Chapter 8
The Sardis Conference
Coinciding with the Ptolemaic Memphis Conference of 270 BC took place the Seleucid Sardis Conference, held in the Asian Minor city of the same name. Present were the grizzled Seleukos Seleukides substituting in for his father Antiochus I Soter, an assortment of Seleucid generals (including the famed Olympikhos Alindeus) who were stationed in Sardis, the newly crowned Pergamene dynast Attalus in the wake of Philhetairus's natural death, the aging Mithradates of Pontus, and a tardy and shaken Antigonus Antigonides whose naval escort barely survived a series of maritime Carthaginian raids. Upon commencement the conference initially took a light-hearted, almost arrogant tone, but steadily became more and more down-to-earth and serious as grave news trickled in.
The Seleucid court scribe had omitted an abundance of off-topic tangents and jokes to record only the most relevant discussions.
"...our victory is certain, and the yellow-bannered and bellied Ptolemies know it. They have, in an act spurned only by desperation, acquired allies around the Mediterranean. However, this dying gasp only delays the inevitable. The great Antiochus marches onto Alexandria as we speak. Nonetheless these aforementioned allies must be dealt with, and their interference repaid in interest. I hereby propose our Grand Strategy: delay these delayers, and my father will take care of the rest. He will off the head of the yellow Sphinx, and the rest of the coalition will crumble. We all have much to gain from the shattering of the Ptolemaic Coalition - let us make this goal a reality!" - Seleukos Seleukides
"...the last Ptolemaic holdouts in southern Asia Minor have been rooted out and defeated. From these urbanized communities we can levy additional men, most notably the Karians and Isaurians, further bolstering our manpower. I should note that these scores of men are well-versed in guerilla warfare, and can prove a match to the fluid armies of Pyrrhus." - Olympikhos Alindeus
"...the Galatian migrations have come to a halt. Formerly marauders, these men have settled down, but now offer their martial might for a hefty price. The three chief Galatian tribes, the Tectosages, the Trocmii, and the Tolistobogii, number well over 30,000, including 10,000 veterans formerly employed by King Nicomedes I of Bithynia. My son Ariobarzanes Kianos has negotiated the settling down of Galatians near Kappodacia to help offset their initial cost of friendship. To add onto Olympikhos's point these Galatians could be recalibrated to fight in formations more flexible than the Macedonian phalanx in order to match Pyrrhus's Italian-inspired soldiers" - Mithridates
"...excellent work by general Olympikhos and Ariobarzanes. As a complement to these fine additions to the Hellas theater or war I have mobilized tens of thousands of cavalrymen from Media, Armenia, Baktria, and the Iranian Plateau, not to mention the innumerable archers that the eastern satrapies pride themselves in fostering. Surrounding the Macedonian core of phalangites and heavy lancers, these auxiliaries, including the Karians, Isaurians, and Galatians, should form a resounding hammer to break Pyrrhus and put an end to the western distraction." - Seleukos Seleukides
"...how exactly are we to fund and transport these men to Hellas? Taxes from sea trade have plummeted due to the blasted Carthaginian blockade. I could hardly imagine how much the Pergamenes and Seleucid cities along the Asia Minor coastline have suffered. In addition, the blockade has rendered naval transportation too dangerous for even small escorts, let alone easily noticeable troop carriers. If we are to ship our allies to the Hellas front, we must address the logistical difficulties presented by the Carthaginian privateers." - Antigonus Antigonides
"...might I suggest the Hellespont Lifeline Doctrine, to address your first point? The Hellespont as we all know is barely 1 kilometer wide. We could exploit this natural feature and construct an artificial landbridge much like how Alexander did in Tyre. This landbridge would not only allow a steady stream of military traffic into Hellas, but also seal off the Pontic Sea from the Carthaginian and Ptolemaic armada." - Attalus
"...interference from the Bosphorans is a likely possibility, according to merchants from Sinope. Exactly why they have chosen to involve themselves in the political bickering of the Ptolemies, I do not know, but they must be stopped. Settling down a warlike peoples in exchange for their military service, I'm afraid, is a common ploy. Should Paerisades do what I did for the Galatians but for the Sarmatians and Scythians we may face a mounted armageddon never before seen. To prevent this I must divert my Anatolian forces towards halting whatever the Bosphorans send south. The Hellespont Landbridge would allow for my diversionary forces to journey west, while my son is currently parleying with that rude Prince Shamush of Hayastan for military access counterclockwise east of the Pontic Sea." - Mithridates
"...which brings me to the Eastern Problem. King Yervanduni of Hayastan is currently absorbing Caucasian kingdoms like a greedy beast. With each forced acquisition his resources and manpower grows. However this burgeoning cancer pales in comparison to the restless Dahaean Confederacy . The wise and peaceful Phrapates has joined his ancestors, leaving behind a new king whose insane ramblings of a new Achaemenid Empire belies his expansionist aims. He is however cunning as he is mad, for he has united all five major clans. Time is no longer on our side - we must act quickly before the expanding borders of these eastern peoples seal off the Seleucid Empire's access to cavalrymen and mines." - Seleukos Seleukides
"...amber merchants returning from the Adriatic have reported a second Celtic migration of a magnitude even graver than that of the first more than 10 years ago. While the majority of them seem to be pouring into Italy, a non-negligible portion is heading southeast. It is doubtful that the mere plains of Pannonia or the mountains of Illyria is what they're after - they've brought alongside them their families and retinue. I fear they aim to ravage Hellenic civilization and settle down in the ruins. However, not all is lost. These Celts are an untamed, wild boar. With careful prodding and nudging we can hope to redirect their path of destruction a little south the heartlands of Epirus. A tragic sacrifice, I know, to point the Celtic beast at the lands of our western Hellenic rivals, but a fitting punishment for their fraternization with the Ptolemaic scourge. Now, to discuss the means to do so, let us shift the conversation towards the art of guerilla warfare..." - Antigonus Antigonides
"...comrade, lend me the maps of Dacia. Yes. Note the crescent mountain range. The bottom tip of the crescent exposes the entrance to Paionia. From there one can choose from a variety of valleys to access Hellas. We need to direct the Celts throw this path here, through diplomacy if possible and through force if necessary." - Olympikhos Alindeus
"...Romans, a new player on the international scene who managed to outlast the great Pyrhhus in a protracted war. Little is known about the true extent of their military power, aside from their ability to keep throwing bodies at Pyrhhus. Now, where they stand in international diplomacy remains to be seen, but the Carthaginian stranglehold on the Mediterranean surely must provoke their ire. Furthermore the Romans and Carthagnians share common expansionist goals, now that Pyrrhus is out of the Romans' way and that those anti-Barcid puppets we've been funding are out of the Carthaginian's way as well. What was it that Pyrhhus said? 'What a wrestling ground we leave for the Romans and Carthaginians'..." - Antigonus Antigonides
The conference concluded on a humbled note, as the delegates recognized the severity of the task at hand and constructed a careful plan. Attalus was to oversee the construction of his hare-brained landbridge, as well as make a diplomatic attempt to convince the Bosphorans to not intervene. Ariobarzanes Kianos was to assemble native Anatolians to fortify both lateral ends of the Pontic Sea, in the worst case scenario where the Attalus's diplomatic ventures fail. In a similar multi-layered approach, Antigonus Antigonides was to meet with the king of the eastern migrating Celts, and negotiate friendlier terms for the Seleucid Coalition. Should that fail, an experimental guerilla army led by cavalryman Seleukos Seleukides and comprised of Medians, Bactrians, Iranians, and Armenians will harass and corral the Celts towards Epirus. Finally, a grand Western Army was organized, comprised of Galatian foot armed with cutting-edge short swords and large thureos shields and arranged in cutting-edge maniples, Karian foot skirmishers equipped with light linothorax and superior thureos shields, Isaurian archers gifted with composite bows of the East, the remaining Indian elephants from Antiocheia, and finally a massive elite cavalry hammer of Galatian nobles, Lydian lancers, Mithridate's Iranian Khuveshagan, Kappodacian lancers, all supported by Galatian retainers, Thracian light cavalry, and Tarentine-inspired horsemen drilled in skirmishing tactics. At the head of this army was Olympikhos Alindeus, who cut his teeth in the Pamphylian Wars against Ptolemy's son. All the while Antiochos Seleukides inches closer to Alexandreia, though his messengers report increasingly stiff resistance from Nabataean raiders and strange riders of unknown origin wielding javelins and employing dazzling mounted tactics.
Plans deployed, the delegates departed to their respective theatres of war. They take some comfort knowing that there is a plan, but are careful not to let hubris overtake them. Unexpected twists and turns lie at every turn in politics and warfare.