Which I take to mean - perhaps wrongly, and maybe @Cetashwayo can clarify for us how often they've been 'called' - that although the Metic's hasn't been the focus for these last 34 years they've still been given opportunities to air their grievances (I'm not sure it would even be possible to ignore them for 34 years!) just not with the regularity or structure they would like.
It's been all over the place. The Metic assembly was formed during the timeskip so it's not very old; sometimes it would be called once every year in quick succession to settle some new issue, and other times they've not been called for ages. The main reason for this inconsistency is the uncertain status, fear of metic revolt, and deep controversy around extending additional status to metics; for example, metics in Eretria were granted an assembly and given the ability to settle without having a citizen sponsor. In Athenai, not having a citizen sponsor could result in a Metic being tortured. In Eretria this was considered unacceptable not so much because Eretria is a very nice state but because Metics make up more than half the city's labor force and tax base and any such incident is just as liable as to lead to the city's destruction as it is to justice for Metics.
In general, the political factions of Eretria are acutely aware that the city's pre-eminent regional hegemony effectively requires a stable position; it sits on too many barbaroi, and has too many enemies, to afford anything less, and so that has more or less maintained political peace and allowed many concessions if in exchange Metics give far more loyalty and involvement to Eretria than Metics are expected to in any other place in the Greek World. In fact, Eretrian Metics are doubly peculiar because there's evidence that many of Athenai's metics are actually freed slaves, not foreigners, but in Eretria Metics tend to be immigrants, creating a situation where Eretria Eskhata is a true colonial state dependent on immigration in order to shore itself up, which is completely unique in the Greek World.
The general process among Western Greeks was that citizenship was granted at point of founding, and afterwards foreigners were either disallowed to settle or having very restricted rights. The martial strength of a city would be dependent on the colony's starting population, its natural advantages such as good harbors or rich land, and its lack of major enemies. In the archaic era I think it's very likely there was a lot of immigration leading to citizenship, because citizenship was more malleable in those murky days, but now we are reaching an era where most cities are dependent on their natural growth, with isolated counter-points like Dionysius' Sicily which attracted 60,000 new Greeks west. But a single polis to do so? Unheard of.
The advantage of this is obvious enough to Eretrians, who approve of it on principle, which is why there is no deme in Eretria which rejects the idea of Metic immigration despite the fact that in many Greek poleis foreigners would have to leave on pain of death. However, there are significant arguments as to what rights these immigrants ought to have and where to draw the line, and indeed, to preserve the bounds of citizen and non-citizen not just as a matter of status but as an exalted and sacred body composed of those who fought to found the city. Entrance into citizenship for Metics would be portrayed by those who support it as the acknowledgement that some Metics can indeed be said to have protected the principles of the founding, and rewards were given to Athenian Metics after the restoration of democracy at the end of the Peloponnesian War with a similar basis.
But those who are opposed to going too far on Metic rights are concerned that by granting the metics too much, the city is effectively devaluing its own founding and the effort placed to create a new citizen body and new city among the Barbarians, by allowing similar powers to those who would come from outside without a care for the city. They also fear that core portions of their identity will be undermined and what Eretria is may be redefined by those who have little respect for its history or traditions. The greatest anxiety is mostly a concern that those who are Metics who come from cities without a tradition of democracy will be the greatest threat to it, because if they're not given representation they have little reason to care about the sanctity of the assembly. This was also the logic behind the original forming of the Metic Assembly in the first place.
Overall, the point is that the city of Eretria's greatest power is political stability combined with exterior pressure creating a flexible and malleable political culture more willing to reform and change in order to respond to concerns both within and without. This is also reflected in the demes, who constantly present citizens with ideas to improve the city and improve the lives of its people, not just out of altruism but because unlike in Rome, where public works elevate individual glory, the way in which virtue and service is expressed is by the continual improvement of Eretria and the wellbeing of its people at all times, and the factions mostly differ in how that improvement is to be pursued. They compete for public excellence, but are bound by the mass of the people which wishes for improvement, and attempts to become vainglorious that would lead them to folly or tyranny are quelled by the overwhelming pressure of the public assembly and the citizen service. There are a number of ways this could break down, of course, and this can lead to a kind of schizophrenia of purpose, but it also allows the city a great deal of flexibility in how it wishes to respond to crises where others can only find rigidity expressed as violence. But this attribute is not an infinite resource; push too hard in some direction and this agreement will break down.
We are the ones below the deck. They do not face us on a field of battle, they do not clash with us in narrow passes. They see neither the whites of our eyes nor the sweat of our brows, and they can hear only the lapping of the oars. The commanders shout, and the oars splash. Forward. Forward.
"Right!"
We are the ones below the great. They do not spot us in grand statues, they do not meet us on Olympic fields. They know neither our names nor the ancestry of our families, and they can hear only the lapping of the oars. The commanders shout, and the oars splash. Right. Right.
"Faster!"
We are the ones below the walls. They do not buy produce from our lands, they do not burn our groves of olives. They smell neither the scent of dirt nor the stench of dung, and they can hear only the lapping of the oars. The commanders shout, and the oars splash. Faster. Faster.
"Left!"
We are the ones below the stone. They do not hear our speeches, they do not rage at our arguments against them. They detect neither the politician's smile nor the liar's promise, and they can hear only the lapping of the oars. The commanders shout, and the oars splash. Left. Left.
"Ramming Speed!"
They fear us who are below the deck. We are the faceless ones, the nameless ones, the landless ones, the speechless ones. But we are the ones who cast the ballot, and we are the ones who row the oars. We are the ships of Athenai, the wall that evaded mighty kings, the ram that smashed great kings. We are the ships of Athenai, that triumphed in war and won in peace. We are the birds of prey that glide across the water, that hunt with alabaster-painted eyes and blue-white sails, the guardians of empire and the protectors of hegemony. We are the people and the people's shield, and all shall hear our roar.
But now, they hear nothing but the lapping of the oars. The commanders shout, and the oars splash. Ramming Speed. Ramming Speed.
We are the ones below the deck, and we will feed them to the sea.
"Collision!"
[X] [Prytanis] The Prytanis will remain a chosen citizen
[X] [Standardization] Allow a standard presentation of grievances every eight years, counting from 346 OL.
[X] [Marriage] Reform the laws so the Metic Father has the same rights in the marriage of his daughter.
[X] [Citizenship] If the city should bound citizenship grants by strict rules, then Metic heroes should be given it.
[X] [Juries] Allow Metics to appear on the city's juries if the situation involves their peers as defendent.
[X] [Epidamnians] Eretria Eskhata should host them. They are the representatives of liberty, and do not wish to cause trouble besides. They have conducted themselves honorably, and present advantage to Eretria without creating a route to war.
[X] [Immigration] Loyalty. What good are fieldhands who plot against you, or artists who sing one song among citizens and another among metics? If the city is to grow, it needs those who are loyal and grateful. Look among the refugees of war, or those from old Euboaea, and those who embrace Eretria's vision and government [If successful, random assortment of immigrants grateful to the city with random effects].
Goings on from around the Mediterranean, presented by Xenoparakletor Mnemnon Keylonos of the Demos Exoria
MNEMNON: Greetings, citizens! I greet you well on the second year of my tenure as the city's exalted Xenoparakletor. I have sought to do my job well and justly, and from the reports I will present on the Messapii and our allies in the league and Peuketii, I think you will be pleased by the fruit that these efforts have given, blessed as they are by Athene and Apollon to whom I give homage. But the world does not stop for us, and so while all this has gone on, there have been happenings from across the Mediterranean that I am pleased to report on.
News from Hellas! Tragedy in Athenai. The strategos Perikles, who had been elevated by his people to pre-eminence at home and abroad, has passed. He leaves one son, Paralos, who has survived the new outbreak of plague that claimed his brother Xanthippos. But if the Gods have forsaken Athenai at home, abroad Poseidon and Demeter bless her still. The city of Potidaea in Chalidike has fallen to the Athenians, ending its rebellion, while in the Gulf of Korinthos the admiral Phormio has won a number of brilliant victories for the Athenians, foremost among them at the Battle of Naupaktos where the Athenians crushed a force almost four times their size. They have a Eusebian spirit! In Boeotia, the Athenian ally of Plataiai, site of a famed battle during the war against the Mede, has been put under siege by Sparta.
News from the West! The Sikeliotes have delivered another warning to Syrakousai for breaching their territory, and again Syrakousai pays for it! Perhaps the people of Syrakousai have become cowards who are afraid of war? The Campanian plain continues to be plagued by raiding by Oscan tribesmen, with both Etruscan and Greek complaining of the fearsome group. The Bruttii continue their raids on Thurii, though after the intensity of the previous year they have calmed in intensity. In Carthage, there are rumors that a vast shipment of gold has arrived from beyond the Pillars of Herakles once more, though none can know from where the Carthaginians have received such bounty. An Eretrian merchant reported seeing an aggressive, hairy and stupid man in Panormos in a cage with hands for feet unlike any seen before.
News from the North! Illyrian pirates have been spotted by merchants skulking among the little islands and hidden coves of Liburnia once more. Preferring pentekontors to triremes, these pirates move quickly and strike before disappearing once more into the web of islands. The Liburni refuse to take responsibility for the raiding of their people, and the chief of Iadar has told Eretrian merchants that they can continue to expect the same protection as before. Deceitful curs! Though an attack cannot be taken at this time, we must at the very least compensate the merchants whom have suffered from this new plague on our Adriatic shipping. In Macedonia, despite Athenian supplies, Sitalces of Thrace has had to retire before reaching the Macedonian capital of Aigai due to lack of supplies. In the process he has looted much of the country, however, and has struck terror in the Northern Greeks.
Goings on from within the city, presented by Proboulos Kyros Gennadios of the Demos Antipatria
KYROS: Citizens! Progress continues on the city's glorification of the Gods. The renovation of the hill is almost completed; stones have been cleared from the plain of boulders that no longer serve their purpose, as well as loose stones from the foundation of Old Bare, and have been stacked to further raise the platform of the hill so that the place of the Gods looms down on the place of Men. Abroad, the agents of the city have reported some success in gaining Metics (2d10=11), though they complain that the city's emphasis on loyalty in its Metics has made the job harder, as they can choose only those who know of Eretria or are fleeing war, so there has been much destitution among these new Metics, grateful though they are. To this I say: Bah! The Metics who are loyal and dressed in sackcloth are worth ten times those who are treacherous but dress in pampered silks. Were not we so desperate when we scrabbled ashore to this land all those years ago, and now look at us! We shall take those who keel over in fear and transform them into upright Eretrians, I say.
The Metic Assembly was a success. The Metics were granted equality of rights of fathers over marriage, the rights to participate in juries involving themselves as defendants, the standardization of their assemblies, and the ability to be rewarded by citizenship. Already, one Metic has been granted the honor by my hand, the hero of the Battle of Egnatia against the Messapii when we had been at war with them, and we can expect those Metics who show themselves to be deserving of the honor through battle and civic heroism to receive it, within the restrictive limits put by the boule, which shall ensure that the fears of those against these reforms will not be realized. As is tradition for matters of such importance as the Metic Assembly, we honor some of the citizens who spoke at length on the matter: the words of Glaukommes son of Perixeontes, Phokion son of Aristedes the Younger, Ajax son of Lalage, Ekdromos, Leukos the Accountant, Skantarios the Hoplite, Erastos, son of Nikodemos, Nereos, son of Miltiades, Sideros the Younger, Arktos son of Arktos Arkadios, have all been elected by the citizens as the best of the speakers, and have been given a small cash reward for the quality of their oratory. To all other citizens who spoke or cast a vote, you are also honored for your presence!
The city's treasury grows even more this year, despite the expense of the temple. With such a reserve, Grand Mantis Polykarpos Lykos hopes to present a number of improvements to the construction of the city's new Hill of the Divine Marriage in the following year in order to better honor the Gods and take advantage of the opportunity presented.
Demography & Culture
Eretria Eskhata - 347 OL
Adult Freemen: 21,721 (Census of 345 OL) Citizen Ratio: 45.0% Adult Male Citizens: 9,774 Adult Male Metics: 11,947 Total Free Population: 75,683
Patron Gods: Divine Marriage of Athene & Apollon Other Major Gods: Poseidon & Demeter, Zeus, Ploutos, Artemis
Political Offices
Next Election is 349 OL.
Proboulos: Kyros Gennadios (Demos Antipatria) Xenoparakletor: Mnemnon Keylonos (Demos Exoria) Lead Strategos: Only appointed in times of war. Metic Prytanis: Timotaios Herais (Demos Antipatria).
Agoranomos: Arkadios Ambrosios (Demos Antipatria). Assembly of the Mint: Paramonos Diokles (Demos Antipatria). Chief of Public Lands: Arsenios Hermagoras (Demos Exoria). Grand Mantis: Polykarpos Lykos (Demos Antipatria). Elder Ekdromos: Alexandros Hilarion (Demos Exoria).
Great Works
Wide Walls: Proud stone walls that protect the city from enemies. Sea Wall: Protect the city from any sea-based attack. Arkadion: A small temple to Demeter & Poseidon (Under Renovation). Temple of the Divine Marriage: A modest temple to the Divine Marriage of Apollo and Athena. (Under Renovation). Naval Barracks: Where the city's rowers train. Hill of the Divine Marriage: Under Renovation. Done beginning of 351 OL.
Treasury & Income
Treasury in 347 OL: 370.6 Talents Income: 269.6 Talents Taxation: 168.3 Talents Commerce: 69.8 Talents League Income: 8.7 talents Tribute: 11.8 Talents Public Revenue: 11.0 Talents
Total Levy: 7,011 (50% of all Adult Freemen minus men in special units and navy)
2,804 Hoplites (40% of available levies)
526 Cavalry (7.5% of available levies)
3,861 Psilloi (all remaining available levies)
Deployed Levy
Standing Army (Eretria Eskhata)
500 Sacred Ekdromoi (deployed at all times for 38.5 talents a turn)
50 Kleos Exoria (deployed at all times for 5.5 talents a turn)
1 Staple Trade Route to Athenai (Grain)
1 Staple Trade Route to South Italy (Anchovies & Wine)
1 Staple Trade Route to Sicily (Olive Oil)
1 Staple Trade Route to Southeast Illyria (Olive Oil)
1 Staple Trade Route to Northeast Illyria (Wine)
1 Staple Trade Route to North Italy (Olive Oil)
1 Luxury Trade Route to Athenai (Byssos Cloth)
1 Luxury Trade Route to Etruria (Pottery)
Subjects & Subject Levies
Epulian League Members: Eretria Eskhata, Sipontion, Pylona, Garnae, Barletos, Ankon, Monopolis, and Aufidenos Tribute: 8.7 (10% of yearly income of each city) Epulian League Levies: 816 Hoplites
Peuketii Kingdom Ruler: King Gorgos (son of King Batavorta) Capital: Sannape Tribute: 9.8 Talents a turn Levies: 883 Peuketii Skirmishers, 196 Peuketii Cavalry
City of Thurii: Full alliance with the city of Thurii cultivated in opposition to potential ambitions by Taras or other Italiote powers like Krotone. Estimated Levy: 4,000 Men
Sikeliote League: Full alliance with the Sikeliote League cultivated in opposition to the main power in South Sicily, Syrakousai. Maximum Levy: 8,000 Men
Commercial Policy: Merchant Insurance
Despite the total and utter defeat of the Demos Drakonia, complained by some in their faction as an act of the Gods due to the augurs that destroyed their chance at the position of proboulos, Athenagoras Symmachos remained buoyant. Having taken up a volunteer position to plead the case of others in the courts of property and commerce, Symmachos soon earned a new reputation as a fine speaker who could sway the juries to his position and away from that of the opposition. In general, he took the cases of merchants and those who had their property damaged or stolen, and so it was no surprise that when an intersection of his new hobby and his political position as leader of what was once the dominant Deme of the city of Eretria he used the assembly's regular meeting to raise it as a serious issue. The recent increase in raiding by Illyrians, though menacing, has claimed relatively few Eretrian ships. What is more concerning is that the uptick in piracy is driving away trade from the upper Adriatic, and in particular the islands of the Liburni which are used as stopping points for ships journeying south along the coast.
This fear will only continue, and is certainly bad for business. But those who avoid this corridor are not just fearful or cowardly; many merchants are concerned that the lack of proper insurance for their ships has led to a situation where many are afraid to spare any hulks for long sea voyages which are not along the very safest routes. The city's indolence on this subject, as Symmachos describes it, has created a situation in which merchants have to shoulder the full cost of their losses or else turn to private and scandalously expensive lenders, who will refuse to lend to merchants who go on far-off voyages for fear that the loss of the ship will lead to them becoming paupers working on public works just to satisfy their debts. This is no way for a true Eretrian to behave, but as Symmachos argues, it is an inevitable consequence that as the city does nothing to protect its merchants, they can trust only in the fickle hand of Poseidon to protect them.
Obander Eupraxis, despite his experience at the sea, has voiced his skepticism. He argues before the assembly that the matter of merchant insurance is a matter that the city should not get involved in except exceptional circumstances. Why is this the case? As it represents the city placing financial interest in individual merchant and thus opens the door to corruption. It would require a large apparatus for the city to deal with and would be difficult to manage, and with such large sums of money going around, not to mention the potentiality of extreme expense to the city if there was some incident such as a massive increase in pirate raiding, it would be better for the city to deeply restrict the support it can provide.
Proboulos Kyros Gennadios, however, in a rare break with his mentor and the Deme as a whole, has offered a different idea. He says he has been in conversation with the Grand Mantis Lykos for some time, and that they believe they can in fact strike up a deal with the shrine of Ploutos. The shrine could shoulder the state's responsibility to provide insurance to merchants by being a stable lender of coin; the money it had set aside for insurance would be kept in its own sacred treasury, unbreachable by greedy priests on pain of death. At the same time, the shrine would need a considerable amount of money to start in order to begin providing insurance for merchants in order to ensure its own solvency. Both Obander and Mnemnon worry that a temple involving itself with matters of commerce, even one that is dedicated to a God of Wealth, goes too far.
The matter is left for the assembly to decide.
Should the City of Eretria Eskhata be providing insurance to merchants?
[] [Insurance] Accept full responsibility for the insurance of merchants against the loss of their ships [-4 public upkeep per turn].
[] [Insurance] Set large limitations on state insurance and have merchants pay a fee for insurance. [-2 public upkeep per turn].
[] [Insurance] Allow the Shrine of Ploutos to handle merchant insurance with state support [-20 talent one-time fee to Shrine of Ploutos].
Tributary Policy: The Grand Tour of the Allies
Every Eretrian with any degree of experience in the public eye had learned to be a strongman because of the demands that being a lifter placed on even the most pampered aristocrat. To be in the public eye meant one could lift heavy stones, and so around this culture had also arisen a physicality that, though known among all Hellenes, had been finetuned in Eretria. Discus-throwing, running, fighting and riding were all popular among the wealthy classes, and those middling men who could afford leisure on festival days enjoyed it as well in the gymnasia of the Ekdromoi, a plain but large collonaded courtyard, or the Pasture of the Exiles, where the Kleos Exoria kept their stables and spoke of politics or love, depending on the mood and the heat of the day (politics was less popular on hot summer days where tempers could easily flare, and the sight of men glistening with sweat also did much to lubricate discussions of love).
Among the most popular of Eretrian sports, besides the stone toss, was wrestling. Eretrian men had been winners of wrestling at the Olympic Games three times since landing, and the city had developed a Mediterranean reputation for the broad shoulders and rough disposition of its frontiersmen. Among these men was Mnemnon, the city's new Xenoparakletor, so unlike the more willowy and slim Drakonian Xenoparakletors, many of whom had volunteered as rowers or naval captains and been keen swimmers. So it came as no surprise to King Gorgos, even if it did to his attendants, that the new xenoparakletor challenged him to a wrestling match upon meeting him. Mnemnon had not been famed for many things, but had spent the days on his estate wrestling with serfs and friends to pass the time, and so on the frontier he was known as the Young Stallion not just for his skills at riding but because he could ride any man on the gynasium field.
Gorgos was no pushover, however, a heavyset man with Illyrian cap who had nothing of the lifestyle might expect from one called king, given his rough demeanor and dirty beard. The king had publicly renounced the behavior of his father Batavorta, who imported Epulian wine and held Hellene symposia. Though every bit as intrigued by the Hellenes as his father, Gorgos preferred the frontiersmen whose estates loomed near his kingdom's boundaries. And so, despite the advice of his attendants, Gorgos accepted Mnemnon's proposal, and the two stripped. Gorgos joked that the wrestling bout was unncessary because his grandfather had already submitted to Harpos after the man's javelin had pierced King Foetus and killed him on the spot, and Mnemnon replied that his javelin was just as long and his aim as true as his ancestor. Those in Mnemnon's party less fond of such behavior rolled eyes or covered their face with their hands, but those among the Exoria merely cheered him on.
Roll 5D4+2=16
The bout was over quickly. Gorgos was heavier and larger than Mnemnon, but Mnemnon had the experience and ability to use this weight against him, ending their spar with a suplex that plummeted the king down to the ground to the cheers of his supporters and the roaring of the Peuketii. To soothe the tension, Mnemnon helped the king up, who embraced the xenoparakletor like a brother and lifted up his hand; from this day forward the two would become inseparable friends. This was a legendary match, to be immortalized in song, of the xenoparakletor who felled the king, but it is said that among the women of Eretria that the match was a peculiar example once more of the strange ways in which Hellene men work, where fights end in friendships but symposia in brawls. Obander called it an 'unnecessary display of absolute manliness', and few could figure out if he meant that in a positive or negative way.
Leaving aside such adventurous escapades, the xenoparakletor had practical reasons to put on such a circus. Mnemnon was a keen believe in the importance of symbols and the necessity of ceremony in all things; he had entered the bout sure he would win, and his victory was a display of both camaraderie and domination over the barbaroi, earning instant respect among them. He toured the Peuketii kingdom and saw that it had become a prosperous country, full of cattle and shepherds and farmers along the Aufidos river. Canosa had recovered from the depradations it had received under Harpos, Rhyps was a quiet but prosperous place, and Sannape had grown into a town, with woolmakers gathering wool driven from as far inland as Samnium. It was here that Mnemnon was hosted. Prayers were said to Artemis and Orion, paired by the Peuketii in a cult growing more and more in popularity among the Iapyges as an expression of a pure and rustic form of love. Few plots could be found among the Peuketii, except grumblings about the existence of the city of Turai, which many in the kingdom felt was an affront to the Peuketii. Gorgos admitted, however, that he was happy that the city was not allotted to him, for it lie straight in the path of a Tarentine army.
Mnemnon also learned from the Peuketii that the frontier was mostly quiet. Most of the Lucanian energy had apparently been directed elsewhere, instead; the breakaway tribe of the Bruttii was furnished with new tribesmen every day, and were growing in power to the point where they would soon become impossible for the Italiote Hellenes to quell. The Samnites, on the other hand, were planning something, for there had been much activity in the northwest, especially in Campania. This did not much concern Eretria, however, and the situation with the Dauni remained unknown, and would be until the spies were dispatched in the following year.
Mnemnon did not intend to come without gaining something, however. He brought with him officials from the boule who assessed the size of Canosa, Rhyps, the size of the royal cattle herd, and other such measurements, and found that the Peuketii had not been paying their fair share into Eretria's defense as they should. Gorgos admitted so, but explained that it had not been his fault; he simply did not have the revenues to conduct such assessments himself, and so while the kingdom had grown the tribute payments had remained the same. He had little interest in making trouble, explaining that his grandfather Harpos had said that the Eretrians were much more fearsome in war than in peace. From war, the Peuketii had received destruction and sorrow, but in peace with Eretria they received wealth and stability, something that the tribe had not known for years. The reforms of the Demos Drakonia that ended Peuketii serf sales to Eretria also cooled much of the remaining tensions between the two.
Now all that lay before the assembly would be how to expand the obligations of the Peuketii, and in what manner to ensure a regular and fair system of tribute.
What part of Peuketii obligations should the city increase?
[] [Tribute] Talents. Better to receive coin and kind from the Peuketii in order to help fund the city's ventures [Peuketii tribute increases to 13.1 talents per turn].
[] [Tribute] Levies. More Peuketii allies in the cavalry and light infantry will serve to augment's the city's armies [+2.5% levy from the Peuketii, +654 Levies].
How should the city improve tribute collection from Egnatia, Turai, and the Peuketii?
[] [Collection] Have them come to us. We can maintain a bond of trust with the tributaries without impinging in their private affairs and expand the festival of tribute to build fraternal feeling. [-2 public subsidy upkeep per year].
[] [Collection] Dispatch inspectors to them. Better for our agents to be among them in order to catch any sign of suspicion or plotting than to hope the barbaroi will always keep us in good stead [-2 public subsidy upkeep per year].
League Policy: A Less than Perfect Union
Pleased with Peuketii loyalty, and after a short stint to the cities of Egnatia and Turai who paid him similar homage, Mnemnon now embarked to the Epulian League. Here he presented himself as an image of Hellene austerity, wearing plain but clean tunics and robes and touring the Epulian cities by land rather than by the coast, meeting farmers along the way and crossing the Aufidos at a shallow ford. The impression he received from the League was less positive than he had with the Peuketii. Many in the league cities felt put upon. Although they appreciated Eretrian protection and in no way wished to impose upon the city, the feeling was that the league was simply an avenue for Eretrian ambition and wealth, with little investment in the structures of the league and few meetings of the league actually called during a xenoparakletor's term. Although the league had been consulted and taken into Ankon's founding, otherwise it had little use except as the method by which Epulian gold, meager as it was, flowed into Eretria. Barletos and Aufidenos also raised concerns due to their considerable trade with Korinthos.
The league cities were led in this objection by the Pylonans, who felt that after a promising start the Epulian League had stagnated, with little reform or changes in a structure that had little of the indication of a normal koinon. The league cities pointed to the Sikeliote League, where a true union had been achieved, with common currency and more common institutions such as a common treasury. By comparison, all money gathered by the league went straight to Eretrian coffers. Mnemnon responded non-commitaly to these concerns, knowing they would not be well-received at home. The league cities owed their survival to Eretria, and those who had been settled after the original few settlements were done so with Eretrian acceptance. Was it really acceptable to grant the league even more, when the Eretrians had been so lenient in their treatment in the past? On the other side, suggested by Obander Eupraxis, lay the simple fact that if the Epulian League were to one day expand to unspecified horizons it had to change into more than a vehicle for tribute.
Citizens felt that change now was not appropriate; the city had just experienced a tense argument over the rights of Metics, and having the Epulian cities demand more rights as well after such massive concessions to the metics would have strained the city's extraordinary charity. Instead, Kyros Gennadios recommended that the city should instead shelve these concerns and have the demoi present their own ideas about it for the city's sake in the next general election. Athenagoras Symmachos argued it might be preferable to deal with the issue in the following year instead after calling the League Synedrion together so that a clearer picture of league issues can be put before the assembly.
Should the assembly look into the Epulian League's concerns next year, or wait for the demoi to put together platforms in the next election?
[] [League] Let us listen to the concerns of our Hellene allies [League Synedrion will be called next year].
[] [League] We have already conceded much to the Metics. The league can afford to wait a few years [Special League policies in 349 OL election platforms].
Xenoparakletor Mission: The Messapii Expedition
Along with the spies that would be dispatched in the following year to the Dauni, the mission to the Messapii by the Xenoparakletor would be among the most difficult of the tribulations and challenges faced by young Mnemnon as he sought to prove his worth as both diplomat and statesman. After all, unlike the friendly Peuketii and pliant cities, the Messapii, despite their weakening stature, had never been fully broken, and the tragedies of the past years had given them a ferocity and desperation which made them suspicious of outsiders. They were aware that they were surrounded by Hellenes, and that the town of Brention remained in danger due to its position on the sea from any Hellene adventurer or polis that thought its fine natural harbor would be an excellent place for a new colony.
Although the Tarentines and Eretrians had been unable to fully defeat the Messapii, the Tarentines especially had ravaged the Messapii countryside in two wars, destroying estates and capturing vast herds of cattle. In the south of the Sallentine Peninsula they had fully surrounded the city of Aoxenta, which was now cut off from the rest of the confederacy and confined to a small square of a few kilometers. Many of its inhabitants had fled north and the rest held it as a fortress rather than a settlement. Neriton and Manduria had become strong walled cities, as they lay on the road from Taras and had already been put to siege many times. Only the city of Caelia remained relatively unscathed from the fighting, nestled as it was in the hills further away from the main targets of Tarentine retribution.
Even now, the new Tarentine proboulos had announced a new wave of raiding targeting mostly the city of Manduria and its countryside, making even a normal journey a dangerous proposition for Mnemnon. That is why when he embarked, he did so by sea, first landing at the city of Brention after sending emissaries abroad to guarantee safe conduct.
2d10+2= 13
The result was an unimpressive but cordial welcome from the city, led by a chief who had been elected by a council of notables in the town to be their king. A coastal town, Brention was famed for the quality of the anchovies off its shores, and occasionally Hellene ships did in fact dock at the town's splendid harbor. Temples to Artemis, Aphrodite, and Zeus were seen in the town. The chief of the town, by the name of Magon, welcomed Mnemnon in and spoke to him at length. The town of Brention was not happy by the way in which the Messapii Confederacy's existence continually provoked Tarentine outrage and the town would have preferred to simply come under Eretria's protection, but it could only do so during a war in which such a move would not provoke conflict with the rest of the league. The Chief of Brention had seen the evenhanded and fair way in which Eretria had protected its other vassals, and although the city had been looted in the past by Eusebios, they were willing to put that aside if it meant escaping the league before another impending war with Taras potentially destroyed them all.
Not impressed with the man's courage, Mnemnon still saw the advantages in separate deals that could effectively cleave off parts of the Messapii Confederacy without coming into conflict with Taras. Certainly, a major concern with the Tarentines might be that if Eretria entered into a defensive alliance with the Messapii they would be unable to make war on the Dauni, because now there was always a threat that Taras would attack the Messapii while they were distracted and force them to either break the alliance to commit to a two-front war.
At the same time, losing the diplomatic of the entire Messapii Confederacy in favor of some its weaker members, though conflict-averse, stank of a lack of ambition to Mnemnon, who preferred forcing a war with Taras that he felt would come eventually. Better to settle the matter as soon as possible, with Messapii allies on the side, than to do so later when Eretria was distracted or Taras had been strengthened by good leadership or further victories over the Messapii. This would be a fine block for Tarentine expansion and ensure that they could no longer easily grow their domains without Eretria's opposition.
2d10+2=19
Having gained access to Messapii lands and the protection of the Chief of Brention, represented by a ceremonial Messapii cap that showed that this man would not be harmed, Mnemnon embarked to visit the minor cities of Messapia, such as Caelia, Rudiae, and Lupiae. Aoxenta remained inaccessible except through Lykai, a city which many Eretrians disliked for its part in their original dishonor of Taras and that Mnemnon was not particularly fond of either, and so that town was avoided.
On this journey, and having received the ceremonial cap, Mnemnon was now much better received. He ate grapes and enjoyed a symposium with the chief of Caelia, was paraded by the King of Rudiae, and welcomed by the assembly of Lupiae. The news that Eretria might pursue a defensive alliance with the Messapii had raised the spirits of many who feared that this coming war might put an end to the confederacy as a whole, though there were certainly those skeptical of the city's intentions. Them, Mnemnon was able to placate through a number of rough-spun anecdotes which convinced them of Eretria's lack of interest in conflict and reminded them of the prosperity the city of Egnatia enjoys, itself a Messapii town and one of Eretria's oldest allies. The Oath of Daxtus was mentioned, as well as stories told by the Messapii of the terrible things visited upon Daxtus by Artemis due to his betrayal. The city of Caelia, also interested in a secret treaty, broached the subject with Mnemnon but he gave no indication of his acceptance yet, knowing that accepting it would be impossible if Eretria wished for a defensive alliance.
At Neriton and Manduria Mnemnon now became familiar with the most important man in all of Messapia, King Avithos Artahias of Neriton. A poet and a scholar, Artahias knew well the stories of the Hellenes and regaled Mnemnon with a retelling of the Eretrian arrival in iambic pentameter. Deeply impressed by the man's knowledge, Mnemnon also thought that it might be possible to work with him, but was then again a young and impressionable person who thought in terms of honesty and trust, and so would not be able to well-detect the danger coming from a man with a silver tongue but black heart.
The King, however, indicated little of that heart if it so existed, and instead discussed the potentials of battle strategy against the Tarentines if it should come down to it. He offered the Eretrians that if he were to gain a small boon of some kind, perhaps only something as simple as ten or fifteen talents, he may be able to turn the Confederacy and strengthen it, while keeping it in good tidings and relations with Eretria. He would be elected its war leader, a new Oath of Artemis would be signed, and the restoration of the old peace between Messapia and Eretria would be complete. The only cost would be a defensive alliance between the two powers, and the mutual understanding that Taras was no friend of theirs.
Mnemnon thanked the king, but worried about the dangers that giving so much power to one man might do. Daxtus had been strengthened by Eretria, but he had turned the coin she had given back on them. Though the Messapii were stronger then than now, they might still attempt treachery, especially if they felt that they could count on other external allies. Athenai had already sent emissaries in the previous year to the Messapii and apparently given them about 10 talents in silver. Could Eretria trust loyalty bought with its own coin?
The matter of his journey was all recounted to the assembly, and two separate options put before it; in the first place, whether to accept a defensive alliance or pursue secret treaties with a few cities. In the second place, whether to provide funding to a single Messapii leader whether or not Eretria signed a defensive alliance with them, to make them more powerful in a war against Taras if nothing else.
Should the city accept a defensive alliance with the Messapii Confederacy, gaining an ally but putting it into potential conflict with Taras?
[] [Alliance] Accept a full defensive alliance with the Messapii Confederacy.
[] [Alliance] Better to conclude secret treaties with some cities without raising the specter of war with Taras.
Should the city promote a single ruler and point of contact for the whole Messapii Confederacy?
[] [King] Promote King Artahias as a strong leader for the Confederacy to lead it against Taras and keep the peace with Eretria [-15 talent fee].
[] [King] Better to keep the Confederacy weak and potentially reliant on Eretrian direction.
Please copy out vote text in its entirety in order to preserve the coherency of the vote. That includes the word with the vote brackets.
No plan votes; if you want to vote for someone else's plan in its entirety, copy and paste their votes.
I think that this is a good time to address how war worked among the Ancient Greeks, really worked, and the difficulties of fighting as a polis. It will better inform both the decision to go to war or not here, and military options in the future, as a polis. It can also serve as an educational primer on why things are the way they are, and why reforms or innovation are difficult. What I do not want to do is constantly be telling people no in a way that is not satisfactory. I would want my answers as to why something is not possible to be as comprehensible as why something is possible.
The first principle of Hellene Warfare in the classical period is that war is the province of male society. Male society is centered around the achievement of glory, wealth, and recognition, and all three are delivered in spades by war. Since war is the province of male society, in order to change how warfare is conducted, the society must be changed. The levies which Eretria Eskhata draws on are not from professional cavalry or professional infantry, but from smallholding farmers and large estate-owners. In a time where providing equipment to citizen-soldiers is very expensive when you already have to supply them and pay them campaign salaries (with campaign salaries being a recent innovation), the citizen-soldier provides their own equipment, their own horses. This also means that training for wartime is reflected through festivals; the Spartans were renowned as dancers in Hellas, but that is not just because they like dancing. The coordination required for dancing to a tune is also the coordination required for marching to a tune. Once again, the society and the military are one, and so the society provides the basis of battlefield training. This is why steppe nomads are horse archers; the skills they use for horse archery are used every single day.
The second principle of Hellene Warfare is that cities are small. Many poleis have a few hundred citizens or less. There are only a few dozen poleis which have enough people to gain real power in the Mediterranean, and maintaining this manpower is essential for their success. If warfare is the province of male society, then loss in warfare is a loss to the entire society. In 494 BCE Sparta defeated Argos. Why was this defeat permanent, ending Argos' ability to contest Sparta for the Peloponnese? It was permanent because Argos lost 6,000 men. 6,000 members of its citizenry, 6,000 fathers, 6,000 sons and husbands and workers and tax-payers. The depth of this catastrophe preventing Argos from challenging Sparta again until 421 BCE, when it built a coalition with Athenai and other Peloponnesian states to overthrow Spartiate hegemony. What this means is that cities cannot absorb losses for very long. Wars either drag out without much happening for long periods of time, or are ended in massive battles that destroy the lives of an entire generation on one side or the other. From this we are better able to understand Rome's success; here too was a citizen militia, but a citizen militia that by the time of the punic wars could call on an effective manpower of 750,000 Romans and Allies. This was so far beyond the scope of any other Mediterranean power that Rome's success can become obvious in hindsight, but even this massive reserve has limits, and the Second Punic War wreaked havoc on Roman society by killing so many men.
The third principle of Hellene Warfare is that it is bloody. We have been told by some historians that battles had casualty rates of anywhere between 5-10% for the victor and 10-20% for the loser. That does not seem like much to us at first. But once we begin to think about what that adds up to over time, we begin to realize the real weight of battle. Those are 5-10% of your men you will never get back. Those men could have been merchants, fathers, statesmen, heroes, speakers, but they are dead. And if you are the loser, casualty rates can go even higher, especially if you do not have a cavalry or infantry screen to protect you. Contrary to some arguments, the Hellenes took great pleasure in slaughtering the enemy when they began to flee. Xenophon called it one of the greatest pleasures of battle. The Polis is therefore perilously fragile; a single battle, if it is spectacularly unlucky, can undo decades of work. War is a high-stakes battle where states put their entire society on the line. Do not expect to leave even victorious battles unscathed.
All of this amounts to the final principle of Hellene Warfare, which is to protect your own citizens and slaughter those of the enemy. This is not the same thing as winning a battle; the main goal of the main portion of the battle, the push and pull of the phalanx, is to achieve that decisive break. Once the enemy is broken, the slaughter begins, and this is where there is a massive free-for-all in which men have their throats cut begging for mercy or are led into traps and cut down until the ground is sticky with blood. The goal of warfare is not just to achieve some strategic goal, or to win territory, but to make it so that the enemy cannot threaten you or your people ever again. If that means ensuring that you have created a desert called peace, so be it. It also means that innovation in warfare is discouraged in good reason; a bad innovation, or a foolish trick, can cost you everything.
The inclusion of sacred or elite units somewhat changes this calculus, but also creates new risks. The hieros ekdromoi and Kleos Exoria are capable of manuevers, formations, and feats that other units are not, but they are also priceless. You cannot continually replace the best of your men; eventually you will run out of best men, and the city's elite units will become a shadow of their former selves. In a crisis or a total rout, furthermore, the enemy may particularly target your elite units, with the intention of breaking the spirit of your entire city. At the battle of Chaeronea Alexander attacked the Sacred Band of Thebai, the heroic and famed elite unit of the Thebans, and slaughtered them down to a man. If the city were to replace the Kleos Exoria and hieros ekdromoi with new men, the institutions might remain, but it will take years to get them back to the same level of ability as they once had.
What this Means for Game Mechanics
All of this is to say that in the past, Eretria has faced relatively easy odds. Even when it has not triumphed, there has been little mechanical impact beyond political chaos or humiliation. Now, things are far different. You can expect that a single victory in battle against the enemy could secure you hegemony. You can also expect, however, that losses will hit hard. Eretria has one of the largest reserves of freemen in the Greek World, but even it is not limitless in its capacity, and throwing away the lives of both your own citizens and those of your allies will eventually empty your city and leave it recovering for a generation. When confronting enemies of near-equal strength, or greater strength, it must always be approached with a sense of caution and awareness that there will be few second chances. Every war, every battle, has the potential for catastrophe. It is strategy that prevents you from getting into a situation where you face a rout, and tactics that can rescue you from a bad numerical or geographical position.
With that in mind, warfare will work like so. First, players will select from a number of strategoi. All of these men have been serving with the city's council of generals for years, and can be trusted to be experienced in theory, though the years of peace means there are few among them who are true veterans. The strategoi will have their character statistics displayed, as well as their general plans to the assembly on how they seek to win a war. The assembly will elect that strategos that they feel has the best plan and the ability to enact it. The lead strategos will then be in charge of composing armies, leading them, and appointing from the other strategoi naval fleets or secondary armies. They will have overall command of the strategic vision of the city until such time that they are victorious, killed in battle, or recalled by the city due to some failure.
Battle will be composed of four phases, whose success is defined by rolls and modifiers. Modifiers will be extremely powerful, representing that although there is an element of chance in all battles, there are also fundamental realities of numbers or ability that moderate the randomness of fortune. There is the strategic phase. In this phase, armies will attempt to find a position advantageous to them and disadvantageous to the enemy. Light infantry, including both psilloi and allied skirmishers, as well as cavalry, are essential for this phase. Having superior cavalry and skirmishers in both numbers and skill will significantly improve the chance that you do well in this phase, placing you in a better position at the battle's start. Generals with some experience with skirmishing or the cavalry will help. Having a good position will give you permanent modifiers for the rest of the battle. There is one roll here with dependent modifiers.
Next is the skirmishing phase. In this phase, both armies' skirmishers and cavalry will attempt to drive the others from the field. Once again, this is where cavalry and skirmishers are king. Herodion the One-Eye was always best-known as a cavalry commander than as a leader of infantry, and his ability to win success in this phase was always unparalleled. The advantage of winning in this phase are three-fold. First, cavalry and skirmishers that are successful in this phase could flank the enemy, devastating their morale and cohesion. Second, if you win the battle, your cavalry and skirmishers have stripped away theirs and are able to slaughter their infantry with impunity, leading to massive casualties for the enemy forces that they might not recover from. Finally, if you lose the battle, your cavalry and skirmishers can screen and protect your infantry and reduce the number of casualties you take, allowing you to live to fight another day. There is one roll here with dependent modifiers.
Next is the collision phase. The main determinants of this phase are the quality, formation, and numbers of infantry on both sides. The majority of your citizens on the field of battle will be participating in this phase, colliding with the enemy in a phalanx pushing match that could determine the course of the battle. This phase ends when one side or the other routs, breaking; it is during a rout that most of the casualties occur, as men are stabbed in the back or as they try to strip off their armor and flee. In a hoplite battle, the best fighters are concentrated on the right flank, with the very edge of the right flank as the most honorable position due to its exposure. Maintaining cohesion on both flanks is important, and so there will be two rolls, one for the left flank and one for the right, with the right more likely to be broken and the left more likely to break through against the enemy. Then there will be a final roll, modified by the state of the two flanks, to determine whether you are successful in the collision phase.
Finally, there is the rout phase. This is the phase in which the true consequences of a battle will be played out, because once the enemy is broken your forces will begin to chase after them, and vice versa. If you are winning, your goal here is to leverage all of your success from prior phases (a good position, victory in skirmishing, victory in collision) in order to inflict as much slaughter and damage on the enemy as possible to ensure that this battle will be their last, and force them to make a crushing peace. If you are losing, your goal is to leverage any success in prior phases in order to protect and rescue as many of your citizens as possible from the impending slaughter. Doing so successfully here can be the difference between fighting another day and a humiliating peace. There is one roll here, dependent on modifiers from previous phases.
As you can tell, modifiers will begin to stack throughout a battle; winning each phase will make success in the next phase easier, until finally in the rout phase the only determinant is just how badly you inflict damage on the enemy. In the same way, losing each phase in succession will make things worse and worse and finally lead to a loss you cannot recover from. However, unless you are fighting truly powerful or impossible enemies, the reality is likely to fall somewhere in the middle, and Eretria Eskhata starts with several advantages over its neighbors, such as its loyal barbarian allies and its elite units which few in Italy or Sicily have yet emulated. But in the end it is Fortune and Victory who decide the outcome of war, and whether the city will see a triumphant return of its men or no return at all.
Examples of Modifiers
I won't spell out every single modifier involved in a battle, because although it isn't that complicated I don't want to show all of my cards and make people think too mechanically about battles. That being said, there are a few modifiers which are fairly obvious, and are dependent on a comparison to the enemy:
Numerical difference between components of both armies (How many more skirmishers do you have than them? How many more infantry?)
Difference in quality between components of both armies (Is your cavalry better than theirs? Are you facing Spartan Hoplites who are generally known to be of a better quality due to their lifestyle?)
Skill of the General in specific aspects of battle (Is this a courageous general who is willing to rally his men? Is he a cavalryman? How knowledgeable is he about terrain? Has he tried some crazy tactic?)
Morale of the armies (Is this an army of mercenaries who have been swayed by the enemy to turn sides? Is there a specific humiliation or patriotic sentiment propelling one side to fight more desperately than the other? Is there significant civil strife which makes citizens less willing to shed blood for their city?)
Phase modifiers (Did one army achieve a better position than the other? Did they win the skirmishing phase? Have one of their two flanks broken?)
Odds and Ends
Naval battles have similar rules but only three phases: Strategic phase, collision, and rout, with the strategic phase and collision being the most important. It is much easier for enemy fleets to withdraw from battle, so most casualties are concentrated during collision and the subsequent washing up of sailors on shore, and the strategic phase is far more important. Skill and quality of your fleets, as well as positioning, also matters far more than numbers in a naval battle.
The overall goal of this system is to still have the visceral and terrifying feeling that battles often had when the game first started without involving citizens in every aspect of the battle. There is a great deal of fear involved, because you are ultimately trusting an NPC to conduct your battle for you, but at the same time this is also where all the advantages, good (and bad) choices, and efforts of the players finally come to fruition through the modifiers. It makes for a terrifying ride, but it can also be a more satisfying one than the choice I had made after I realized battles were too much effort to do with maps and voted-upon-phases, when battles were merely described with some off-screen rolls. Here, players will be able to see the step-by-step of the battle unfolding (though doing visuals would be too crazy) and follow the army as it fights towards victory or defeat.
There will usually be only a single battle in a year, merely because that is what most poleis can endure at this stage, and sometimes a single land or naval battle can win the entire war.
Eudoxia had loved Eretria once. Long ago, when she was a girl, she pored over piece of news, every new feat, every extraordinary victory that the city achieved over the Iapygians, dreaming of some dashing Eretrian horseman or brilliant captain to sweep her off her feet and rescue her from her dull Sallentine estate. When particularly outlandish, she imagined herself as in their legends of love, with her as Athene and her rescuer as Apollon. They would sail half the world and conquer the other, sing and dance and kiss and grow old together. In the end, of course, it was all just children's dreams, and she was married instead to a modest cavalryman. Aristeides was no great adventurer but he was kind to her, and they respected each other. He told her stories of his estates and fighting barbarian raids, and she told him stories of plays and stories that she had imagined. He had always loved her imagination; and told her every now and then that had she been born a man she would have made a fine playwright.
Still, despite her good life a bit of her still yearned for that adventure, and when war against the Messapii came, she was delighted by the news of Eretria's eager support. Fair Drako the Elder was ever a friend of Taras, and handsome Kallias the diplomat who had visited the city to greet the king was very popular. At last the twin cities, both exiles, both surrounded by barbarians, both heroic in the feats of their cavalry and both wise in the quality of their leaders, would join together like Caster and Pollux against the terrible Messapii and vanquish them once and for all, as brothers should.
She had come out to see them marching towards the city from the walls, handkerchief in hand. Aristeides was with her. Oh, how she wished she could bottle that feeling like Pandora had bottled hope, to keep it close to her and never let it escape. How she wished that the ships had not come over the horizon, that the Kerkyrans had never intruded on her fantasy. How she had begged the Eretrians not to leave, how she had pulled at their tunics and been shoved away screaming. Don't leave us here. Don't leave us to die. Hysterical, she was called. Taras would fight alone, and be victorious. They didn't see like she did. They didn't think like she did.
Still, she was young and stupid then and thought in terms of sentimentality when it was simple practicality for Eretria to do nothing. The Kerkyrans were too powerful and the Eretrians too weak. It was an easy, an excusable calculus to make. When the Messapians slaughtered her father in his olive grove and carried away her mother, Eretria was nowhere to be found. When she prayed and prayed until her knees were raw that her husband would come home to her because she was afraid, Eretria was nowhere to be found. When she received a bloody tunic and a widow's pension instead and cried and cried until her eyes were sore, Eretria was nowhere to be found. When she barricaded her house and hid inside while the people killed each other on the streets, Eretria was nowhere to be found. Such was the power of simple practicality.
She had so wanted Aristeides to come home. Such a shame. She had so wanted him to hold her and wish away the despair that was building in her gut, for her city, her life, that she could not speak of for she was a woman. But in her grief she received inspiration. In time, she began to think of a story she could tell, of a monster hiding behind a hero's mask. It was all she had in those days besides her son, her stories. The story grew, and expanded, and soon enough she had begun to recount it to others. In it, the monster hides in plain sight, praised by all in Italia and seen as glorious and wise. When a young hero points to the monster's true form, he is laughed out. How could he speak such? The monster is a hero to all Hellenes. But in the end, the story ended beautifully. In the end, the monster's true form was discovered, and the web of lies it had spun was pierced. The hero, jumping over a dolphin like fair Taras had, impaled it with trident and cut off its head, like Herakles did the Nemean Lion. At last it was felled, never to bother the world again.
Oh, Aristeides would have loved it.
She contented herself by telling it to her son instead. Little Myron, brave boy that he was, sharp and funny, the kind with a shine in his eye that could inspire men to acts of glory. She made sure he would. The best education that she could purchase with her widow's pension and the lands of her husband. The finest teachers, the best of friends, the greatest instructors in war and love. And he had grown, how he had grown. And all the while, he had listened to her story, fascinated, thinking through it all. He had grown now, into a man that his father would have been proud of and a statesman besides, with family and land and respect among all Tarentines. He was ready now to play his part.
It was a spiteful business, but in the end In the end Eudoxia had enjoyed it all. The rough and tumble of politics, the secret plots of symposia, the quaint jostling of ordinary democracy...it had all come to bountiful fruition, these years of work. Taras was stabler, wealthier, and stronger than it had ever been. It had recovered from the depredations of the Messapii and defeated them in battle. The city had become beautiful where Eretria had stayed dirty and rough, closer to the barbaroi they lorded over than the Hellenes they professed to be. It was a hub of commerce and had conquered new lands from the Messapii, with more to come from new and righteous conquest. Best of all, they had done it alone. The twin had been abandoned, but learned to live alone, and now emerged better than his brother. Of course, she knew it was not her place as a woman to care about such things, but she had never fussed much about convention. Like her husband had wanted her to be, she was a playwright now, and the city were her actors, her son her shining star. The Eretrians had played their part perfectly, too, vanquishing those counseling peace in an instant, sending Myron's star straight towards the sky. No one could deny their ill intentions after they had agreed to encircle Taras with their new Messapii pups. And now, now, with all the actors in their positions, the play was about to begin.
The time had come to slay the monster wearing the hero's mask.
[X] [Insurance] Allow the Shrine of Ploutos to handle merchant insurance with state support [-20 talent one-time fee to Shrine of Ploutos].
[X] [Tribute] Levies. More Peuketii allies in the cavalry and light infantry will serve to augment's the city's armies [+2.5% levy from the Peuketii, +654 Levies].
[X] [Collection] Have them come to us. We can maintain a bond of trust with the tributaries without impinging in their private affairs and expand the festival of tribute to build fraternal feeling. [-2 public subsidy upkeep per year].
[X] [League] Let us listen to the concerns of our Hellene allies [League Synedrion will be called next year].
[X] [Alliance] Accept a full defensive alliance with the Messapii Confederacy.
[X] [King] Better to keep the Confederacy weak and potentially reliant on Eretrian direction
Goings on from around the Mediterranean, presented by Xenoparakletor Mnemnon Keylonos of the Demos Exoria
MNEMNON: Citizens, war on the Horizon. Myron Aristeides, Proboulos and first citizen of Taras, has delivered to us an ultimatum that is unacceptable; full withdrawal from alliance with the Messapii, admittance in our guilt in betraying Taras to Kerkyra all those years ago, and an indemnity for the insult. They mean to provoke us to war, and a war they shall have. This is no mere battle between rivals but a battle between true demokratia and its twisted twin. We must slay the Tarentines and vanquish their armies until they have accepted that they are an inferior group of Hellenes who must bow and accept our hegemonia; once they have done so we can once again accept and embrace them as friends and brothers. After all, what happened to the Tarentines all those years ago was an ill omen, but we must not allow it to cloud our judgment. The Taras of today is a different Taras than the ones we were once allied to; they have become so bent in their hatred towards us that they would rather go to war with our superior forces than stomach the simple reality that the Messapii are a people who are not theirs to subjugate and exterminate, but are instead to be protected, nurtured, and raised like sons by the Hellenes, as is our responsibility and duty.
As war will begin as soon as winter turns to spring, I have dispatched emissaries hurriedly to Salapia and Herdonia in order to ascertain the strength of the Dauni and whether there is any weakness we can exploit to distract them. I admit I had hoped, when my term began, to make war against them and bring these rebellious curs to heel, but as we have now pivoted our attention to the Messapii, we must instead secure our border Similarly, I have dispatched emissaries to Metapontion to ascertain their intentions and see if I can secure some kind of deal with them either to allow the army of Thurii to come to Eretria, or at the very least to avoid a confrontation should they begin to fear us in the case of victory.
Thurii is with us, but the Sikeliote League has said they cannot contribute forces as Syrakousai could strike at any moment. This is an unfortunate piece of news, but also one I see as true; there has been growing tension on their mutual border and soon they may come to blows. Better that the Sikeliotes keep their men at home and do not allow Syrakousai victories in their distraction which the accursed city could use as a springboard to assisting Taras. We have called the Epulian League to Eretria and with hope we can convince them to support our war effort, given that if all the cities of Epulia are opposed to us they can veto the war and refuse to participate, depriving us of their precious hoplites.
Now, onto general news from around the Mediterranean.
News from Hellas! The 88th Olympic Games have been held. Eretrian men have won 3rd place in Wrestling, 2nd place in the horse race, and 2nd in the Hoplite Race. There are no champions among Eretria this year at the games, but there shall be on the battlefield! The city of Mylitini on the isle of Lesbos has revolted against Athenai and they have dispatched a force to put down the rebellion. The Spartans have invaded Attike once more, this time with Boeotian cavalry. In response, the Hippeis Eskhata, still under Erasmos Dion's control, have raided in Boeotia as far as the walls of Thebai. The siege of Plataiai by Sparta and Thebai continues.
News from the West! Thurii defeats a large Bruttii raiding party, crushing their aspirations of gaining new territory for their herds. In Sicily, a dispute over a sacred grove has almost exploded into war between Syrakousai and the Sikeliote League. This time the Sikeliotes, weakened by the distraction of their allies against Taras, have been forced to pay an indemnity. Krotone and Lokri have made peace over a prior land dispute, with the land awarded to the neutral city of Hipponion. Etruscan merchants in Campania have sent a delegation to Veii in order to request help against Samnite raiding but have returned home empty-handed. There are rumors that Carthage has made war with Spanish tribes for the rich silver mines of Tartessos, but has not been successful.
News from the North! Illyrian pirate raiding is now harassing shipping from the Enetoi. A successful expedition led by one of their fleets has put an end to some of the raiding by the Liburnians, but the Iapodes have begun raiding as well, making the problem worse. Eretrian shipping has been mostly untouched this year, although merchants have begun hiring rowers in order to protect their ships in more dangerous regions. With the defeat of his campaign against Makedon, Sitalces has decided instead to make war against the Triballi, a Thracian tribe.
Goings on from within the city, presented by Proboulos Kyros Gennadios of the Demos Antipatria
KYROS: Citizens, it is a dark day for the development of the city's temples. As the wise citizen Phokion foretold, the war has brought a disruption to our construction. The laborers we need to continue, and the coin to pay them, must instead go to funding the war against Taras, and so we hope the Gods will understand. As a result, we have been stalled in our completion of the Hill of the Divine Marriage and instead seek to preserve the treasury for the army and navy. When the war is over we will continue development of the Hill, and hopefully, flush with the loot of victory, we will be able to sanctify the Gods all the more. In this year we are also fielding a proposal from the Chief of Public Lands, Arsenios Hermagoras. Hermagoras is a wise and good man, and even if we have our difference belonging as we do to different demes, I believe that his proposal will assist the city and the war while also granting our poorest citizens the opportunity to share in the bounty of our soil.
In terms of finances, I will give only a short explanation of our finances were we not to go to war, so that citizens who choose between the strategies and ideas available to us are aware of what we have to spend. Through my careful spending the city is left with a treasury of 383.4 talents, a formidable war chest that allows us to conduct war for several years without ever even thinking of defiling our sacred treasury. Our public upkeep has been raised by two due to the expansion of the festival of the barbaroi and we can expect further miscellaneous costs this year due to the current emergency. Our allies are not capable of fielding large armies, though as with our own levies, it is advised we do not spend them all at once but carefully use portions of our allies levies to avoid depopulating them in the instance of defeat, as well as to preserve our revenues and solvency of supplies.
Finally, I would like to speak on the discussion from the prior year which was both hearty and vigorous. I would ask that citizens, however, ensure that their discussion is on the topics presented, rather than proposals to be given on elite units or special skirmishers which distract us from the urgent business of war. Nevertheless, the citizens have elected from among them the most prominent speakers, who have received a cash reward. Leukos the Accountant, Ajax son of Lalage the Ekdromos, Erastos son of Nikodemos, Sarpedon son of Sarpedon, Arktos son of Arktos Arkadios, Methodios son of Pelagios, Phokion son of Aristedes, Nikephoros son of Lysandros, Hermesdora Eretriazenis, Skantarios the Hoplite for his fine suggestions on the matter of marines, Kyrillos the Salt-Lover for his fine suggestions on the matter of temples, and Heliodoros son of Giorgos. Special reward is given to Methodios, Phokion, and Arktos for their reasoned and well-spoken discussion on the matter of war.
We thank you citizens, and all those who spoke. Let us pray now for success in war and prosperity in peace!
Demography & Culture
Eretria Eskhata - 348 OL
Adult Freemen: 21,721 (Census of 345 OL) Citizen Ratio: 45.0% Adult Male Citizens: 9,774 Adult Male Metics: 11,947 Total Free Population: 75,683
Patron Gods: Divine Marriage of Athene & Apollon Other Major Gods: Poseidon & Demeter, Zeus, Ploutos, Artemis
Political Offices
Next Election is 349 OL.
Proboulos: Kyros Gennadios (Demos Antipatria) Xenoparakletor: Mnemnon Keylonos (Demos Exoria) Lead Strategos: Only appointed in times of war. Metic Prytanis: Timotaios Herais (Demos Antipatria).
Agoranomos: Arkadios Ambrosios (Demos Antipatria). Assembly of the Mint: Paramonos Diokles (Demos Antipatria). Chief of Public Lands: Arsenios Hermagoras (Demos Exoria). Grand Mantis: Polykarpos Lykos (Demos Antipatria). Elder Ekdromos: Alexandros Hilarion (Demos Exoria).
Great Works
Wide Walls: Proud stone walls that protect the city from enemies. Sea Wall: Protect the city from any sea-based attack. Arkadion: A small temple to Demeter & Poseidon (Under Renovation). Temple of the Divine Marriage: A modest temple to the Divine Marriage of Apollo and Athena. (Under Renovation). Naval Barracks: Where the city's rowers train. Hill of the Divine Marriage: Under Renovation. 2/5 years completed, postponed due to war.
Treasury & Income
Treasury in 347 OL: 383.4 Talents Income: 269.6 Talents Taxation: 168.3 Talents Commerce: 69.8 Talents League Income: 8.7 talents Tribute: 11.8 Talents Public Revenue: 11.0 Talents
Total Levy: 7,011 (50% of all Adult Freemen minus men in special units and navy)
2,804 Hoplites (40% of available levies)
526 Cavalry (7.5% of available levies)
3,861 Psilloi (all remaining available levies)
Deployed Levy
Standing Army (Eretria Eskhata)
500 Sacred Ekdromoi (deployed at all times for 38.5 talents a turn)
50 Kleos Exoria (deployed at all times for 5.5 talents a turn)
1 Staple Trade Route to Athenai (Grain)
1 Staple Trade Route to South Italy (Anchovies & Wine)
1 Staple Trade Route to Sicily (Olive Oil)
1 Staple Trade Route to Southeast Illyria (Olive Oil)
1 Staple Trade Route to Northeast Illyria (Wine)
1 Staple Trade Route to North Italy (Olive Oil)
1 Luxury Trade Route to Athenai (Byssos Cloth)
1 Luxury Trade Route to Etruria (Pottery)
Subjects & Subject Levies
Epulian League Members: Eretria Eskhata, Sipontion, Pylona, Garnae, Barletos, Ankon, Monopolis, and Aufidenos Tribute: 8.7 (10% of yearly income of each city) Epulian League Levies: 816 Hoplites
Peuketii Kingdom Ruler: King Gorgos (son of King Batavorta) Capital: Sannape Tribute: 9.8 Talents a turn Levies: 2,092 Peuketii Skirmishers, 523 Peuketii Cavalry
City of Thurii: Full alliance with the city of Thurii cultivated in opposition to potential ambitions by Taras or other Italiote powers like Krotone. Estimated Levy: 4,000 Men
Sikeliote League: Full alliance with the Sikeliote League cultivated in opposition to the main power in South Sicily, Syrakousai. Maximum Levy: 8,000 Men
Messapii Confederacy: Defensive Alliance with the Messapii Confederacy developed in opposition to Taras. Maximum Levy: 3,000 Men.
Xenoparakletor Mission: Securing the Borders
The emissaries of Mnemnon raced to get ahead of the spring thaw when the beginning of the campaign season would bring with it war with Taras. Those who went to Metapontion were greeted coolly. Metapontion, now a democracy, had been following the development of war between Taras and Eretria for some time. It had not been impressed with the Eretrians, who they felt had become too close to the barbaroi, and now felt were using that closeness to undermine the Tarentines. At the same time, Metapontion feared that if Taras conquered the Messapii, they would become so strong as to pose a threat to all Italia. Former ties of friendship and mutual sympathy for one another still animated some in Metapontion, but the city had become a stranger to Eretria in part because the city had shifted its focus away to Sicily, where Syrakousai remained an everpresent danger, and to Illyria, and so in both aspects had forgotten its former camaraderie with the Metapontines, and given them little reason to maintain them. Among those negative about Eretria were those who argued that the city's hubris and extreme pride in itself would destroy it in a war with Taras, as they believed themselves so superior to all other Hellenes that everyone deserved only subjugation in Eretria's expanding "family".
Nevertheless, there remains an opportunity. The proboulos Niketas Phaidros would be interested in meeting with Eretria's xenoparakletor and potentially hashing out some kind of deal or proposal in order to secure Metapontion's neutrality. Without it, Niketas suggests, Metapontion may intervene in favor of whatever party comes out weaker in order to preserve the balance of power in the Sallentine, as it fears that if one grows too strong then its neutrality will be threatened by a power now capable of fighting the entire rest of Italia on its own. However, this must be done by the xenoparakletor and xenoparakletor alone; Metapontion will not negotiate with emissaries and wishes for a sacred pact in order to ensure that no matter the outcome of the war the city will not be threatened.
At the same time another group of emissaries raced northwards, rowing across the cold Aufidenos river and braving the winter snows of the Dauni land to arrive in Salapia. Disguised as Peuketii, and with a few Peuketii among them, they managed to gain entry to the council of the Salapians, who were delighted to see them. For years they had been quietly nursing a grudge against King Ausculos, who, in his attempt to deny the Eretrians a crucial resource, had destroyed the saltpans of Lake Salpi. The scorched earth policy may have prevented Eretria from gaining access to the excellent quality salt of the lagoon, but they also destroyed the economy of Salapia's wealthiest citizens, and so alienated the city. Herdonia, on the other hand, feels put upon by the amount of expense the king has placed in building fortifications facing the Samnites who have not invaded in many years, and has extracted heavy expense from the town to fund it.
Both cities have grudges against the Dauni and were dismayed to find out that Eretria would not be able to help them in a rebellion against King Ausculos, given that both had hoped to come under Eretria's control in exchange for deals on salt and fair tributary contributions. However, when the emissaries explained the nature of their mission, they instead demanded that the xenoparakletor ride to them and treat them personally, because they doubt the intentions of the Eretrians and are afraid that if they are not given explicit guarantees by Mnemnon that they will be unable to oppose the war. However, if given money and support from Eretria, they could convince enough cities to prevent Ausculos from making war on Eretria.
If Mnemnon does not come, however, they will not put up a challenge as they fear they could not sway the rest of the cities. Ausculos, the emissaries discovered, is a sly and treacherous king, whose front of stability and justice hides a man who has assassinated the leaders of many of his subject cities and rules by fear and intrigue. If Mnemnon works with the cities of Salapia and Herdonia, he would be afraid to strike at them, but if he is not there, the presence of mere emissaries will not be enough to intimidate him into thinking he faces outright rebellion and he may pursue a war.
These reports left Mnmenon with much frustration. Why did he have to choose? But the truth of the matter was that although it was possible for Eretria to dispatch emissaries to both states, they would not have the respect necessary in order to sway their leaders in order to commit to backing Eretria's position. Without that crucial intervention by a respected and well-known figure explicitly confirmed to represent Eretria by the people of the city, there would still be a chance to succeed in both missions, but the chance would be far lower.
The choice is now left to the assembly to decide.
Where should the Xenoparakletor go before the war begins in order gain advantage or security for Eretria along one of its potential fronts?
[] [Diplomacy] Metapontion. The Metapontines are cordial with Eretria but have no love for the idea of us being victorious in war with Taras. We must move to keep them neutral, and if possible, to allow Thuriian infantry through their lands to assist us against Taras [-20 talents for bribes, Mnemnon will attempt to negotiate with Metapontion].
[] [Diplomacy] The Dauni. We cannot allow the Dauni to create a two-front war. Our spies have revealed opposition to a war with Eretria among the Herdonians and Salapians. We must bribe and convince them to push the rest of the Dauni Confederacy into opposing a war with Eretria even it looks momentarily advantageous [-20 talents for bribes, Mnemnon will attempt to convince the Dauni to stay at peace].
Land Policy: Emergency Redistribution
Arsenios Hermagoras speaks before the ekklesia. He does in a rushed, urgent tone. The time has come for war, but the city has allowed the number of hoplites that defend it to fall far too much. It has not respected its citizens, who expect land for their duties and service to the state, and it has not respected the Gods, who expect great temples. But now, with this emergency, there is a chance to use the city's reserves of lands to enrich its citizens. The public lands, many of which are on land which is quite wealthy but had never been provided in prior distributions, is mostly worked by tenant farmers and is a profitable additional source of revenue for the city. However, it is also a source of ire, as many citizens feel that instead of providing them with the land they need, the city has instead decided to keep it for itself and to fill its coffers. This unpopular policy put forward by the Demos Drakonia has had many advantages, but has now come to a head; with the war approaching the city needs more Hoplites to match Taras and the public lands can help achieve that.
Although the hoplites won't be of immediate impact, they can cushion the blow from any casualties at a battle with Taras or allow for the creation of additional armies of hoplites to face other threats. However, Athenagoras has loudly said that this would be a massive loss to the city's coffers, draining them at a time when war requires coin just as well as men to succeed. Obander and Mnemnon are supportive of the policy, seeing it as a matter of virtue as well as practicality; what kind of city is it that is democratic but guards land jealously from its own citizens? Without time for the land to yield before war begins, the city will cover the cost of panoplies for the new hoplites for this year, with the understanding that with their new land they will be able to maintain the panoplies themselves in all succeeding years.
With debate between notables ended, matter is put before the ekklesia.
Should the city distribute public lands to its citizens, gaining hoplites but losing revenue?
[] [Land] Distribute the public lands [-10 Talents start-up cost for hoplites, permanently lose 9 talents per turn in public revenue, +351 Hoplites, Hoplite Ratio to 45%].
[] [Land] We cannot afford to lose so much revenue [Maintain Hoplite Ratio at 40%, lose no public revenue].
League Policy: The Veto's Shadow
As soon as it became clearer that war was on the horizon objections to calling the league Synedrion, which had been many, fell away in favor of a general acceptance that the league had to be placated if its hoplites were go to war, despite some complaining about the ungratefulness of the league cities to demand things from Eretria. The Synedrion, held by Mnemnon at a time when he was desperately juggling several different responsibilities in order to ensure Eretria did not go to war, were mostly led by Pylonos, aptly named for the city of Pylona from which he had been sent. Pylonos was a man of great speaking ability constrained by the small city he had been born and raised in, and saw the League Synedrion as an opportunity to amplify his voice and those of his compatriots across the league. What Mnemnon had assumed would be a matter of a few simple proposals was soon spun into a convention on reform, handled cordially and kindly by Pylonos who was able to rally many members of the league to support fair and common reforms that would improve the league and improve Eretria, in his argumentation.
The reforms Pylonos ended up presenting divided some of the league members. The older league members, such as Garnae, Pylona, Barletos, and Sipontion were for them, but Aufidenos, Monopolis, and Ankon were not. Concerns were raised that the reforms would push Eretrian patience to the breaking point. Among them were:
A proposal to create a new league strategos responsible for leading all non-Eretrian cities in times of war and presiding over annual meetings in times of peace, elected by all the cities
Panepulian games held outside the walls of Eretria on a four year interval
Common weights and measures across the entire League
The establishment of sacred League ceremonies and the standardization of meetings
Veto over League decisions changes from unanmity of League cities to super-majority of delegates from cities
The last proposal was particularly contentious. Eretria needed the support of the League's hoplites if it was to succeed, especially if it wished to expand the league and make it attractive for other cities to join, but by transforming the veto from a consensus proposal to a super-majority, Eretria would suddenly face real opposition to its proposals in the foreign policy realm from the league, and might not be able to count on the league in all its wars. For some citizens like Mnemnon, this was a step too far. He had argued that the league was formed to serve Eretria and it should continue that way. Athenagoras and Obander, now working together, argued that it was absurd that the city consistently expected the league cities to shed blood for it but treated them worse than the cities of the Athenian Delian League by not even bothering to involve them in ceremonies or having the pretense of equality between itself and the cities. If the league was to grow, to say, encompass the former dependencies of Taras, it must expand beyond its former boundaries. However, some citizens were outraged when Pylonos suggested that if these reforms were not passed, the league would simply not support Eretria in its war against Taras, abandoning the city to fight alone.
If the city wished not to even entertain these proposals or undermine league solidarity, there were options. The city could provide kindly cash proposals to certain members of the league to break up their coalition and prevent the veto reform from passing, or they could bribe the delegates from Ankon and prevent the use of a veto altogether. Each option, of course, had consequences for how the league would see Eretria in the future.
The matter was now left to the assembly.
How should the city respond to the Epulian League's proposals?
[] [League] Accept the Pylonos' Reform Proposal [New League Strategos elected by the cities, power to preside over annual meetings, new League Games every four years, common weights and measures, veto reformed to super-majority of delegates from cities].
[] [League] Go under the table to prevent the veto reform from passing [-10 talents in bribes, All League Reforms pass except for veto reform, League divided].
[] [League] Reject the reforms and bribe the delegates from Ankon to prevent the use of a veto [-15 talents, Eretrian war against Taras is now veto-proof, League in disarray].
War Policy: The Battle for Sallento
War with Taras is here! With the spring thaw finally arriving the moment that so many citizens have been dreading or waiting for in equal measure has arrived. Many young men who have yet had the opportunity to see war on land are overtaken by the joy of finally being able to show their ability and glory. Indeed, Isokrates Hypatos, the young merchant who ran for Proboulos in the previous election, has already volunteered for a position on the heroic and honorable far-right of the Eretrian phalanx. Many are now jostling for the position. Others have vied to be chosen as strategoi from among the generals in the city's council. In the tradition first started by Herodion, in a time of war there is a single strategoi, two deputies, and seven subordinates, representing the ultimate strategic mind, the major commanders, and the lower officers. In peace, there are always three senior strategoi, one from each of the three demes, but in war one among them is elected to become the city's prime strategos, to lead it in war and achieve glory for it. Failure is not an option; it will result in recall, or exile if the situation is particularly disastrous.
The city can call upon its ally of Thurii, which it will do so, but Thurii is blocked by Metapontion which does not want armies marching through its lands. Meanwhile, the Messapii, due to the city's decision not to support a leader from among them, have fallen into political and factional infighting even as it becomes increasingly clear that the Tarentines are preparing for war. The Sikeliote League is otherwise occupied, but Taras, owing to its isolationist position among the Italiote Greeks, has few allies of its own, only friends in Hellas such as its mother city, Sparta, and the Korinthians. However, Mnemnon does not expect intervention by either unless the situation in the Korinthian Gulf gets significantly worse for Athenai, as at the moment they have complete naval dominance in the area. More concerning would be support from Syrakousai or Lokri Epixiphyrii, but Syrakousai is absorbed by a potential war with the Sikeliotes that will also likely drag the Lokrians in, given the Sikeliote League counts Rhegion among its allies.
The strategoi are divided on a strategy, which is common enough. Normally, however, there are rarely three different strategies to be pursued, as in matters of war the factions are far more willing to compromise for fear not only of inciting the anger of each other but of weakening the city's war effort. In this case, Exoria and Antipatria's generals, Xanthos Irenaeos and Theron Zosimos have formed a coalition and agreed on a common strategy that they call "the storm of iron". Seeking to preserve the city's revenues, and to achieve glory for the city in warfare, Xanthos and Theron have suggested that the city meet Taras in a pitched battle, defeat its army, and besiege the city. By comparison, Epiktetos Linos, Demos Drakonia's general, has a different plan. Seeing Taras' situation as fundamentally endangered on both land and sea by superior numbers, he'd prefer to avoid a battle on land that could shock Italia into acting against Eretria and preserve its manpower in the case of an attack from another direction. Instead, the city ought to harass the Tarentines and make their supplies so tenuous that they flee back into the city, employ an aggressive naval strategy inspired by Eusebios to weaken the support of its allies, and then raid and besiege the city.
Although both plans end with a siege, Epiktetos argues that it is dangerous to directly confront the Tarentines with men that have not experienced war against other Hellenes for many years, and that it would be better instead to pursue a more moderate strategy that seeks to bottle up rather than crush Taras until the city is surrounded by Eretrians and their allies. He also argues that assisting the Messapii in this way will better get them under Eretria's grip and establish it as being able to protect their lands. However, Xanthos and Theron both point out credible problems in the plan. In the first place, it will still require casualties by Eretria's cavalry and skirmishers, as well as those of the allies, to destroy Taras' own skirmisher screens. Further, not only will it be a more expensive way of making war but also make the chance of a sally by the Tarentines against the siege works more likely, as their manpower is preserved in their city rather than being dead on the field.
To this Epiktetos has countered that there is also great danger in Xanthos' and Theron's strategy. If Eretria were to lose the battle it would of course be a catastrophe, but if it decisively wins, it will cause an instant reaction in both Hellas and Italia, with fear emerging that Eretria will become hegemon of the entire region, encouraging coalitions against the city and its allies. On the other hand, settling in for a siege while leaving the Tarentine army entirely whole could also give time for Taras to shore up its position and reach out for allies if it is able to break out of the siege or even send emissaries. It will be impossible to hide the fact that the siege is blockaded and besieged the pressure to rescue it in either case will build across the Greek world.
To this Mnemnon interjects. Who would intervene? Sparta and Korinthos are in a hopeless position at sea and Syrakousai is distracted by the Sikeliotes. The Italiotes could, but they would have to fight through Thurii first just to get to Eretria. It is difficult to imagine a danger coming from the siege, though in the long-run it will certainly weaken Eretria's diplomatic position as an equal to its neighbors rather than a potential hegemon threatening them. But such would be the reality in any case.
The generals argue for some time longer, laying out their cases and the costs of their plans for all to see. Dispositions are also raised; Taras can raise more hoplites than Eretria even if Eretria raises its league hoplites. At the same time, it has less cavalry and fewer skirmishers, and while their cavalry is of equal quality to Eretria's their skirmishers are noticeably worse than the Peuketii. It has about 20 ships, but they are poorly crewed and Taras has little naval tradition. Thurii can contribute 10 of its own poorly crewed ships, and a maximum of some 4,000 men, but in reality it will be closer to 2,000 overall, with the vast majority being hoplites, and unless the way to Metapontion is cleared, mostly concerned with besieging Herakleia Lukania, a Tarentine dependency.
Now, with that out of the way, all that is left is for the assembly to discuss.
Strategy: The Storm of Iron
Supporters: Demos Antipatria, Demos Exoria
Goal: Confront Taras in pitched battle and end the war quickly.
Specifics: March on Taras with the army while the navy is dispatched around the Sallentine Peninsula. Defeat the Tarentine Army on the field of battle and then burn its olive groves. If Taras will not surrender, besiege the city from land and blockade it from sea. This plan does not rely on support from the Messapii. The goal is to defeat Taras quickly in a way where they'll be weakened and more willing to make peace.
Cost: 142.8 (Naval Upkeep), 103.8 (Army Upkeep), 35.9 Talents (1/5 of Army maintained in Siege), 10 Talents (Building a Siege Wall) = 292.5 Talents
Strategy: The Serpent's Vice
Supporters: Demos Drakonia
Goal: Humiliate Taras and isolate it diplomatically.
Specifics: Dispatch a massive number of light troops into Messapia and work with the Messapii to overwhelm the Tarentine cavalry and skirmisher screens, forcing their army to either end up without supplies or retreat back into the city. Deploy the navy with Ekdromoi and raid both Hydrus and Kalliopolis, embarrassing Taras as it is unable to defend its allies. Attack Taras' harbor and burn its ships, using Eretria's overwhelming naval superiority. Only then, march on the city, avoiding a pitched battle, and besiege it. The goal is to isolate Taras and bottle its forces in the city without receiving heavy Eretrian casualties.
Cost: 176.8 (Naval Upkeep), 95.1 (Army Upkeep), 51.1 Talents (Cost of Maintaining 1/3 of the army in a siege), 10 talents (Building a Siege Wall) = 333 Talents
Who shall Eretria appoint as the chief strategos for the city in the war against Taras?
Known for his friendliness which he uses to lead men to battle, as well as his courage. A man of moderate glory who won recognition as an Ekdromos defeating Illyrians in battle as well as Messapii as a young man. Known for being freewheeling in his tactics, genial and inspiring in battle, and innovative in his tactics.
Known for his glory and his courage gained in charging at Messapii cavalry as a young rider, saving a unit of poor men who had been trapped. Among the most courageous men in the city, he is known for his rash and exhilirating bravery that leads men to praise him as the best of all the Eretrians in combat.
A man of much moderation, known in the past for his leadership against pirates in the Adriatic. Wealthy and kind, he has devoted much of his life to assisting the Eretrian poor rather than building great works. He is known for his preference for avoiding battle in favor of more methodical and careful tactics, but this has sometimes earned him the title of craven among men who do not know him and his careful plans.
Supports The Serpent's Vice plan.
As this is a vote with many moving parts I am opening it up to plan votes. You will present a vote with your name, or a catchy name, in order to find the optimum combination of choices, as in this case some choices simply mesh better with others. It is recommended that voters wait some time to discuss before voting given the momentous importance of the decisions made.
The turn is not over; after the vote is closed for this update, there will be a follow-up post with updates to the diplomatic choices and to the campaign.
[X] Plan The Greatest Glory Is Lasting Victory
-[X] [Diplomacy] The Dauni. We cannot allow the Dauni to create a two-front war. Our spies have revealed opposition to a war with Eretria among the Herdonians and Salapians. We must bribe and convince them to push the rest of the Dauni Confederacy into opposing a war with Eretria even it looks momentarily advantageous [-20 talents for bribes, Mnemnon will attempt to convince the Dauni to stay at peace].
-[X] [Land] Distribute the public lands [-10 Talents start-up cost for hoplites, permanently lose 9 talents per turn in public revenue, +351 Hoplites, Hoplite Ratio to 45%].
-[X] [League] Accept the Pylonos' Reform Proposal [New League Strategos elected by the cities, power to preside over annual meetings, new League Games every four years, common weights and measures, veto reformed to super-majority of delegates from cities].
-[X] [Strategos] Epiktetos Linos (Demos Drakonia, The Serpent's Vice)
The Preparations for War
For decades, the flat and dry Sallentine Peninsula has been the host of terrible warfare. The Tarentines, growing in number, sought first to dominate the interior, pushing their estates and farms inland and encroaching on the pastures and villages of the indigenous Messapii. The first phase of this warfare involved skirmishing and Tarentine offensive campaigns usually blunted by the cavalry of the Messapii. Then came Eretria, and the shattering of the Peuketii; now the Messapii were increasingly isolated and incapable of calling on their Iapygian allies. Still, the betrayal of Eretria by Taras allowed for a new, brief resurgence in Messapii fortunes after losing the city of Leuci to Hellene colonists. Their reprieve was short, however, for a wounded Taras emerged out of a generational slump with a sense of rage and a vast new force of cavalry. With their king Daxtus embroiled in a dispute with the Eretrians that would end in their intervention, the Messapii broke between the threat of the two Greek states, their villages depopulated and their people weakened. Still preserving their independence in fortress towns, they were no longer capable of challenging the Greeks for dominance, especially as the populations of both cities grew. No longer a player, the Messapii could only hope to preserve their independence and culture against a hostile and expanding Hellene ascendancy.
But the wounds of the Eretrian abandonment of Taras ran deep. Although many Tarentines did not see Eretria as a threat, or only a distant one, others, led by Myron Aristeides, were of a different mind. Arguing that the Eretrians needed to be defeated and their hegemony confined to the region known as Epulia north of the Sallento, Myron was able to win a contested election as proboulos. Still, his political capital remained low; he had been one of four candidates, and had won on a plurality. What would convince the people that he could lead them to war against Eretria? He needed something decisive to prove to them the folly of peace with the Eretrians.
Then, suddenly, the Messapii were enrolled into defensive alliance by Eretria through the xenoparakletor Mnemnon and everything seemed to fall into place. The peace faction of Taras was thrown into confusion; was this a prelude to an Eretrian attack? Those in the war faction argued that not only was it a prelude to attack, but a grand encirclement of Taras and her dependencies by Eretria. No longer content with its Epulian wealth, they had employed barbaroi for the sake of their ambition. There was no choice; Myron swayed both the assembly and the influential boule that Eretria could no longer be trusted. Thanks to a constitution that concentrated more central power in a single man for a short period, Myron had a responsibility as strategos as well as proboulos, and now had to prove himself before the fickle assembly.
Desultory terms were dispatched to Eretria along with emissaries to the Dauni and Metapontion justifying Taras' actions. Metapontion was open to discussion, and agreed with the Tarentine position that this was a war of honor, but by the same token, they expected that the war should finish soon or a coalition of Italiote Greeks would be composed to force the powers to come to terms. In the years since the arrival of Eretria, after all, the art of diplomacy had greatly advanced among the western Greeks. Most cities had a xenoparakletor or office with similar functions, though none with the same capability as Eretria, and governments maintained more contact with one another than ever before. Lokri, Krotone, Rhegion and Metapontion all feared that an Eretrian-Thuriian victory would presage them imposing an Italiote League on the rest of the region as Eretria had on the Epulians, while a Tarentine victory that granted them the whole sallentine peninsula would give them enough land and serfs to transform themselves into an Italian Sparta. Neither outcome was desireable.
Both Eretrians and Tarentines, however, went into war with heady expectations, assuming that their victory would echo through time as the vanquishing of the other. Young men called other men cowards for electing Epiktetos Linos strategos, and the populace swung wildly from one set of plans to another. There were many personalities who sought to sway the citizenry, notable men who were below the leaders of the factions but still held influence in their words: The considerate Leander, who spoke of the advantages of different plans, Phokion and Arktos, who suggested that a decisive victory in battle was the way forward, for courage and glory, Methodios, who presented the plan that would ultimately be victorious, and many more besides. So many citizens spoke at such length that at one point the hoplite Skantarios was found fast asleep during the fifth speech of Antipatros son of Lysandros, and the proceedings dragged on well into the night.
In the end, however, it was declared that the following plan would be taken, in a series of rapid-fire ballots that determined the fate of the entire war. Xenoparakletor Mnemnon would rush north to the Dauni before the campaign season begun and convince the sympathetic Dauni cities to build a coalition against a war without starting a rebellion that might create a provocation for King Ausculos. The city's public lands were distributed through a lottery and additional funds given over to the people in order to create a larger hoplite force the city could rely on as well as resolve tensions of debt and poverty among the citizenry on the eve of the war. This swelled the hearts of many poorer citizens, who saw that the assembly was truly a model of demokratia, for it had willingly foregone revenues of state for the sake of its people.
To the proposal of Pylonos, to the shocked surprise of the Epulians, the city decided to grant them all their requests including the strengthened veto. Before the synedrion Pylonos gave a speech of gratitude that moved the Eretrian delegates to tears; this was all they had wanted, he explained, all they had asked for, and now they would fight for the city in turn. Pylonos was duly elected as the Epulian League's first strategos, answerable to Epiktetos Linos, the city's new head strategos. In his own speech he thanked the city for the extraordinary honor and said he would honor the city by winning glory in war and a fast peace so that the people of Eretria could return to their fields. He said they were not a warlike people, but instead a people of peace and prosperity who respected the common good. They should seek not to crush Taras, but to humble it, and to fulfill their new sacred obligations to the Messapii agreed to by the Xenoparakletor before a sacred grove in Egnatia, to Artemis and Orion, the favored cult of the Iapyges as well as Zeus, called Zis by the Messapii, respected by both Hellene and Barbaroi as the God before all others.
Now the levies were called. The drafts of the young men of Eretria, both metic and citizen, were called out, and an army formed outside the city in April. Messengers went out to the Peuketii, to Turai and Egnatia, and were met with agreements. The barbaroi allies arrived in late April, having marshalled much of their skirmishers and cavalry for war, now a comfortable sight for the Eretrian citizenry used to seeing barbaroi below the walls during the ceremony of the annual tribute. The Epulians arrived at around the same time, after having received news from the Dauni that raised their spirits. Mnemnon had been successful (5d4+3=20) and Ausculos had been cowed. When he had called to marshal the levies of the Dauni, ostensibly to face the Samnites but potentially against the Eretrians, he was forced to back down by a coalition of five cities, namely Drionis, Salapia, Herdonia, Arpi and Aecae, who argued that war against Eretria would be counter-productive and costly, and that prosperity was a preferable alternative. Understanding the implication, and the danger of going to war with such opposition in his own army, Ausculos cancelled the levies and returned to his capital Auscula.
The Dauni frontier had now been secured, the Epulians grateful, the citizens pleased. Now the time had come for war.
Immediately Epiktetos Linos appointed Xanthos Irenaeos as the city's naval strategos and dispatched him and the fleet of fifteen triremes ahead. The rowers, relived to have work, moved rapidly down to the coast, spending a day at Brention where the local chieftain was preparing for battle. From there, they launched an attack on the dependency of Hydrus along with three hundred Hieros ekdromoi. Without a navy of its own, and caught totally off-guard, the Hydrians could do little as the Ekdromoi landed in the harbor and looted the city, stealing much of its movable wealth and defacing the statues of major public figures (5d4+5=20). Having taken as much as they could carry, Irenaeos now commanded the navy to swing around the peninsula and attack Kalliopolis, near opposite to Hydrus. With forewarning, the people of Kalliopolis rallied to the defense of the harbor but were overwhelmed (2d10+2=17), having not expected the ferocity and discipline of the ekdromoi, who were among the only units of the Eretrian levy who had active combat experience in naval raids and so defeated the citizens expertly, once again looting the town. Taras, which had not expected such a ferocious and speedy response by Eretria, now dispatched a fleet of twenty-five ships rowing southwards to defeat the Eretrians.
The Sallentine Peninsula, dotted with bays and long beaches, suited a naval battle well, and soon the two fleets had spotted the other. Irenaeos, without hesitation and to the fright of the Tarentines, rowed out towards the sea until he was facing the coast, and then descended upon the Tarentines. Slower to manuever and without trained rowers, the Tarentines panicked and started to row towards the shore, a disastrous mistake that would cost many their lives (5d4+5=22). Pressed against the shore on one side and the Eretrians on the other, nine Tarentine ships were beached while the rest fled. Immediately afterwards, Irenaeos pressed the attack again, landing several Eretrian Trirmes with the express goal of dispatching Hieros Ekdromoi to kill as many Tarentines as possible and burn their ships. In this he was also successful, killing several dozen rowers who tried to defend their ships, and torching six out of the nine Tarentine ships, with the rest managing to escape thanks to courageous crews and a fortunate wind (5d4+6=15).
Nevertheless, this was a crushing blow, and the sheer ability of the Eretrian navy facing off against inexperienced rowers mostly composed of the poorest strata of Tarentine society meant that there would be no further naval engagements during the year with Taras; their fleet simply refused to engage, having been so crushed at the Battle of the Sallentine Shore.
With the naval war won, Iremaeos retreated southwards to camp in Messapii territory on the other side of the peninsula, wishing to avoid a scenario where the night camp was set upon by Tarentines. Now it was a matter of winning on land.
The challenge on land would be far harder. Taras, Hydrus, and Kalliopolis had ralled together a huge force of hoplites 3,500 men strong, a force of cavalry 500 strong, and a force of skirmishers 1200 strong. The loss of fighting men from Kalliopolis and Hydrus would immediately punish these two cities, but rather than humiliating them this act only drove them closer into the arms of Taras (2d10=3), now utterly embarassed by how easy their cities had been to raid and wishing to prove their worth to their overlord, that they were men and not pathetic whelps who could have their cities sacked without even doing battle. However, they would have a challenging task ahead of them. Myron Aristeides was an experienced cavalrymen, and so began to realize rapidly that the Eretrians were not intending to force the Tarentines to pitched battle but cut off their supplies and strip away their screens. Epiktetos Linos moved rapidly, holding back the Eretrian hoplites only as a fixed position to retreat to, well away from the main action which involved mostly the skirmishing between the Tarentines and the Eretrians.
Before the Eretrians arrived, however, the Messapii had rallied a force to attempt to block the Tarentines from reaching Aoxenta, which was fortified only by two-hundred men and a small wall, with the women and children having fled. The Messapii attack on the Tarentines faltered and then ended catastrophically when a bold Tarentine cavalry raid trapped the Messapii against the sea (2d10-4=5), which was enabled by the superior numbers of the Tarentine cavalry and the disorganized resistance put up only by individual Messapii cities, with Caelia and Brention having held back their own levies to await Eretrian arrival. The result was a slaughter of Messapii skirmishers while the cavalry escaped, a terrible loss to begin the campaign with. Nevertheless, Eretria still held an overwhelming advantage in light infantry and cavalry, and Linos gave the order to continue pressing the advantage, swayed as he was by the advice of Theron Zosimos that if he does not press the attack the men will grow restless.
Having reached Aoxenta, the Tarentines attempted their own daring raid, attempting to take the depopulated settlement with ladders in the dark of night on the advisement of Myron who noticed that sections of the walls were unguarded by the defenders due to their lack of numbers. Unfortunately for the Messapii, the risky manuever was successful (Roll for Messapii, 2d10+4=7), and after a vicious brawl, the gates of Aoxenta were flung open. Around half the men of Aoxenta left remaining were able to ride out of the city and escape northwards, but the remaining one-hundred men of the city fought to their deaths at the citadel. The town was burnt and abandoned and with it, the last thorn in the side of Taras on the southern side of the Sallento. The campaign had gotten off to a successful start, but the fighting in Aoxenta had been more vicious and anticipated and so the Tarentines stopped for two weeks to recover, during which time they now yielded the initiative to Eretria (+1 to Eretrian opening moves against the Tarentine army).
Meanwhile, Epiktetos Linos encamped outside the Messapii city of Hyria, and began to rally the remaining Messapii cities. King Artahias of Neriton, who had held his men back until this point, came, as well as the armies of Brention, Caelia, and Hyria; Manduria, Rudiae, and Lupiae had all been involved in that first ill-fated battle with Taras and so were still recovering, with levies trickling in.
Results
Town of Aoxenta Fallen to Taras, 100 Messapii Men killed
240 Messapii Skirmishers butchered by Taras
91 Tarentine Men killed in the storming of Aoxenta
Epiktetos Linos now saw an opportunity. With the Tarentines camped near the southern tip of the Sallentine Peninsula there was a chance to try and prevent them from returning home, or at least force them into evasive manuevers which would winnow and attrite their numbers on the return back to Taras. First, however, he wanted to reduce the pressure on the Messapii and create a reason for the Tarentines to return home. So, dispatching Messapii, Egnatian, and Turai cavalry to Tarentine territory, he ordered them to embark on a campaign of terror against the local population, looting, pillaging, and burning estates and olive groves. This tactic was moderately successful (2d10+4=13) but came up against resistance from Taras' remaining levies. Nevertheless, it was enough to force Myron out of his inaction, and it was at this moment that Eretria struck. Not yet fully aware of the extent of the Eretrian cavalry and skirmisher force because such a large army of barbaroi had never been pulled together by the Eretrians before, Myron made a dangerous mistake in not sending out a large enough cavalry and light infantry screen. However, early Eretrian attempts to take advantage of this were only partly successful (5d4+4=13) due to the disorganization in the barbaroi levies and Myron's swift-thinking, which soon upped the number of cavalry and light infantry protecting his camp.
Now realizing the depth of the danger he was in, Myron began to order a march northwest through the coastal road, but was immediately set upon not only Eretria's barbaroi allies but the terrifying feathered cavalry, the Kleos Exoria, who began to systematically and methodically pick away at his outriders (5d4+6=16). Now Myron deployed his skirmishers in order to help maintain a screen, but the flat ground of the southern Sallentine as well as the weakness of skirmishers to cavalry meant nothing but disaster for these units (5d4+8=19). With both his skirmishers and cavalry weakened, Myron had no choice but to return home or see his hoplites systematically picked away. At the same time, Linos ordered Irenaeos to take the fleet to an island just off the coast of Taras, large enough for the Triremes to camp, and to make the journey during the night (5d4=13). Successful, Irenaeos camped there, awaiting Linos' signal, only a day away as the allied forces chased Myron back to the city with moderate casualties for Myron's forces (5d4+4=13). At that moment, however, a second Tarentine cavalry force deployed from the Sallento succeeded in penetrating the Eretrian cavalry screens (5d4-2=16) and inflicting heavy casualties on an Eretrian light infantry camp situated nearby, wounding among others the outspoken psilloi of Thracian origin, Hermesdora Eretriazenis.
Results
92 Eretrian Psilloi killed
2 Kleos Exoria killed
29 Eretrian Cavalry killed
120 Allied Skirmishers Killed
39 Allied Cavalry Killed
Large numbers of Tarentine Cavalry, Skirmishers, and some Hoplites killed (~500 overall, mostly skirmishers and cavalry)
Before the walls of the city, however, Myron's army wheeled around, having been forced onto the narrow peninsula on which Taras is situated. Humiliated by their march home, the army now rallied to Myron's cry to defend their city and prevent a siege wall from being constructed. Eretria's hoplites, having moved in on Linos' orders to start constructing a wall cutting the city off, were taken off guard, and in the narrow peninsula Eretria's cavalry and skirmisher advantage was suddenly nullified. If Eretria were to victoriously besiege the city, there was now no choice but to confront them in a pitched battle, as Myron's strength had not been weakened enough to force them into the city. Now some 2,100 hoplites, with Myron having ordered partial dissolution of the army in home territory ostensibly to prevent a mutiny but in reality to buttress the city's strength in the case of a siege, these 2,100 faced 1,500 Eretrian hoplites and 300 League Hoplites. Despite Theron Zosimos' request, however, Linos said the Hieros Ekdromoi should stay with the fleet.
Lines were drawn now. Linos, refusing to reveal his intentions to even his close advisers, advised Theron only to make it a good battle, and the two sides were joined. On the narrow peninsular field neither Eretria or Taras had an opening advantage, though the Tarentines were in danger of being pushed up against their walls if they faltered. Theron ordered the right-most flank to begin approaching the Tarentine lines whilst the Tarentines did the same. It was an irony now that the wily plan to avoid pitched battle had ended in pitched battle, but it had been forced by the failure in an attrition campaign to totally defeat the Tarentine forces. It was at this point, as the lines collided, however, that Linos revealed his plan, one that could only have worked before the walls of Taras. A burning arrow was fired into the sky, and with it the signal for the Eretrian fleet. The Eretrian rowers and ekdromoi, having heard the sound of fighting, had already embarked and now rushed towards the city. Taras had no sea wall and little protection from a naval attack aside from its fleet, which was sitting in the harbor, completely unaware of the Eretrian naval gambit. After a successful landing (2d10+3=18), the Ekdromoi began to loot the harbor. Myron's wise decision to keep a large portion of his force within the city walls prevented the raid from turning into a sack, but it was about to create mass confusion on the field.
On the plain of Taras the Eretrians and Tarentines clashed. The Eretrian right-wing hit first, but was pushed back by the superior Tarentine hoplites (2d10-3=8). In the midst of the push and pull of the Eretrian lines, young Isokrates Hypatos, who had been so excited to fight for Eretria and prove his worth, was killed by a spear thrust that embedded itself in his neck and fell to the ground in spasms. On the left-wing, however, there was a shocking breakthrough led by Pylonos, who had led the Epulian hoplites from the left side with such vigor that the weak Tarentine left broken entirely (2d10+4=23). Nevertheless, the collapsing Eretrian right might have ended the battle had there not been a raid on the harbor; when the Tarentines saw smoke coming from the city they panicked and assumed the Eretrians were sacking it. Despite Myron's calls to stay on the field they fled inside (2d10+4=21), yielding the plain and losing many men who turned their back at the wrong moment, but at heavy cost to Eretria.
The battle now won, the ekdromoi retreated to the opposite shore to Taras, wanting to avoid being overwhelmed on the docks. They had, however, done their part, and a fire now raged through Taras' port district, while a good portion of her remaining navy was burnt. The Eretrians had succeeded on both the field and at sea, but many complained about Linos' reckless tactic. If one thing had failed, or one part of the plan faltered, it might have turned into a slaughter for the Eretrians. With everything having been done, the navy now settled in for a blockade and the army for a siege. It had been almost two months since the fighting had began, and Linos wished to maintain the land blockade with the full force of Eretrians and allies until the coming of the harvest when men would be permitted to go home.
Results
Isokrates Hypatos, Drakonian Proboulos candidate for election, dead
149 Eretrian Hoplites dead
21 League Hoplites Dead
234 Tarentine hoplites killed
12 Tarentine Ships destroyed
35 Hieros Ekdromoi killed
An Offer you can't Refuse: The Siege & a Proposition
The siege had set in and a siege wall was constructed (-10 talents). However, the spirits were not high among the men as the harvest approached. Many were unhappy with the prospect of staying behind for a long siege, with fear that their low salaries would not be enough to cover for the lost revenue if they let their fields go untended. Many were clamoring for a peace, but the Tarentines as of yet refused to give one, staying within the city and refusing to come out. Linos grew increasingly concerned that the Tarentines actually intended to break out of the siege as soon as the bulk of the army went home for the harvest, and then the siege wall would be overrun by the superior Tarentine force. When he suggested a larger portion of the army stay for the winter, however, he was met with rancorous cries and anger from the poorer citizens.
Many, especially the psilloi, had grown frustrated that the early victories of the campaign had now descended into the terribly monotony of a siege. Many wanted to go home, and when it was revealed that a siege would likely take three years if the city of Taras was not resupplied, grumbling grew. Some tried to appeal to Kyros Gennadios or Mnemnon, both in the camp, to ask them if they could compel Epiktetos Linos to release them to go home, but the men refused to undermine the authority of the strategos despite their differing political inclinations. It was at this point of frustration, with autumn arriving, that news came from Thurii, which had dispatched a small force of marines and a naval detachment, that Metapontion and the other cities of Italia now intended to enforce a peace.
An envoy soon arrived from Metapontion with terms that had been hashed out by the other Italian cities and they felt offered an amiable peace for both parties. Implicit in the peace, to the growing despair of Linos who had hoped to negotiate peace with Taras directly, was that if it was not accepted the other Italiote cities might intervene to break the siege. With the obvious deficiencies in Eretria's siegemaking ability revealed by the mere structure of an army of farmers, it was difficult to refuse, and yet Linos still presented the terms before the ekklesia, which was called and conducted by Kyros among the men of the army.
The terms were as follows:
That Eretria will accept fault for provoking the war, but Taras will accept fault for starting it
That Taras, the defeated party, will concede defeat and give an indemnity of 120 talents to Eretria (of which 30 talents will go to Barbaroi allies and 10 talents to the Thuriians)
That Eretria will return the talents it took from the cities of Hydrus and Kalliopolis, acknowleding the fault lies with Taras (20 talents returned)
That Eretria will be entrusted with dominion over the Messapii, in exchange for allowing a small land connection between Taras and its dependencies along the coast
That Aoxenta will not be resettled again by Messapii, and will be acknowledged to be within the Tarentine sphere of influence
That the Messapii will not be allowed to make war or peace without the permission of Eretria
That a treaty of peace will be signed between Taras, Eretria, Thurii, and Metapontion, preventing any party from attacking the others for twenty years
That the two cities shall exchange their prisoners and war dead, returning any stolen armor or personal articles taken from their opponent
There were a number of frustrations with the peace. Many Eretrians felt the peace was far too kind to Taras in giving it territory from the Messapii, and indeed undermined the barbaroi, but there were those who pointed out the Messapii performance in war was worth only punishment, given their many defeats. Thurii was frustrated by the fact that this had not led to the concession of Herakleia Lukania, but on the other hand the Tarentines had been well and truly humbled, defeated both in skirmish and open engagement.
The Metapontines made clear that this was to be a sacred peace signed by all the Italiotes, and that there was to be no deviation from the terms as listed. Some more warlike citizens, of course, pointed out that it was possible the Italiote demands were more toothless than they were presented as; Krotone and Lokri were not fast-friends, and Metapontion's men had not been in a war for many years. The threat of war may have been more important than war itself. Nevertheless, many public figures advocated for peace, acutely aware that too much time spent on the field would leave the city in a terrible mood coming into the election, but some complained that to leave now would be to abandon the chance at greater victory. Some argued that Myron would surely lose the coming election, placing a more peaceful Tarentine leader in control who might also be more amiable to a peace.
The matter was placed before the assembly.
Should the city of Eretria accept the Common Peace proposed by the other Italiote cities?
[] Accept the peace.
[] Refuse the peace and continue the siege.
So, what should we set our ambitions toward, then? If aiming for a powerful empire means the quest dies for good, because you lose all interest, if we can't aim for anachronistic levels of technological development, because we can't control things finely enough to inject ahistorical things to prod them into doing any of it... Is the point of the quest to be wiped out by something else whenever we happen to fuck up? If the typically expected player goals for a civ-game are expressly verboten, what are the goals we can aim for? This is something where explicit QM guidance would be very helpful at shaping the direction of a quest's discussions.
Now I'll turn it back around. Has conquering and technological anachronism ever been a draw of the game? Eretria has made some anachronistic things, but they've mostly been political or institutional. I don't have a problem with conquering or expanding the borders, but that doesn't seem to be the point. Most of the attraction appears to be in building a culturally, militarily, and institutionally unique state that is able to hold its own among its neighbors. I don't think that expanding through South Italia and Sicily one day is out of the question, nor do I actually think it's an issue to make technologically anachronistic things, but I have been building the proper groundwork for this for a long time. Things have already diverged a lot, but I believe in a consistent and clear causal chain of events in development, not a random steam engine out of nowhere.
I mean, I've been running this game for ages and ages and there hasn't really been issues with people complaining it's too slow or not enough is happening. It's just that things are happening in a different direction with a different pace, and I pay far more attention to political, diplomatic and cultural developments than many civ quests do. Players will grow and expand and see numbers go up, but I'm not interested in telling the story of an empire that sweeps the world; there are stories told about empires that sweep the world all over the place. This is and has always been a city-state quest, not an empire quest, not even a civilization quest (though I'll take the tag for ease of description). Players expand realistically and within their limits, they are met with new challenges and new enemies, and they grow their city and its people and its society. This is a quest about building "tall", one way or another, and as powers grow bigger, obviously the definition of tallness will increase, and it already has, but I don't see a trajectory for Eretria Eskhata being a true imperial power without effectively losing the heart of the game, which is the democratic system.
There are many, many, many games where it's just about numbers going up, or new worlds to conquer, or new places to expand to, or what-have-you. Magna Graecia has all those things, but it is also attempting to be the simulator of an ancient society, and what you are seeking is to have a society succeed. But societies can succeed without ever becoming empires, and the rise of empires often destroy the society which made them in favor of something entirely new. Societies can succeed by building cultural and political legacies just as well as by building one big empire.
For effectively the entirety of the game Eretria has been a middle power. The definition of middle power has shifted over time, but it was a middle power from very early on in the quest and it has remained a middle power. Perhaps it will one day face the legions of Rome with a coalition of powers and a greatly expanded league, but it will not replace Rome. I don't want players to think they can't expand or become quite big, even a great power of the Mediterranean, but they will be no empire.
Player decisions throughout the games have already set in motion a chain of events that will alter the course of history in a decisive way. In the meantime, there will be plenty of opportunities to do many of the things questers would like to do without the frenetic pace that many empire builders like to take.
Often, when I get this objection, players tend to misunderstand me, because they don't really see the context I was replying to. I was not banning players from expanding, I was responding to suggestions after the Peloponnesian War Eretria would have a huge swathe of Hellas join a Pan-Hellenic League and then fight whoever won for hegemony over all the Greeks. Just as I had responded in the past to people who wanted to conquer all of Italia like the Romans, or who wanted to invent the steam engine. Often, these suggested aims are completely disconnected from the actual context of the game, where both factions and players are constantly suggesting more realistic and moderate ideas in order to expand and go in interesting new directions. Several have already been incorporated into the platforms for the next elections. I am not against incorporating interesting ideas or new suggestions. Many of the city's institutions are player-made, and I am constantly cribbing player ideas and interpretations of events for my own. I love player involvement and it keeps me going in writing this quest.
So it is funny to receive a question about what players could possibly do if not all these crazy things. Well...you could do what you've been doing already, and which has allowed the quest to maintain a consistent core of players despite several iterations and declarations of death by myself! Build a society to influence the world, change history, and stand the test of time.
One other thing I thought worth touching on is that Magna Graecia is a quest with many characters on a common stage. I don't mean the characters that inhabit the polis of Eretria Eskhata. While they are important, these people come and go, and the city remains. It is in fact the states of the Mediterranean which are the characters of Magna Graecia.
First, let's go way back. When I first started Magna Graecia I came from a different place than many questmasters. My background was in nation games, a type of grand strategy roleplay in which you control the gestalt of a nation and compete and cooperate with other nations on a world stage. The settings were different; the classical world, the Napoleonic wars, the second world war, the far future- but the principle was always the same. With the characters of these nations reduced to mere footnotes in the face of the nation as a whole, what mattered was the clash of player personalities in a grand strategy setting. The contest of wills and competition for victory was what made me come back again and again. However, in the end, as I got older, nation games got too difficult to be a part of. They were very time-intensive, and sometimes I'd be writing 6,000 words a day for these games as a GM, writing out the results of player wars or diplomacy or espionage. One thing I learned from these games is that one of the best ways to spice things up is to have good non-playable characters. It seems counter-intuitive. NPCs should never be the focus of a game, and I always stand by that. But the reasoning I came to come to that is very different from some other people, who tend to present NPCs as mere roadblocks.
In my eyes, if all the world's a stage, then the states of the world are players, characters. There are main characters, such as, in nation games, the players, or in a civ quest, the player-controlled civilization. There are antagonists, there are allies, there are big bads and little minor characters. Each state has its own attributes, and like real people, can't be summed down to one characteristic. Rome is warlike, but it's also religious. Athenai is culturally brilliant, but it is also oppressive and cruel. Sparta is conservative, but it is also pious and modest. Carthage is a trading empire, but it is much more than the anti-semitic caricature that 19th century classicists sometimes tried to paint it as, a cosmopolitan and complicated place, with a warlike side like any other Mediterranean state. The purpose of the openings of the turn posts, which take our attention away from Eretria and go somewhere else, is to capture and breathe life into this complicated and vanished world.
I've also written alternate history in the past. My love of history was truly ignited for the first time on Alternatehistory.com, which is where I spent most of my time online for years. And when writing an alternate history, a funny kind of thing happens. People get favorite states and least favorite states. They argue that something is a "wank", because the state is too powerful to be realistic in the scenario, or a "screw", because a state is being unrealistically screwed. It's funny just how much in this respect that alternate history really does become fan non-fiction, but replacing characters with states, empires, leagues and nations. In the process you start to realize that you have to abide by the same conventions as a normal piece of fiction. Would it make sense if a character was suddenly stabbed by another character we were never introduced to, or saved by a character who had no prior relation to them? No. So why would it make sense for states?
Once we start to use this comparison things make a lot more sense. There are a number of very minor states in Magna Graecia, such as the little cities of the Greek World, who do very little notable in the grand scheme of things, the extras. There are minor characters, like many of the little Italian tribes, or the faraway Dacian tribes who are only really there to satisfy my obsession with accurate mapmaking. Then there are side characters, the medium cities, and then the bigger characters, like Athenai, Sparta. These are the great actors of the world stage, who battle it out. Some of them are even greater than Eretria, and that's okay, because Eretria is a character, and it plays out its own role, no less important because its power level is smaller.
This also means that states are dynamic, just as characters are. Some states are too small and too inflexible to change, or doomed by their circumstances, and there's a poetry in that failure, too. Other states are energetic, adaptable, dynamic (but we should always be careful to assign too much weight to the constancy or inevitability of that dynamism), and these dynamic states do great things. I care about these states just as much as I do Eretria, really, honestly. I get excited when I think about the things I'll have Sparta or Athenai or Carthage do, or the crazy things that they've already done, but I'm also aware that players are most interested in Eretria, and that it is the main character of this story, of his quest. But it also means that when players talk about annexing so and so state, or conquering so and so region, I get a funny kind of reaction, and a thought passes through my head that's something like, well you think they'll just let you do that?
Of course, in a quest the quest civilization is the main character. So if I want to have there be a response, it has to make sense. It is too easy for QMs to go in the other direction, to begin punishing the players for ambition and make any attempt to do something interesting impossible without extremely deft management, or to fall in love with their NPCs. But I apply the same lessons I learned in nation games; that the NPCs should never override the players and their priority in the game, and that if consequences should come, they should be linked by a causal chain of events and decisions.
At the same time, states go through character growth. They do not just give up and die when faced with a challenge but adapt, unless they're pushed to a breaking point. Faced with a new threat on the coast called Eretria Eskhata, the Iapygians began to centralize. When that threat became too great for one of them (The Peuketii), to fight, the remaining Peuketii conceded. Then, from there, they adapted and changed. The Peuketii who battled Eretria is now unrecognizable compared to the one that exists now. It has changed. Sometimes they can change for the worse, too; maybe they've been beaten down so hard over time they've collapsed as a state, or been utterly vanquished. Sometimes player interventions and choices have influenced states in ways they couldn't really have imagined, like the transformation of Sicily's diplomatic relations, but how different is this from seeing all the ways your hero has impacted the world since their arrival, and the people they've influenced, for good or for ill? When we transform states into characters, to be sure we lose a little bit of the simulationist aspect, but in its place we are gifted the drama, the tragedy, the joy and the horror of history. That's a tradeoff I'm willing to make.
We can go too far here, of course. States, being composed of people, are infinitely more complicated than people are. There is also less of a moral dimension; states do not really make friends and enemies, but allies and rivals. Good and evil is blurred not for the sake of moral ambiguity but because that is moral reality. When people are involved, it's never so easy.
All of this is to say that when players talk about conquering one region or defeating another, they should always be careful about provoking the defeated party into an extended revenge arc that goes on for three seasons.
To Plataiai, Lakedaimon had promised justice. The city had fallen, and although the children and the women had fled, the men had stayed to defend it until the fall. They were a proud lot, these men of Plataiai, and knew their pedigree as the site where Hellas defeated the Mede and ended the threat of Xerxes. The Spartans, they hoped, were to acknowledge this and give them fair trial as participants in a great Hellene heroism. The men were gathered before the judges, and it was only that was revealed the true nature of Spartan justice.
For Demokrites was a baker, known for the puffiness of his breads and the tastiness of his dough. He had a dog by the name of Pausanias, and a lisp he had earned as a boy. He had two young boys, both fled with his wife following the end of the siege of the city. His favorite food was figs.
But the Spartans asked him what he had done for them, and he could not answer, so they cut him down.
For Zenon was a playwright, the best in the city. Known for his womanizing, many in Plataiai called him Dionysus' hound, because he could always sniff out where the wine was at parties or public gatherings. He loved the drama of it all, but was devoted to his natural-born son, who had died at the walls defending the city.
But the Spartans asked him what he had done for them, and he could not answer, so they cut him down.
For Kosmas was a young man, no older than eighteen from his birth, who had a beautiful singing voice and had always dreamed of glory. He had showered stones on the Spartans when they had approached the walls, and wept with the others when the city had surrendered. Still, he hoped to be reunited with his lover who had fled to Athenai.
But the Spartans asked him what he had done for them, and he could not answer, so they cut him down.
For Athanas was an old man, but still among the strongest of his generation, a titan of the Olympic games and winner of awards in wrestling. He had a lust for meat-eating that could never be sated, and so his countrymen often called him the hungry lion of Plataiai, and tried their best to sate the giant's appetite in thanks for his victories.
But the Spartans asked him what he had done for them, and he could not answer, so they cut him down.
And so it went for two-hundred citizens of Plataiai, as the Spartans ran their sharp-edged justice through all assembled there. Once more blood of Hellenes stained the field of Plataiai, pooling in fetid puddles and joined not by sounds of battle, but the stuttering of answers and the dying of men.
Until at last the field fell silent, for there was no one left to answer. Such was justice, delivered by the victor to the vanquished.
[X] Accept the peace.
Goings on from around the Mediterranean, presented by Xenoparakletor Mnemnon Keylonos of the Demos Exoria
MNEMNON: Citizens, I thank you. I thank you for vesting in me the duty of being xenoparakletor, though like all mortal men, I feel unworthy of the title. To be xenoparakletor is to be as Atlas, carrying the world upon your shoulders, going from place to place constantly, yearning of home. And yet I have tried my best to fulfill this duty, and to leave the city greater, better, stronger than before. In my time as Xenoparakletor, we brought closer our allies and made them come to us for tribute and festivities. In my time as xenoparakletor, Eretria gained the allegiance of the Messapii and saw weakness in the Dauni. Finally, in my time as xenoparakletor, we fought a war against the Tarentines for the liberty of the Messapii and the glory of our city, and we were victorious! We were victorious. But in our victory, we were magnanimous, and accepted the arbitration of Metapontion and its allies, who sought to ensure that Eretria and Taras were once again at peace.
I leave you with this; that I have journeyed to the Messapii this year, and received their homage. The Messapii have elected from their number the king Artahias, and he has gone before me and shook hands with me, and accepted the terms of the Peace of Phaidros imposed by Metapontion. Although the Messapii will not yet provide levies and tribute, as they have already been cost much and have little appetite for more, they accept that Eretria is their master and that they will not pursue war and peace without our say-so. I still argue that they must be brought fully into the fold soon, as that their strength may become our strength, and their wealth may become our wealth, but for now, the matter has been settled, and we will not need to worry about their rebellion or rejection of the terms. In truth, they are a broken people, much reduced from their heights before our arrival. It is not to say that we are cruel, but simply that the fates have been cruel to them, and the Tarentines too. But now we have an opportunity to bring them up, so they may stand once again in the sun.
I turn now to the goings on around the Mediterranean now that peace has been signed among us and Taras.
News from Hellas! The siege of Plataiai has ended and the city has fallen. The men were brought before the Spartans and killed down to a man, but the women and children, fled to Athenai, may fight on. The city has been razed and the area occupied by Thebai, which has always been jealous of the Plataiains for their independence. The city of Mytilini, which rebelled against Athenai, has also fallen, and the ringleaders of the revolt have been executed. The commander dispatched to the region to rescue the revolters from the Athenians was apparently so overcome with fear of Athenian triremes he deserted and began to raid the coast of Ionia. Urgent news from Kerkyra: the city has fallen into civil war. The Democrats, who had ruled the city for decades, have been overthrown by a league of oligarchs and fled to the city of Naupaktos, hosted by the Athenians. The oligarchs are aligned with Korinthos and may seek to take Kerkyra out of the war. Truly a dark day for the people of Kerkyra, who have to endure such strife. In Attike, the Spartans have staged another invasion, but the king Archidemos II has passed away, with his son Agis II too young to rule. A regency has been called for him, whilst the other Spartan King Pausanias leads the war effort.
News from the West! In Campania, Etruscan force made up of the cities of Nuceria and Irna have been defeated by the shepherds in a battle on the Campanian plain. What was once thought to be simple raiding may turn out to be far worse. There is great fear among the cities of the Campanian coast, but the people of Kymai remain proud and stalwart, and would surely never fall to barbarians, even if the frail Etruscans do. In Sicily, an outbreak of fighting between Syrakousai and the Sikeliote League has led the city of Gela to declare a general Sicilian congress. Cities from across southern Italia and Sicily itself are invited to arbitrate the dispute between Syrakousai and the Sikeliote League, as has been the tradition on the island since the common peace first prevailed. Many violations of the peace have taken place, but have always been confirmed by a congress of the cities, and so it may be once more. In Italia, Myron Aristeides and the war party have been ousted from power in Taras in favor of Pankratios Telesphoros, who leads those advocating for peace with Eretria. There is still much frustration in the city, however.
News from the North! King Sitalces of the Thracians has received some success in his campaign against the Triballi, defeating them in several battles and taking back much booty to Odryssa. Raiding among the Liburnians is reaching a pitch that is directed not only at Eretrian shipping but also some of the other Illyrians. Though the Iapodes are also pirates, the Histri and Dalmatae are not, and have had their coasts attacked and their villages pillaged. The Enetoi have dispatched a few counter-expeditions that have fallen to disaster among the complicated channels and hidden coves of the northeast Adriatic, a treacherous realm difficult even for the Argnonauts to sail.
Goings on from within the city, presented by Proboulos Kyros Gennadios of the Demos Antipatria
KYROS: Citizens, I speak to you in my final year as proboulos. Though I shall run again, only fortune will guide me forward to victory, as well as the good decisions of the people of Eretria. In the meantime, I bring you the tidings of the census, conducted once more after four years, collected by the members of the boule and the volunteers among the people. Despite the losses of brave Eretrians in battle, the Kleos Exoria and Hieros Ekdromoi have inducted new recruits, celebrated heroes among the cavalry and hoplites, to take the place of those who have been lost. Indeed, we were fortunate enough not to be weighed down by our losses, and our city has still grown in an extraordinary fashion. Since the last census, there has been growth of 5.3% in the city, mostly due to the Metics that have come from abroad to Eretria, though I fear that in successive years we will be lucky to have such a bounty with our agents. The war in Hellas has been fortutious in this regard, driving men from their fields and families from their homes. The loss of Hellas is the profit of Eretria!
The ratio of citizens to metics has fallen to 44% from the previous 45%, though the overall population of citizens have grown. The proportion of hoplites has also fallen slightly, even if in absolute numbers the men in our arrays grow more by the day. This has brought us great fortune in our finances, for the loss from our distribution of the public lands has been made up by the new tax revenue from our new citizens and metics. One can see now the wiseness of the decision to provide land for the people, for in a year we have reversed the loss it gave us in our finances and come out even stronger! The census of the tribute and levies of our allies has also come, raising the dues of the league and the tribute of the barbaroi. It is hoped too that with the discovery of murex in Ankon the colony shall soon grow enough to provide a trireme to Eretria and aid us in the protection of the Adriatic.
Finally, the Hill of the Divine Marriage continues its construction. In honor of the victory, however, all the demes have met and come to an agreement that there should be an additional year of construction and extra expense spared in order to expand or construct a new temple to the Gods upon the hill. It is only proper that we should do this in repayment to the Gods for the victory they have granted us in war and the protection they have bestowed upon our men and our city for the past four years, so we have only grown more prosperous and more happy, a people united in purpose.
Demography & Culture
Eretria Eskhata - 349 OL
Adult Freemen: 22,883 (Census of 349 OL) Citizen Ratio: 44.0% Adult Male Citizens: 10,069 Adult Male Metics: 12,814 Total Free Population: 79,732
Patron Gods: Divine Marriage of Athene & Apollon Other Major Gods: Poseidon & Demeter, Zeus, Ploutos, Artemis
Political Offices
Next Election is 349 OL.
Proboulos: Kyros Gennadios (Demos Antipatria) Xenoparakletor: Mnemnon Keylonos (Demos Exoria) Lead Strategos: Only appointed in times of war. Metic Prytanis: Timotaios Herais (Demos Antipatria).
Agoranomos: Arkadios Ambrosios (Demos Antipatria). Assembly of the Mint: Paramonos Diokles (Demos Antipatria). Chief of Public Lands: Arsenios Hermagoras (Demos Exoria). Grand Mantis: Polykarpos Lykos (Demos Antipatria). Elder Ekdromos: Alexandros Hilarion (Demos Exoria).
Great Works
Wide Walls: Proud stone walls that protect the city from enemies. Sea Wall: Protect the city from any sea-based attack. Arkadion: A small temple to Demeter & Poseidon (Under Renovation). Temple of the Divine Marriage: A modest temple to the Divine Marriage of Apollo and Athena. (Under Renovation). Naval Barracks: Where the city's rowers train. Hill of the Divine Marriage: Under Renovation. 3/6 years completed.
Treasury & Income
Treasury in 348 OL: 389.7 Talents (+40.0 from Naval correction) Income: 272.0 Talents Taxation: 178.5 Talents Commerce: 69.8 Talents League Income: 9.4 talents Tribute: 12.4 Talents Public Revenue: 2.0 Talents
Total Levy: 7,592 (50% of all Adult Freemen minus men in special units and navy)
3,340 Hoplites (44% of available levies)
569 Cavalry (7.5% of available levies)
3,682 Psilloi (all remaining available levies)
Deployed Levy
Standing Army (Eretria Eskhata)
500 Sacred Ekdromoi (deployed at all times for 38.5 talents a turn)
50 Kleos Exoria (deployed at all times for 5.5 talents a turn)
1 Staple Trade Route to Athenai (Grain)
1 Staple Trade Route to South Italy (Anchovies & Wine)
1 Staple Trade Route to Sicily (Olive Oil)
1 Staple Trade Route to Southeast Illyria (Olive Oil)
1 Staple Trade Route to Northeast Illyria (Wine)
1 Staple Trade Route to North Italy (Olive Oil)
1 Luxury Trade Route to Athenai (Byssos Cloth)
1 Luxury Trade Route to Etruria (Pottery)
Subjects & Subject Levies
Epulian League Members: Eretria Eskhata, Sipontion, Pylona, Garnae, Barletos, Ankon, Monopolis, and Aufidenos Tribute: 9.4 (10% of yearly income of each city) Epulian League Levies: 876 Hoplites
Peuketii Kingdom Ruler: King Gorgos (son of King Batavorta) Capital: Sannape Tribute: 10.3 Talents a turn Levies: 2,197 Peuketii Skirmishers, 549 Peuketii Cavalry
Subject: Messapii Confederacy Tribute: None Levies: None Status: In Flux
Alliances & Diplomacy
City of Thurii: Full alliance with the city of Thurii cultivated in opposition to potential ambitions by Taras or other Italiote powers like Krotone. Estimated Levy: 4,400 Men
Sikeliote League: Full alliance with the Sikeliote League cultivated in opposition to the main power in South Sicily, Syrakousai. Maximum Levy: 8,500 Men
Messapii Confederacy: Technical overlord with power over war and peace, but no other authority. Maximum Levy: 3,000 Men.
Treaties
Treaty of Phaidros: Signed in 348 OL. Enforces peace between signatories. Signatories: Thurii, Eretria Eskhata, Taras, Metapontion Duration: 20 Years (Expires 368 OL)
The Augurs of the Ballot
Behold the city of Eretria, favored by Nike. The victory over the Tarentines may have ended not with absolute victory but mere humiliation, and some in the city felt humiliated. A number spoke up against the peace, calling it insulting and a travesty. But the majority of citizens, from those opposed to war to those who saw war as a matter of border brawls and not the destruction of a rival, accepted the imposition of the peace, though they did not much like the Metapontines for their actions.
Still, to be able to arrive home, and not hold to a siege for years, satisfied many, and the indemnity paid to Taras as well as the gaining of domination over the Messapii gave great cheer to the proceedings of the Running of the Weasels, a folk festival that had been performed for many years in which young men chased girls wearing masks of weasels through the gate of the weasels and onto the field. Nominated by Skantarios the Hoplite, the psillos Hermesdora Eretriazenis was appointed as the master of the festival for the year, and did so while proudly limping, for he had suffered a terrible and disastrous injury on the field of battle with Taras in the form of a sprained ankle which he wished to show to all. He made a speech which extolled the virtues of a dog-driven cart, recommended that in the future they smother Taras in dirt to defeat it, and told a fantastical story of Eretria fighting against a tyrant representing all of barbarian Italy that sought to subjugate the city.
Aside from these amusing festivities, there was of course the coming of the elections. For this election year the demes had learnt their lessons. All three had now come up with proposals for expanding the Hill of the Divine Marriage further, and indeed also adopted policies of immigration, seeing the success the Antipatrids had with the platform. At the same time, Demos Drakonia gained a new asset in the form of Epiktetos Linos, who stepped down as strategos in order to run for election as proboulos. Althouigh disliked among some who had been in the front line of fighting at Taras, few could doubt Linos' intellect and ability, seeing as he had been able to win the battle for Eretria not through open combat but clever strategy and trickery, which had always been celebrated as a virtue among the Hellenes since the time of Odysseos and the false horse of Illion.
Now, with the elections here, the time had come for the augurs. In the last election, the augurs had practically determined the course of events by destroying the support for the Demos Drakonia in favor of Demos Antipatria after Zeus demanded a renovation to his temples. Now the demes were ready, and the city awaited the news of their good health and prosperity that they hoped the augurs would surely bring.
The augurs commence with the ox, which is slaughtered and its entrails read for the city's good health and wealth.
d100 (No modifiers) = 89
The city, having been victorious in the past war, will now settle upon a time of great prosperity and happiness for its citizens, triumphant as they are, and a time for planting and the raising of children, in which all citizens will be able to enjoy the fruits of past labors. The news was greeted by all with great joy, and the demes attempted to argue for their own platforms on this basis, that such a prosperous recommendation revealed that the city would be even more wealthy and powerful under their particular rule.
The augurs then proceed to the mixed meat and fish, which is burned, the colors of the flame observed by the priests to discover the city's success in war and peace.
d100 (No Modifiers) = 46
This augur boded more poorly. It was argued by the Grand Mantis that the city had had luck in both war and peace in the past but it must now seek to improve its capabilities in both realms, and that without this improvement and the active effort of the citizens, they would fall behind. Once again, all the demes seized upon this to interpret it in their favor, suggesting that this policy or that policy would ensure that the mediocre augur's warnings would never come to pass, for they would improve the city to such a degree that it would be unrecognizable from the city that was given this prophecy.
The augurs then proceed to the final offering to Zeus of the meat of the Thunderbird. Replacing the feather that Zeus demanded removed, the meat was smoked and burnt, whilst a priestess interpreted the remains and spoke with the voice of Zeus on the future religious tidings of the city.
d100 (No Modifiers) = 49
Zeus remains displeased. Though the city has begun construction on the Hill of the Divine Marriage, by interrupting the construction it did not give him and the other Gods proper homage. In order for the city and its people to be praised and rewarded by the Gods, the Gods expect ample contributions of funds towards the Hill and its completion, until at last it is a glorious and beautiful monument to them and the city as a whole. However, Zeus praises the demes for their forthright and clear acceptance of the necessity of worship, for each deme has now incorporated into its platforms the construction of new temples. Zeus, and without any relation to this, the Grand Mantis, are both very pleased by this.
Platforms for 349 OL-353 OL
The policies and missions that the various Demoi seek to promote are the extent of their program for the following four years. Electing a Proboulos from that faction will signal the Ekklesia's approval in that Demos' domestic program, and they will seek to implement it (meaning there will be no further votes on these options unless something goes awry), Electing a Xenoparakletor from that faction will signal the Ekklesia's approval in that Demos' foreign program, and they will seek to implement it (meaning there will again, be no further votes, except to appoint a strategos in case there is a military mission involved or something goes awry). In effect, this is the platform, or executive program, of this faction, and the ekklesia can only "mix and match" between different domestic and foreign programs by electing a proboulos and xenoparakletor from separate factions. It cannot pick out individual policies from each faction it would prefer, even with a user motion, unless it is an emergency.
These goals provide guidelines for what, with assembly approval, the executive will attempt to accomplish in the next four years. It is not the sum total of what will happen, and it is possible that these goals could be derailed by foreign events preventing them from being accomplished. These goals and mission can be implemented at any time during their four years, though changes to military composition or building construction will generally start as soon as the new officials take power.
The cost for great works is spread out over the years of construction; a 500 talent great work with five year construction time will cost 100 talents a turn for five years.
Demos Drakonia
Current Goals at Home
Mercantile Policy: Given both Illyrian raiding and the necessity of Eretria's merchant marine to its prosperity, revenues, and success, the time has come to create a formal Register of the Merchant Fleet, which will force Eretrian merchants to register with and catalog their movements to the city's agoranomoi. The Register will also provide for formal Eretrian colors of blue and gold for the city's ships to bear while at sea, with a guarantee to merchants that the city will protect their ships and their lives [+3 extra public upkeep per year, +5% tariff efficiency (+7.7 talents of trade revenue)].
Colonial Policy: Eretria's poor and landless, its metics and its beggars, all call out for opportunity. But the city has already given away its public lands, and Metics cannot own land besides. But abroad, in the colony of Ankon and the other colonies of the Epulian League, a new life could await. Epiktetos Linos proposes that for a period after a colony's founding there will be yearly lotteries for freemen and citizens to win citizenship in the colony, after which they will depart and settle there. The purpose of this decree is not only to relieve the pressure of the poor, the metic, and the landless, but to expand the power of Eretria and the Epulian League by transforming the colonies into strong and contributing members of the Epulian League [Slight population growth decrease for Eretria and core Epulian League members, large population growth increase for Adriatic colonies such as Ankon for first twenty-five years, relieving of some land pressure in Eretria].
Immigration Policy: What Eretria needs above all are talented and skilled professionals, merchants, tradesmen and craftsmen to enrich the city's trade and culture and economy. This above all should be the priority of future metic immigration; only the truly worthy and capable should be brought to Eretria, plucked from across the Aegean and with an eye towards the literate, the intellectual, and the technically skilled [-15 talents, 4-5% population growth by next census, mostly high-skilled labour].
Great Work Addition (Temple of Prometheus): It is time that Eretria honor the great Prometheus, known across Hellas as giver of arts, civilization, and fire, the constructor of human society. Prometheus' punishment was his sacrifice for humanity; both his transgression and his punishment were righteous act, borne out of the contradictions of the divinity of Zeus. To construct a temple to Prometheus is to celebrate the creation of fire and the emergence of civilization [Additional year added to Hill of the Divine Marriage construction, cost increased to 660 talents, 117 talents a turn for four turns including 349 OL, Note that building a Temple of Prometheus will NOT give you a steam engine].
Current Goals Abroad
Military Mission: The time has come for more than a simple pirate-hunting expedition. For years Illyrian pirates have stalked the southern islands of the Liburni and threatened Eretrian trade eastwards. It is time for Eretria to seize these islands with a full expedition and establish a colony on the island of Issa, ending the threat of piracy in the Adriatic conclusively through the establishment of a new colony in the region for merchants to call home while building allies for Eretria among the Illyrians [3 Month campaign led by strategos Xanthos Irenaeos, 500 Ekdromoi, 18 Triremes, 72 talents naval upkeep for campaign, if successful, new land for colony on Eastern Adriatic Island of Issa].
Xenoparakletor Mission: Dispatch the Xenoparakletor on a trading mission to the head of the Adriatic to convince the Enetoi to open up the Amber Road to Eretrian trade and gain a monopoly on amber exports to the rest of the Mediterranean. Through this we can new allies, but also a new trading network, with an ultimate goal of establishing a new lagoon-bound colony in the swampy marshes of the northern Adriatic from which we may receive the trade of cold Europa [Mission success dependent on Xenoparakletor. If successful, Eretria will be then be able to construct a trading colony in the Venetian lagoon and a new luxury trade route].
Diplomatic Mission: The polis of Kerkyra, once a proud democracy in the Ionian Sea, has been overtaken by oligarchs aligned with Korinthos. If Eretria is to maintain its advantage and control of the Adriatic sea this cannot stand. With the Athenians supporting the democratic faction and also encroaching on the Ionian Sea, Eretria must sway the democrats over to its side and restore them to power in order to ensure that the Ionian sea does not become either a Korinthian or Athenian lake [Diplomatic emissaries dispatched to sway Kerkyran Democrats. If successful, military mission will embark to Kerkyra to help them regain power as an Eretrian-aligned power neutral in the war between Athenai and Korinthos].
Demos Antipatria
Current Goals at Home
Religious Policy: For decades the Pythagoreans have been among the most well-known of the religious groups in Italia, with members in every city from Rhegion to Taras, and their center in the city of Metapontion. With the akousamtikoi defeated by the mathematekoi, who favor a more useful approach to their belief and are famed for their technical skill in mathematics through Italia, it would be wise for Eretria to dispatch emissaries to Metapontion and speak with members who would be willing to establish a philosophical center in the city of Eretria Eskhata. It would be valuable not only to the city's merchants and aristocrats but among all those willing to learn and study in Eretria [-25 talents, mission dispatched to invite Pythagoreans to Eretria Eskhata].
Military Policy: The war with Taras has revealed the inadaquecies of Eretria Eskhata's hoplites. However, no amount of simple training or festival practices can prepare a young man who has never faced a war with the reality of battle. Instead, what must be done is a reform to the organization and structure of our hoplite phalanx, so that we may achieve a greater degree of coordination and flexibility between parts, and ensure that the great array of shields and spears is kept stable. We must discover a way to do this that does not compromise Eretria Eskhata by relying on unreliable mercenaries or destroy her finances by funding dangerous standing armies [Opens up options for reform of military organization].
Immigration Policy: What Eretria needs above all are those Metics who will be loyal to her and her ideals. If the city is to accept immigrants, they must be those willing to abide by Eretria's customs and traditions, those of similar cultural and philosophical inclinations, those who would be grateful to be a part of the glory that is Eretria. [-15 talents, 4-7.5% population growth by next census, random assortment of immigrants from different economic strata].
Great Work Addition (Temple of the Divine Marriage): When Eretria Eskhata began, it began with a marriage, the marriage of Apollon and Athena. To beautify their temple, to raise it above all the others and to make it something truly notable in Italy, something that the citizens of the city can be proud of and look on with reverence, would be the greatest sacrifice that the city can provide the Gods who have given them so much. To exalt the Divine Union, to celebrate the Divine Union, should be the city's priority above all in religion, so that it may be celebrated not only in Eretria but across all Epulia [Additional year added to Hill of the Divine Marriage construction, cost increased to 660 talents, 117 talents a turn for four turns including 349 OL].
Current Goals Abroad
Diplomatic Mission: The situation in Sicily is reaching a boiling point. With a Sicilian Congress to be held in Gela in only three years time Eretria Eskhata must move to ensure that its interests and those of its allies are well-represented. To that end, a large sum of gold and emissaries will be dispatched through southwest Italia and Sicily in order to build a coalition against the interests of Syrakousai and their allies in the region and prevent them from using the conference as a jumping-off point to force concessions from the Sikeliotes. It is also a way for us to ensure that our allies see our continued support of their own interests and ambitions in the region to prevent Eretria Eskhata from being too militarily isolated.
Diplomatic Mission: Metapontion and the Italiote cities were able to force Eretria to concede its war goals and accept a peace brokered by them. Let us accept this peace, and let this disgrace never happen again, for in the future Eretria Eskhata will always ensure that the Italiotes are on our side and will have no reason to fear us. To this end, dispatch emissaries through Italia to create new proxenoi in all the major powers, from Rhegion to Metapontion, and guarantee specific laws and rights of these emissaries, including the right of residence and the right to advocate for Eretria Eskhata abroad. These proxenoi will be provided stipends by the city in order to keep them in their positions [4 extra public upkeep per turn, if mission successful, direct line of communication established between Eretria and the Italian cities of Lokri, Rhegion, Thurii, Krotone, and Metapontion].
Xenoparakletor Mission: Some may complain about the lack of support for the Messapii in the plan of the Demos Antipatria, but this is for far more important reasons, for we seek to reconcile Taras and Eretria once and for all through the mechanism of the city of Lykai, the last independent city in the Sallentine peninsula. To be sure, the Tarentine wound is still raw, but if we wish to prevent it from festering and take advantage of the peace party's renewed support, then we must move quickly and prevent a festering sore to open in our relations to transform us into permanent rivals. Let us use the city of Lykai, last independent city of the Sallentine and a symbol of Kerkyra's treachery, as an example of our reconciliation as we negotiate with Taras for its conquest. [-10 talents, Xenoparakletor will be dispatched to Taras, if successful will be able to reconcile the two cities].
Demos Exoria
Current Goals at Home
Commercial Policy: For far too long the city has ignored the economic benefits that the Barbaroi could bring to the city with their herds of cattle. Create the Office of Barbarian Commerce under the command of the Proboulos in order to manage the Barbaroi as an economic unit, negotiating deals with chiefs to drive their herds towards the city in the spring and summer. With the addition of the Messapii as vassals they can also be economically integrated into Eretria's trade [-3 talent per turn cost for office upkeep, +2 overland staple trade route, +13.5 talents in trade per turn, better economic relations with the Barbaroi].
Religious Policy: Eretria's festival calendar has been confused due to the differing origins of many of its festivals, causing a situation in which festivals meant to start in mid-summer are now starting far later than they should. The confusion that this has garnered is growing to disrupt the city's festivals, and place further confusion on which festivals are endorsed by the people. The time has come for a comprehensive reform of the city's calendar in order to end all of the confusion, merge the competing calendrical systems together, and pull in folk festivals such as the Running of the Weasels that have been celebrated for decades but have received no official support [-10 talents, -2 talent upkeep per turn to reform festivals, better festival schedules will improve happiness in the city, +2% tariff efficiency].
Immigration Policy: In barbarian Italy the true strength of any city is numbers. New metics can become new tenants, new laborers, new colonists in future endeavors, new spears and new shields for the city. The city of Eretria needs labor, for its fields and for its docks, and it needs to rise above, to grow beyond its neighbors and its enemies. But it is only through immigration and the promotion of tenant labor that Eretria can achieve this potential [-15 talents, 7.5-10% population growth by next census, mostly lower class and menial laborers from around Hellas].
Great Work Addition (Temple of Artemis): Before the Eretrians came to Epulia, among the most popular of our Gods was Artemis Amarysia, who protected the people in times of strife and stayed a stable guarantor of the end of tyranny and the survival of the demos. Her love of music, her affinity with the Barbaroi, her protection of the demos against the hostile forces of those who would destroy or slaughter us, are all reasons to celebrate the huntress [Additional year added to Hill of the Divine Marriage construction, cost increased to 660 talents, 117 talents a turn for four turns including 349 OL].
Current Goals Abroad
Military Mission: For decades the Dauni have sat on the border of the Epulian League and menaced our allies with raids and skirmishes. Their kings have plotted against us, warred with us, and allied against us many times. Now, the time has come to pay back the debt they have bestowed upon us by destroying them once and for all. The xenoparakletor will rally the cities of Herdonia, Salapia, and whatever other cities would be willing, and back them in a rebellion that seeks to overthrow King Ausculos and end the Dauni as a threat. Whether that will be through annexing the rest of the cities or simply replacing their leadership with something more amenable to Eretria remains to be seen, but the Dauni must be made to never again threaten the city of Eretria Eskhata [War against the Dauni with attendant strategos options].
Tributary Mission: The allies of Eretria fought well during the war with Taras, but they were slow to mobilize and sometimes disorganized. It is time to create a common command structure and organization of their levies so that we can call on set amounts of their men in war, rather than counting out the number of allies that we need with each war and giving them much grief in assembling the men to do so. In doing so we will tie them closer to us and make them more effective in battle [Opens up options to reform the militaries of the allies and make them more effective].
Xenoparakletor Mission: The question of the Messapii cannot wait. Too much is still to be settled, and where the other Demes would seek to let the issue lie for some time and let the wounds heal, better to tend to them ourselves. The Messapii must be pulled up from their place of devastation and become strong once more, so that their strength can become our strength, their numbers can become our numbers, and their cities will become part of our dominion in truth as well as in theory. The xenoparakletor will be dispatched on a tour of the Messapii cities to gain their respect and bring them into the Eretrian fold [If successful, access to about half of the possible Messapii levy and tribute, which will recover to its full potential over time].
Eretrian Elections of 349 OL
It has been tradition for some twenty years that the Proboulos is the younger of the two officials elected by the people. The proboulos is often a lieutenant or rising star in their faction who has been chosen by the leader to represent them in domestic affairs. They will be in charge of the domestic policies of the city, a relatively less high-stakes challenge, and will make their mark by the success of their administration.
A man of much moderation, known in the past for his leadership against pirates in the Adriatic. Wealthy and kind, he has devoted much of his life to assisting the Eretrian poor rather than building great works. He is known for his preference for avoiding battle in favor of more methodical and careful tactics, but what was once assumed for cowardice has become heroism after his success in the Tarentine War.
Son of Eretrian sea captains from Kymai who were granted citizenship in the early days of the city. Known for being one of few Antipatrids who are merchants, with an export of Byssos cloth, he is also a man of great magnificence, though some of his donations have been gaudy. Known for his upright reputation, fine oration, and good management of the city's finances during his previous term as proboulos.
Descendents of Illyrian slaves granted citizenship by the city on landing, Theron Archippos is a cavalryman who was inducted as a member of the Kleos Exoria following his fine service in the Tarentine War. Grown rougher in his older age, Theron has proven his worth and service to the city on the battlefield and now seeks to gain the privilege of standing atop the painted rock of office.
The Xenoparakletor has, by a tradition formed some twenty years ago, the senior of the two positions, led by older men who are the most notable within their factions. Drawn from great factions or fine pedigress, the xenoparakletor has a much more difficult job, determining the city's policies with its neighbors in war and peace and implementing the goals of their faction abroad. The success of missions in which the Xenoparakletor is personally involved, dependent on their skill, can elevate them to the position of heroes or disgrace them utterly.
Pick one of three. Choice for Xenoparakletor does not have to be the same demos as proboulos.
Leader of the Demos Drakonia and member of the Drakonid family, called the "Golden Ram", a man of extraordinary magnificence who bestows his fantastic wealth to the city whenever possible, served as both a volunteer rower and an admiral, then a public defender in the city's juries. Known for his direct manner of speaking and propensity for strong statements, his practical and forthright way of speaking and thinking, and his moderate lawfulness and friendliness, Symmachos has become a man who inspires much respect among his peers.
Leader of the Demos Antipatria and member of a branch of the Antipatrid Family, called the "Black Bull," a man of great lawfulness and wisdom who is known for his oratory on the nature of justice and the necessity of fairness. A modest smallholder, he has provided more words than wealth for the city but earned glory as a naval captain and a hoplite at the Battle of Taras despite his advanced age. As he has become older his image as a pure and virtuous Hellene has grown, with his glory rising.
Leader of the Demos Exoria, called the "Young Stallion", for his excellence despite his youth. Serving as the city's past Xenoparakletor, the once modestly known cavalryman has become the city's premier advocate for its barbaroi allies, and has great rapport among them. A frontiersman, he is of a rougher cut than most, and is known for his devotion to Artemis and his love of physical pursuits such as wrestling. As he has become older, however, he has also become more practical and less friendly, learning when it is best to couch your words and withold the truth.
Control of the non-elected offices (Metic Prytanis, Grand Mantis, Agoranomos, Chief of Public Lands, Elder Ekdromos, Assembly of the Mint) is dependent on how well each faction does overall in both elections. The higher its share of the overall vote for Proboulos and Xenoparakletor combined, the higher the chance a faction will take control of a lower office, which can influence what issues come up in the following years. Voting is now open. Vote for a Proboulos and a Xenoparakletor, like this:
[] Proboulos: Name (Faction)
[] Xenoparakletor: Name (Faction)
Thought about the issues that there are with the xenoparakletor party system as it stands. I do like the party system and it provokes interesting options for players, but I also feel that it has become a little too constraining. Players no longer have the same freedom as they did in the past despite Eretria Eskhata ostensibly being a democracy where the assembly of voters holds the most sway. At the same time, I like forcing difficult choices on people that they might not have otherwise, and so I wanted to think of a compromise to this that doesn't overly impugn on one principle (a degree of flexibility) or the other (having meaningful and difficult choices). This is especially urgent in a situation with so many things happening; players shouldn't feel like they absolutely have to let pirates ravage Illyria. I could do this by making each party platform more comprehensive, but there are a limited number of things I can think of and it would way increase the workload.
For domestic politics there is already a solution: namely, the political offices. When a party wins a lower office, even if it doesn't win the office of proboulos, it is able to put forward some of its policies that might be relevant to that office. Since the result of the proboulos election influences but does not determine whether a deme will win one of the minor offices (combined with the xenoparakletor vote), there is a degree of variety and randomness here. In the foreign policy realm, this is less evident, but I also don't want as much mixing and matching. At the same time, responding to a crisis is important, and players should be able to, especially given I've curtailed the power of user motions so much.
With that in mind, next year, when the ekklesia meets again for the new year after the election, players will have the option to pick one of the six missions of the losing platforms. What this means is that, if Demos Drakonia wins, they will implement all of their foreign policy objectives, but players will also have the option of selecting one of the six missions presented by the Demos Antipatria or the Demos Exoria, and the same if either of the other two parties win. However, of course, players should weigh the expense and cost of these missions in conjunction with the successful boule's own missions. It could be quite expensive, for example, or synergize poorly with that xenoparakletor's skillset.
This should slightly reduce the schizophrenic nature of Eretrian politics without making it too easy to go in every direction at once; after all, at a certain point, there will just be too many things to be done in a single term, no matter how much it is wished for. But there is room for one additional mission on top of the three chosen by the election of a xenoparakletor.
Ekklesia: Prime among all others. Has power over taxation and all reserve powers. Reviews the performance of each office at the end of their term.
Major Offices
Xenoparakletor: Split off from the Prooboulos, an elected position. Responsible for foreign affairs, especially dealings with allies and the Epulian League. The Xenoparakletor signs treaties. Election in a four year cycle.
Proboulos: An executive officer in charge of the boule, a council that organizes the city's finances, makes domestic policy decisions subject to the approval of the ekklesia, and maintains the social order. Maintains the citizen rolls and holds other magistrates accountable. Can be dismissed by a supermajority of citizens. Election in a four year cycle.
Strategos: An elected position, responsible for the city's military in times of war. There is one main strategos, two subordinates, and seven deputies. Outside of warfare there are three senior strategoi and seven junior ones, elected by the people. Election in times of war.
Metic Assembly: An important body that advocates on the behalf of metics and their rights and privileges. Called once every eight years as of the reforms of 346 OL. In the intervening time an Eretrian citizen serves as their main representative, bringing metic issues to the ekklesia outside of the standard schedule of the assembly.
Minor Offices
Agronomos: Manages and controls the Eretrian marketplace and administers any trade going in or out of the city. Arbitrates trade disputes that are not of a legal nature. Sortition.
Assembly of the Mint: Controls the city's money supply and creates coinage. Manages the city's weights and measure system. Important for symbolic reasons and economic ones. Sortition with the leader appointed by the boule and held accountable by the assembly of the mint.
Chief of Public Lands: Council that controls the city's publicly owned lands which are worked on by tenants or serfs. Sortition.
Popular Tribunal: Creates new laws to be voted on by the ekklesia and administers the boundaries of citizenship set by the boule. Also controls jury selection. Sortition.
Grand Mantis: Organizes Eretria's feasts and festivals as well as major ceremonies, responsible for administering the city's temples, especially that of the divine marriage. Volunteers chosen by lot among the wise and pious above the age of 30 and serve for four years. Sortition.
Elder Ekdromos: Leader of the city's famed best men, a military order of 500 Eretrian men of military age who have proven their worth in a competition to be the most fit and most virtuous citizens of the city. The leader of the Ekdromoi is chosen by lot and is always from among the eldest and wisest members of the battalion. Responsible for leading the ekdromoi in war and admitting new members to the band subject to the supervision of the Grand Mantis and proboulos. Sortition.
