[EB AAR] Pontos Rising

[FriendlyFire]

Chapter 3: Along the Royal Road

In the same season that Mazaka fell, Ariarathes Herakleotes the Hellene arrived with his army at the Seleukid town of Ipsos. They had marched through wild countryside past the hostile town of Ankyra, but had been untroubled by the Galatians there. A more immediate threat lay with the independent general Alkibiades, who commanded a sizable mercenary force to the west. Ariarathes quickly sent forth a herald, conveying a solemn assurance that the Pontic army would not cross the border, and the herald shortly returned with word from Alkibiades that in return he would not intervene in the quarrel between Pontos and Arche Seleukeia. With winter coming on, and some hopes that his flanks were thus secure, Ariarathes ordered the town to be laid under siege.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Once again a town was important more for its location than its current resources. Like Mazaka, Ipsos lay on the old Persian Royal Road, and in the mostly untracked lands of Asia Minor the paved surface of this road was by far the fastest route between east and west. With control of the road, Pontic armies could swiftly march wherever they wanted, and therefore Ipsos must be taken. Fortunately it was defended by even fewer troops than Mazaka, and did not have a general in command - the speed and direction of Ariarathes's advance had clearly taken the Seleukids by surprise, denying them time to reinforce the town garrison, levy more local troops, or even send a relief force. As a result, the Seleukid defenders were once again greatly outnumbered by their Pontic attackers.

On a bright winter's day, Ariarathes's troops attacked the gate using a single ram, but found the streets eerily quiet. Perhaps having heard recent rumors of the disaster at Mazaka, the Seleukid defenders chose to remain near the center of the town. And despite his numerical advantage, Ariarathes had a hard time pushing the attack home - his slingers could not easily operate in the narrow town streets, and his skirmishers found themselves facing a wall of Seleukid sarissas. In the end the Pontic and Seleukid troops locked sarissas on the approach to the square, and Ariarathes and his bodyguard had to charge into the enemy's rear to break them.

The final grind to rid the square of levy spearmen was equally brutal, with the combat devolving into a hand-to-hand affair as the phalangites broke formation and used their axes against the spearmen. As the last spearmen fell, the tired phalangites celebrated a victory of their own, blooding another Pontic army.

The capture of Ipsos was never really in doubt, but despite Ariarathes's best efforts his army had suffered 10% casualties, many of which were the irreplaceable phalangites.

The town was spared from major looting, although all trace of Seleukid life was obliterated: the military colony headquarters, armory, state shrine, and even the homes for military settlers. The presence of these settlers had been resented by the original inhabitants, and removing them went a long way towards ensuring the loyalty of Ipsos to its new rulers.

With two sections of the Royal Road now secured, the way lay open for the final drive to its western end, and the ultimate goal of this first campaign.

[An annoying battle - I really didn't use my missile troops very well, but then I realized I could roleplay that as Ariarathes being a better manager than general :) And we shall meet Alkibiades again later on, for he plays a surprising role in the history of Pontos]