The year of 514 (262 BC) ended with great festivals celebrating the 10 years of the Alliance of Hellenes. In all the poleis throughout the Koinon the date was celebrated, and rivalries were put aside for a few days.
By the end of the winter, Doros left Mytilene with most of the Alliance Army (a small garrison had stayed in Lesbos) in the direction of Pella, hoping to aid the Spartans in the siege.
He didn't arrive quickly enough, though. Before Doros could desembark, the Makedones tried to break the siege while the Alliance Army reinforcements hadn't arrived. It was an even battle in numbers, but Antigonos Argeades, the Basileos, had highly trained men and incredible experience leading armies. Both Eudamidas and Damasos were second-rate Spartan nobility, and had stayed under the shadows of greater men up until this point, having little leadership experience. This was their chance to prove themselves.
The enemy's phalanxes were one of the biggest worries of the Spartan commanders.
The first priority in the battle was to merge the 1st and 2nd Spartan Armies into one huge fighting force. This was easily achieved while the Makedones were forming their phalanxes.
The Makedon Basileos charged our hoplites foolishly and where quickly encircled.
Antigonos Argeades, Basileos of Makedonia, was dead. The enemy's formation went downhill from this point, and the solid merged Spartan Armies killed the barbaroi one by one.
Kratetos Argeades, the brother of the dead Basileos, ran from the battle and returned to Pella with the few Makedones that survived.
Pella was still under siege, but it was now doomed to fall.
Back in Athenai, new military facilities were under construction.
And new recruits were being trained to replace the levies of the Athenian Army.
In Demetrias, the old plan of improving the walls was put into practice. The Makedones wouldn't attack it anymore, but what about the Epeirotes?
A fleet for the Spartans was built in Mytilene by the order of Hegemon Akrotatos.
It was ready half an year later, available to the orders of the Spartan Council.
The assault on Pella began as soon as the Spartans had regrouped and the siege equipment was ready.
The last Makedon rider watches as the Spartans conquer the city.
The population of the city was expelled as per orders of the Spartan Council.
When Doros desembarked with the Alliance Army, it was to return to Demetrias to see his father, Chremonides, and to await further orders from the Athenian Council.
In Pella a Tyrannos was put in power...
...but not exactly a local one. The Spartans knew if they gave a Macedonian such title he could easily lead a revolt and declare himself Basileos of Makedonia. Instead, an outsider would be put as Tyrannos. The man chosen by Eudamidas and Damasos, commanders of the Spartan armies, was Damasos himself. Eudamidas was already a King of Sparta, while Damasos had no hopes of ever becoming one. Damasos was now Tyrannos of Makedonia for the Koinon, and Basileos for the locals. Rumors say he wrote a letter that began with: "This is the story of how I became the most important man in Hellas..."
Could Damasos be trusted?
A watch tower was built to the east of Pella, and another to the north, in order to scout for any barbaroi or epeirotai invasions.
The Epeirote invasion happened somewhere else. Pyrrhos besieged Thermon with his Royal Army, certainly aware of the growing influence of the Koinon. This would put the two new powers of Hellas very close to direct confrontation.
Pyrrhos wasn't the only one expanding his kingdom. In Anatolia, the Seleukids and even the Basileos of Pontos were besieging independent poleis. Nikaia fell quickly, while Pergamon is still resisting.
The current situation of Hellas, with Pyrrhos's Royal Army outside Thermon, the Spartan armies garrisoned in Pella and the Athenian and Alliance armies in Demetrias.
Re: Koinon Hellenon: Athens X Sparta (.org X TWCenter), a participative AAR - Athenai
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