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Thread: New Town (Carthage AAR) [updated April 3, 2021]

  1. #241
    Alwyn's Avatar Frothy Goodness
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    Default Re: New Town (Carthage AAR) [updated June 6, 2020]

    Thanks for your kind comments!

    Quote Originally Posted by Kilo11 View Post
    Ah, this dude thinks he knows something, but I am not convinced of his estimations. He thinks he's being clever by not underestimating his enemies, but he's only taken that one layer deep; if he really thinks Astarte is clever, then he should also realize that she'd realize these things, and then act accordingly.
    You're right that Astarte is clever and capable of predicting how her enemies will perceive the moves she makes. The reference to the famous scene from The Princess Bride is a good one!

    Thanks, this is useful feedback. You're right, I tried to do too much in the first sentence. I hoped that readers would be intrigued by the identity of the young woman in the first sentence (and might guess that it was Lissa), but it would have been better to identify her there, rather than in the third paragraph.

    Quote Originally Posted by Turkafinwë View Post
    I really wished I was in the Winking Maiden, sounds like my kind of establishment.

    Intrigued to see who fell for one of the classic blunders. (that is indeed a great scene)
    Thanks, I'm glad you liked the setting. I was going to make the Winking Maiden a shabby dive bar, but decided to do something different (and enjoyed imagining an enterprising Galatian who is getting wealthy by offering a commercialised version of his culture).

    Quote Originally Posted by Welsh Dragon View Post
    As ever I enjoy the way you're approaching this story, not bound by simply reporting the events of the campaign but looking for the stories behind them and reflect the views of the period. Women are often seen as weak and underestimated by some even today, so its good to see Astarte pulling the wool over the Sardes eyes. She is much more than just a princess. Or as one Rome 2 household member puts it. "Weak as a woman's magic? No. Wicked as a woman's magic!"
    That's a really good line, which could be the basis for a story-line in an AAR in itself. Thanks, yes as women's roles are limited in Carthage, I wanted to explore what Astarte could do and of course diplomatic missions are something they can do in the game (as you said, this is about the story behind in-game events as well as attitudes of the time). It's good to hear that you like the use of messenger gods as code-names too, I enjoyed creating that detail.
    Last edited by Alwyn; June 27, 2020 at 06:56 AM.

  2. #242
    Alwyn's Avatar Frothy Goodness
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    Default Re: New Town (Carthage AAR) [updated June 6, 2020]

    Chapter 48
    Our Little Thermopylae
    By Lissa, daughter of Astarte



    Jona Lendering (Livius.org), CC0 license, source

    When an army of the Sardes advanced on Antioch, a Carthaginian army marched to help the people of Antioch defend their city. Astarte, emissary of the Carthaginian Emperor, had persuaded the Seleucids of Antioch to side with Carthage. When the militia of Antioch marched out to support the Carthaginian army, they tipped the balance in favour of Carthage. But the Sardes had agents inside Antioch who knew where we were staying. Without the city’s militia, we would have to look to our own defences.

    When we arrived in Antioch in a trireme with a company of elite Sacred Band marines, we were only allowed to bring four marines into the city as bodyguards for Astarte. When anyone sees men in purple tunics under their armour carrying spears and shields, they know they’re looking at the Sacred Band. As a marine in ordinary clothes looks like an ordinary man, Astarte could bring more marines to our villa than the four which were officially permitted. They smuggled their armour and weapons into the villa in a cart, under a pile of goat-hides. When a mob surrounded our villa, the gate was defended by ten marines.

    The mob’s leader demanded our surrender, saying that his men could throw javelins over the wall until all of us were dead. The captain of the Sacred Band replied that his men were a little cold, and javelins would be very suitable as wood for a nice warming fire. Then he motioned his men to stand next to the wall, so the javelins passed harmlessly over their heads and clattered on the paving stones of the villa’s courtyard.

    When people talk of Thermopylae, they remember the defiance of the Spartan hoplites who fought a vast army. People remember their martial skill, courage and a refusal to surrender, even when the battle was hopeless. But Themopylae was about cleverness as well as courage. Leonidas, King of Sparta, chose to defend the narrowest point of the pass of Thermopylae. Like Leonidas, the captain of the Sacred Band marines knew that he was severely outnumbered. But, like Leonidas, he also knew that his well-trained hoplites could defend a narrow point against light infantry.

    When people discuss the heroism of the Spartans who remained as the rearguard at Thermopylae, they often tell the story as if the Spartans fought alone. But Thespians and Thebians fought alongside them. Our marines had allies too. The villa where we were staying in Antioch belonged to a wealthy Carthaginian merchant. A rich merchant doesn’t stay wealthy unless he’s prepared to protect what he has. The merchant’s guards defended the gate alongside our marines and some servants took up a staff or a cleaver to defend their home.

    When people talk of how Thermopylae ended, they remember the traitor, Ephialtes, who showed the Persian invaders a path which enabled them to outflank the rearguard of King Leonidas. Our villa had only one gate, but a ladder against the wall could provide another way in.

  3. #243
    Welsh Dragon's Avatar Content Staff
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    Default Re: New Town (Carthage AAR) [updated June 27, 2020]

    Well that's an ominous cliffhanger if ever I saw one....

    Can't wait to find out what happens next!

    All the Best,

    Welsh Dragon.

  4. #244

    Default Re: New Town (Carthage AAR) [updated June 27, 2020]

    Ominous indeed. I am also having some fun imagining what in-game event this is. I keep bringing to mind a siege with like only one defending unit and two or three (weak) attacking units. It sounds quite interesting.
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  5. #245
    Turkafinwë's Avatar The Sick Baby Jester
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    Default Re: New Town (Carthage AAR) [updated June 27, 2020]

    I really liked this one. The comparison between Thermopylae and the current battle hit all the right notes and the cliffhanger, as Welsh Dragon and Kilo11 have already pointed out, is ominous leaving a tense feeling in my gut.

  6. #246
    Alwyn's Avatar Frothy Goodness
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    Default Re: New Town (Carthage AAR) [updated June 27, 2020]

    Thank you, Welsh Dragon, Kilo and Turk! Here's what happened next...

    Chapter 49
    The Emperor’s Daughter



    The Harbour Gate at Antioch

    To Admago, Emperor of Carthage

    Your daughter, Astarte, may have saved the lives of the men under my command. However, I must regretfully inform you that Astarte is missing.

    For our new alliance with the Seleucids and for the warning that the Sardes were going to war, all Carthage owes a debt to Astarte and her daughter, Lissa. Their diplomatic mission to Antioch enabled them to warn me that the Sardes were about to march on that city, in an attempt to sever our major eastern trade route. Their diplomacy was vital in persuading the Seleucids of Antioch to ally with us instead of the Sardes.

    Tomorrow, I will lead my army against a force sent by the King of the Sardes to besiege Antioch. Their well-armoured pike infantry and their excellent cavalry could defeat my men, most of whom have never seen battle. If Astarte’s diplomacy causes the Seleucids to fight alongside us, this should turn the tide in our favour.

    My finest spy entered Antioch, to see if he could make contact with Astarte. However, when he reached the villa where she had been staying, near the Harbour Gate, he found a fire-scorched ruin. There were pieces of hoplite armour and spear-heads in the ash where the villa’s courtyard had been, so her Sacred Band bodyguard may have made a final stand there.

    However, there is a small reason to hope. A local Galatian tavern-owner, a friend of the Carthaginian merchant who owned the villa where Astarte was staying, reported that a mob burned the villa. This tavern-owner said that one of his servants saw a long-haired figure being led away from the villa by armed men in civilian clothing. It may be that some of their Sacred Band bodyguards managed to lead Astarte or Lissa away from the villa to escape the mob. The bodyguards might have removed their armour so that they could hide in a crowd.

    After the battle tomorrow, I hope to report that our Seleucid allies have held their capital, Antioch, and that the army of the Sardes is destroyed. After that, I will do my utmost to find your daughter or to obtain more news of her. Whatever I discover, I shall send a report as quickly as I can.

    From Garafin, commander of the Defenders of the Egypt, south of Antioch

  7. #247
    Turkafinwë's Avatar The Sick Baby Jester
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    Default Re: New Town (Carthage AAR) [updated June 27, 2020]

    Yay! Alwyn the Great returns!

    A great battle is about to ensue and is sure to decide the fate of the war and of Astarte and Lissa. Pray that Garafin's unblooded troops and their newfound Seleucid allies can defeat the well-prepared Sardes.

  8. #248

    Default Re: New Town (Carthage AAR) [updated March 6, 2021]

    This is great to see Alwyn. The update is short and clear, and does exactly what it needs to in an engaging but simple manner. I like it, and I am super happy to see you back at your writing desk (where you should have been all along; no more administrative tasks for you mister. You are a writer, and you will write!).
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  9. #249

    Default Re: New Town (Carthage AAR) [updated March 6, 2021]

    Hey Alwyn, if you post another update, I can nominate you for the current MAARC... Just saying
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  10. #250
    Alwyn's Avatar Frothy Goodness
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    Default Re: New Town (Carthage AAR) [updated March 6, 2021]

    Thanks for your kind comments!

    Chapter 50
    Remember Memphis



    Companion cavalry in the service of the King of Sardes


    As the Defenders of Egypt marched from our camp towards Antioch, a young hoplite called out to his company, “Remember Memphis!” and they cheered. He must have seen no more than twenty summers; he would have been an infant when the battle was fought. I was at Memphis and I was honoured that my men took comfort in the stories of that victory that were passed on to them.

    Most of the men who fought beside me at Memphis and in my campaigns in Iberia and Illyria have retired to their farms or craft-halls. Today I command their sons, another force of young men who haven’t marched under a hail of javelins or braced against charging horsemen. It seems that the fate of Carthage’s generals on our Egyptian frontier is always to lead men to their first battle – and yet the lesson of the Battle of Memphis was that raw recruits can defeat veterans. Today, I hope they can do so again.

    At Memphis, we needed to win, because if we lost, the enemy would control the fertile lands of Egypt, without which Carthage would have gone hungry. That threat remains today: if my army is broken, the Sardes can sweep through Egypt and march west towards our capital. Carthage’s best armies are very far from here, fighting Germanic warriors in the northern forests or steppe horsemen in the eastern plains.

    As at Memphis, my army includes Egyptian archers who could inflict heavy losses on the enemy’s heavy infantry. However, at Memphis we had superior cavalry; today, that advantage is in the hands of the enemy. I have hope because, while we fought alone at Memphis, today the Seleucids of Antioch will send their militia to support us – at least, I hope they will. Astarte, the daughter of our Emperor, negotiated a treaty with the Seleucids. However, when the villa where Astarte was staying was attacked by a mob, the Antioch militia didn’t arrive to defend her – and I don’t know why. As they failed to defend Astarte, perhaps they will fail to arrive today. If they don’t appear, I am not confident of victory.

    Perhaps the enemy general is thinking of history, as I am. His pikemen and Companion cavalry would have been familiar to Alexander the Great. My cavalry scouts reported that the enemy have many Companion horsemen. Each Companion wears a heavy cuirass and carries the xyston, a long spear. In many battles, Alexander’s Companion cavalry delivered a hammer-blow to enemies who were fixed in place by a line of pikes.

    As in our war in Iberia, we are learning to use the weapons and tactics of our enemies. Two-thirds of my cavalry now carry a long spear, similar to the xyston. Even so, the enemy Companions will remember the victories of Alexander – and the memory of past victories can give men the confidence they need to win.

    Note on the Battle of Memphis

    In case anyone is wondering about it, the Battle of Memphis was reported in Chapter 34.
    Last edited by Alwyn; April 03, 2021 at 06:36 AM.

  11. #251

    Default Re: New Town (Carthage AAR) [updated April 3, 2021]

    Interesting stuff. Horses and spears are all well and good, but they still ain't no match for a pointy stick, if it's long enough. I've got faith that the Carthaginians hold their own in this one
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