Elephants in Greece?

**TKaz84** · 05-25-2010, 14:46

looking at the recruitment Viewer I noticed that Epeiros can recruit Indian Elephants in Epeiros with a level 5 factional MIC. Now obviously Pyrrhos used elephants in his campaigns, but being able to recruit them in Greece seems a bit odd to me...

On a somewhat related note, I always disband the one unit I start with as soon as i use it to capture Pella, as 3000 minai for one unit is not really something that I can afford at the beginning. Has anyone kept them for longer and if so how?

**anubis88** · 05-25-2010, 14:51

It's there to represent the possibility of Elephants being sent to Epeiros... It's simmilar with the Arche Seleukia... They can recruit elephants in Antioch, even if they didn't live there since you would have to hold India in your hands to get them any other way, while we all know the AS didn't hold India when elephants were used. (the same with Carthage i think)... Elephants were a trading good of sorts...

**Teucer** · 05-25-2010, 15:12

I believe most (but not all) of Carthage's elephants were locally caught. It is believed that they were a subspecies of the African bush elephant (the big guys) which disappeared sometime during the Roman period.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_African_Elephant

Apparently Hannibal had one elephant names "Surus" (The Syrian) which was probably an imported Asian elephant.

**Qvintvs** · 05-25-2010, 15:22

To simulate it, you can increase the number of turns to recruit them.

**anubis88** · 05-25-2010, 15:37

Originally Posted by Teucer

I believe most (but not all) of Carthage's elephants were locally caught. It is believed that they were a subspecies of the African bush elephant (the big guys) which disappeared sometime during the Roman period.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_African_Elephant

Apparently Hannibal had one elephant names "Surus" (The Syrian) which was probably an imported Asian elephant.

I ment the city Carthage... IIRC there were no elephants in the near vicinity (nearer to other cities in EB) but they are still recruitable there, since cought elephants were sent to Carthage

**Andy1984** · 05-25-2010, 16:15

These elephants would either be gifts from states (like the ones gifted to the AS, or the ones the AS gifted to Epeiros), or were caught in campaigns that were set up for catching elephants (e.g. the Ptolemean expeditions in Africa, the expeditions from Carthage to Mauretania). Some other Mauretanian elephants were possibly traded by Mauretanian traders. The RTW-engine is however incapable of representing such political gifts, gifts by treaties or even ordinary expeditions. Making them a recruitable elite unit seems to me the best option the team had. In a perfect world such expeditions would be represented by agents.

**Duguntz** · 05-25-2010, 16:15

It'd be a nice roleplay thing NOT to recruit elephants until you got trade right (or even alliance) with a faction who have elephants in there homeland (Baktria and Cartage) and thus simulating elephant trade and shipment! This plus tweaking the number of turns it takes to recruit them = pretty historical way of having elephants to smash your neighbor!

**Zradha Pahlavan** · 05-25-2010, 16:43

That's part of the reason they're so expensive. Shipping them around would be hard.
I bet it would suck to be on an ancient-style boat with an elephant or small group of elephants on it in difficult seas...

**HunGeneral** · 05-26-2010, 13:50

Originally Posted by Duguntz

It'd be a nice roleplay thing NOT to recruit elephants until you got trade right (or even alliance) with a faction who have elephants in there homeland (Baktria and Cartage) and thus simulating elephant trade and shipment! This plus tweaking the number of turns it takes to recruit them = pretty historical way of having elephants to smash your neighbor!

Thats for sure. Although I my case I wouldn't have to roleplay it sicne there so damm expensive that I can't recruit them at all until I have an empire by the size of Alexanders empire...

By the way: are there any rumours on how Unit recruitment will work in EBII? I read somewhere that they won't be using a baracks system like in EBI (looks like no more elite factional and elite native troops from one city at the same time for me..)

**william weedzor** · 05-30-2010, 00:40

Even if u have trade agreement with the right ruler,licence for transfer throught allied territory and after all enough money and patience,how much elefants do u think may survive way to greece?And how long they much travel?Because i believe they need a shitload of fed,u need them move trought some +- deserts...with food and enough water,because these elefants are from India.They know nothing about dryness or even about dry air,they live in places with big dampness in air.

I think u will do this elefant bussines only once,after all it must be very unprofitable exchange and with very unclear end.They are real in greece,but with bloody recruitement time.Just know how much actions in political scene or battlefield must Pyrhos do to finally obtain his elefants.How big is their real influence to history?

For example imagine Attila casulties betwen horses during transfer from his steppe home,much better climate then persia or syria/turkey,but cost him more then battles.