religious symbolism suggesting a conflict between the worshippers of the Sun-God, Lykourgos, and the Dionysos followers from which the latter emerged victorious as attested by the myth of Lykourgos death.
He was depicted either as a dark, bearded man or as an attractive beardless youth. In both cases, he was often shown wearing a crown of grapes, vine leaves and ivy and carrying a thyrsus (a long staff topped with a pine cone or ivy), all signs of fertility. He was particularly associated with wild, untamed natural forces of all kinds, especially the intoxicating power of wine and with strong irrational drives within humans, especially sexual passion.
Zalmoxis
Zalmoxis was the prophet-god of the Getai and their only true-god. He was a semi-mythical social and religious reformer, who brought about a huge revolution in the Getai religion by introducing the concept of immortality of the soul. His realm as a god is not clear, though he may be considered a god of the dead, a lawmaker or a keeper of Mysteries, though his main role seems to be that of patron-god of healing. His ethimology is not clear either, as different authors propose many different theories, such as “bear skin”, “foreign slave” or related to the Thraikian words for hiding or covering.
Herodutus recorded, after being told by pontic Hellenes, that Zalmoxis was really a man, formerly a slave of Pythagoras, who taught him the “misteries of the skies”. He tells that he was later freed and amassed great wealth, visiting Aigyptos where he learned about the immortality of the soul and the concept of Paradise, where one would pass after death to enjoy all possible blessings for all eternity, returning later to his native people and teaching them.
Zalmoxis later had a subterranean chamber constructed (some accounts refer a natural cave) on the holy mountain of Kogaionon, to which he withdrew for three years (some say he descended into Hades itself). After his disappearance, his people thought he was dead and mourned him greatly, but after those three years he showed himself again convincing the people of his teachings, as they thought of it as a resurrection of sorts. Word spread out, and his became the primary cult among the Getai, and much later, the first great Getic king Burebista reset their calendar to the traditional year of his birth.
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A Getai unique building:
Kogaionon
The sacred mountain of the ancient Getai, Kogaionon was the most important and symbolic site in all the lands over which their reach spread. It was the spiritual center of the Getai state, and was probably located on Gradistea's Hill, identified by Strabo as Kogaionon ("The Sacred Mountain"). One of the most important figures in Getai religion and mythology was Zalmoxis, about whom there were numerous stories. One detailed how Zalmoxis, as a prophet, brought a message to the Getai about the afterlife and became their high priest. He went to Kogaionon and lived there, serving as high priest while on the sacred mountain. People would come from throughout Getai lands to seek out his advice, and he was by far the most important religious figure in their culture. After his death, he became worshipped as a god among the Getai, to a large extent replacing their chief god Gebeleizis, who represented the sky. The polytheism of the Getai included other dieties as well, including Bendis, Gebeleizis, as well as a god of war as Ares was to the Hellenes.
Though the mountain was not always covered with shrines, sanctuaries and military structures, many of those did develop in later centuries but before the Roman conquest. It was especially affected in the first century BC, when defensive structures and sanctuaries were built, most of all under Burebista, and exhibiting a uniquely Getic fusion of local and classical architectural techniques. Burebista (82-44 BC) was the first king to unite all the Getian tribes and extended the Getai kingdom from the Northern Carpathians to the Haimos Mountains, and from the Middle Istros and Slovakia to the Hellenic colonies on the Pontos Euxeinos, with the help of the High Priest Deceneu. The priest emphasized sobriety, abstinence, and obedience of the Getai, all of which Diodoros Sikilios reports that Zalmoxis inherited from Hestia, the protective goddess of fire and the home. Under Burebista and Deceneu's great spiritual authority and leadership, the sacred precincts on Gradistea's Hill were permanently enriched with new sanctuaries such as the Great Circular Sanctuary, which shows that the Getai had a science of time measuring similar to Aigyptioi, Babylonioi, Indoi, and Hellenes.
The lands around the sacred mountain felt more secure and loyal under its shadow, and the fortresses and sanctuaries that grew up on its slopes, besides providing defensive protection, also provided training grounds and inspirational centers for all Getai troops trained there.
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Here is a little special treat from the traiters team :
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Plus, the campaign map with factions released so far:
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And we can’t forget the small .sig to prove your renewed allegiance to EB:
We heartily invite our fans to use these sigs. They’re here for you, and we delight to see them be used by our great fans!
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We hope you’ve enjoyed this week’s update!
Please note that unless stated otherwise, ALL pictures, names, and descriptions shown in our previews are works in progress. We continue to improve on all parts of EB, and we will continue to do so long after our initial release.
Since some areas where these news items are posted cannot handle wide images, we appreciate your restraint from quoting full-size images.
As always, if you have questions or comments, the best place to post them is here, where the EB team is most active:
Europa Barbarorum ORG forum
Evropa Barbarorum TWC forum
We give special thanks to Imageshack that provides us with a simple, foolproof, and free way to show you all these pictures each week.
Have a great day!
Sincerely,
The Europa Barbarorum team.
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