Manifest Destiny: A Massalian AAR

[Hannibal Khan the Great]

Btw, in case you're wondering, I bribed the young royal Makedon Ptolemaic into my faction. He ended up marrying into the family because there was no space for adoption. And yes, the Epeirote royal house was related to the Ptolemaic royal house. During his stay in Egypt as a young man, Pyrrhos charmed the queen of Egypt (I think it was Berenice), who gave him her daughter (Antigone) as a bride. Thus, the Epeirote royals in my game are related to that old pharoah, Ptolemy II Philadelphus; even though Antigone was the daughter of Berenice from a previous marriage, Antigone was still Philadelphus' half-sister through Berenice their mother, which means Philadelphos is thus related to Ptolemaois Aiakides, who is Antigone's son. I suppose you could say Philadelphos Ptolemaios is Ptolemaios Aiakides' half-uncle, whilst Pauron Ptolemaios is both Philadelphos Ptolemaios' grandson and Ptolemaios Aiakides' newphew-in-law or something. But whatever, introducing the incestuous Ptolemies back into the family is neat and exciting!

Somebody would have a tough family reunion rollcall....

[Cute Wolf]

Great AAR Meth....

Hmm.... made me think that the best way to get someone married into your family is through sufficient "suicide" of useless male FM's

[Megas Methuselah]

Thanks, guys. Lemur banned me, so I wasn't able to update my AAR for a while; as a matter of fact, banning me seems to be one of Lemur's favourite pastimes these days...

Hmm.... made me think that the best way to get someone married into your family is through sufficient "suicide" of useless male FM's

Haha, yeah.

[Megas Methuselah]

II. The Levy of Massalia

In the 355th year since the founding of Massalia (245 BC), a Hellenistic army landed in northeastern Sicily to relieve Messene, which was besieged by a large Carthaginian army at the time. At the head of the relief force was the basileus Ptolemaios Aiakides himself. His Massalian army was something of a rag-tag force, with several of his subjects having sent troops for his Second Carthaginian War.

With funding, including a force of military ships, from his uncle, the basileus and pharoah Philadelphus II Ptolemaios of Aigyptos, Ptolemaios Aiakides quickly levied numerous militias from his Iberian vassals to supplement his small core of Kelto-Hellenic and Keltic troops. His Kelto-Hellenic hoplites, in particular, were a group of battle-hardened warriors, having seen action against the Roman Republic in the Italian theatre of the war.





With this precarious force of soldiers and militias, Ptolemaios boarded his army onto his newly-gifted fleet off the coast of the Balearic Islands and headed straight for one of Carthage's most important colonies: their holdings in Sicily. To better fund the fight against Massalia in Iberia, Carthage had been attempting to annex their enemies in Sicily, in order to better combat the Massalians through a single front. Before Ptolemaios Aiakides left Iberia and the Baleares, he made sure to leave his trusted step-son in charge of the defence of the Massalian holdings in Iberia. A son of one of Massalia's three executive directors in the Senate and Directory of Fifteen, Dorieus was an aristocratic Massalian Hellen, tied to his step-father the Molossian basileus through marriage to his daughter. To give the young Hellen a political position suitable to his new place in Massalian society, Ptolemaios Aiakides had granted him the kingship of Zakynthos, a free Hellenic polis that was supposedly a member of the Massalian League, but was really nothing more than a client state.





This promotion would ensure the loyalty of Dorieus and, by extension, would establish a more firm defence in Iberia against the Carthaginian threat.

But to the matter at hand, Ptolemaios Aiakides knew that a mortal strike at Sicily would end Carthaginian expansion in the Mediterranean Sea, and would probably bring about a bloody, yet decisive, finale to the conflict on foreign ground far from Massalian homes and civilians. His confidence in his newly-levied Iberian militias wasn't entirely high, but they stood more of a chance against the inexperienced Carthaginian troops in Sicily than the battle-hardened fighters in Iberia.

With these thoughts in mind, Ptolemaios Aiakides, together with Pauron Ptolemaios, his nephew through marriage-alliance with the Ptolemies in Aigyptos, landed in Sicily to relieve Messene. The Carthaginian armies, in reaction to this sudden appearance of a large Massalian army, withdrew into the central Sicilian hills. Grimacing at their refusal to fight against both the Massalians and Messenes together, Ptolemaios Aiakides instead advanced directly towards the Carthaginian-settled part of Sicily in the west. This action proved too much for the Carthaginian generals, who advanced to attack.





The Carthaginian force, though led by a strong and capable general in the shape of Hamalcar, was composed almost entirely of levies and home guards. A small core of Iberian mercenaries and Liby-Phoenian hoplites were supported by a mass of Liby-Phoenician levy spearmen and Phoenician militia hoplites.





Against this sort of force, Ptolemaios Aiakides knew he stood a good chance.

On relatively flat ground, the great Molossian basileus arranged his troops in a long line, with skirmishers arranged in front, cavalry on the flanks, and a few units of held in reserve.





His Kelto-Hellenic and Keltic warriors held the middle, whilst the specialized Iberian caetrati would be ready for a flanking meaneuover. These men, with their javelins and falcata swords, were a devastating force, in spite of their lack of armour.





Against this basic formation the Carthaginians steadily advanced. Their formation was just as simple; with the vast majority of combatants on both sides fresh levies of militias and conscripts, it should be no surprise that any more complicated of a formation was practically impossible.





Against the relentless advance of the Carthaginian troops, the Massalians were ordered to let loose their javelins. Skirmishers and line infantry alike gripped their ranged weapons and let loose a hail of wood and iron that served to almost break the Carthaginian charge completely.





The Carthaginians nevertheless recovered their strength, gripped their spears and shields, and charged forward in a surprising display of renewed vigour. The charge but have indeed been a terrifying prospect to the Iberian levies fighting for Massalia; nonethess, those militias must be credited for returning the charge by tossing aside their fears in screams of hate, pleas to the eternal gods, and loosened bowels.





The Iberians on the left flank managed to hold their ground well. In the center, the Kelto-Hellenic hoplites were on the offensive. These were not the kind of men to stand back and let mere Liby-Phoenician levies meakly charge at them.





When Ptolemaios Aiakides saw the Massalian line steadily holding and absorbing the Carthaginian charge, he smiled in triumph. No merchant or money-lenders were a match for some of the bravest warriors of the known world.

With a wave of his arm, the Iberian Caetrati on the right flank loose their javelins into the enemy with screams of challenge and self-encouragement.





Following this, they quickly wheeled around the enemy's flank and, with terrible cries of anger that would make even a god flinch, charged into the enemy's rear on the Massalian right flank.





Almost immediately, the terrified Carthagianian flank broke. The whelps were routed like alley dogs, men underserving to be called "men." The Caetrati lust for blood drove them after the Carthaginian cowards as if they were possessed by Deimos himself, the god of dread, so frightening were their attitudes in those terrible moments of death and destruction.





With the entire Carthaginian left flank gone, the Massalians were free to break down on the core of the Carthaginian army in the center who, as of yet, have not fled.







The brutish noises of battle could be heard from afar. Men were screaming, dying, and spilling blood. Some of the warriors say, to this day, that above the battle they could see Ares, the god of bloodlust and slaughter, snarling and embracing the killing in triumph. Whatever the case may be, Hades had welcomed many new shades by the day's end, as the whole of the Carthaginian centre was mercilessly annihilated to the last man. No quarter was given.





Ptolemaios Aiakides had won a great battle in Sicily. With the main Carthaginian force routed, his army was free to take the Carthaginian colony of Lilibeo itself.

All will be continued.

[WinsingtonIII]

Awesome!

This AAR is leading to some interesting army compositions, which makes it all the more fun to see.

[Unintended BM]

Cool AAR. Good work.

[Megas Methuselah]

Thanks, guys. The lack of comments sort of made me continue the campaign without an AAR, so if I do make another chapter, you may notice a slightly different date, haha.