To Synedrion (The Royal Council)

[The Celtic Viking]

Agathangelos stands up, clearing his throat.

"Antisthenes, what you are proposing is just what I proposed with the only alteration that Antigonos should leave some forces behind. Do you really think that is wise? His army isn't great as it is, and though the force Pyrrhos has at his disposal right now is relatively small as well, his son is not far away with reinforcements. As you admit yourself, Pyrrhos is undoubtedly a good commander, so it seems foolish to me to weaken Antigonos' forces even further before facing him. Is Krateros' army not strong enough to hold the Greeks at bay at least while threat of Pyrrhos is met? Right now I have less fear of them than I have of the Molossian king, though I of course don't mean to underestimate them either.

But should we take to your proposal, what units would you have Antigonos leave? Not the phalangites or the hoplitai, I hope - they're the backbone of his army, the anvil, and he would need them himself. The cavalry wing? Small as it already is, it provides another vital function - the hammer - and he can't make it without them. What's left are the Keltoi and the psiloi, and he wish not to part with the former, and the latter are just rabble armed with javelins and slings anyway. I doubt they could help save us from the Greeks if Krateros' can't with what he has already. So what of it? Who and how many of them would you have him depart without?"