[Hegemonia ARR] Athenai: Wars of Democracy

**Kritias** · August 24, 2011, 07:16 PM

Athenai: Wars of Democracy

"In short, I say that as a city we are the school of Hellas, while I doubt if the world can produce a man who, where he has only himself to rely upon, is equal to so many emergencies, and graced by so happy a versatility, as the Athenian."

- Pericles, Funeral Oration. 431 BC.

Welcome to Athens...

What's this AAR about?

The mad gamble of one man, Cleisthenes, who in his desperate attempt to maintain his power and his life appealed to the Athenian citizens promising them active, total participation in their government turned out to be the lasting political institution we came to call democracy. The word itself has magic: Demokratia in ancient Greek means that the political power is wielded by the totality of the demos, the enrolled citizens of the city.

This After Action Report is based on the long-awaited mod Hegemonia:Total War, a mod that travels you back in Classical Greece of 512 BC. But it will go much further than simply narrate the results of a single campaign session. What I envision for Athenai: Wars of Democracy can be better described by the term 'historical novel'. Inside this thread, you will read a complete account of the birth of the Democracy, starting with the overthrow of tyrant Hippias and the revolt of the Athenians against Isagoras; you'll read of Cleisthenes and his radical changes on the way the Greek cities ruled themselves; you'll read of wars, political upheaval, murders, betrayal and of the greatest threat known to the ancient world - the Persian Empire.

What I envision of Athenai: Wars of Democracy is to stand as my own personal tribute to my home city, Athens. I intend to capture the Athenian soul: the arrogance, the bravery, the pathos that drove this city to attempting the unification of all southern Greek city-states under its leadership, by force and by diplomacy, and the audacity to challenge an Empire with a quarter of a million army marching down against them. And I intend to show the brilliance of the Athenians, as I perceive it. There's also going to be tons of role-playing as well as narrative, and POV first-person accounts of the top moments.

Wait... Will this thing be a history lesson or some ancient sci-fi?

Athenai: Wars of Democracy is going to be as historically accurate as humanly possible.I am going to write facts by Attic calendar, describe the greatest festivals and all known events on Athenian history. But that is not to say that I'll be going narrative like the boring history buff you remember from school (you know, the weird teacher who talked in a pre-fixed, slow, never-changing pace of voice!). Some facts are going to be accounted for, but also interpreted in ways I find them interesting and/or plausible.

Um... Will you simply narrate the facts or will we get to read any real-time action?

Both. The historical facts will be laid out in third-person narration but the interesting parts like battles and important History moments will be described in first-person POV (point of viewer). Just to give you a clue, my inspirations are Colleen McCullough's Masters of Rome, Robert Harris's Imperium & Lustrum and Steven Pressfield's novels: I can guarantee you that sometimes what you're going to read will come off as familiar. I'm not a professional writer, even though I inspire to be (and this is going to be my protoleion or "first serious attempt" if you like) so I tend to read a lot of literature, see what I like and then do it, BABY!

What about eye-candy?

There's definitely going to be plenty of eye-candy BUT they will serve as a supplement to the main narrative, not it's core. Just to get a feel of this, the first chapter is upwards four thousand words atm and I have cropped and uploaded about forty pictures to accompany it. That's going to be the going ratio of words vs pictures.

What about updates?

Now, there's the bummer. This stuff is massive and as you can guess already, time consuming. What I can promise you though is a monthly update of the same quality (usually 7-10 Microsoft Word pages of length, plus the extras!).

Will there be any rules?

Aside from God's 'Thou shall not steal" and "History, history, history" I have not laid any other restrictions.

Is it going to be graphic?

In some cases, yes, but strictly within the ToS. In the case I judge my content to be above kindergarten, I'll put that part on spoilers with a warning sign.

Okay, I think I follow. When's the premiere?

The first chapter will go public on Friday 26th.

Finally... Some eye-candy as an apetizer!

Spoiler Alert, click show to read:

Also, a little surprise...

Spoiler Alert, click show to read:

Banners made by Skyn0s (My sincerest thanks!)

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**Kritias** · August 24, 2011, 07:18 PM

PLACEHOLDER FOR DRAMATIS PERSONAE!

**Kritias** · August 24, 2011, 07:27 PM

Chapter 1

Athens, 512 BC

By order of the tyrant Hippias, the polemarchos archon, the elder son of tyrant Peisistratos and ruler of Athens, the ceremonial procession to Eleusis for celebrating the Mysteries in honour of the goddess Demeter would be conducted on the nineteenth day of the month Boedromion as tradition dictated. This decision, thought the Athenian general Xanthippos as he got ready to walk towards the cemetery of Kerameikos accompanied by his family and servants, was both wise and a gamble. The road to Eleusis was a long, uphill hike nearly one hundred stadia away from the city, that ten thousand men of Athens would have to cover on foot and unarmed. Their only defence would be their number, torches to light the way through the night and bacchus branches that would have to be offered in the altar of Eleusis as an appeasement to the grieving goddess. No weapons were allowed in the procession lest the mystes wished to provoke the goddess' wrath on themselves and their city; the Eleusinian Mysteries were dedicated to the magical cicle of life and death and the precence of arms would profane them, even when the city was once again on the brink of war with its neighbors and reports of Megaran precence in the vincinity of Eleusis was regularly brought to Hippias' attention. The tyrant however wanted to put up a display of defiance towards the Megarans by ordering presence on Eleusis to be compulsory. So, despite all feelings crying to avoid presence, Xanthippos set out to prepare himself and his own for the festivities.

The Megarans weren't the only trouble in Hippias' mind. Earlier the same year heralds had come from the Biotian city of Plataia, an old ally of Athens but under Thebes' sphere of influence, to plea for Athenian assistance in expelling the Theban guard from their city. In the preliminary hearing the heralds had gone as far as to promise that their city was willing to defect from Theban dominion, if only the Athenians would guarantee their safety. Since that was an important matter that included the possibility of going to war, Hippias had convoked the popular assembly. True to their calling the Athenian noblemen assembled on the Pnyx, a hill facing the west side of the Acropolis, where the meeting was scheduled to take place. The Plataians talked first, for long and vigorously to motivate the Athenians to a favourable decision, reminding them of the benefits of Plataia joining forces with their city. Next talked the Theban ambassador. Athens, he cried, had no right to interfere with what was Thebes' and marshalled a force of arguments pointing out where the peace treaty signed by the current tyrant's father, Peisistratos, and Thebes' oligarchy would be violated if the Athenians voted to take action. What finally settled the matter was a promise of grain; with their city founded on a rocky Plataiau and their farmers trying to make the most of the limited farming space around mount Egaleo, the Plataian promise to yield one third of their grain to Athens, in exchange for protection against Thebes, clinked the scale in their favour. The assembly voted that same day on a mutual protection pact and the Theban ambassador was asked to leave Athens immediately. That same night, on Plataia, the Theban garrison was ambushed by groups of Plataian patriots and was killed. Athens was now on a collision course with Thebes.

On the way to Kerameikos, the general paid attention to the scores of citizens gathering on the beginning of the Hiera Odos from where, under the guidance of the tyrant and the city's officials, they would set out on the twenty-one kilometre journey towards Eleusis. The men, only modestly covered with a chiton and barefoot to make their climb easier, walked ahead of their womenfolk and children. The elder son followed, dressed similarly to the father if he was above twenty years of age, and then came the wife covered full-length by her peplos. Lastly came the servants, mostly nude despite their gender, carrying refreshments for their masters. They also carried their master's offerings as well as their own; even slaves were allowed to participate in the mysteries. The cemetery was located outside the Dypilon Gate, on the northwest of the Acropolis, past the potter's quarters. The gathering point was set on the public burial monument, a mount in the middle of Outer Kerameikos on top of which a marble statue of Pshyce was erected, to watch over the souls of the dead. It was around this monument that all important Athenians were buried. It was there, between the graves of his father and brother, that Hippias was waiting for the noblemen to assemble. Next to him were the polemarchos basileus and the eponymous archon, the elected officials of the city, locked in a spirited conversation. Around them but further away were scores of Athens' eminent citizens where Xanthippos himself sought refuge.

The procession began at noon, after the rites to purify the dead had been conducted and the priests had retrieved the sacred items from the Eleusinion, a small temple dedicated to Demeter at the eastern footing of the Acropolis. The crowd had to walk through the Lower City and past the wooden palisades surrounding it through the Sacred Gate on the western side led by Hippias on horseback, the reminder of Peisistratos' house - all womenfolk, save Hippias – and the city officials and their families. Once outside the precincts of the city, the real journey to Eleusis began. For hours the men walked on a twisty road, spread across Attike like a snake, now turning left and now turning right followed by the womenfolk and the servants who were lumbering behind. Being a long and difficult road through Attike's mountainous landscape the men kept together in groups. Xanthippos, who was a supporter of the radical reformation proposed by Kleisthenes, walked along Megacles and Neocles, the garrison commander of Deceleia, who shared in his feelings. Further ahead was Hippias surrounded by his bodyguard, unarmed for this one occassion despite the tyrant's increasing fear of assassination after the murder of his brother some years earlier, and accompanied by supporters of his regime. The most rigorous of those, Lykoleon, who was also the tyrant's greatnephew from his mother's side was fixated in conversation with Hippias.

The procession reached the gulf of Saronis in early afternoon, several hours before expected. The talk of war and the fear of attack had made everyone restless and anxious which enabled a quicker pace – just the one thing Hippias had not thought possible. So, instead of leading a bunch of jittery and edgy Athenians outside the walls of Eleusis, Hippias ordered the purification rites be taken at the sea instead of Eleusis' footing. Men and women bathed at sea and then were cleansed of their sins by a band of marauding priests, walking among the Athenians and chanting in an archaic, unintelligible Ionian dialect.

Properly rested and cleansed the procession began again, this time keeping close to the coast. It was nearing sunset when they reach the Eleusinian Cave, which was thought to be an entrance to the Underworld, that also signified the end of the greater part of their journey. Right across it, upon the summit of the mountain was the temple of Eleusis. Since it was already nightime when the climb began torches were ordered lit and carried by slaves in the sides of the staircase. On either side of this steep ascend were pine trees between which the ancients had planted effigies of Hades and Demeter. Ahead of them were the gates to the temple of Eleusis, decorated with elaborate mystic symbols. Once inside the mystes would begin the mysteries that reassured them of their safer passage to Hades and to a peaceful afterlife.

*********
The day following the official ending of the Eleusinian Mysteries found Athens in a war fever. By order of the city magistrates the forts around Attike had been relieved of their garrisons and the hoplites had set camp in the district of Paiania. Inside the city's palisades the men were assembling in the weapon silos. The richest citizens of all districts around Attike were commanded to provide for those Athenians who could not properly arm themselves. Inside the Acropolis a council of war was to be held.

Hippias walked around the walls of the citadel followed by his generals in full armour on and a group of state secretaries who kept note of everything that was being said. "The wooden palisades need strengthening," he commented pointing towards the eastern side of the city, in the location of the districts Diomea and Agrae. When Megacles retorted that strengthening the walls would serve the city well in case of a siege, Hippias' gray eyes danced with joy. "I should hope not," he told him, "because that would mean you are dead and my army destroyed." In a similar mood the tyrant walked and handed out jobs; Xanthippos and Kleisthenes were to remain in Athens with him, a precautionary measure in case the democrats thought to take advantage of the Theban War to pull him down from power. His own greatnephew, Lykoleon, would take a force of one thousand hoplites and several hundred psiloi and cavalry and meet up with Aristeides, the Athenian commander of Plataia, with orders to defend the city. And Megacles would lead an invasion force inside Boiotia to challenge the Theban army directly. In the meantime, a fast dieres was to be dispatched from Peireus destined for Eboia; aboard, it carried orders from Hippias for general Aristoboulos to make sure that Eboia is not contested by Thebes in any occasion. Along this plain letter came a portion of the treasury to ensure that Aristoboulos had everything he needed to make certain his force outnumbered any Theban landing expedition.

The twin armies departed the city mere days after the official declaration of war between Athens and Thebes. Since war was a religious matter for all Greeks and proper form ought to be kept when declaring one, Hippias had adequate time to tutor his protege – and some claimed his lover, too, for the boy was clearly buggered by someone – on matters of war. To Hippias' joy, the boy had a sound military mind; once his force was assembled, Lykoleon set up immediately for Plataia picking up squadrons of marines from the garrison of Peireus and a hundred of Athenian light cavalry from the demos of Oeneis. His plan was to initially march his army west towards Megara, in case the Megarans harboured thoughts of invading Attike, then turn northwards over the mountain range of Cithaeron separating Attike from Plataia. The second part of his plan was to move himself between the city of Plataia and the armies of Thebes so that the enemy would be forced to give a field battle instead of him having to defend a town from assault. Afterall, Lykoleon thought to himself as he watched over his ten hundreds of hoplites marching west of Athens, his men where more than a match to the Theban hoplites.

Further away, on the demos of Antiochis, the army under Megacles marched towards the Theban border. From the beginning of the war planning, information had been piling up indicating that the main mass of the Theban army was to be located in central Boiotia. As the Athenian army closed on the borders with Boiotia, the reports of an army operating in the vicinity grew in frequence. Feeling that this was his chance of bringing a Theban army on the field, Megacles forded the river Alopus early in the month Pyanepsion, piercing into Boiotia proper. Once inside enemy territory, Megacles ordered the Boiotian villages he happened to pass by burnt and looted, sparing only those villages which declared for Athens; to those the general instituted a tax of three hundred drachmae or, when the villages could not gather the sum, a levy of Boiotian hoplites. Thus strengthened Megacles continued his march against Thebes encountering no resistance as he went.

The reason why Megacles met no Theban army was because Leontiades, one of Thebes' generals and elected archons had chosen to march for Erythrae, a small demos located on the footing of mount Cithaeron. The Theban army had marched swiftly and silently, killing those of democratic sentiments as they went so that their intentions would not be known to Megacles. Thebes itself run a low risk of being overrun by no matter what size of an enemy force; the city was built as a fortress and could withstand sieges amounting many times its defenders numbers. When Megacles was informed by an escaping Boiotian of Leontiades' intentions, he found himself grasping thin air. Greatly vexed over him being outmanoeuvred, Megacles ordered the Boiotian villager be granted a bag of silver drachmae to aid his escape and ordered the Athenian army to redouble its march westwards to Plataia along the course of river Alopus, where no doubt the Theban armies were massing for a joint assault against the Athenian forces stationed there.

In western Boiotia, Lykoleon was feeling confident. He had moved his Athenian and Plataian forces from the city and sat them comfortably around the delta of the river Parasopii where he expected any army coming from way of Thebes to penetrate into Plataia. A second contingent was dispatched to guard the mountain passes leading to Leuctra and Thespiai in case the enemy tried to attack him from the rear. He had also taken precaution to ensure that the supply lines from Attike would continue to reach him by positioning garrisons in the four villages on both sides of mountain Cithaeron. Erythrae and Eteonus he had also equipped with runners to alert him in case of an approaching Theban army, while the villages of Isus and Eleutherae were ordered to construct river boats that could carry news down the river Alopus and then up the Plataian river Parasopii. Though he had not receive any word from any of the outpost villages, Lykoleon grew restless and wary by this awkward inactivity. A Theban army was sure to come his way yet... it didn't. So, on the seventeenth day of month Pyanepsion Lykoleon dispatched his cavalry to scout the plains around the river and report back to him. What his scouts discovered had Lykoleon gaping for air; a Theban army had reached the village Eteonus, which they proceeded to burn and kill the Athenians guarding it, then moved on to Erythrae which suffered the same fate with the sole difference that the Athenians this time were questioned. Leontiades, understanding that the tactical advantage had been lost and that there was an army waiting for him past the river, chose to turn northwards to the mountain passages leading to Thespiai thus bringing the tally of Athenian forces he had outmanoeuvred up to two. But before Lykoleon could break camp and begin the march to Thespiai he was caught up with Megacles and his forces, bringing up their total force to two thousand hoplites and another two thousand auxiliaries.

Between them and hungry to settle the score with Leontiades, the two generals decided on a new approach on tactics. So far they had both been outfoxed by the Thebans, something that bore ill for the outcome of their expedition in Boiotia. Therefore they would have to smarten up their game. "The only way they will offer battle," said Megacles grimmly to his younger peer, "is to trick them. Else we will spend this war season chasing them up and down Boiotia." Thus it was decided; Megacles would cross the river again and pretend to be marching against Thebes while Lykoleon would cross the mountain to the north and burn Leuctra to the ground before proceeding to besiege Thespiai. But then Megacles would turn around the mountain range himself and also turn against Thespiai thus pinning Leontiades in place. Thus agreed, the generals parted camps and began their march in different directions.

Lykoleon, who wished to provide his colleague with enough time to get to position was in no rush to get to Leuctra. He rested his soldiers regularly, covering a mere fifteen miles per day. On the nineteenth of Pyanepsion he crossed the mountain range and positioned himself to storm the city of Leuctra. Its defenders, composed by citizen militia and a couple of hundred of Theban hoplites left there by Leontiades, gathered up in the city's acropolis, a mount on the far side of the city, and began fortifying it. Terrified of the vast Athenian army camped before their gates they worked fervently until the early hours of the next day when, to their shock, they discovered the Athenian army had slipped away into the night. In place of the Athenian camp was just a pile of smouldering ruins. Content with his stratagem, Lykoleon ordered his hoplites to pick up the pace; they had only a week before Megacles and his army were in place and a lot of ground to cover in the meantime.
Megacles was also content with his current pace. Since Megacles wanted his men to be fresh and battle-ready when they swung northwards past the mountain range so he had the soldiers marched near all day under the motivating sound of the floute and rested all night. A moderate march. However, fearing that Leontiades might caught on to what they were doing the column of soldiers marched with hoplites protecting the two flanks of the army, the psiloi ranged in the middle and the cavalry to scout up ahead. It was this precaution that saved Megacles' army from crushing unsuspecting against the Theban army that marched their way. The scouts came galloping back to the main column to inform the general of enemy presence. Immediately the Athenian army deployed in battle array, covering the space between two unsurmountable objects; the river on the one side and the mountain range on the other. Alarmed over this development, Megacles ordered his men to stop and begin utilizing the natural landscape to create a camp; that was mistake number two.

Phrynon of Thebes, the first citizen of the city, had no idea that an Athenian army was lying in wait for him ahead. The Theban strategy was to employ Leontiades' army as a decoy, luring the two Athenian armies over the mountain passages where the Theban army and its Thespian allies would attack, while he would lead another army from Thebes to swoop in and storm Plataia. It seemed as an excellent plan until Phrynon spotted dust raised in the distance; thousands of soldiers running and taking place. Immediately understanding he was walking into a trap, he flew the battlefield to reinforce Leontiades. Of course his hasty departure could not be missed by the Athenians. Sworn never to be outmanoeuvred again, Megacles ordered his soldiers back into march formation and began the chase. The two armies began a series of manoeuvres and counter-manoeuvres over cross country in an attempt to force upon the other a field battle. Finally, after four days of serious action Megacles relented the chase to give his troops a rest, allowing Phrynon to escape towards Thespiai.

Leontiades sat troubled on the agora of Thespiai, an elevated plateau that offered some visage of the countryside beyond the city walls. His army had managed to escape conflict twice in a row, a fact which filled him with confidence about his tactical skills but he was increasingly growing restless of playing games with the Athenians. His hometown had given him strong mandate to defeat the enemy in good time before an expedition could be launched in Attike and Eboia.The finer points of his oration he had given on the assembly back in Thebes made his course of action clear; capture Chalkis to control the strains of Eboia while pushing south through Plataia to Megara. The city, the arch-enemy of Athens, would wellcome Theban presence and they in turn would wellcome the opportunity of having an overland ally in the Aegean as well as a share on the vital trade that made both Athens and their next-door neighbors, the Corinthians, rich.

"I am sure my stratagem will work, Diadromos," said Leontiades to the chief of the Thespians seated next to him. The Thespians had promised him assistance in the battle that was to come and they worked hard to deliver; for a poor city located on the slopes of several mountains, with limited farmland and no connection to the sea, they were doing the best they could to survive in a hostile world. Winders were always hard in this altitude, and the rugged terrain made for tough and brave men who fought with no consideration for their life; they had nothing to lose, after all.

For a long time Leontiades had gone silent and Diadromos of Thespiai looked to his side to see what troubled his companion so. But instead of finding him looking thoughtful, Leontiades had stood completely still. His nostrils suddenly flared. "Look!" he cried pointing at a spot in the horizon. "Diadromos, summon your men! The enemy is upon us!" Diadromos looked stupefied towards where Leontiades was pointing to see a mass pillar of brown dust raising in the distance, where he knew where the town of Eutresis was. He had gotten on his feet and was about to call his men to arms when Leontiades stood and looked as if had been hit by a lighting bolt; on the far side of Thespiai where the mountain range of Helicon provided a natural border between the city and Thessaly were two more pillars of dust climbing to the heavens. "They have us surrounded!" said Leontiades beyond himself, guessing that the new arrival must be hostile. What came next was a cascade of horns and men yelling orders, the stamping of men running to assemble in their units and the alarmed cries of the townspeople who run to their homes to take cover. Leontiades, fastening his boiotian helmet that allowed him vision and better perception of sound, run down the steps of the agora to the house of Diadromos, commandeered by the Theban officers, and alerted his comrades of the incoming battle. Only moments later the roads of Thespiai were a mess of men running hither and thither, all trying to assemble outside the city walls.

*********
The Athenian force under Lykoleon reached Thespike on the midday of the eleventh day of month Pyanepsion and set camp thirteen stadia from the town of Thespiai, near the lake Ylike and its river. Knowing that inside the enemy city was not just the Theban army he had chased through mountain Cithaeron but the Thespian army as well, Lykoleon decided that his surest strategy was to stall. He knew that the force led by Megacles would soon join with them and he guessed the enemy had no will to fight him immediately. Instead, he ordered wooden palisades be erected along the riverside to protect the flank of his camp and set his soldiers on foraging and hunting expeditions to feed the army. In addition to these orders Lykoleon sent heralds to Thespiai to demand the withdrawal of the Theban forces from the city. The response was graphically negative.
The next morning the course of the battle yet to be fought turned unexpectedly. Further away from his position, in the south, two new armies had appeared approaching. It was the turn of the Thebans to send heralds.

Memnon, a nobleman from Thebes and too old to be fighting as a hoplite, walked as far as the first line of palisades constructed carrying the white flag of the crier and demanded to see the Athenian commander. Provoked by his young age, for Lykoleon was under twenty, and the heroic epics he had been tutored not so long ago the commander shouted from behind his walls that he would not see any emissary of Thebes. "Go back, Theban!" he cried, "There can be no understanding between us and you. You threatened us with war. Now on your heads be it!" His mission a failure, Memnon shrugged and walked away.

*********
The battle of Thespiai, 13th of month Pyanepsion. Below follows the account of the battle as witnessed by Timomachos, son of Pandion, lochagos of the Athenian Agema of logades, also nicknamed as agema "Rhadamanthus" :

"My unit is called "Rhadamanthus" after the judge of the dead in the underworld; when the agema takes the field, the opponent we choose to fight against is about to have a short appointment with the judge.

The field our commander chose to give his fight on was a mountainous plateau far away from the river we had sent camp to. Of course the adolescent thought that giving up an advantageous position that would have covered our left flank would mislead the Boioteans from his real skill. I must say I did not take well having a beardless youth as my commander in chief, nor did I appreciate his comments on my cousin Megacles on dinner table, but I have -grudgingly- accepted that Hippias chose him for a reason. I can't presume I know the reason, but I cannot ignore the fact that the child showed some balls taking three armies alone. I was there when the messenger from Megacles arrived and handed him the message. Megacles had chased the Theban army from one end of Thespike to the other and his men were exhausted; he informed us that he would give his troops a proper rest before he took to the field and advised us to keep to our camp in the meantime. I still can't believe how easily Lykoleon crushed the letter in his fist, then summoned the army heralds and ordered battle positions.

We set out to our positions with first light. There was a lot of marching to be done and no time to waste while doing it under the vigilant Thespian outlooks but we had managed to cover the greater part of the road before we got spotted and the alarm was raised. We all knew that, from that point onwards, battle was inevitable; we were some stadia away from the safety of our camp, closer to the city than the river, and we knew how fast Leontiades could summon his forces. But none of us, officers and rankers alike, wished to cower away from combat. Soon after the seventh hour we saw the piles of dust raising in the horizon and with it, we were warned of a massive army of Thespians and Thebans moving against us. We weren't exactly where the commander wanted us to be, I knew from battle planning, but when Lykoleon saw the field he was content. "This is good ground," he told us. I recall many of the men scoffed; with us were senior officers like Amphilochos and Euribiades who had fought under Peisistratos against the Megarans twenty years ago. At the time, I too shared their feeling.

There's nothing I have experienced that compares to a fight of hoplites. One could even describe it as competition instead of a battle; there's no stabbing or slashing like the barbarous tribes in the north do. There's only strength. Of will and of character as two armies descent upon another in a run and then push, push, push. And when in the midst of battle two fighter pick each other up and wave their spears at each other menacingly... But I digress.

The place we finally were to give battle on was a grove of olive trees upon a slight hill. We took our positions in a straight line atop this position so that we would be trotting downhill once the heralds gave the command. My unit was placed on the left, the spot of honour in any phalanx, where we expected the enemy soldiers elite would be, too.

The wait before the battle is the strangest thing. Everything smells of piss and , as men have to relief themselves where they stand. Nothing can disrupt the formation. Not even our sensitive attic noses. I remember my men packed together, their shields overlapping, as they waited for the enemy to approach us. We could see them coming. We could hear them. But they were further away than we thought because no matter how long we waited, there was a visage of an army marching but never coming our way.

A bugle sounds. The order is given. We march forward.

We will meet the enemy in the olive grove. A good portent for us. There, surrounded by the gift our patroness, Athena, once gave our ancestors in return for our worship of her we fight the enemies of our city.

We are fifty stadia from the enemy. From my position to the left of my men I can see the enemy's patterns on their bronze shields. I can see the plumes of their helmets. We hear their unintelligible boiotian cries, their hymn. The men Lykoleon has hired around Platea, Boioteans from around the city sing ,too. The men of my unit begin their singing in clear, pure Attic; a song of victory, an incantation to Apollo. I find myself chanting the epithets along my men: Apollo Alexikakos, Epikurios, Archegetes.

Thirty stadia. I can see the enemy clearly now. They still walk against us as we walk against them. The front ranks lower their spears and wave them hither and thither. We sing to Apollo, we cry for victory, we swear at the Boiotians against us. With the ide of my eye I see
the right wing slightly walking ahead of us. Without even ordering, the men of the centre begin a trot. We follow suit.

Twenty stadia. Before us stands the bulk of the Thespian garrison. Somewhere in those files is the Thespian archon, Diadromos. We can hear the commands coming from their ranks, their brash doric. Suddenly, their entire line jolts forward. A bugle is sound again. Flutes play the pean. The entire line cries 'Athena Pallas!' right before lunging forward. We run.

How can I describe a battle? The clash of shields? The quick stabbing of swords? The push of men from all around you? Inside the phalanx you are trapped with nowhere to go. All around you are spearheads sthrusting and swords flashing. We crash against the enemy in full run. Men all around me fall, either dead, injured or just tripped over by the pushing tide of armoured men. My helmet is blocking my sight. I cannot see the enemy spears that crush against it, making this hideous sound of ringing inside my head.

Against us fight the Thespians. They are good, brave soldiers. Most of the men I see are fighting covered by their shield alone; they have no breastplates, no greaves. Just their shields and helmets. I feel profoundly relieved when I catch a glimpse of Anaximandros at my side; he is a man from my tribe, whose suit of armour I paid from my own purse as I did for fourty other men from Kolonos, my village.

All around me are the red plumes of Athenian warriors and the silver plumes of the Plateans. We are pushing them back! I can hear the cries coming from our right but I cannot take my eyes from the Thespians still in front of me.

In the heat of battle I hear the cry of a man I know well; Euribiades, the commander of the unit next to mine, cries louder than two hundred men screaming in anger or pain. "I killed Diadromos!" The Thespians in front of me seem confused; my men cheer. Suddenly we run downhill, hacking and slashing the enemy as they flee. I turn my head to my right and I see red and silver plumes running down the hill while yellow plumes scattering in front of them.

There's more cheering! Up the grove the Theban logades are surrounded by our hoplites and our Boiotian allies. Someone shouts that Leontiades is killed; the men before us stop running and turn to retrieve his body. We follow in pirsuit.

The last remnants of the enemy army leave the field. My men are too tired to pirsuit them. I fall down to the ground, struggling for air. My men throw their helmets down, too. As I lay on all fours, I look around me; I have never seen so many dead. Further away, I see some soldiers in bronze breastplates stacking bodies up the hill of the olive grove. We have won the battle!

The same night envoys were sent from Thespiai to demand some hours of truce on the following day so that we can both bury our dead. I am in the command tent when they arrived and I am pleased to say young Lykoleon accepted this most honourably. I guess I thought him to be a lesser man."

Here ends the account of the battle of Thespiai.

**Ganbarenippon** · August 25, 2011, 07:31 AM

As someone who has gone the historical route in my own AAR (although it would be fair to call mine pseudo-history!) I wish you luck. I'll be waiting for the first instalment. Consider me onboard!

**SavageFeat** · August 25, 2011, 03:59 PM

yes me too but can you make the writing darker it is quite hard to see

**Kritias** · August 25, 2011, 06:48 PM

Chapter One is up!

Next chapter: Cleisthenes' Conspiracy!

**Diomede** · August 25, 2011, 08:25 PM

Haven't managed too read it all yet, but very well done. Wow.

**ReD_OcToBeR** · August 26, 2011, 02:24 AM

holy crap!!!.

I too havent read it all yet, but wow major awesome starting post!!! The pics are great too +rep

**Ganbarenippon** · August 26, 2011, 08:56 AM

That was wonderful! Consider me subbed. + rep

**Nebulon** · August 27, 2011, 09:52 AM

It was a cool AAR! +rep

Thought i saw one historical flaw i think, the Phalax Formation was not invented untill the battle of Plataea?

Just wonder

Great AAR!

**ccgr1121** · August 27, 2011, 05:16 PM

... wow!!!!!!

Consider me subbed. Have a rep as a reward.

Also,

he had balls

everything stank of piss and

Not very Greek, but I like it!

**Kritias** · August 27, 2011, 06:36 PM

Firstly to all you guys, thank you really! It's great to have such a positive reception.

@Clix: You're right! But I wanted to convey "the line of hoplites" idea with just one word and 'phalanx' popped into mind.

@ccgr1121: Actually, from all the Greek city-states, the Athenians were the most fixated on the male genitalia. Something to do with symbolizing power and dominion or something. Check this out!

As for the soldiers excrement all over the battlefield, I thought it added some gritty feeling.

Also, a little spoiler for chapter 2:

Spoiler Alert, click show to read:

Lastly, guys, if you have any observations that will make my AAR better then please post! Thanks!

**ReD_OcToBeR** · August 27, 2011, 06:57 PM

OMG.. next update looks to be awesome.

**Diomede** · August 27, 2011, 07:49 PM

The only thing I can think of is to double check spelling and grammar, but any mistakes are so few and far between... so who cares? Only a nitpicker! Or a perfectionist. If you're the latter, then fair enough.

**Nebulon** · August 28, 2011, 09:04 AM

Awsomeness....

**ccgr1121** · August 28, 2011, 09:59 AM

*snickers uncontrollably while trying to type and failing miserably*

Indeed. However, one must remember that the Greeks were all gay...

**Skyn0s** · September 02, 2011, 12:08 PM

Just excellent !
Great Work, sir Kritias

+ rep

Skyn0s

**Antiokhos Euergetes** · October 14, 2011, 12:43 PM

Fantastic, you know your history. Will you be conquering factions? Or just defeat them and leave them crushed?
Be nice to have some contemporay art and quotes throughout also - like the Epitaphios Logos one you used at the start.
I am going to enjoy reading this