The Anabaseis of the Kings of Makedonia

[satalexton]

You really ought to check out wt i posted here:
https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/group...4#gmessage9384
The Perfect Anthem for Gloious Makedonia!!!

ALL HAIL MAKEDONIA!!!!!

[Maion Maroneios]

You really ought to check out wt i posted here:
https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/group...4#gmessage9384
The Perfect Anthem for Gloious Makedonia!!!

ALL HAIL MAKEDONIA!!!!!

Dude, you're crazy

EDIT: Don't get me wrong, that's a good thing

Maion

[Centurio Nixalsverdrus]

Really cool satalexton!

I'm glad you like it, Vasiliyi. I was really surprised about the Doru Achilleos, though others don't seem to be.

The next chapter will cover the campaign in Lydia against the Ptolemies. It will arrive ca. week-mid to week-end.

[Maion Maroneios]

Really cool satalexton!

I'm glad you like it, Vasiliyi. I was really surprised about the Doru Achilleos, though others don't seem to be.

The next chapter will cover the campaign in Lydia against the Ptolemies. It will arrive ca. week-mid to week-end.

Oh yes, the dory! Completely forgot about it How did you get it, anyway?

Maion

[satalexton]

Immortal beacon shows the way
Step forth, seek glory!
Hoist your swords high into the clouds
Hail MAKEDONIA!!!!



Perhaps a MV should be made with that music

[Centurio Nixalsverdrus]

Oh yes, the dory! Completely forgot about it How did you get it, anyway?

Maion

I just discovered it when I looked at my Basileus. I think it was triggered by conquering Side. Though another Basileus had conquered it before, and I didn't notice anything. I think it makes for a great roleplay opportunity and I should remember to pass it over before he dies...

I felt a bit insulted though about the comment. My men are comparable to those of Alexandros, oh yes they are...

[Maion Maroneios]

I just discovered it when I looked at my Basileus. I think it was triggered by conquering Side. Though another Basileus had conquered it before, and I didn't notice anything. I think it makes for a great roleplay opportunity and I should remember to pass it over before he dies...

I felt a bit insulted though about the comment. My men are comparable to those of Alexandros, oh yes they are...

Side, eh? That's awesome, I've never actually been that far in my Makedonian campaigns Always somehting popping up, like a new version of EB, or some new modding idea of mine that I wanted to be implemented, thus forcing me to start a new campaign

Maion

[Centurio Nixalsverdrus]

Side, eh? That's awesome, I've never actually been that far in my Makedonian campaigns Always somehting popping up, like a new version of EB, or some new modding idea of mine that I wanted to be implemented, thus forcing me to start a new campaign

Maion

That's funny! I play this campaign since summer 2008 and I gave a f*** about EB 1.2 coming out. And I'll certainly give a f*** on the outcome of EB II as well.

Whoa, that reads as if I would give a f*** on EB, which is quite ridiculous given the amount of time I invest into it...

[Centurio Nixalsverdrus]

Part 1 – The Ptolemaic War: The Campaigns in Mikra Asia (243 – 236 BC)

The Campaign of King Alkyoneus
The war that should play such an important role in the process of transforming the kingdom of the Antigonids into an empire had begun with the attack of the forces of Ptolemaios on Seleukid mercenaries near Sardis. After the first battle, which could be denominated both a tactical defeat and a strategic victory, the Makedonian King Alkyoneus was confident. He had the supreme military power, enough money and could concentrate his resources solely on a single front. His younger cousin Neikarchos had arrived with additional levy Phalangitai that were keeping the enemy from attacking Sardis. Alkyoneus took his army and marched eastward towards the Ptolemaic holdings along the southern coast of Mikra Asia.

Near the town of Eumenia in eastern Lydia, Alkyoneus met the army of General Epigenes that remained after his Pyrrhic victory of the previous year. He had still 12,000 Phalangitai under his command, but this time they stood absolutely no chance against the 31,000 Makedones. The King’s Galathraikes and Keltohellenikoi Hoplitai did a good job at cutting down the enemy in the dense forest that surrounded the ruins of an old estate. After this victory the road to Side was open, and Alkyoneus was unchallenged when he took possession of the chief city of Pamphylia.

Galathraikes charge in at Eumenia.


The Ptolemaic élite is cornered by Makedonian light troops.

However, Side was a populous city and difficult to control. Furthermore, the King’s supply lines were unsafe because of another Ptolemaic army controlling the area between Sardis and Side. It was the best decision to hire some mercenaries and leave the control of the city to these. Alkyoneus was warned by his advisors though: the mercenaries were enough in number to challenge the Makedonian rule for the region, but at the same time not numerous enough to keep the population in check, let alone the Ptolemaioi. But the King’s decision stood, and a better one was not at hand.

Alkyoneus decided it was best to march back west on the road along the coast – and not on the one through the mountainside – because he planned to finish off the Karian power in Halikarnassos. The marching was difficult and slow, because neither the Ptolemaioi nor the Karioi had taken care of the roads, spending their money elsewhere. When the army finally reached Karia, word came from Lydia that the enemy army was intending to lay siege to Sardis; and furthermore had the inhabitants of Side overthrown and killed the mercenary garrison and committed themselves under the yoke of the Ptolemaioi again. These were two bad news at the same time, and Alkyoneus’ men were hungry. The King decided to confront the enemy immediately.

The battle of Sardis took place on a rugged plain, partly covered in wood. Alkyoneus’ 29,000 reached from the east, whereas Neikarchos’ 19,000 entered the field from the direction of the city. The 17,000 troops of Kallikles Philopator were trapped in the middle. Although especially Neikarchos sustained heavy casualties due to his unorganised advance through the woods, the battle was easily won by the Makedones, and Kallikles forced to retreat eastward.

The Basileus bravely joines his men in the fray at Sardis.

The dead were barely cremated when news reached the King of a great victory at sea: near the shores of Krete, the new Makedonian fleet of πεντερεις (Pentereis, vessels with five rows of oars) had defeated a Ptolemaic fleet. Alkyoneus knew all too well how important the seas were. His march along the coast of Pamphylia and Karia would have been endlessly easier had he been supported by a fleet. The Makedonian ship-building program had just begun, and at the shipyards of Rhodos were laid down the keels of more than hundred and fifty vessels, τετρερεις (Tetrereis, with four rows of oars) mostly. The next year, another two great victories were achieved near Rhodos itself and in some distance off the Lykian coast. The Pharaoh of Alexandria must have been shocked, since he was used to θαλασσοκρατια (Thalassokratia, the rule over the seas) for decades. Since the fall of Antiocheia more than twenty years ago, this was the first time that his might at sea was contested.

The Ptolemaic War in its initial stage.

Encouraged by these successes, Alkyoneus marched south unto the polis of Halikarnassos. At home in Makedonia, veteran Pezhetairoi had been re-enlisted as αργυρασπιδες (Argyraspides), and πελτασται μακεδονικοι (Peltastai Makedonikoi) had been recruited among the most able of young noblemen of the country, and now 2,400 of each joined the King on his campaign. After a brief siege, Alkyoneus did as he had done at Pergamon, and ordered to storm the city. This time, however, the resistance was less and the Makedonian troops were better fitted for an assault on a polis. The Keltohellenikoi, the Galathraikes and, most of all, the Peltastai Makedonikoi excelled at slaughtering the light Karian troops.

Toxotai Kretikoi support the Peltastai Makedonikoi with arrows on fire.


The first defenders of Halikarnassos turn to flee.


The ferryman's guests.

After the fall of Halikarnassos, Alkyoneus must have had enough of the bloodshed. He decided to spend his energy in the future on directing the war and administering his kingdom from Pella. His son Perseus had already proved to be an able commander and was eager to lead the troops against the Ptolemaioi. As a strategic making safe against the Romaioi, an alliance was formed with the Lusitanioi, a warlike people that inhabited the lands to the far west of the Μεσογειος (Mesogaios, the Mediterranean Sea). For the same reason, an envoy was sent to the far off people of the Kingdom of Saba in southern Arabia. For the obscene sum of 3700 Talents [221.000 Mnai or 100 tons of silver], the Sabaioi were willing to aid Alkyoneus against the Ptolemaioi. However, it should take two years until some action was really taking place, and there were more than a few voices that doubted the King’s mental abilities.

At Pella and Korinthos, schools were founded, and in the following year, a mining business was set up in Bithynia. In the parts of western Greece that belonged to the Symmachia Hellenon, the Hellenic League, Makedonian veterans settled down to further strengthen Makedonia’s grip on the region. In the Makedonian πατρις (Patris, the homeland; at this time consisting of Thessalia, Makedonia proper and the Dardanoia), land allotments were given to the poor. In Rhodos, a giant stone wall was built to protect the polis so important for Makedonia’s majesty, and both in Athenai and Sparte a great garrison fortress. Ambrakia was equipped with shipyards that could host even the mightiest of warships, and on Euboia, an expensive mercantile harbour was carved out of the rock. The last wounds of the dark years of civil war and foreign invasion were slowly healing, and prosperity reigned in the country.

The Campaign of Prince Perseus
Perseus was ambitious and immediately ordered the newly built fleet to anchor near Halikarnassos. The troops were loaded into the ships, and the Kleronomos Basileiou and Στρατηγος Αυτοκρατωρ Ασιας (Strategos Autokrator Asias, the commander-in-chief for Asia) sailed along the shoreline of Karia, Lykia and Pamphylia and disembarked east of Side, whereas the fleet blockaded the port of Attalia, which lay only a few miles west. He had just commenced the siege of Side, when Leonnatos of Gaza, an experienced commander that had fought with Kallikles at Sardis, came to relieve the city. The troops of the city itself, mostly unorganised bands of criminals, were commanded by Nikon, a distant relative of the Pharaoh. Together the Ptolemaic troops numbered 39,000, against ten thousand less Makedones. Perseus had to fight uphill partly, a circumstance that resulted in heavy casualties for the Antigonid phalanx – more than five thousand stayed on the field. Nevertheless, Perseus proved his abilities once more, and at the end of the day, only 1,500 Ptolemaic soldiers were still alive to flee into the mountainous hinterland. Both Leonnatos and Nikon fell, and so did the city of Side.

The Makedones had to fight uphill at Side.


Leonnatos Gazaios searches the decision by commiting himself into the fray.


Nikon decides to flee the battle, but is chased by the Tarantinoi.

The next spring, Perseus took advantage of the good weather and sailed to the island of Kypros. The Ptolemaioi had been so confident in their naval strength that they had thought it completely unnecessary to organise any kind of defence for the island. Instead, they delivered the Makedonian fleet a battle at sea within sight of the island’s capital Salamis and lost. Perseus took the governor Eudamios Oxyrhynchios prisoner and set up the island’s administration as a σατραπεια μακεδονικη (Satrapeia Makedonike). At the same time the Pharaoh was losing ground in Mikra Asia, he was nearly unstoppable in the east. Ptolemaic troops meanwhile held control over the fertile lands of Mesopotamia, reducing the Seleukides only to the mutual mouth of the great rivers, Iran and a small strip inland of Mikra Asia, reaching from Sophene in the east over Kappadokia to Galatia.

The next year, after order seemed to be sufficiently stable on Kypros, Perseus returned to Asia. As soon as he had left, riots broke out in Salamis, but the Makedonian garrison was able to suppress the uprising. The Prince disembarked on the Kilikian coast a short distance west of Seleukeia on the Kalykadnos River. From the east, Isigonos Soknopaiou Nesou approached with 17,000 heavy infantry, of whom 5,000 consisted of the feared Klerouchikon Agema. Perseus’ army had been recently replenished with 2,400 ρομφαιαφοροι (Rhomphaiaphoroi) from Thraikia. Unlike at Side, the Makedones could fight downhill this time, and so it’s no great surprise that the battle was won by Perseus without much effort.

Rhomphaiaphoroi and Peltastai eager to join the fight at Seleukeia.


Galatian mercenaries charged by Hippeis Thessalikoi.

From a dynastic point of view, the year 237 BC was also significant: Perseus’ wife gave birth to her only son, and in reverence to Antiochos of Seleukeia, who had already passed and whom the Prince greatly adored, the child would bear the same name. Perseus’ other son, Euphamios, was not fully of royal blood, but instead the offspring of the Prince and one of his countless mistresses. Nevertheless Perseus was proud of 19-year-old Euphamios who was doing well at Sparte where he underwent the traditional Agoge. At the same time, Karenos, the Tyrannos of Lesbos, made his last breath, and riots broke out on the island. Heliodoros, a son of Kalos and cousin of Alkyoneus, marched into Mytilene and brought the rebellious elements to justice. The uprising was a perfect excuse for the King to transform the island from a close ally into a Satrapeia, and Lesbos would not remain the only case – Rhodos and Krete would soon follow.

Perseus continued his advance along the coastline of Kilikia until he reached the famous polis of Tarsos on the Kydnos River, that was occupied by Ptolemaios’ trusted Strategos Kallikles Philopator, whom the Makedones had already fought five years prior at Sardis. Kallikles had 34,000 troops under his command, including 8,500 Arabian light infantry and even 3,000 ιουδαιοι ταξεις (Ioudaioi Taxeis) from the lands around the ancient city of Hierosolyma. However, when Perseus’ 27,000 Makedones reached the gently falling slope to the west of Tarsos that comprised the field of battle, Kallikles had no more than 24,000 at his disposal. The rest of his troops was stuck east of the Saros River and could not reach the battle in time. It is questionable though if the additional ten thousand could have made any difference. Kallikles found his end in this battle, along with 20,000 of his soldiers, and the city fell. Perseus lost two thousand that day and another thousand a short time later, when he fought the rest of the Ptolemaic troops that had decided to defend the crossing over the Saros. After that battle, the enemy was expelled from Mikra Asia. So ended Perseus’ first campaign against the Ptolemaioi, and there was only one logical next step on the Prince’s agenda: Antiocheia. But fate had other things in mind with the Prince of the Argeades.

At Tarsos.


The Ptolemaic soldiers are cut down in the woods.


At the River Saros.

[d'Arthez]

Awesome! Great pics and a very nice story line.

AARs like these are a great advertisement for EB!

[satalexton]

HOIST YOUR XIPHOS INTO THE CLOUDS!

HAIL MAKEDONIA!!!

[Maion Maroneios]

I bow to your excellency

Maion

[MarcusAureliusAntoninus]

Good chapter. I love it when someone of the royal line gets a famous name.

It definately feels like your transforming from a kingdom to an empire. I will often quit a campaign when I get to that point, only roleplaying can perserve a campaign at that point.

[Centurio Nixalsverdrus]

Thank you for following and commenting, my most noble followers.

Don't worry, making up all kind of roleplaying things is where I'm best at. I hope the next chapter won't take that long. In the meantime, you can guess what was my next victim (the first of only three cases where I opened the hostilities).

[Horatius Flaccus]

Great stuff!

I just read the whole thread, and I must say that your AAR has really impressed me. It is one of the best out there, only topped by MAA's. I was sad that Demetrios died, but this Antiochus you talk about, it seems he can maybe become a 'Megas'...

Anyhow, keep it up! I guess Pontus is up next on your list?

Oh and responding to your 168 BC map:

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Civil war? Fantastic!

Is that Rome in Gaul?

[Centurio Nixalsverdrus]

Great stuff!

I just read the whole thread, and I must say that your AAR has really impressed me. It is one of the best out there, only topped by MAA's. I was sad that Demetrios died, but this Antiochus you talk about, it seems he can maybe become a 'Megas'...

Anyhow, keep it up! I guess Pontus is up next on your list?

Oh and responding to your 168 BC map:

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Civil war? Fantastic!

Is that Rome in Gaul?

Thank you very much, posts like this one are it that keeps me making the efforts for this AAR!

The Spoilers contain the answers to the above questions. Don't read it when you don't want to know the future!

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

I could say that you're right on Pontos. Or maybe not.

Civil war? Fantastic! Yes.

Is that Rome in Gaul? Yes. The Imperium Galloromanum. I enabled recruitment of "Marian" units for them, "Cohortes Galloromanae".

[Maion Maroneios]

Is there going to be an update in the future? Sure hope so

Maion

[Centurio Nixalsverdrus]

I think this is just too good to let it die. I already know what will be in the next chapter, and in the following one. Then the Anabasis of Alkyoneus will come to an end, followed by the Anabasis of ... which will *finally!* contain the first self made changes.

Thanks for the interest mate.

[NickTheGreek]

I agree Centurio, this is too good to be left for dead

[Maion Maroneios]

Yes! Glorious news indeed!

Maion

[Horatius Flaccus]

Great! I am really looking forward to the next one.

[Maion Maroneios]

:'-(

Maion

[Centurio Nixalsverdrus]

Ah, the time passes...

I'll really see if I can write something this weekend.

[Maion Maroneios]

:-D

Maion

[Centurio Nixalsverdrus]

Part 2 – The Pontic and Kappadokian War (240 – 232 BC)

The Pontic War (240 – 235 BC)
In 240 BC, after the fall of Halikarnassos, Alkyoneus abandoned the theatre and left the troops to his son and Kleronomos Basileion Perseus. It soon proved to be the case that the King’s absence had some disadvantages. In Sardis, two ambitious members of the Royal Family were plotting for their own benefit: to the east lay the city of Ipsos that was under control of the Kingdom of Pontos. The Pontikoi were centred around the polis of Amaseia farther to the northeast and had extended their power to the south, subduing the fearsome Galatians and depriving the Seleukides of their Satrapeia of Phrygia. But recently, Theodoros, the new Basileus of the Seleukides, had managed to turn the tides and conquered the Galatian capital Ankyra and the surrounding lands. Phrygia was only held by a small garrison isolated from the rest of the Pontic forces. Heragoras Thessalonikeus and Leonidos Phagreus knew the treaty between Alkyoneus and Antiochos that no land conquered by Makedonia would be ceded to the Arche Seleukeia, and so they thought it wise to mount an invasion on their own. Without a doubt, they hoped to amass wealth and gain personal recognition.

With an army of 24,000, mostly levied Phalangitai from Makedonia, they marched east unto Ipsos and conquered the city without much effort – the city was guarded by no more than three thousand led by a Pontic Satrap. Of course this ruthless act was condemned by some within the Hellenic world as barbarian and unworthy, but others didn’t view it that way. Makedonia was allied to the Seleukides, and Pontos was at war with them. Heragoras and Leonidos didn’t care anyway, they were way more concerned about the perception at home in Pella.

Sphendonetai at Ipsos.

Street combat.

The Pontic bodyguards fight valiantly.

Indeed Alkyoneus was not very amused. But he was the Basileus, and letting his authority as Basileus be questioned by two of his underlings could turn out much more dangerous than a hastened war with Pontos. And as many people thought that Alkyoneus was the mind behind the invasion anyway – and what else could they have thought – Alkyoneus wasn’t left much to do than accepting the congratulations for his victory at Ipsos.

The Pontic reaction was odd: instead of calling up their troops and marching to retake the city, the King of Pontos, Arsames Kianos, and his brother and inheritor Mithridates moved to Bithynia, only accompanied by their personal entourage. It is not known to us what their intentions were. Some scholars believe they were on a mission for peace, having recognised Makedonia’s superior power. Others argue they would have been on a mission to stir up rebellion in Bithynia, since the inhabitants of this country didn’t feel so attached to the Makedones as they would later on. The only known fact to us is that they were catched and killed by Heragoras Thessalonikeus and his men. The reaction amongst the Hellenic world on this new incident was very harsh and it was mostly seen as dishonouring for Makedonia; the Pontic kingdom on the other hand meanwhile seems to have fallen into a stasis upon the loss of its two most important figures.

Alkyoneus though knew that this wouldn’t last forever, and ordered a second royal army to be levied. It was largely modelled after the other army operating under Perseus in Mikra Asia at the same time, but featured Αγριανικοι Πελεκουφοροι (Agrianikoi Pelekouphoroi), fierce axe-wielding warriors from the regions directly to the north of Makedonia. To command this army, a young nobleman from the royal family was sought and found: Menelas, a son of Kalos, a promising young man of fine blood, was entrusted with the honourable task.

In the last days of 236BC, it was the eleventh year in the reign of Alkyoneus, an envoy from the Euxine polis of Sinope arrived at the court at Pella. The Pontikoi had overcome their dynastic squabble and had seized the city. Although the Pontikoi were making great efforts to imitate the Hellene way of life, they were Easterners and deprived Sinope of her independence. The envoy had been sent to ask for military aid to liberate the city. For Alkyoneus it was the perfect excuse for launching a full scale invasion and promised to react. Makedonia could help a Greek polis against foreign oppression and at the same time bring a large part of Mikra Asia under its rule.

As soon as the rough seas of the Pontos Euxinos permitted, Menelas set sail towards the northern shores of Paphlagonia, disembarked west of the city – which was itself undefended since the Pontikoi had not thought the enemy would come by sea – and seized it, taking the Satrap Holophernes Herakleotes prisoner. For Sinope, Menelas appointed a pro-Makedonian member of the local nobility as Tyrannos, returning her “independence” to the city. The local populace thanked him with loyalty, keeping law and order on the streets for the moment and thus allowing Menelas to continue his march to the south, towards the Pontic capital of Amaseia.

Fall had already begun when the forces of the Makedones and the Pontikoi finally met. The Makedonian scouts had reported large Pontic forces camping on a plain north-east of Amaseia. It was a moist and foggy morning when both armies confronted each other, almost seventy thousand soldiers, of whom thirty eight thousand were under the command of the enemy. Their infantry mostly consisted of lower class phalanx and Thureophoroi, but most noteworthy among their troops was doubtlessly the Pontic cavalry wing: four thousand Kappadokians, one thousand Hellenes and, last but not least, a detachment of scythed chariots. Commander of the army was Nothos Kianos, a member of the royal family of Pontos, who had sworn bitter vengeance for the murdering of king and crown prince.

The battle lines at Amaseia.

The troops were arrayed in a long line, with Galatian heavy spearmen and Thureophoroi guarding the flanks, whereas Menelas kept the Peltastai Makedonikoi and the Agrianians in reserve. Even before melee ensued, the Kappadokian cavalry attempted to flank the Makedones but was countered by the Thessalians who proved superior. On the Makedonian left, the scythed chariots cut through the ranks of the Galatians and the Thureophoroi, leaving countless warriors with severed limbs and causing great chaos and devastation among the soldiers. When the chariots turned around though to continue their butchering spree, many of the lighter troops managed to jump on and kill the drivers, causing the unit to run uncontrolled over the battlefield, massacring friend and foe alike. When finally the Pontic phalanx reached the Makedonian line, the Pontikoi had almost shot their last bolt. The light infantry and the heavy cavalry circled around the flanks now uncontested and finished off the enemy with a thundering charge. Broken, the Easterners turned to flee, chased and massacred by the Hellenes all the way to Amaseia, who captured the city and brought all but the remotest Pontic possessions under their sway, including the Royal Pontic Tombs above their capital.

The Kappadokians are countered by the Thessalians.

The Pontic chariots deal death and mutilation to the Makedones.

The phalanxes.

Three years later, Archilochos Thessalonikeus marched against Metrodoros Kianos, last remnant of the Pontic house who had retreated to north-western Kappadokia, and defeated him near Amastris. So ended both the Pontic state and the Pontic dynasty at the hands of the Makedones.

The Kappadokian War (235 – 232 BC)
The Kappadokian War is also called the First Seleukid War by historians. At the same time as Menelas was landing at Sinope, King Alkyoneus offered the Seleukides 500 Talents [30,000 Mnai] in exchange for handing over Galatia to his control, wisely anticipating the upcoming victory over the Pontikoi and seeking to establish a solid block of territory in western Mikra Asia. As stated earlier, the Seleukid King Antiochos had passed and was succeeded by Theodoros. Alkyoneus thought that Theodoros was of the same mind as Antiochos, but was unfortunately mistaken. Instead, Theodoros had ever since belonged to the faction at Antiochos’ court that perceived the Makedonian treatment and “offers” as dishonourable. He was determined to end this.

When the Makedonian envoys reached Theodoros, who was campaigning in Galatia after having led the conquest of the country, he seemingly agreed to the treaty and took the money he was offered. Immediately, a Makedonian “garrison” was formed in Ankyra, consisting of local city dwellers paid to be pro-Makedonian. Not much later, a detachment of several militia-regiments made their way to the city. When they crossed the border to Galatia, they were suddenly attacked by Theodoros. Although they managed to retreat, war was now at hand. The Seleukid king though was unsure what to do next. Two strong Makedonian armies where in Mikra Asia, one to the north and one to the south. Finally he abandoned Galatia and retreated eastward, setting up his camp near the town of Nyssa at the Halys, where he could easily defend at the river’s crossing.

When Prince Perseus, who had just conquered Tarsos, had secured law and order in the region, he immediately took care of the new threat to his north. The occasion was good since reasonable forces of the Pharaoh were not in sight. At Nyssa, Perseus met Theodoros and the expected battle took place. Alas, the Seleukid king had sent the bulk of his army to Mazaka further east – and Perseus was a far better general than Theodoros was. The Makedonian phalanx advanced over the bridge, occupying the enemy infantry, whereas Perseus led the cavalry through a ford half a mile upstream and attacked the Seleukides from behind. Theodoros gave chase and managed to escape to his army at Mazaka.

At the bridge over the Halys.

The Makedonian cavalry crosses the ford.

Perseus crossed the Halys and followed his adversary eastward, where the main Seleukid army was stationed under the command of Theodoros’ brother and Strategos Alexandros. The enemy troops numbered thirty thousand. Most notably, albeit only few, were the 480 Persian kinsmen who presented a fearsome cavalry force. The battle itself was rather odd since the Seleukides descended upon the Makedones from a forested hill, so that neither of the contestants was able to form a proper battle line. Archers were nearly useless, instead the most gruesome of melee commenced. Two of Perseus’ taxeis of Pezhetairoi were hacked to pieces, leaving 300 alive from 2,400. But again, Perseus’ superior generalship tipped the balance. As Alexandros fell, the morale of the Seleukides was broken. Theodoros was unable to take over command and gave chase again. He ended the battle in the same way as he had already done shortly before and fled to his eastern possessions.

The Makedones advance at Mazaka, the Tauros Mountains in the background.

The Makedonian Thureophoroi.

Charge of the Hetairoi.

The battleline cannot be maintained.

After the battle was over, thirty four thousand men lay dead on the ground, among them six thousand Makedones. Nevertheless, the road to Mazaka was open and Perseus took the city, ordering the relocation of many inhabitants in order to facilitate the control over the city. Although the battle of Mazaka was a complete blunder for the Seleukides, the following two years proved healthful and benefiting for them: the next year, they managed to obtain a peace treaty with the Ptolemaioi who were already in control of Mesopotamia; and in the following year, 232 BC, peace and even the old alliance with the Makedones could be restored.

[Horatius Flaccus]

Fantastic update! Some great screenshots!

A few pictures of the tactical map would appreciated though

[Maion Maroneios]

*explodes from overjoy*



Maion

[MarcusAureliusAntoninus]

Great update! Your Pontic War seemed to go well. At least you didn't loose a Basileus in the Battle of Amaseia, like I did.

Now time for war with a Seleukid-Ptolemaioi Alliance? How much territory do the two hold? Is the Arche Seleukiea down to just Iran & Armenia, having lost all territory in Mesopotamia?

[Centurio Nixalsverdrus]

Thank you for commenting. The next update will feature a map again.

Great update! Your Pontic War seemed to go well. At least you didn't loose a Basileus in the Battle of Amaseia, like I did.

Now time for war with a Seleukid-Ptolemaioi Alliance? How much territory do the two hold? Is the Arche Seleukiea down to just Iran & Armenia, having lost all territory in Mesopotamia?

No, since the alliance with the Seleukides had just been restored, expect to see more vices and blackmailing from Alkyoneus regarding his allies. He's really a bastard.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

[Centurio Nixalsverdrus]

I've already got 2/3 to 3/4 of the next chapter done, I got a map and tons of great screenshots, but I'm going on vacation tuesday. I really think I'll get it done till then, otherwise you would have to wait until end of july...