Battle for the Silk Road - a Baktrian AAR

[Pelopidas]

How do you activate this cheat ?
Seems that " aut-win " alone doesn't work.

I'm really interested, for the same reasons, thoses infinite armies of three pantopadoi...

[Warmaster Horus]

Great AAR, Sheep! Can't wait for the next chapter!
About the auto win cheat, it works like this:
-press the tilde key (directly under "escape" and left of "1")
-type in auto_win
-add at the end: attacker(if you're attacking) OR defender (if you're defending). Generally you put in attacker during your turn, and defender when it's not.
-however for AMBUSHES, it's the reverse. If you're ambushed (your turn, logically), the enemy is attacking, and to win the battle the cheat is: auto_win defender
If you ambush(the AI's turn, supposedly), the enemy is defending, the cheat is: auto_win attacker.

Especially don't forget the "underline"(_).
Also, you can use it pretty much without cheating, for when navies clash (you're forced to auto calc it, which may give some rather absurd results) or when you've got a force of 10 units, and the other has 3, just use auto win, especially for EB (long loading times... GAH!)

Also, Sheep, the losses of your troops are those you would normally have when having a "clear victory" from the auto_calc (I think...)

[Pelopidas]

Thanks for the tip.
I wouldn't use this to win battle I can't win, only for the same problem that Sheep as, especially with the Seleukids and those stinking armies of three levies who came every year at your walls, that a human player could beat without a single loss but the AI get hundreds of casualties when auto-calculating...boring :]

[Warmaster Horus]

Of course, that's why I use it. I don't think it should be considered that much of a cheat. Neither is toggle_fow, unless you look all over the map.
Others though... create_unit, give_trait, add_money... that's purely cheating.

[Sheep]

I use toggle_fow to take screenshots of the map for this AAR, but you'll notice the red trapezoid is usually off in the ocean somewhere, so I can't see anyone's armies.

[Sheep]

Chapter 4 - Invasions in the East

(242 BC)

So, you've come to spend another winter in Baktra, have you? How long has it been? Seven years? Quite a while then. Sit, traveler, and break bread with me. I shall tell you what has happened in our kingdom since we last met.


Diodotos Baktrios, King of Baktria and the East

It has been a very trying seven years. When last we spoke, I told you of my vision for Baktria's future. Sadly, a lot of those plans have gone by the wayside. If anything, we have less territory than when I took the crown.

Oh yes, I am truly Basileios now. My father died the year after you last departed. But what a life he lived! And when he finally passed, it was as a free man, under the thumb of absolutely nobody.

I cannot say if it was a coincidence, but at around the time of my father's death, our kingdom began to come under increased pressure from the Arche Seleukeia. Whereas the previous three years had been a time of peace and building, all of a sudden Theodoros' armies were everywhere! Not a season went by without a minor skirmish, and my sons were kept very busy rushing from one end of the realm to the other. Our kingdom was a horse being tortured by uncountable little biting flies!

Our satrapies of Margiana, Aria, and Drangiana were in a constant state of hostilities. However, it was not long before a much greater threat emerged.


Menekrates Assou Troikou, Seleukid general

Menekrates Assou Troikou, as you know, is one of the greatest generals in the entire Empire. He led an army into Drangiana only a few months after my father's death. It was not a large army by the Empire's standards, but dangerous enough. My son Agathokles skirmished with this army, but did not kill too many of the enemy, although he did drive them from the field. His hetairoi fought briefly with Menekrates' men, but sadly did not finish the job. Menekrates escaped back to the west.


Baktrian (right) and Seleukid heavy bodyguards battle in Drangiana (248BC)

Two years later, he returned with an even larger army and headed into Aria this time. He attacked Agathokles' army in the field. Apparently a few volleys from my son's Dahae mounted archers convinced Menekrates to sound the retreat and sent his men running back to Persia once again. We heard that our Egyptian allies recaptured Memphis from the Empire around the same time, so perhaps he was called back into service in the west. In any case, we have not seen him since.

As an aside, I believe I neglected to mention the arrangement I have made with the Dahae tribes that live on the border of our lands and those of the Pahlavi. We have been recruiting them in Margiana for a number of years now. Their mounted bowmen are superb and have become an indispensible feature of our armies. And they have remained extremely loyal, unlike the steppe mercenaries we had been recruiting before! I truly cannot say enough about my Dahae archers. My hetaira here is no doubt getting quite tired of hearing about them. I'm sure you have noticed her. Exceedingly beautiful, is she not?


Dahae horse archers in the Baktrian army fire on Seleukid troops in Aria (246BC)

Although Theodoros was not successful in capturing any of our satrapies or defeating any of our armies, we saw the effect that his constant invasions were having on our kingdom. One winter evening my middle son Heliokles proposed a new strategy. Instead of using his army to swat Theodoros' flies, he proposed to bring the fight to the enemy and take his army into the Empire itself!

It was a radical plan but I saw its merit. By raiding the Empire's lands, we drew their forces out of our kingdom. And perhaps Heliokles could even sack one of their cities and bring the treasure home to Baktria! After a few days of consideration with my advisors, I agreed to my son's plan. With my youngest son Demetrios as his lieutenant, he left the following spring and headed west into the mountains of Astauene. His force was small, as he planned to move quickly and avoid major battles. He had only his hetairoi and those of his brother, a single troop of heavy hippeis, two companies of native phalangitai, about the same number of archers, and a sizable contigent of Dahae horsemen.


Heliokles Baktrios, Prince and Commander of the Second Army of Baktria

Again, it may have been a coincidence, but it was only a short time later that disaster struck. A horde of Saka barbarians appeared on our northern border, heading directly for Alexandreia Eschate. We were caught completely off guard! After my son's smashing victories against the barbarians thirteen years before, we had not seen so much as a single horseman on our lands, and the threat from the west seemed much greater. With Heliokles in Astauene and Agathokles far to the south, the barbarians moved unimpeded towards the city and made camp outside its walls.


Last stand of Pantaleon Peukalaios against the Saka horde in Alexandreia Eschate (244BC)

No doubt my sons would have wiped them off the map, but it was left to the husband of my niece, Pantaleon Peukelaios, and his garrison to defend the city. They held out until the snows began, when the barbarians decided they would rather winter inside the city than outside its walls. The Sakae, though unused to siege warfare, managed to construct a crude ram and break into the city. Pantaleon's men made their last stand before the shattered gates, but the barbarians' numbers were overwhelming. Though they fought to the last, Pantaleon and every single man in his garrison were slaughtered. The barbarians now controlled one of our cities!


Saka horde celebrating the capture of Alexandreia Eschate from the Baktrians (244BC)

When the news of the defeat reached the capital, I immediately sent for Agathokles, who was all the way south in Drangiana. He marched northwards as soon as the snows ended, leaving some of his men behind to guard the southern satrapies. Meanwhile, I was busy recruiting more men in our northern lands to augment his forces when he got here. By the summer, he had reached Alexandreia Ariana and hoped to be in Sogdiana by the end of the year. However, it was not to be.


Agathokles Baktrios, Crown Prince and Commander of the First Army of Baktria

As Agathokles moved through Aria, he received word of a huge army, this time from the west! It was the largest single army led into Aria since the time of Megas Alexandros himself, and was led by Theodoros' own son, Gennaios Syriakos! We had no choice but to delay our recapture of Alexandreia Eschate and fight them then and there. If my son kept moving, we might gain back Alexandreia Eschate, but we would lose Alexandreia Ariana! And from there it was only a short ride to Baktra itself. There was no time or money to raise another army, and no other experienced general nearby to lead it. No, there would have to be a battle if we wanted to keep our kingdom, that much was certain.

I sent my recruits south to join my son's army. With the reinforcements, my son's army was quite large, with a great many phalangitai. These men were approximately two-fifths Hellene, with the others being local landowners from around the kingdom. There were also about half that number of our versatile archer-spearmen to protect the flanks of the main battle line. About the same number of Persian archers and slingers provided missile support. Agathokles himself rode to battle at the front of a troop of hetairoi, as did his longtime lieutenant, Mithroaxos Argeion Baktron, and Kleander, a grandson of Patroklos Marakandaios. His cavalry also included a troop of heavy Baktrian hippeis and a great many Dahae.

Antialkidas Marakandaios, second son of Patroklos and garrison commander in Alexandreia Ariana, met my son with his garrison of archers and spearmen, but even with their numbers added to his, Agathokles' army was still outnumbered by Gennaios' forces. It was not the best situation, but my son knew that he was our only hope. If he lost this battle, he lost our kingdom!

But the story of the battle will have to wait until next time. My hetaira is getting bored and I must attend to her. You understand. Perhaps tomorrow we can talk again, traveler.

----

Next time: The Second Battle of Alexandreia Ariana. Will Baktria prevail? Will Diodotos' exceedingly beautiful prostitute be able to sit through the whole story? Find out in Chapter Five!

[Wolfman]

May Athena Guide you in battle and Ares drive your enemies before you.
This AAR Is one of the best I've read. Keep it up Sheep.