Collaborative Campaign Year 16: Part 2

 Having got myself confused over which Campaign Year we are in (last Post now with a correction), we are back in business with the second of Mark Cordone's games in Year 16 (the Year of the Garrulous Ram. What makes the Ram particularly chatty is unknown).

Picenia, having, against the odds, defeated the Therissan Navy, now prepares to invade the Island state... 

Current Map of the Known World

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Following their victory at Sirens Tower the Picenians landed their army and marched on Potedia, Therissias second city.  The Therissians had placed great faith in their navy and found the idea it could be defeated incomprehensible.  As a result they were unprepared and the cities defences had been severely neglected.  Without a significant garrison no attempt was made to hold the town and the Picenians entered the city without a fight two days after landing.  They immediately began work on repairing and strengthening the defences.

Meanwhile, the Therissians assembled an army and marched north to engage the invaders.  The two armies met on the plain south of the city on the 12th day of the 4th month of the year of the Garrulous Ram. 

Gaius Epidius Marcellus commanded the Picenian army.  With the city in no condition to withstand a siege, and seeking the glory of a victory he decided to offer battle on the open plain to the south of the town.  In the left hand sector he placed the 2nd legion, in the center the 3rd and in reserve the 4th.  All were veteran, disciplined formations.  On the right he deployed the combined cohorts of archers from the legions and in reserve his small ( unreliable) cavalry contingent.  His army totaled 18,000 infantry and 1,500 cavalry.

The Therissians had mustered every available man for their army and had three phalanx's totaling about 20,000 armored heavy infantry.  Two were posted opposite the legions and one was held in reserve.  In addition the Therissian strategos Echestratus had some 3000 cavalry in reserve.  He placed his ( unreliable) peltasts, some 2000 in number opposite the Picenian archers.

It was a warm and sunny morning as the battle opened, but dark clouds promising a storm were gathering on the horizon.

The battle began well for the Therissians as their central phalanx quickly routed the 3rd legion.  Marcellus cooly sent the 4th forward to fill the gap then rallied the men of the 3rd legion.  The 4th proceeded to take advantage of the disordered victorious phalanx in the center and routed them in turn.

Echestratus moved his reserve phalanx to the center then tried unsuccessfully to rally his fleeing hoplites. As this was happening the Picenian archers quickly dispersed the peltasts to their front and loosed a series of volleys into the phalanx moving forward to fill the gap in the center.  However, the hoplites shrugged off the hail of arrows and the archers had to turn to face the threat of the advancing Therissian cavalry.

A prolonged back and forth melee then developed in the center but the superior Picenian tactical flexibility eventually previaled and the Therissian phalanx broke. 

On the right several Therissian cavalry charges were turned back by disaplined and effective archery, and when the central phalanx broke the cavalry fled as well.  The left hand phalanx was then surrounded and forced to lay down their arms just as the threatened storm broke.

The Picenians had won a resounding victory!  Marcellus was awarded a Triumph, but the fate of Echestratus was unknown, he just seemed to have disappeared after the battle.

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Thanks to Mark for another cracking report, and leaving us with a bit of a mystery. 

Can anyone stop Picenia?