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Res Publica: A Quest of Ancient Rome

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Excerpt from the journal of Quintus Atellus
March 18th, 84 BC
670 Years After The Founding Of Rome
The Year of Asiaticus and Cinna.
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To lead armies into battle is to lead men to war. To lead an army one therefore has to know its men, understand them and their like. As I serve Rome under the eagle standard, I have met tribes and men of different breed and unique manners.

Those who would foolishly oppose the might of Roma Invicta. Those who keep her dear to heart even as they die for her glory. Those who wish be spared from her teeth. Those who seek shelter under her wings. Those who fight for her coin and nothing more.

My father would often speak of the tribesmen and barbarians of the rolling hills in far away Hispania. Where once the Punics held sway over the lands, they founded many cities or so he would say. A place where men of Roman stature would settle and toll their fields.

And he found all of these tribes of men among his enemies in the provinces, as well as under his imperium.

The hillsmen of Hispania he described as sturdy and proud, defiant even in front of the masters of the world. For the good of their tribes they would serve nonetheless against their fellow countrymen and take measure of the land for the X Legion Hispania Invicta. Those who fought to escape the grasp of Rome battled my father with grim determination, slinking back into their hills moments after striking.

Their grudges were as deep as their hills tall. Grudges against their fellow countrymen, grudges against their masters in Italia.

Service in the VI Legion Gradivius has sent me to the hills Samnium and as I would fight the Pentri and the Hiperni, as I stormed Aequum Tuticum and Aeclanum and scaled the walls of Nola, even as I listened to the elders and the wise men of the Samnites, I would hear my father's words ring true again and again.

I saw Iberians and Punics in Samnites, as I fought Gemino I would recall my father's exploits, told so long ago, as I judged the guilty in Bovianum I would recall the festivities my father had been invited to.

Even now, as I serve in Asia against the Hellenes, I see the shadows of the Punics in the men of Sardis and I wonder, if it is the hills and the cities that connects these tribes from one end of the world to the other? That proved the lessons and stories of my youth true and tested?

Does this then mean that to know a man one needs to know his lands and home?

I have led Roman legionaries to battle and I found myself succesful then. I knew their hearts, for I am myself a son of Rome. I have lived on Roman soil and I have lived in Rome, so I understood and knew of their plights and their dreams.

I have led Samnite warriors to battle and saw no defeat. I knew little of Samnium as I entered it, but they were born of Italia the same as me. They lived in the hills the same as the Iberians my father told me.

I have led Gallic riders to battle and trampled my enemies under the hooves of our horses. I do know nothing of Gaul, for I have never seen it and my father would never talk of their lands. It must be a cold and freezing land, fitting their ferocity, their dark woods being ruled by wolf and bear.

I do not know their lands, but I learnt of what they craved. Glory in battle, coins to bring home.

To understand a man, knowing their lands cannot be all there is to it then. Iberian and Samnite cannot be alike just because both call hills their homes.

Speaking to Herakleo, the Greek mercenary, I find little in common with Theo. Where my slave is small and thin, crafty and quick to make the men laugh and love him, the black bearded man is rough and big, dangerous and commanding. To see them is to wonder if they both can be Greeks.

I have watched the Greeks under Herakleo, and they seem nothing alike. Exalted Alexander and his far flung conquest brought Greek men to every corner of the east, and there were always Greeks in the west. Their lands must be as diverse as they are, and yet they are all Greek. Herakleo holds command over them, but even a man far travelled as him could not have seen all the lands of the Greeks.

Is it then as simple one Greek knowing another Greek? They may not talk completely alike, but it's still unmistakeably Greek. They have heard the same stories of the heroics of the past.

But Iberians and Samnites to not speak the same tongue, nor do they think themselves alike. Their stories are not the same. Still, I could see the shadows of the former in the latter.

What does it then mean to lead Roman armies into battle? A Roman of Italia, or from Africa or from Hispania or from Asia, they come from different lands, same as the Hellenes of Herakleo. Is it the Roman tongue and the light of Rome that keeps them Romans? But what of the Samnites and Iberians, of the Punics and the men of Sardis?

Does it not stand to reason that a Roman of Africa knows find more in common with an African when the hillsmen of distant lands can be seen in each other?

How does one keep sway over Roman legions and armies then and how does the Republic and her lands keep together? I find myself pondering this as I serve in civil war and lead Roman armies against the Greeks of the East and their Roman brethrens.
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It's around 922 words, I think. Not sure if I had a point with this, but it's a journal, thoughts may wander. Besides, I'm just really happy to see Atellus back, so I wanted to write something.
 
Man am I glad to see this back. I've been listening to the History of Rome podcast and I couldn't help to think about this quest when I got to the Late Republic stuff. The altered Marius-Sulla conflict is going to be a real nail-biter! Hopefully we don't end up on some proscription list down the line but I wouldn't bet on it. Now, for the plan:

[X] Plan Drilling, Food and Sleep
-[X] Reward the Officers: The camp officers, the prefects, even the other Tribunes -- these men have served finely and with distinction these last months, from Samnium to Sardis, and deserve reward. The officers range from plebian to patrician, so there is no class divide here, merely one of rank. There are, you are well aware, men with decades of seniority in the legions who, unlike the centurions Pompolussa and Carcellus, do not appreciate being placed under boys years their younger. Some coin might soften their harsh feelings on the matter, you imagine.
-[X] Run Drills: Over the next few days, you gather with Cassianus in the dim pre-dawn outside the city to run your troops through your paces. It would do well for you and him to be better prepared to work together, and for your troops to be well-oiled come the fight.
-[X] Requisition Rations: It might cost some silver out of your own pocket, but you pay to have enough food gathered out of the city to treat your men to a better breakfast than to which they are generally used. They might die soon, after all.
-[X] Rest: You have been marching for days, and the life of a tribune is busy and hectic. It dawns upon you that you have not had a proper night's sleep in quite a while. Perhaps you should get one for a few days.

Basically Vae Victus but I don't personally think drilling the cavalry is more important than the de-facto commander of the legion getting a good night's rest before the battle. Sleep deprivation is a bitch. In regards to the reward, Marius really put us on the spot but I don't feel comfortable with giving it to anyone else due to the current tensions between the patricians and the plebeians and our stewardship sucks so I don't wanna risk bungling dividing the treasure. Luckily, additional rations, aside from benefitting us in the upcoming battle, might take the sting out of depriving the regular infantry of what Marius promised them.
 
Adhoc vote count started by Nurgle on Aug 29, 2020 at 8:33 AM, finished with 96 posts and 26 votes.
  • [x] Vae Victus
    [X] Plan Well-Oiled Machine
    -[x] Reward the Officers: The camp officers, the prefects, even the other Tribunes -- these men have served finely and with distinction these last months, from Samnium to Sardis, and deserve reward. The officers range from plebian to patrician, so there is no class divide here, merely one of rank. There are, you are well aware, men with decades of seniority in the legions who, unlike the centurions Pompolussa and Carcellus, do not appreciate being placed under boys years their younger. Some coin might soften their harsh feelings on the matter, you imagine.
    -[x] Run Drills: Over the next few days, you gather with Cassianus in the dim pre-dawn outside the city to run your troops through your paces. It would do well for you and him to be better prepared to work together, and for your troops to be well-oiled come the fight.
    -[X] Assemble The Officers: Your legion's lifeblood is it's centurions, it's prefects and it's soldiers. Making sure they work well together and can improvise in the heat of battle is important. You will do something unorthodox and spend several hours a day drilling the officers alone.
    -[X] Rest: You have been marching for days, and the life of a tribune is busy and hectic. It dawns upon you that you have not had a proper night's sleep in quite a while. Perhaps you should get one for a few days.
    [X] Plan Romans, One and All
    -[X] Reward the Legion: You try to reward everyone equally, but there is not an equal amount to go around. Some will get more and some will get less, it is the way of things. You will try to use your skill for coin to apportion things as fairly as possible, and if that fails, perhaps your charisma will be enough to paper over the cracks.
    -[x] Run Drills: Over the next few days, you gather with Cassianus in the dim pre-dawn outside the city to run your troops through your paces. It would do well for you and him to be better prepared to work together, and for your troops to be well-oiled come the fight.
    -[x] Requisition Rations: It might cost some silver out of your own pocket, but you pay to have enough food gathered out of the city to treat your men to a better breakfast than to which they are generally used. They might die soon, after all.
    -[X] Rest: You have been marching for days, and the life of a tribune is busy and hectic. It dawns upon you that you have not had a proper night's sleep in quite a while. Perhaps you should get one for a few days.
    [X] Plan Preparing for Maeander
    [X] Reward the Officers: The camp officers, the prefects, even the other Tribunes -- these men have served finely and with distinction these last months, from Samnium to Sardis, and deserve reward. The officers range from plebian to patrician, so there is no class divide here, merely one of rank. There are, you are well aware, men with decades of seniority in the legions who, unlike the centurions Pompolussa and Carcellus, do not appreciate being placed under boys years their younger. Some coin might soften their harsh feelings on the matter, you imagine
    [X] Run Drills: Over the next few days, you gather with Cassianus in the dim pre-dawn outside the city to run your troops through your paces. It would do well for you and him to be better prepared to work together, and for your troops to be well-oiled come the fight.
    [X] Reconnoiter The Battlefield: Though Marius is no doubt doing this himself, you send some of your fastest riders to ride around the likeliest crossing points of the Maeander and get the lay of the land. In a pitched battle like the one which likely awaits you, knowing the lay of the land might be very valuable.
    [X] Ask Around: You send some troops to interview the local villages and towns about the general layout of the lands near the Maeander for anything which could be advantageous or useful in the coming fight.
    [x] Vae Victus
    -[x] Reward the Officers: The camp officers, the prefects, even the other Tribunes -- these men have served finely and with distinction these last months, from Samnium to Sardis, and deserve reward. The officers range from plebian to patrician, so there is no class divide here, merely one of rank. There are, you are well aware, men with decades of seniority in the legions who, unlike the centurions Pompolussa and Carcellus, do not appreciate being placed under boys years their younger. Some coin might soften their harsh feelings on the matter, you imagine.
    -[x] Run Drills: Over the next few days, you gather with Cassianus in the dim pre-dawn outside the city to run your troops through your paces. It would do well for you and him to be better prepared to work together, and for your troops to be well-oiled come the fight.
    -[x] Run Cavalry Drills: The cavalry is exactly as important as they pride themselves on being. The deadly italic horsemen have won many a battle that seemed lost, and as your cavalry mostly sat out the battle at Sardis, you want them in particular well-oiled and ready for the coming combat. As well, it never hurts to ingratiate yourself with the Cavalry prefect, Dolabella.
    -[x] Requisition Rations: It might cost some silver out of your own pocket, but you pay to have enough food gathered out of the city to treat your men to a better breakfast than to which they are generally used. They might die soon, after all.
    [X] Battle Prep
    -[x] Reward the Officers: The camp officers, the prefects, even the other Tribunes -- these men have served finely and with distinction these last months, from Samnium to Sardis, and deserve reward. The officers range from plebian to patrician, so there is no class divide here, merely one of rank. There are, you are well aware, men with decades of seniority in the legions who, unlike the centurions Pompolussa and Carcellus, do not appreciate being placed under boys years their younger. Some coin might soften their harsh feelings on the matter, you imagine.
    -[x] Run Drills: Over the next few days, you gather with Cassianus in the dim pre-dawn outside the city to run your troops through your paces. It would do well for you and him to be better prepared to work together, and for your troops to be well-oiled come the fight.
    -[X] Assemble The Officers: Your legion's lifeblood is it's centurions, it's prefects and it's soldiers. Making sure they work well together and can improvise in the heat of battle is important. You will do something unorthodox and spend several hours a day drilling the officers alone.
    -[X] Reconnoiter The Battlefield: Though Marius is no doubt doing this himself, you send some of your fastest riders to ride around the likeliest crossing points of the Maeander and get the lay of the land. In a pitched battle like the one which likely awaits you, knowing the lay of the land might be very valuable.
    [x] Bring balance to the (Roman) Force:
    [x] Reward the Equites
    [x] Run Drills
    [x] Run Cavalry Drills
    [x] Reconnoiter The Battlefield
    [X] Plan Drilling, Food and Sleep
    -[x] Reward the Officers: The camp officers, the prefects, even the other Tribunes -- these men have served finely and with distinction these last months, from Samnium to Sardis, and deserve reward. The officers range from plebian to patrician, so there is no class divide here, merely one of rank. There are, you are well aware, men with decades of seniority in the legions who, unlike the centurions Pompolussa and Carcellus, do not appreciate being placed under boys years their younger. Some coin might soften their harsh feelings on the matter, you imagine.
    -[x] Run Drills: Over the next few days, you gather with Cassianus in the dim pre-dawn outside the city to run your troops through your paces. It would do well for you and him to be better prepared to work together, and for your troops to be well-oiled come the fight.
    -[x] Requisition Rations: It might cost some silver out of your own pocket, but you pay to have enough food gathered out of the city to treat your men to a better breakfast than to which they are generally used. They might die soon, after all.
    -[X] Rest: You have been marching for days, and the life of a tribune is busy and hectic. It dawns upon you that you have not had a proper night's sleep in quite a while. Perhaps you should get one for a few days.
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Vae Victus Has 17 votes.
 
I'm a bit late to propose my own plan and while Vae Victus strikes a nice, safe balance between our ongoing issues, a part of me feels it is not bold enough. The strong point of VV is that it spends two actions (Cavalry Drills & Rations) to make sure all parts of our legion feel acknowledged. It sacrifices the chance to gain some scouting intel and it narratively ignores that Quintus, a 19 year old, just saw the highest roman authority brutally execute & crucify young boys. The former would probably best be addressed by getting into contact with the locals / sending out scouting parties and the impact of the witnessed atrocities might be cushioned by some well-earned rest. Unfortunately we do not have sufficient action slots to properly deal with all these issues. In short Vae Victus makes sure the legion is as well prepared as it could be, but we are going into this battle strategically blind and mentally taxed.

In an attempt to be a bit bolder and to try and weave these issues into the narrative I would propose switching out the Rations for meeting Marius!
1) Increased rations would definitely ease some of the backlash from the reward distribution, however we are at 9/10. I think we can afford to take a small reputation hit. (Maybe let Cassianus make some inroads with the common soldiers)
2) The description of the "Meet Marius" action has significantly changed, indicating an increased chance for at least a range of partial successes.
3) Even just being in the room, when battle plans are drawn up and scouting information is reported, should boost our potential to make a splash in the upcoming battle.
4) We have only seen "public" Marius. The dominating third founder, the ruthless general, the humble father figure. The opportunity to interact more closely with the man, might allow Atellus to see a glimpse behind the curtain.
5) It's Marius, as in Marian Reforms, are we never gonna take the chance to try and learn something from the greatest military mind alive? If we truly aspire to greatness, we can't keep letting this option pass us by.

[x] Plan Rome Invicta
-[x] Reward the Officers: The camp officers, the prefects, even the other Tribunes -- these men have served finely and with distinction these last months, from Samnium to Sardis, and deserve reward. The officers range from plebian to patrician, so there is no class divide here, merely one of rank. There are, you are well aware, men with decades of seniority in the legions who, unlike the centurions Pompolussa and Carcellus, do not appreciate being placed under boys years their younger. Some coin might soften their harsh feelings on the matter, you imagine.
-[x] Run Drills: Over the next few days, you gather with Cassianus in the dim pre-dawn outside the city to run your troops through your paces. It would do well for you and him to be better prepared to work together, and for your troops to be well-oiled come the fight.
-[x] Run Cavalry Drills: The cavalry is exactly as important as they pride themselves on being. The deadly italic horsemen have won many a battle that seemed lost, and as your cavalry mostly sat out the battle at Sardis, you want them in particular well-oiled and ready for the coming combat. As well, it never hurts to ingratiate yourself with the Cavalry prefect, Dolabella.
-[x] Meet With Marius: You are quite intelligent, but that does not mean you are smart. Despite yourself, you use what influence and clout you have to try and force your way into Marius' inner circle and consult with him on his greater strategy. It is quite unlikely you will gain entry, or that if you do you will be allowed to offer your own ideas on a plan designed and devised by Marius himself. Most commanders, truth be told, would see it as insolence and insubordination. Marius, you have heard, rewards initiative, and perhaps still does.
 
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I was waiting till after this battle to get to know Marius more. Marius seems to love usefulness and if it goes well enough we can learn at the master feet.
 
agumentic said:
Or, if it goes bad enough, we can run away to Sulla with minimum of Marian connections.
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We could also tell Marius it might be a good time to sack every city we can to gather loot for more legions. Or go help the Prince who gave us 15,000 mercenaries. I want to grab as much loot as possible and run.

Edit or wait till Marius dies and bring the forces here over to Sulla.
 
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Nurgle said:
We could also tell Marius it might be a good time to sack every city we can to gather loot for more legions. Or go help the Prince who gave us 15,000 mercenaries.
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If things do go bad enough, our only concern should be running away from Mithradites with as much Romans as we can save, with Sulla's army being closest thing that can help us. Really not the time for conquering Egypt.
 
agumentic said:
If things do go bad enough, our only concern should be running away from Mithradites with as much Romans as we can save, with Sulla's army being closest thing that can help us. Really not the time for conquering Egypt.
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I am trying to think of ways to avoid being proscribed by Sulla. Marius I worry will die at the worst time for us.
 
Nurgle said:
I am trying to think of ways to avoid being proscribed by Sulla. Marius I worry will die at the worst time for us.
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Simply go to his side with our legion. If we are delivering him forces, he is 100% not going to proscribe a client and a student of the most respected Optimate in Rome. Scaevola's protection might help us even if we don't have a legion, really, but then our enmity with Pompey might really bite us.
 
Profectus said:
If Sulla adds us to his death note we can simply go into exile for a couple of years.
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The thing is we have been trying to be on the fence but we are increasingly coming to the time when we may have to decide to take a side. It's why I am trying to do so much for the legion. We have payed off the officers. We are running drills on both the infantry and Calvary. Also the meal should help with moral before the one sides battle.
 
Guess it's time for my yearly reread of this quest. Which is somewhat fortuitous as I am also going through the re-listen of Mike Duncan's Storm before the Storm.

As an aside, my goal at the end of this is to be either in position or close to parity with Pompey. We're on the top of his shitlist it seems from what I remember. One possible end to this Mithridates conflict would be for us to get permission from either Marius (or Sulla should he win) to take command of the VI Legion and go to Egypt for Ptolemy. More specifically, we could even use his money to raise more legions, and have them cut their teeth in North Africa against the Egyptians and Numidians. Is Jugurtha still around at this point?
 
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[x] Plan Rome Invicta

I like this plan because it is a bit bold while also taking some of the options to keep our legion well honed. We seem to keep putting off meeting Marius. Right now looks like the perfect time to see him. If it goes well, then we get more info on the coming battle. If it doesn't, well we can take the reputation hit. I would rather try and fail then not try and be left in the dark.
 
ShyGuy said:
[x] Plan Rome Invicta

I like this plan because it is a bit bold while also taking some of the options to keep our legion well honed. We seem to keep putting off meeting Marius. Right now looks like the perfect time to see him. If it goes well, then we get more info on the coming battle. If it doesn't, well we can take the reputation hit. I would rather try and fail then not try and be left in the dark.
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Hey do you mean plan Vae Victus
 
If worst comes to worst, would Scaevola's intercession be sufficient to avoid facing Sulla's wrath in the proscriptions? Is there anything that can be done at this point to at least lay the foundation for gaining favor with Sulla should he emerge triumphant, especially as a deterrence against Pompey, who will be seeking to rise high in Sulla's esteem?
 
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