Couldn't agree more Bramborough. Sounds like a very sweet setup. I went for Hellas several times, but always by way of conquering Knossos and leaving the spartans alone. This increased my travel time substantially and when I eventually did go after the greeks they tore more than one half-finished legion to peices on the water because of it. THis method seems far superior, and with a little luck you might be able to do it without conquering all of greece first, just get the needed buildings up quickly before moving against the major factions.