The Serpent Shield (Getian AAR)

[Morte66]

I found myself wondering whether my strange serial horse archer raid on the Basternae was an exploit. It seems to me that it only worked because they had no walls, and that it would work in reality on a town with no walls. If there's anything dodgy about it, it's that the AI didn't build a palisade after the first few raids. But as the EB website says, I have brains and the AI has money. If I don't get to do serial raids on unwalled towns, they shouldn't get a garrison of nine units in a town that can support two or three.

[Morte66]

265BC, First Day of Spring, Inside Gáwjám Bástárnõz

Dizo son of Zalmodegikos, to King Oroles near Olbia:

My father the king is dead. Long live King Oroles!

I would like to say that father died in battle, as we shot the last of the chieftain’s javelin cavalry then charged in to finish them. But it is not so, he died in the winter in his sickbed and your Koson barely survived the same illness. We took the town, my nephew and I, only a month after father died. I’ve had his body frozen in ice – we found a Skythian who knew how from their steppe tombs – and I’ll return it to the royal tombs at Buridava.

Your son is recovered.

I send you this our father’s journal, my king. It contains plans and insight that may interest you. Know that we have barely managed to quell unrest in the town with our small numbers. I was of a mind to put Gáwjám Bástárnõz to the sword in my grief, but our father wanted to build and recruit here. So, I can hold it but I will need to stay here for a few months.

I am at your command.

[Ower]

nice AAR.

[Pelopidas]

By " can't stand " I mean that I think they stink, the Dacian bodyguards... :p
Perhaps they are just not in my way of arfare, I don't know.

[Rilder]

By " can't stand " I mean that I think they stink, the Dacian bodyguards... :p
Perhaps they are just not in my way of arfare, I don't know.

Yea I generally hate horse archers in general, but when you Combine a Horse archer & General they are quite usefull allowing you to get some kills with your general without actually putting him in danger.

[Morte66]

263BC, Summer, Naissos

I am Oroles son of Zalmodegikos, king now for two years and two seasons. Now that I have done some deeds worth telling, I will resume this tale. Learn it well, my bard.

My father died a raging, angry man. He felt the bloodlust and flew into battles, even after he himself had called them unwise. I like a good slaughter as much as the next man, but I master my temper better than my father.

My father achieved his greatest goal: he took us out of one tribe’s land, and made a nation. It is not yet mighty, but it was viable when he passed it to me and I have grown it.

In that spring when Gáwjám~Bástárnõz fell I took stock. Enemies were few – some bandits had appeared east of Buridava. Of the chiefs, I am the talker and my brother Dizo is the organiser. My son Koson is the gladiator. Dizo’s son Brasos, who came of age soon after, is a tough lad and canny with it. I wonder how he’ll turn out. None of us were tacticians like my father.

My course seemed clear: build the kingdom, and expand judiciously. I’m not messing with those stone-walled Crimean cities yet, nor am I going out onto the great steppe where the Sauromatae are masters of lands barely worth having. South are good lands and Getic peoples, but like my father I would rather avoid creating a border with Macedon for now. North and west are poorer lands, with non-Getic peoples, that will absorb gold and slow nurturing before they bring reward. But there was one southern province, Thraikia Hypertera ruled from Naissos, that I chose to conquer. Rich mines might be dug there, and it was far south as I could go without meeting Macedon.

It took almost a year to march the various troops across our new nation to Buridava, with no roads most of the way. More are being built now that we’ve established governments. In spring, the four chiefs assembled there to remember our father. There was some exchange of retinues, and then the four of us went out for a hunt. The bandits proved to be two bands of Celtic archers and some falx men. We feinted around, and kept the foot archers moving so we could shoot while they did not. They routed like rats before a dog, and two hundred brigands died for three of our men. My father would have enjoyed it.

Then we took the infantry to Naissos, which is another town with no walls. Well, either my father was a far better general than me or there is something in the water at Naissos. We shot all our missiles, with quite good angles and many kills. The phalanxes went into a street with safe flanks, and a mixture of cavalry and skirmishers killed and broke them. I could not make sense of it. They did not fight as long or skillfully for me as they would have for my father. I have yet to earn their trust.

Just before a shock defeat

So I was left with no melee troops and no ammunition. We withdrew, I called up more infantry – we are recruiting our first troops since this journal began at Buridava and Sarmiszegethusa – and I spent two seasons raiding the town with our bodyguards.

It was a bitter spring. My son Koson feinted at some falx man in the square to turn their backs to my bow, and he feinted too close. He is buried in the town, I have named Dizo’s son Brasos as my heir.

In summer the infantry came up and we took the weakened defenders of Naissos.

Now I think I will turn north, to take the lands along our western border. My father ignored them since they were poor and needed investments we could not make, but there is money now. And they are close to Sarmiszegethusa, which provides our best infantry for now.

It has not all been marching and war. Now there’s gold and proper government I have ordered basic improvements: walls where needed, then roads for strategic movement, then various improvements to attract citizens and keep them healthy. The days when single cities of the Romani or Macedon outnumber our whole nation must end. And you need people if you’re to recruit troops. Which reminds me: soon I must choose between Sarmiszegethusa and Buridava as our troop town. One has a start on the buildings, the other has the faster-growing population. I will ask Dizo, he’s clever about this sort of thing.

I was glad Tarsa could arrange an alliance with the Sauromatae. They’d be a hard group to conquer, and make poor provinces if I did. It’s better to ally with them, at least in my lifetime. We also had a visit from a diplomat of Baktria, which is beyond the people who are beyond the sea that is beyond the Hai who are beyond the Black Sea. I’m surprised he wasn’t old and grey. His nation makes a blue blob far off on the right of our map.

Diales the spy has gone northwest, for a better look at the mines of Carrodunum, and discovered a people called the Sweboz just beyond them. They are a small nation rather than a big tribe and so a threat of sorts, but far off. I’ll keep my eye on them for now.

[Morte66]

262BC, Winter, Singidunum

In spring I raised a very capable captain called Kallindrones to be chief of Naissos and left for Singidunum. I besieged it with a token force. The chief came out to crush us, and would surely have done so if we fought as he expected. But we just fired all our arrows then slunk off like foxes, while two hundred of his men fed the ravens. My time in Skythia has taught me some tricks… We stormed it properly in autumn when the infantry arrived. It was easier with the defenders weakened.

This is my first non-Getic province (Skythia could have been integrated but I chose not to). Here it is all Celts, but their way of government will be fine if they clear things with me. It’s only a minor place, I mostly conquered it to build a road.

As I drank from the old chief’s skull, I heard there were bandits north of Olbia and more near Gáwjám~Bástárnõz. I’d just spent a year marching away from there… I had the soothsayer whipped. I sent Dizo. Olbia can build some horse archers (my first) and Dizo will lead them then govern for me.

As for governing, my days of leading the whole host and all the chiefs in war together are over. The nation is too big now; we need a separate northern army and governors. I should put in cheap garrisons, keep some standing cavalry that can move around fast, and keep some coin in hand for mercenaries.

Tarsa met a diplomat of the Lusotana in the wilds of the German lands. They exchanged trade rights, and maps. That must have been a laugh. Tarsa bought the Sweboz maps without showing ours. The have two provinces and their armies face west, so I’m not worried about them.

261BC, Winter, Western Scorcouw Winter Camp

The bandits are all dead. Dizo holds Olbia for me. Brasos has a knack for recruiting so he’s in Sarmiszegethusa.

The Romani besieged Patavium this year. They failed, but they’re creeping this way. Soon I will have a border with them if I like it or not. I had best choose it myself. So I will take Segestica and Dalminion, on the coast to the west. They are not the most impressive towns, but they have narrow passes to north and south that can be blocked by forts. And I could build mines in either. And they are both coastal, with a port in Segestica. Dalminion will also give me a border with Epeiros, but they are my allies and they are very busy fighting Roma and Macedon so I’ll take that risk.

We started on the mines in Naissos; they will pay for the conquest and I have been gathering troops here to invade in spring

My agents have been in Gaul. The Romani have just made a pact with the Averni, and I immediately allied with their enemies the Aedui who seem stronger. I am pleased to hear that the Romani armies in northern Italia are heading west.

Hard power blocks are forming, with overlapping alliances. One is Roma, Macedon, those merchants from Africa, and the Averni. The other is the Getae, Epeiros, the Koinon, and now the Aedui. There will be a storm soon.