Rise of the Arche Epeirou

[Scipio Germanicus]

I want to start out by saying that Europa Barbarorum is a masterpiece of strategy games. The EB team has created a thing of beauty.

This is my first attempt at an AAR, so any constructive criticism and advice is most welcome. I started this campaign and played a few turns before I started writing, so the first 6 or so years have no screenshots. Sorry So, without furthur ado, I present my first (and hopefully not last) AAR.

Chapter 1: The Coming of the King

Pella- 272 BC

Pyrrhos sat quietly in his tent. Before him was a map of the Pontos Mesogeios. Looking at it made him angry, yet still every day he looked. The lands that should be his were divided amongst lesser men. He, the last blood relative of Megas Alexandros, ruled only a small area. They were barbarians to the Makedones and Hellenes. Yet they were still Greeks. And, most important of all, he was their king.
Ever since his “victory” at Asculum, he had looked at this map and tried to figure out what had went wrong. After much thought, he had found an answer. Rome was simply too powerful to defeat, at least for now. With Hellas under his control, however, he could defeat them. So began his war with Makedonia. Pella, the Makedonian capital, had been his when the people begged him to become their king. However, he had left barbarians to guard the city, and these had looted the royal tombs; a mistake that had cost him the throne. Antigonus had reclaimed the city and the throne, but now his hands were tied with the Koinon Hellenon in the south. The time was right for victory.
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It was early in the morning when the scouts returned. They reported an army of Makedones marching north to relieve the besieged capital. Pyrrhos smiled. Perhaps we shall have the city sooner than I thought. He issued orders for his men to prepare for battle. Alkyoneus, son of Antigonus, would most certainly sally from the city to try and push him back. If the Epeirotes could destroy both armies, the city would be forced to surrender and northern Hellas would be his.
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The Makedones arrived about midmorning. Pyrrhos had chosen a hill on which to deploy his troops. He formed his Phalangitai in a long line three ranks deep and divided his Illyrioi levies on either flank. Behind the Phalangitai were his Galatikoi swordsmen. At the base of the hill his son Ptolemaios led half his Companions and the Illyrioi cavalry. They would engage Alkyoneus and his skirmishers if they arrived in time for the battle, or would circle around the main force and attack the Makedone rear if not. Finally, the prize of Pyrrhos’ army, his elephants, would pepper lightly armored troops with arrows. Imported from India, they would strike fear into the enemy’s heart.
The Makedone force deployed on the same hill as Pyrrhos. They were led only by a captain, who appeared to command very little respect. Each unit advanced at its own pace and with little to no orders from the captain. If they attacked like that, they would be destroyed piecemeal with few losses to the Epeirotes. A horn from the east caught Pyrrhos’ attention. Alkyoneus had arrived. He watched as the Makedone prince led his bodyguard to the disorganized force on the hill. Meanwhile, the Akontistai and Sphendonetai marched toward the Epeirote right flank. Ptolemaios ordered the Illyrians and his own Companions to charge the skirmishers and slingers. With no armor and only knives and javelins with which to defend themselves, the reinforcements from Pella melted away with a single charge. Having completely destroyed the missile troops, Ptolemaios led the cavalry around the Makedones to their rear and awaited the order to charge.
Meanwhile, the Makedones had closed on the main Epeirote line. Perhaps seeking glory or trying to break Pyrrhos’ flank, Alkyoneus led his cavalry in a charge of the Illyrioi on the right flank. The initial shock killed several soldiers, but the levies held their ground. Bogged down in a melee and facing spearmen, the Makedone cavalry was surrounded and quickly dispatched. Alkyoneus was wounded, but was escorted from the battle by his remaining Companions. The Makedones were discouraged, but fought on.
Pyrrhos decided that it was time to end this battle and destroy the Makedones. He ordered his Illyrioi to attack the flanks while he and Ptolemaios led the cavalry in a charge from both the front and rear. Attacked from all sides, the Makedones broke and were all either killed or captured. Pyrrhos had won the battle, but Alkyoneus still lived and defended Pella with his bodyguards.
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Allowing his troops a few days to rest, Pyrrhos quickly moved to take the Makedone capital. The past few days hadn’t been spent in idleness though. Pyrrhos had secretly sent a message to the Epeirote agents in the city to prepare for the attack. So it was that when Pyrrhos marched his army to the city wall that the gates were standing open.
Instead of facing Pyrrhos at the gate, Alkyoneus and his bodyguards were waiting in the plaza outside the palace. Pyrrhos ordered his Phalangitai Deuteroi to march down the main street while the Illyrioi followed behind. Meanwhile, he and Ptolemaios led the cavalry around the city to the far side of the plaza. As he expected, the Makedones charged into the Phalangitai. The Illyrioi filtered through the Phalangitai and engaged the Makedone Companions. With the enemy bogged down in melee, Pyrrhos and the cavalry charged in. Outnumbered and surrounded, the Makedones fought on. There, outside the Makedone palace, Alkyoneus, son of Antigonus, fell in battle alongside his entire bodyguard. With his death, Pella had fallen.