[EB AAR] Pontos Rising

[Titus Marcellus Scato]

And I was a bit surprised that the Galatians didn't immediately sally - with the wild-men at full strength, and if their general had charged my line instead of trying to flank, the battle could easily have gone a different way.

The AI won't sally unless they outnumber you by quite a wide margin, generally their army needs to be about 1/3rd larger than yours. And the AI is quite scared of sallying if you have more than one family member in your army.

[vollorix]

The challenge in playing Pontus lies, mostly imho, in the fact that one really has to watch out for the finances. Blitzing couple of settlements makes it easier, while kicking out Seleucids, and even Ptoleys, from Asia Minor takes those problems away ( due to the mines in the settlements, mostly ). I don´t have a paitiens to lurk for decades, roleplaying "passivity" in a TW game. Well, if i controll Romans, for example, i do not have to warry about my income, no one threatens me, and my geographical position is safe. But this makes the games a bit boring, i think, and my FM´s become "supervisors" inevitably, or start to swear like a trooper... One could adjust the garrisons of the "eleutheroi" settlements, of course, so that an attempt to besiege it with a pathetic force, even in the hands of a brilliant strategian, would fail; or one could autoresolve the battles, especially funny on VH campaign difficulty, and get beaten until the garrison is depleted enough ( or even better grant the "eleutheroi" faction 1 mio mnai per turn or so ^^ ). Anyways, the AI will take advantage of your passivity, steamroll the smaller factions, and grow to any of the various "death" coulors we all love so much. It´s Total War, after all, eat or be eaten. And it´s also about the victory conditions, though, one could ignore them and set one´s own, but still, it´s going to end in thousends of battles if you let the AI, namely AS and Ptoleys, to develop their spamming potential.

Don´t get me wrong, i really like roleplaying, and i do not want to make it look like if i would blitz the hell out of the game, just to... do what actually? Decieve the pathetic and illogical AI? ^^ But using all those stuff like moving AI troops all around via console, monitoring the "wolrd", to keep it "historicaly accurate" is a bit too much for my tastings ( only on the rare occasions, like moving Arverni FM´s and troops to Galatia, for example ). I don´t like playing "God", just let things happen, and interfear only within the game engine possibilities.

@FF: i don´t want to screw your AOR by posting my own campaign progression ( and i´m actually too lazy to take all the screenshots^^ ), but you were right - the peace with Seleucids didn´t hold long ( just about 5 years or so ), before they made peace with Ptoleys and, both, started to annoy me from all sides. So i took Sardis, Tarsos and Antiochea, and right now, it´s year 245 b.c, i moved down to Jerusalem and enslaved the poor Jews for the second time ( after the Babylonian thing ). I havent taken Bizantion, nor have i yet put my fingers on Pergamon, nor the Macs posessments, but it allready feels bit....TW like - too much conquered in a very short time, despite the fact that i keep my generals as gouverneurs in the conquered cities and develop them properly, before i move on. I guess i should try the thing with 1 mio. mnai for the rebells next time, maybe some factions can be slowed down, and pay their attention on them, while i would need really significant forces, and superb generals, to take a city like Nikaia or Pergamon ( btw: since i didn´t touch the last, and, at the same time, Macs had started several pathetic attempts to take the city, there are now 3 silver chevroned troops, a full stack, waiting for me to be dealt with... somehow frightening, since i do remember how evil those siege battles can get, fighting elite troops commanded by 10 star strategos ;) )

[The_Blacksmith]

I'm very proud of myself because i kept allied woth the AS untill 240... where i has the black sea and Armenia... oh gawd that was one of the best wars ive ever had! Elites on both sides! clash of pikes and chariots!

the Pontic campaign is like; Pahlava and Saka Rauka one of the brainers but really really fun :D

[Octavian I]

Really good AAR, definently one of the better ones i've looked at so far :).

[FriendlyFire]

@vollorix: Don't worry about posting your own progress, I'm not trying to keep this thread "pure" or anything! I like hearing how others have fought the same campaign. I'm like you in that I can't just sit there for decades, waiting for other powers to build up, at least not without a good role-playing reason. Later on you'll see one method I use to soak up the extra income from all the mines - those "powerful advisors" really come in handy :)

I've tried a couple of Pontic campaign starts where after securing Asia Minor I marched from Syria straight down to Egypt, but this time around I think I'm going to keep my hands off Antiocheia for as long as possible, and let the Syrian Wars play out between the Ptolemaioi and Arche Seleukeia. Who knows, maybe they'll even rebuild their elite MIC in Antiocheia.

@Blacksmith: I really SHOULD have some chariots, shouldn't I? Can't call it a Pontic campaign without them.

@Octavian: Thanks - and welcome to the forum!

[FriendlyFire]

Chapter 9: The Battles of the Bridges

Before Ariobarzanes Kianos could make any further conquests in Asia Minor, he first had to deal with a renewed threat from the Arche Seleukeia. For the fragile peace with the Seleukids could not last, and in the spring of 264 BC they sent small forces to besiege the town of Tarsos on the coastal plains, and also against a mountain fort near Mazaka.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

The first two sieges of Tarsos were easily repelled by its garrison, led by Ariarathes Herakleotes the Hellen. As a result of these battles Ariarathes was becoming ever more zealous in his support for the king.

When a third and much larger Seleukid force was spotted approaching Tarsos, Ariarathes realized that in a normal field battle they would inflict many casualties on his small garrison force, because the enemy archers could attack with impunity. He therefore marched his phalangites out of Tarsos to guard the nearby bridge, while recruiting a small contingent of Gallic mercenaries to control the town itself. The Seleukid force accepted the challenge and attacked at once.

As the battle opened, Ariarathes ordered his troops to form an interlocking phalanx blocking the exit from the bridge, and then wheeled his horse around to stand behind them with his bodyguards. The Seleukid archers rained arrows upon him from across the river, but his heavy armor saved Ariarathes from injury, and by this action he also spared his phalangites from missile fire. Meanwhile the Seleukid infantry marched across the bridge and began trying to push through the phalanx formation. They included many troops unfamiliar to the Pontic army, including phalangites in armor much heavier than their own, and spearmen from the east who carried very large wicker shields with which to protect their bodies.

It was at this point that the Gallic mercenaries, after force-marching from the town, arrived to reinforce Ariarathes. He quickly sent them across a ford on one flank. By now the enemy archers had run out of arrows and had joined the back of the general melee. They were therefore the first to fall as the Gallic mercenaries took control of the Seleukid end of the bridge and began cutting their way across.

As the battle wore on, the Seleukids found themselves unable to leave the bridge, facing sarissas on one end and Gallic longswords on the other. Gradually they were hemmed into a smaller and smaller area until finally almost all were cut down. Only a few survived, jumping into the river to escape.

Having now lost three successive armies , the Seleukids gave up their attempt to take Tarsos. However, their push towards Mazaka continued. The small Pontic fort in the mountains fell after two seasons, with the defenders being slaughtered to a man, but those two seasons allowed Ariobarzanes Kianos to bring most of his army back from Ankyra. He used this army to hold the crucial bridge that was the last obstacle before Mazaka itself, and here the Seleukids attacked him in 264 BC.

The bridge had no nearby fords that could be used to flank the enemy, and the battle therefore was a straight pushing match. The Seleukids had more men, but many of their troops were lightly armed, and the Pontic phalanx was once again blocking the exit from the bridge.

The Seleukid captain kept his cavalry in reserve for most of the battle. When he finally committed them the eastern horsemen almost managed to break through the phalanx, but Ariobarzanes had waited for this moment and sent in his thureophoroi, also kept in reserve. The thureophoroi's spears stiffened the center of the line and brought down many of the cavalry, routing the rest. Seeing that the battle was lost, the Seleukid captain ordered a general withdrawal.

Two great bridge battles in two years had now broken the back of the Seleukid advance, and although there was to be no further ceasefire, the threat they posed at least receded for a while.

[FriendlyFire]

LOL - I messed up the chapter numbers already! And although I can edit the text, it looks like I can't edit the subject line, so that will always stay as "Chapter 9". Ah well, just pretend there's a mysterious missing "Chapter 8" out there.

[FriendlyFire]

Chapter 10: The Two Brothers

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

With his flanks now secure, Ariobarzanes Kianos turned his attention to the north coast of Asia Minor, near where the mountains of the Caucasus meet the Black Sea. There were many Hellenic colonists here, centered around the towns of Sinope and Trapezous, and the trade that their ports provided would be a major boost to the Pontic economy. A small Pontic army therefore marched north from Amaseia to "persuade" these Hellenes to accept a new king. Sinope would be the first to fall.

The army was led by Arsames Kianos (last seen in Chapter 4), for Ariobarzanes wanted to see if there was any truth to the rumors about the cowardliness of his younger brother. Arsames knew what was required of him, and assaulted the walls of Sinope with wooden rams in the spring of 261 BC. The defenders were led by Aigicoros of the Paphlagone, a veteran commander who had more men than Arsames but who had nothing to match the Pontic phalangites.

Despite their longer spears, the Pontic army found itself in a desperate struggle as soon as they breached the walls. Aigicoros inspired the Paphlagone to great feats, and they fought valiantly against the phalangites who sought to take away their homes and impose a new king upon them.

The best of the defenders were professional hoplites of the old style, and these came near to flanking the Pontic phalanx that was trying to breach the main street. Pontic thureophoroi, Hellenic troops of the new style, were sent in to support the phalanx but could not break the hoplites.

However, the thureophoroi gave the phalanx a chance to reform, and meanwhile Arsames had sent his Gallic mercenaries down an unguarded side street. From here they found their way back onto the main street, and fell upon the hoplites from behind. Once again an enemy of Pontos found itself trapped between sarissas and longswords.

Aigicoros and the last of his professional hoplites died defending the main street, leaving only hoplites levied from the townsfolk to hold their square. Attacked from two sides by phalangites who they couldn't outreach, and hacked at by the longswords of the Gauls, they fought until honor was satisfied and then laid down their arms.

Thus was Sinope in the province of Paphlagonia added to the Pontic kingdom. Arsames had won a clear victory, and more importantly his valor in combat had laid to rest the old rumors.

Much encouraged by this news of his younger brother, and feeling the thrill of war coursing through his veins once again, Ariobarzanes reclaimed command of the army for the march along the coast towards Trapezous. Due to the time taken to replace the army's losses, and the lack of roads in the province of Pontos Paralios around Trapezous, it was the summer of 259 BC before he could besiege the town.

His spies brought worrying news, for the kingdom of Hayasdan was also expanding, and while Ariobarzanes dawdled on the coast, inland an army of Hayasdan sought to add the town of Ani-Kamah to their realm. Ariobarzanes therefore assaulted Trapezous as soon as rams were made. The town was defended by Neoptolemos of the Tzanoi, another veteran commander with more men but nothing that could match Pontic phalangites.

As he spoke to his army before the battle, and exhorted them to feats of valor, the blood lust took Ariobarzanes. The world around him seemed to fade away, and the shouted questions from his subordinates sounded as if they were whispered from a distant hilltop. Fortunately his battle-plan needed few changes. Later, he was dimly aware that there had been a great success in seizing the main gate, and that one phalanx had entered and then stood firm in the main street, killing all before it.

And he was told, but did not comprehend at the time, that when defending hoplites tried to approach from the flank, they were blocked by Pontic thureophoroi, and then themselves flanked.

For what Ariobarzanes wanted was single combat, and he found it in a charge down the main street, crushing the hoplites before him into the waiting phalanx. And from there a charge to the square, his troops racing to keep up, hunting down the hoplites wherever they could be found.

Eventually there seemed to be no enemies left, and his troops were cheering, and the world came back into focus, and Ariobarzanes Kianos the warmonger found that he had captured Trapezous.

But while one brother gloried in combat, the other still found it distasteful. Although no-one would now call Arsames a coward, it was increasingly obvious that he was more suited to city life than out on the campaign trail.

[Titus Marcellus Scato]

I think you're making things way too easy for yourself fighting large bridge battles - taking advantage of the AI's inability to fight such a battle with anything remotely resembling intelligence. It's better to fight battles in the open field, especially with phalangites.

I occassionally fight on bridges, but only with 'rearguard' forces of one or two units - one melee and one missile, to delay the enemy crossing rather than prevent it. Otherwise I deploy my army at the rear edge of the battlefield in such a way so as to let the enemy cross the bridge unhindered, and then fight them once they're across. It's more fun that way, really.

It's also more fun to besiege an enemy town with an army small enough to make the enemy sally out when you end the turn. Fighting them outside the walls is a lot more realistic and fun than fighting inside the town. I only assault if the enemy has a really small garrison of four units or less.