The Pyrrhic Dynasty : A Makedonian AAR

[MarcusAureliusAntoninus]

Chapter 94 : Rock Bottom

In the winter of the year 143BC, a fleet of ships arrives in the port cities of Kantabria from the Pontos Mesogeios. The fleet, made up of many small and medium sized ships, is commanded by Admiral Menelaos. This fleet would soon embark on an adventure like those of myth and stories of old:


Trade connections had been established to the islands in the north, but all of the trading was currently being conducted by traders coming down from the islands or local Keltoi going up to the islands and returning. Philippos had ordered Admiral Menelaos to gather a fleet and to sail it north to make the way clear for Hellenic trade fleets as well as assess the possibility of establishing trade colonies in the future.

Admiral Menelaos is no fool, prior to his journey around Iberia, the admiral had visited Karchedon. Thanks to Pyrrhos, the city of Karchedon had been left intact and relatively unharmed by those Makedones who sought retribution. In the great libraries of Karchedon, Admiral Meneloas copied charts and descriptions of the ancient Karchedoi explorers and traders. To most Makedones, these documents had been something sitting on an old shelf and were simply passed over by sailor and scholar alike. Admiral Menelaos knew they would be needed on the journey ahead of them, for he was not just to find the islands but also to chart them and make contact with the inhabitants.

In Kantabria, the admiral refits his ships for the travel. He had learned the hard way that ships designed for the Mesogeios Pontos were not well suited for the "Megas" Pontos. After this journey, Admiral Menelaos also found many men were deserting, not wishing to go through an even longer version of such a trips. So, Admiral Menelaos puts out a call for new soldiers and sailors. Many Hellenes and Makedones of the western Arche, who seek adventure, volunteer for the quest. Local Kantabrians and Keltoi also joined the crews of the ships as sailors, guilds, translators, and navigators. In the coming years, the mismatched men of Admiral Menelaos' fleet would definately have a trip worthy of inclusion in the cronicles of great tales...

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Arabia

The winter of 143BC and spring of 142BC brought warfare to the lands of Arabia, once again. After quite some time of reconstruction, the Kingdom of Sab'yn finally manages to rebuild its miliatry forces and launch and counter-attack at the minor kingdoms that years prior had split off from its empire.

The closest, and almost always troubled, land is the Kingdom of Carna. Just outside the lands of the Sab'yn, this city had been the furthest push of Chrysoloras Delphikos and his army of Makedones. Now, the king of the city has to defend his lands from an army of those who were once his overlords with only locally raised troops. After months of siege, the Sab'yn army grew tired of waiting in the desert and attacked the walls of the city:


The defenders of the city had had practice defending the walls, and they make easy sport out of the large, unarmored army that approached the walls. Some Sab'yn soldiers, especially those with some form of armor, manage to get atop the walls with their ladders and force the defenders to fight to defender their city:


Although the Sab'yn soldiers who get atop the walls are better trained and equiped than the defenders, too much of the Sab'yn army had fallen before it even reached the walls and the army of Sab'yn had no chance for success:


When the last of the Sab'yn army falls dead or flees from the field, the city of Carna knew it is safe once again... for now, that is. A battle had been won against the odds, but news soon comes that that another Sab'yn army is on the way to force the city into surrender:


A few months later, an of the Sab'yn moves east to the Kingdom of Zufar. This lightly populated region of Arabia had been freed from the Kingdom of Sab'yn by the Aigyptoi army but had never been expected to holdout long. To the surprise of all those concerned, the Kingdom of Sab'yn had not sent an army to retake the region once the Aigyptoi moved into Maka, and the Kingdom of Zufar became officially established.

Although they had become independant and established and army, the Kingdom of Zufar has little money, people, or resources. When the Kingdom of Sab'yn finally comes to "put down the rebellion" in sping 142BC, the Kingdom of Zufar is little prepared:


By the time the enemy army is to the city of Ubar, it is too late to fight a battle in open field. The city's defenders decide to force the Sab'yn troops into street fighting within the small town. Therefore, the army takes up position in the city market:


The Sab'yn army moves into the city. While a small group moves around the edges of the city, the bulk of the army marches into the streets. The streets quickly narrow and the Sab'yn army finds thems already wedged in before they even face their enemy:


The king of Carna takes the cavalry and chases off the flanking troops with ease, giving his infantry the morale boost of knowing they will only have to worry about an attack from one side, down a single narrow street.

The spearmen of Carna hold their ground and use the tight space to negate their enemy's numerical superiority:


The battle lasts for some time. It seems to be a stand off, but the city defenders slowly begin to loose the fight. Being pushed back into the market square, and tiring, the battle begins to look lost. Suddenly, the entire Sab'yn army turns and runs from the city:


At first the men of Carna are confused, but the confusion lasts only a moment. Soon bravado takes over. The spearmen of Carna charge forward and pursue their fleeing enemy. They only travel a single city block before they find themselves facing their enemy once again:


By mistake or design, the Sab'yn army draws the Carna infantry from the market square and into an open intersection. Now, the Carna defenders are force to fight their enemy on two different sides.

The situation soon becomes worse when the king of Carna calls back a group of spearmen to help fight off the Sab'yn cavalry which had out-fought the Carna cavalry and chased them back into the city around the back:


The Sab'yn cavalry quickly fall dead by the spears, but the army of Carna remains outnumbered. When the enemy general dies, the Sab'yn army breaks once again. This time the king orders his men not to pursue, fearing another false retreat.

Once it becomes clear this isn't a feint, the king orders his cavalry out but keeps his infantry in the city, just to be careful. The disorganized and broken Sab'yn soldiers flee into the desert and disappear:


Somehow, the tiny army of Zufar repel the large army from Sab'yn, but loose almost a third of their army in the process:


Although victory is achieved by both the Kingdom of Carna and the Kingdom of Zufar, a new wave of request for military aid arrive in Syria. Alypios Antigonos now must add war in Arabia to his great pile of troubles. If aid is not sent, it is possible the Arabian kingdoms will break their treaties with the Arche Makedonia or possibly even rejoin the Kingdom of Sab'yn.

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The Keltoi

Just as in Arabia but on the far side of the Arche, a Makedonian allied buffer state is in risk of falling.

In the wake of the destruction dealt by the Romaioi in Gallia, the Arche Makedonia (through the family of Pyrrhos II) had restored the lands and title of the Arverni kings. Prior to the Romaioi invasion, the Arverni kings had ruled over many different tribes. Since their return to power they had been finding it hard to control many of these foreign tribes, especially those that had been untouched by Romaioi power. For many years, the Arverni and their subserviant allies in Sequallia had been physically devided by the Aedui Confederation. Thus, the Sequallia had been subserviant to the Arverni in name only and ruled themselves. However, the recent renewal of war and the Arverni conquest of Lugonesis had physically reunited the two broken territories. The Arverni kings once again tried to dominated the Sequallia, but the Sequallia kings had grown accustomed to autonomy.

When the Aedui and their confederation once again came to make war with the Arverni, the Arverni found little support from people who were supposed to be within their own kingdom. The tribes of the north had found new leadership in the Sequallia tribe (who had protected and lead these lesser tribes in the times of the Romaioi conquest and during the time isolated from the Arverni). The northern tribes have left the Arverni to face the Aedui alone:


The Arverni, Aedui, and Sequallia had managed to gain control over all the Keltoi tribes in the west (that did not live within part of the Arche Makedonia), but to the east there was still the Kingdom of Bononia, north of the Istros. Once a great power in the region, the Boii had lost territories to Germanic invaders, the Arche Makedonia, and the Getic Confederation. The Boii are far from destroyed, though. They had resisted invasions from Germania, Lugia, and Getai but still stand strong and are ready to rise again.

Discontentment had been growing for some time in Pannonia over the mismanagement of the aged Makedonian "advisor to the satrapy". Once a great man, this distant relative to Philippos had lost the majority of his mind in his old age. Due to high taxes and cultural differences between the locals and the Hellenistic settlers, it does not take much to push the region over the edge.

In the summer of 142BC, the keltoi of Pannonia lead a revolt against the Makedonian governor and threw out the garrison. The anger of the rebels manifest itself in the destruction of the Katoikai and the murder of Hellenistic settlers:


Once the Makedones are overthrown, however, the Boii make their move and quickly annex the region. The speed and intent of the Boii lead many to believe the whole rebellion had been orchestrated by the Kingdom of Bononia to begin with, but there is little evidence to prove this.

The Arche Makedonia is now faced with war in Arabia, Nubia, Numidia, Babylonia, Armenia, and Iberia as well as rebellion, corruption, and possible large scale betrayal. A few years prior, Basileus Philippos had thought that the Arche had finally been repaired of its troubles caused by the civil war, but now a whole new set of troubles come at him, all at once.

For now, the Basileus must delay his plans once again and face one trouble at a time. Rebellion in Pannonia cannot be tolerated. The greatest mistake of the Pannonioi and Boii is that they had not noticed the Makedonian Basileus and his four armies just across the border of Pannonia, in Illyria. When the scale of the rebellion is revealed, Philippos quickly orders his armies to march north and put it down before it spreads to the Alpine satrapy or threatens Illyria:


Basileus Philippos V also sees this as a great way to test his new military concepts of the Thorakitai in large scale, and practically within sight of the Noble Council of Pella.

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The known world in 142BC:

Next: Chapter 95 : The Boii