AAR by the HUNTER 02/2004

[anguille]

AAR by the Hunter

An After Action Report from Playing Spartan. I chose to play as Attica (Athens and surrounding areas) in the Greece Scenario on a Difficulty Level of Hard.

January 464BC:
I, Cimon of Athens, hero of the Persian wars of 480 and pursuer of the Persians throughout Thrace, had risen to be the First of equals, General of Athens. My people had chosen me to lead them through the troubled times ahead, and we would indeed need good luck to prosper.
Looking about Greece, I saw instability everywhere. After the defeat of the Persians, we, the Athenians were leaders in Greece, but currently the city states nearest us are wary and old alliances will be tested.
Even old allies such as Megarid and Euboea considered themselves independent, if friendly. To our South, our old friends the Spartans were restless and an anti-Athens contingent was becoming prominent in politics. The Cyclades islands were also a threat to our prospering, and we had just last year besieged the island of Thasos to bring it into our flowering league of allied cities.
The rumours are flowing throughout the assembly, the meeting of Athenian citizens, that the Spartans have secretly agreed to invade our lands in aid of Thasos. I don't believe this myself. For a start, we have many friends in Sparta, and second, the restless helots would surely revolt in the absence of the army from Laconian lands.
With the agreement of the council of 500, and the assembly, I dispatch three diplomats to foreign lands. Kleades son of Kritias goes to the Boeotian capital of Thebes to try and agree a peace with our nearest (and most powerful) neighbour. Euchenor son of Pheidon makes the trip to Megara, a small state to our West. Megara and Corinth seem unable to agree on the border between them, and the democratic faction at Megara seems keen to secure our help. Finally, Aristophon sails to the Ionic Cycladean islands to secure their friendship to Athens.
I have recently completed a quick tour of Attica to inspect the industry and readiness of our cities.
Firstly, Athens itself, resplendent with new buildings as our Capital, has a concentration of workers in the Forestry industry. Although the wood produced is useful for both our naval efforts and the equipping of skirmisher troops, I order that several yards be demolished, and the workers moved to improve our farming efforts in the fertile area around Athens. We would need increasingly to supply ourselves with food, should hostilities arise in Greece. There was much disquiet amongst the workers to be displaced, but they would all be given land in compensation, and eventually it was agreed. Within 3 months, I believed I could have many farms established, ready to produce grain for the sustenance of Athens.
Later, I also planned to increase the Building Materials produced in Athens. We are lucky that Attica is blessed with generous supplies of potter's clay, to which we surely owe our pre-eminence in the craft of pottery. The best clay comes from deposits near Athens, especially at the small area around Amarousi.
I also ordered two units of javelin armed skirmishers to be trained in Athens. This seems a safer way to store our wood, given that troubles in Greece are not far away. Athens itself was relatively safe from marauding enemies, as we maintained a highly trained morae of Elite Hoplites in the Capital.
Salamis, an encampment on an Island off the coast, was producing some Building Materials, and these were useful throughout Attica. I instructed them to continue to expand this industry, as well as arranging that additional workers be used within it, reducing unemployment in that area.
Thorikos, on our South coast, and the nearby Silver Mines at Laurium was a vital asset to our cause. I immediately instructed that the settlement be enlarged, such that further mines could be sunk in the future. I would be careful to ask for further reinforcements for the garrison here, because the Silver mines are the envy of all surrounding nations.
Marathon, to the East of Athens, site of our great victory over the invading Persians in 490BC, had become a central site for the mining of marble. The surrounding hills, along with Mt. Mymettos and Penteli, are full of schists and marbles, and this has become a thriving industry both for export and for local consumption. Unfortunately, this was unlikely to be of much use in the immediate future, so I ordered that the village be expanded immediately, with workers to be transferred in time (and retrained as required) in the expansion of Building Materials, both for local consumption and to build up Athens.
Lastly, Eleusis, on our western border with Megara and Thebes, would start to become a military outpost, and central training facility for our troops. I did not immediately have the necessary wherewithal to develop this however, and it would have to wait.
I asked the philosophers of Athens to think about our newly discovered interests in Agriculture, to determine whether we could develop new techniques or laws to enhance our self sufficiency in foodstuffs. I expected them to come up with something within about a year.
That concluded my development plan for Attica, and now I turned to the military plan.
Clearly, even with increased farming efficiency around the Athenians plains, one of our most pressing strategic needs was for food. Traditionally we have traded with other regions, including the island of Aigina to our near South. We need to make the availability of the olives and grain they produce a lot more reliable. I decided to personally visit them, along with the entire garrisons of Athens and Salamis, to, er, discuss the matter. I hoped that with the swiftness of action, we might secure increased food resources permanently, and still secure our borders from any unwanted incursions.
By the end of January, 5 units of Astynomia (City police and militia), along with a unit of light javelinmen were sailing to Aigina.

February:
Our army arrived outside Aigina and demanded their surrender. They began to board up the city, and it looked like their foolish determination for independence would force a confrontation.
All of our diplomats reported their position and the attitude of our neighbours. We appear to be getting along well with the Megarans, and I asked that our solicitations be passed on to them, as well as highlighting to them their importance in Greece and to our strategic position. An amount of silver was dispatched to ensure they understood our good intentions.
The Boeotians considered themselves 'neutral' in any conflicts between us and others. This is a concern, as we would like to secure their friendship lest the whole of Attica be constantly threatened by the nearness of their armies. The Cyclades were much more positively inclined to us, and I hope this will allow our shores to go without any raids or aggression.
I bring a bill to the council of 500 to raise taxes urgently throughout Attica. They agree, with reservations. I know that these taxes will be resisted, and I will agree to lower them later, before too much discontent arises.

March:
Euchenor reports that the Megarans are unimpressed by our flattery. I urge him to take another tack, and send more funds.
The battle of Aigina begins. While we outnumber them slightly, they have a city guard of Elite Hoplites which would destroy our lightly armed troops in an instant if we met in the open plain. Thus we try another plan. Having girded them to battle in the plain in front of the town, we now hide the army in the large wood at its flank. We deploy our low quality troops as deeply as possible, and put the javelinmen to their rear to harass the enemy once we are engaged. Then we wait. The defenders break ranks and move into the forest to engage us, a big mistake.
Waiting until they are close, close enough to see our ranks emerging through the forest, I sound the attack, and our men let out a cheer and surge forward. Two units on our right find themselves with no enemy and it looks like they are going to miss the fight altogether, but then they turn and crash into the melee and the enemies exposed flank. Their elite troops are shocked to see such manoeuvres, and cannot fight properly in their heavy armour in such uneven terrain. The trees impede their use of long spears and prevent them from forming a proper phalanx, giving our light troops the advantage. Just as our ranks waver, and it looks like we might be giving way, I sound the horn of victory, which redoubles their efforts. Two units of our troops on the left flee, but then the enemy line breaks, men streaming rearward. We cut them down and effectively destroy them as a fighting force. One of our units is effectively destroyed, and several others are severely depleted, but the citizens must allow us control of Aigina from now on. We lost 100 men in the fight, but inflicted 113, and the remains of the original 200 strong force have fled for the hills. The men who fought here would be better next time, with this victory behind them.
There was some looting of the town at the conclusion, and the worst of the enemy Oligarches were put to death. I installed a democracy and a date was set for elections of a small council. From here on, Aigina would be part of the Athenian League, and its men were sent to work immediately to tend to the farms.
I left the army in position in Aigina to defend it for all time, and granted several of the soldiers positions of authority and the right to bring their family to the island. I personally returned to Athens. Seeing that our stock of building materials was again looking healthy, I ordered that the encampment at Eleusis be expanded.

April:
The farming reforms at Athens were beginning to bear fruit (literally), and it seemed we had achieved a degree of food reliability. Given this, I ordered that the stores be used to attract more men into militia / police service, in order to raise more units of Astynomia. Unfortunately, this relied on a barracks being built in Eleusis, so would have to wait many months.

May:
On the 10th of the month a terrific earthquake rocks the Peloponnese and especially the area of the Lakadaemons. Thankfully Attica was unscathed.

June:
Euchenor reports that he has once again failed to achieve some sort of better diplomatic position with the Megarans, and furthermore, they set sail with an army towards us! Perhaps they are after the lightly defended port at Salamis? In any case, Euchenor is withdrawn, because there is nothing he can do at this stage to avoid war.
I order the still damaged garrison at Aigina to set sail for Salamis, and as a precaution, order the units at Marathon to march towards Athens, in order to defend it should the Megarans try anything foolish.
Down in Sparta (Lakadaemon), the helots revolt, forming marauding bands throughout the region. This will keep the Spartans busy! We offer to 'assist' by sending an army to help our recent allies, but the Spartans refuse. Perhaps they don't trust us? Within the gatherings on the Pnyx, an anti-Spartan feeling is on the rise.

July:
The Megarans, seeing that Athens will not let any of its assets fall lightly, are stopped in their tracks. Their fleet anchors offshore of Megara but does not return to the city. Here, they threaten Salamis, Aigina AND Athens, all within a short sail.
I decide to split my forces evenly between Salamis and Aigina, with orders that each force should sail to the aid of the other if it looks like the Megarans threaten. Hopefully this would be enough to hold our offshore towns.
I send the army from Marathon back, with the exception of 1 unit which stops in Athens to defend it, along with the city guard of hoplites.
Thorikos and Marathon have both expanded their town sufficiently to accommodate further industry. I order that new clay pits be opened in both sites. Expansion everywhere is a priority, rather than the production of luxuries. I also order a few building materials be imported, to supplement current stocks.

August:
The Megarans sail towards Salamis! The troops on Aigina sail to aid the defence but are too late. Further, the time at sea depletes the treasury in order to pay and feed the oarsman, but I cannot see another solution to this treachery by the Megarans.
I order the expansion of Athens itself. A larger town will draw more people and allow more industry.

September:
The Megarans attack Salamis, but are beaten back by the 3 units there, veterans of Aigina.
In the South, the united cities of Acte, form an army and invade Cynuria, the Eastern shores of the Lakadaemon. This area, long disputed between Argos and Sparta, now belongs to neither! The town of Prasiai falls to the Acteans, and the Spartans, furiously rounding up the helots, are too busy to stop it happening. Whether this is a good strategic move by the Acteans will be clear in a few months, when they face the Spartans main army.

October:
I send food and aid to help the Salamis garrison recover, and order the garrison from Aigina back to base. I hope to build an army on the mainland to end this problem of Megara. I order the construction of a military camp at Eleusis.
November:
A small group of Pirates lands in the South and attempts to take control of the Silver mines at Laurium. They are easily defeated by the local garrison, hopefully deterring further attempts.
The clay pits, still small, are opened up at Thorikos and Marathon. I insist that labour is moved to them as a priority.
The taxes are relaxed a little, to keep discontent throughout the region to a minimum. Especially those cities with only small garrisons are restless and uneasy. I will aim to increase these garrisons little by little, once we have the means to raise more troops.

December:
In the South, the Spartans have beaten or banished the revolting helots. They will no doubt concentrate on recovering lost ground and rebuilding their military strength.
The Megarans meanwhile send another force to sea, threatening Salamis and Aigina, and simultaneously launch a small force towards Eleusis! It will stretch our resources to the limit to hold them everywhere.
So ended the first year of the campaign.
Cimon

Part II
January 463BC:
At first light I let me eyes gaze over the outstretched plains of Attica, the fertile coast leading up to the hills and mountains beyond. The warm winter sun provided the only warmth, and people hurried about the city like tiny ants upon an anthill.
From my elevated viewpoint, I could see over the nearby buildings all the way to the nearby farmland. I had the advantage of standing on the top floor of the capital building, the centre of administration for the town and the nascent empire. It's large marble columns and walls hinted at the wealth that could be harnessed by us, and yet belied our current predicament.
I paced in a small square, over and over, sometimes stopping for a few seconds to ponder the situation, then moving again, always in the same square, like an ant walking purposefully around the edge of a scroll, caught in a loop. The South West corner of the roof got the best of the winter sun, highlighting the features of the statue of Athena, Goddess of Wisdom and mother of the city, towering above me, fully 20 feet tall.
From this viewpoint I could gaze out at the farmers, emerging from their huts and preparing the ground for planting, or just walking the measure of their property to check the stock. The grain shelters were empty, but stocks of food throughout the nation were still ample. The rains had not come this winter, any food we use this year will not be replaced, for the harvests will be poor, the augurs tell us.
How would Athens develop into a great and wealthy nation? Most surely if we were attacked by all our enemies we could not survive. Although we have some stocks of horses able to be used for scouts, there is no history of horsemanship in our rocky promontory, and we have not access to horse breeding grounds, unlike the Elis to our SouthWest or the Thessalians to our North. Cavalry will not save Athens.
Nor do we have access to copper mines which we could combine with Tin from Thrace and force copper armour and weapons. We have a stockpile of some copper, but the nearest mines are in Boeotia, and not able to be accessed. We could trade for Copper. Our current treasury, exchanged at current rates, could provide enough copper to outfit two units of spearmen. Another one from our current stores. Perhaps if we were able to get better exchange rates, perhaps another 1 unit could be equipped. 4 Spear units is hardly a mighty army, but how useful they would be right now to defend our borders!
In the medium term, perhaps we need to develop our forestry industries further, and equip light troops to patrol the borders, man the walls and act as marines on board a powerful navy? With food self sufficiency and the wealth of taxes and the silver mines at Laurium, we could maintain a large fleet and skirmisher force.
The Boeotians were skirmishing with the Phocians to our West, and this was not altogether a bad thing. Large armies within marching distance of Athens needed to be kept busy.
I determined to expedite our relationship building with Boeotia. Silver talents would be dispatched at once to our ambassador, because the biggest army it seems I can buy at the moment, is not my own! Thebes will defend our land from the West, and Megara will be kept at bay with what we have left.
The winter passed quietly, and by late February a small recruitment and training barracks had been established at Eleusis. This was a relief. I ordered that a number of units of mounted scouts be trained.
Some of the small sites around Attica were approved to grow and develop, and herbalists began to spring up to tend to the growing population. I instruct a few chosen generals to look into the equipping of citizens as spearmen. If things went well, then we could train those much needed spearmen in Eleusis, and use what little copper we had available.

March:
Hearing of our defensive preparations, the Megarid pre-emptively attack us in Eleusis. Our militia forces fight them off, supported by the single unit of javelin throwing light troops. Several days later, the first unit of scouts is collected ready to provide patrols around the town. We won't be surprised like that again.
Boeotia warms to us, and is impressed by our offer of a mutual defensive stance. Hopefully this will keep them from getting too close to our defences, which could not hold them. More talents are dispatched to try and cement the bond further.

April:
Our building resources are devoted to improving the farming facilities in line with the most recent thinking. Hopefully food production will be improved, and the abundance of food will allow us to support a larger militia.
Megara sails again and attacks Salamis. The troops at Aigina sail to their aid and are again too slow. The whole idea of mutual support isn't working and the orders for it are rescinded. The experienced men at Salamis just fought off the attack on the beaches, and will require time to recruit more replacements.
A large force from Boeotia rides to our support against Megara, cheering the people. They ride straight for the Megara township itlsef, but are smashed by the local defences, and few ride back to Thebes. Clearly, there is a large militia within the walls at Megara, and taking it out will be no small matter.
In light of this disaster, our most recent diplomatic efforts at Thebes are rebuffed. More talents, more talents&
Despite their deep dislike for us, Euchenor our diplomat remains at Megara. He lies low, and says little. We ask him to find out what he can about the Megaran garrison, and any field armies being built.

May:
The additional land opened up at Athens is used for civic facilities such as herbalist and Asclapeia. If the health of the citizens is assured, the town will grow naturally and from immigration.
Summer passes without much incident.
September:
We hear word from our 'spy' in Megara. He tells us that apart from the elite guard, the rest of the garrison is weak. A combined attack from Eleusis, along with the garrisons on our islands may well take the city. Time to go on the offensive against Megara perhaps? A large army from the Achaean League is forming on the other side of the Corinthian 'neck' with the Peloponnese. No point taking it first, we want to take it and hold it.
As well, Thebes responds favourably to our latest overtures. We continue with our campaign to purchase influence and friendship with our powerful neighbours.
Our 6 units in Eleusis march on Megara, easily surrounding and forcing the surrender of two field units on the way.

October:
After long deliberations, our army outside Megara returns to Eleusis. The Megarans pleaded for peace, and we are a magnanimous nation.
Coincidentally, the large Achaean army marched north, threatening Boeotia and our Eleusis military base.
From here, the whole force will rest and recuperate. If we wait long enough, we may be able to train more capable troops.
The winter passed quietly, and the only campaigning was by our diplomat, Kleades, in Thebes. They are now warming to the idea of a mutual non-aggression pact, which will provide respite for us over much of our lands.
Another year gone, and Athens is safe&..for the moment.
Cimon

Part III
January 462BC:
"Silence in the ranks!"
"Up Spears!"
"Shieldward&.about face"
"Forward March"
"Halt"
The training officer, a veteran of the earlier wars in Greece, bellowed commands to the trainees. He stands stiffly in the corner of a courtyard enclosed on all sides by a wooden palisade. Guards stand by at the entrance to this military camp&more to keep the recruits in than to keep the citizens out!
In front of the training officer, two small squads of men march rigidly from one end of the square to the other. At one point, coming together in the middle, then facing about and marching to opposite ends.
Even militia need training, and the ability to maintain ranks and march in formation will be critical to meet even simple tasks on the battlefield.
At Eleusis, site of the training ground, the main threat from the land appears to have subsided somewhat, so most of the infantry has been sent off to board boats and reinforce the island bases at Aigina and Salamis. I, Cimon, feel it is important to ensure that our strength is shown at these outposts, lest anyone get the idea we would not fight to keep them. If we show strength, hopefully peace can be maintained without a fight at all.
Another unit of skirmishers is ordered to be raised at Athens, they will be sent across the hills to Marathon in order to reinforce their skinny garrison.
I recall Euchenor from Megara. The mood is getting ugly, and should he be discovered, he could face death or worse. Once he has been debriefed in Athens, he can resume his activities as a broker of peace with one of our other neighbours.

February:
The shuffle of troops on our islands begins. Aigina and Salamis are shored up, while Eleusis is held only by our cavalry patrols.
Euchenor is dispatched to Euboea, to assess the mood of that friendly island state to our North.

March:
We have completely run out of wood now, so troop building and naval matters will have to take a back seat to other affairs. It would be nice to restart forestry around Athens, but further infrastructure is required.
The other Generals feel confident that we can train some spearmen for defence, but I cannot build the required barracks until some civic expansion at Eleusis is complete. After that, we will build the barracks, and also a training facility. It should only take 6 months to investigate how to organise this.

April:
Kleades reports that relations with the Boeotians continues to improve, and I ask him to continue his active liaison with both those in power and the other factions in Thebes.
The Megarans again sail for Salamis, but this time our 6 unit strong garrison should be ample to see them off.

May:
We rout the Megarans again with the loss of a single unit. Soon we will take them out, while maintaining our defences, and move our border further West to the narrow land around Corinth. With our Western border hopefully secured by an alliance with Boeotia, we should be able to hold our enemies in check for some time.
The Egyptians have rebelled against the Persians. Since we have already committed to support them in this action, we begin to move Silver across the Mediterranean to pay for their armies. In the very long run, it is Persia which is the enemy of all Greeks, and we should take every chance to hinder her. Nevertheless, our stockpile is severely depleted at this critical time.
Aigina has developed sufficiently to allow the expansion of farmland, which we order to begin immediately.

June:
A large fleet from Acte is hovering to our South. I hope they can see the sense in avoiding our colonies, because it would be an inopportune time to face yet another enemy.
We begin tentative overtures with the Ionic Cycladians. The Islanders have a powerful fleet, and we want them to keep it away from Attica.

July:
We are now ready to try and close a deal with the Boeotians to cement our relations. A large amount of silver is dispatched to ensure that the correct people are consulted with. We are now broke, but large amounts of silver is still coming in from trade, industry and Laurium, so we should be able to recover the treasury in time.

August:
Eleusis completes its expansion works and I order the immediate commencement of construction for a training centre for spearmen. Although expensive in resources, this will ultimately prove useful for the defence of our lands.
The Philosopher, Anaxagoras of Clazomenae arrives in Athens and begins to attract a following. He preaches a strange mix of ideas, and appears to worship 'nous', the mind. Those of a pious disposition are very unsettled, and complaints are heard around Athens about this troublemaker. I will have to lower taxes throughout Attica to ensure that there is more good news than bad, and soothe the nerves of the citizens.
The Acteans sail away to the South, seeing our formidable garrisons exercising on the islands.

September:
We have discovered how to work with Iron ore, and also how to train troops to a better level of readiness for combat. This will allow Eleusis to develop training grounds, along with the Heavy Infantry barracks in progress.

October:
The Thebans indicate they are on the edge of agreeing a peace treaty. The only thing they want is&more silver. At this point, we are keen to agree it, and they know how keen we are. A large gift of silver is dispatched once again.

November:
Once again, the Megarans send a force against Salamis.

December:
Our garrison on Salamis, without proper equipment for the snowy conditions that prevailed, and weakened by previous attacks, narrowly lost the battle at Salamis. What a calamity! The Megarans now hold this outpost a few miles from Athens, and can threaten the rest of our holdings. Thousands of citizens are lost, and many flee. Our ability to expand other settlements is hampered, as clay mining on Salamis was contributing heavily

Part IV
January 461BC:
Thebes agrees to a binding non-aggression pact between our two nations. This is a triumph!
Now we can focus our attention properly on defeating Megara, and building our commercial and military might with secure borders to our West.
I order the reinforcing of Aigina, and we will begin to build a force at Eleusis to revenge our losses.

February:
I have to decide on priorities for the empire. I now have sufficient capability to develop Athens into a larger village than it already is. This takes priority in my view, and in the mob's, over the development of training facilities at Eleusis. Athens is already overflowing with tradesmen and workers, so needs more industry to grow.
The Heavy Infantry barracks at Eleusis is complete, but I am not sure whether to build a unit now, or wait until a training facility is possible? I decide to build 1 unit as a trial, and then wait for the
training facility before embarking on further recruitment.

March:
The newly trained (barely!) unit of spearmen, along with some militia and my large contingent of scouts now marches on Megara. Hopefully their garrison is still weak, and we will be able to take the town, isolating their remaining contingent occupying my town of Salamis.

April:
A large force from Acte attacks the garrison at Aigina! I didn't see this coming at all. Fortunately, the garrison just holds them off, but at the cost of another unit lost. We are now back down to 4 units on the island, including many sick and wounded. More troops are needed urgently, even at the expense of leaving some other cities unguarded temporarily.
My force of 7 units now stands outside the gates of Megara. We call for them to surrender, or we will take the town by force.

May:
At Megara, my force attacked the Megarans, who refused to surrender. The disposition of troops was a tricky thing. Central to their defence was a unit of Elite Hoplites, which stood atop a hill. Nothing I had could touch it. I sent my light infantry to try and tempt them into a fight on level ground. All my other troops were held back to take the support troops out in a second wave, and hopefully the hoplites by then would be tired, fighting in their heavy armour, and outnumbered, would surrender.
The plan didn t work at all! My infantry was smashed and utterly destroyed. Next time I recruit spearmen, I might take the time to train them as well!
It was only the large light cavalry contingent which smashed his militia by swarming around them, and eventually did also cause his hoplites to lose hope and surrender. A victory is a victory&Megara is mine! I ordered that a statue be erected in honour of the Athenian scouts who saved the day. They promised me that they would do their best, and they did.
The town was in ruins when I toured it the next day. Farms and clay pits were destroyed, the capital building was gone. All that remained was the library that had been constructed here, along with its great scholars and texts. These workers were immediately declared as friends of Athens, and sanitation works commenced to make the town safe and attract more people to the area.
I also asked my diplomats in Euboea and Ionic Cyclades to try and improve relations throughout the region. Now that we have peace with Thebes, this may be our chance to secure a safe environment to our North and East as well.

June:
The Euboeans have gone to war with Thebes, and taking advantage of their preoccupation with the Phocians in the West, taken the town of Oropous, just north of Attica. I hope that they do not attempt to move any further. It also opens up the possibility of taking the town and enhancing our security in the North by force. Unfortunately, we don't have the troops to do it at the moment.
Meanwhile the Phocians, as well as giving the Thebans a hard battle on the frontier, were moving a large army including Thracian tribesmen towards my now weakly defended barracks at Eleusis. Armies nearby were put on alert to rush back there to defend it if necessary. I hope that the Thebans will be able to stop them before they get to me.
Kleades, my diplomat at Thebes tries to arrange 'Asylia' for our merchants, guaranteeing them safety between our two borders, and hopefully improving trade. If this is agreed, it should open up some new markets to me, lowering the price of the copper I need to get more spearmen equipped.
July and August were quiet months, with the Phocians turning south towards Corinth. Let's see how that develops&

September:
A long term interest in improving the effectiveness of our clay mining has borne fruit, allowing new investment in the area. Where we have such operations, I ask them to upgrade, at some cost to the treasury. We still need to get Salamis back before our building materials will be anywhere near where they need to be. Some investigation into the needed increase in forestry needs to be conducted, and I figure it should only take a few months.
Asylia with Thebes is agreed, but only for a few months. I will take the opportunity to buy up some copper, and train up some more spearmen.
By November, we have agreed the way forward with forestry, and I set out plans for major forest operations to be opened near the capital. Silver is our next priority, with extensions to the mines at Laurium needed.
In December the Euboeans send a scouting force to Marathon and attack the local garrison. If it is war they want, then Athens won't back away. I will leave my diplomat with them but now spend our resources to take their land by force. But first, we must defend against the Megarans, now launching raids from Salamis, and eventually take it back.
At the end of 461BC, Athens is one of the most powerful nations in Greece, but it is still a very fractured world. With 6 towns, we are a long way from securing our future, and developing Athens into the powerful trading nation it is bound to be.

Part V
January 460BC:
Late rains spoil some of the harvest, meaning food will be hard to come by this year. Shortly we will have some forestry operations happening in Athens. This will provide plenty of wood for the skirmishing troops that I hope to recruit.
The new units complete their training in Eleusis, and I have insufficient copper for any more. The asylia is ended, so market prices inflate again.

February:
The upgraded buildings to service the clay pits are complete, and slightly more building materials are becoming available. The woodpile starts to grow at Athens.

March - June:
Some minor extensions to the mines at Laurium are commissioned and completed.
A new unit of psiloi javelinmen begin training at Athens.

July - December:
A small market is opened at Megara to improve the distribution of their produce through Attica, what was up until recently enemy territory. The market ensures that channels are opened up, and fair prices paid to the local craftsmen and traders.
Long term work is begun to try and further improve forestry operations. With even more wood, we should be able to build a more significant force of skirmishers.
The Phocians choose war over peace and attack us at Megara, but are easily repulsed by our large scouting force. Efforts throughout Attica are to hold what we have. A few more garrisons may see us able to launch an attack on Salamis, and close down the refugees from Megara, who have made it a pirate base from which to attack our shipping
Everywhere garrisons were strengthened where possible.

Part VI
459BC:
Thebes, capital of the Boeotians my main ally, falls to the Euboeans. What a disaster for them and us. Accusing us of deserting them, the Boeotians cancel the non-aggression pact, not that they are in any position to attack us now.
I send word that we will support them, and also try to set Asylia for merchants again.
Despite the tenuous situation in the South, we now need to take at least a reasonable force North to try and retake Thebes or the Euboean stronghold at Oropous.
By April, our army attacks the Euboeans occupying Thebes. Although badly outnumbered, we just manage to win the battle by fighting within woods and negating the advantage of their many spear units. A unit is destroyed and several routed. This army will stay here from now on. We send word to the Boeotians that their capital is retaken. Since we have spent all the effort to retake it, it makes sense for us to continue on in an administrative capacity for a period, before any handover to local control resumes. We have to make sure that the Boeotians are in a decent state to maintain their capital and not let it fall again.
The Megarans try and take my training base at Eleusis, but are beaten off by my large force of scouts, who race back to defend it.
By the end of the year, I have completed more investigation into forestry operations, and secured the designs for a small wood mill. Now with two areas of wood harvesting in Athens, skirmish troops are being equipped as soon as we can train them.
The Megarans send a large force to take their capital back, but are repulsed by my hardworking scouts.
More skirmishers and spearmen are being trained every few months, so the garrisons at many cities are now becoming substantial.

458BC:
This was a year of consolidation. By the end of the year, most towns had decent garrisons of about 6 units, except Athens, which still relied on the Elite Hoplites there.
Diplomacy was concentrated on keeping the Boeotians with us, and improving relations with the Ionic Cycladians, who were beginning to dominate this part of the Aegean.

457BC:
The Ionic Cycladians attack us at Thorikos, and are thwarted at their attempt to take the town only narrowly. This has put diplomatic efforts on the backburner, and we will have to reconsider the position. Perhaps if we fund the democratic faction within the capital, we could effect a change in regime within the group of islands, thus positively improving their relations with us?
Late in the year, we recall our diplomats from the Ionic Cycladians and the Euboeans. Euchenor, who is the most experienced of the diplomats available, will be debriefed and then dispatched back to the Cycladians to try and turn their attitude around.
Hestiodorus, a nephew of mine, was recruited to try and infiltrate at Euboea. Aristophon was sent to establish a relationship with the Eleans in the Peloponnese, who have come to dominate that region, with 8 towns under their dominion.
By the end of the year, the diplomatic landscape had been swapped around, and I had taken back Salamis at last, finally destroying the Megarans. Now our building program can be resumed. A Heavy Infantry barracks that will permit the building of proper hoplites is in progress, and will mean that what little copper I am able to buy, will be used to build a decent main body of troops.

456BC:
Several garrisons were combined and marched north to rid the mainland of the Euboeans once and for all. We took their town at Oropous and maintained a trade guild which will dramatically improve our technology development.
We built our first unit of Heavy Infantry Hoplites, and marched them south to garrison at Megara, our most exposed point. Where ever they are, they will do well. I will try and create more hoplites, and distribute them throughout Attica to defend key points.
The diplomatic efforts with our kin in the Cyclades went well, and they have agreed to a mutual non-aggression pact. This means we have most of our borders secure from aggressors, and can concentrate on economic development, while building an army ready for later use.

455BC:
A year of consolidation and shoring up of our defences all round. Attica has a slight food deficit, and so traded heavily to ensure stocks were brought up.
The military plan is to concentrate in the South, and take Corinth, making it a bastion in the South to defend all of our lands. Then we can move the bulk of our forces North against Euboea, which might provide more arable land for grazing and excellent copper deposits, vital to arm and equip Heavy Infantry.
Euripides produces his first play and mocks my foreign policy. Why must these philosophers and playwrights be so troublesome? Don't they know I only have the welfare of the Athenian people at heart?
To placate the peace faction I ordered the construction of a Foreign Ministry at Athens. Here we will coordinate our empire building, I mean, facilitation of trade and industry across countries of goodwill for the benefit of all.
Apart from my diplomat with Euboea being caught and boiled alive (!), the year ended peacefully enough.

454BC:
We intercept a large Corinthian army heading through Megara. It is a large battle within a forest, but I manage to keep the core of the battle in a clearing, where my Hoplites and Spearmen rout their centre. The whole army will retire back to Megara to rest and recuperate.
Corinth and Sikyon are now owned by the Phocians. In any case, Corinth is too strategic to be left in the hands of a neutral power. It is my next goal.
The Egyptian revolt against the Persians is completed, so we are no longer burdened with the support costs. This reveals the full strength of our economy, and silver production and taxes are keeping our banks full of coinage.
It takes all year to assemble a force suitable for an assault on Corinth. I am unsure of the defences, but assume they are strong. Next month we will find out.

454BC:
We take Corinth easily, with not a single unit routing. There isn't much left after the looting is complete, but the first thing the army commander orders built is a small fortress which will help us to hold this vital junction between the Peloponnesos and the rest of Greece. This will be the choke point we hold forever, to keep Attica safe from the South.
I transfer the best of the units from Corinth back North, and by the end of the year, a large force sails from Oropous to take Chalkis.

453BC:
We take advantage of a new period of trade open-ness to trade for Copper, and try to build up some stocks.
Athens becomes an even larger town, and Aigina establishes a large market on the harbour there. This town is the bread-basket of Attica, supplying nearly half of the food we produce.
We take Chalcis easily. Now we have ready sources of every resource apart from Iron and Gold. There is no gold in this part of the world, and the only Iron is in Lakadaemonia. I wonder whether it would be worth sailing around to Gytheon and taking the town, establishing an Athenian colony and mining the rich source of iron from the Taygetus mountains, West of Sparta?

452BC:
More consolidation and building up defences. After all, our goal is to become rich, not to own everything.

451BC:
A drought puts our food supply under threat but we now have many harbour and local markets, so can trade our way out of trouble.
The only military threat appears to be the Acteans to our South, who mass extremely large armies in the seas near our island colonies, and threaten them continually.
The only way to stop this is either to agree a truce diplomatically or to take their ports off them! I send my best diplomat and also construct an embassy with them. Let's see if we can buy our way out of this.

450BC:
All is quiet. We mass a large army and attack the Corinthian Colonies NW of Corinth. A pity to have this impressive army and do nothing with it.

449BC:
The Peace of Callias is agreed between ourselves and the Persians. As part of the agreement, we are awarded a large amount of Gold, which should provide plenty of incentive to recruit better generals, enhance our religious places and pay for the enlargement of our cities.
We conquer two of the three Corinthian Colonies, and will move on the third shortly. Despite their impressive numbers of troops defending each town, my superbly trained and experienced hoplites, along with a mass of archers in support, make short work of them.

Part VII
431BC:
I stood again on my elevated position at the top of the Capital building in Athens. Like so many times before, I paced back and forth, and rested briefly on my small square route, and once again admired the ever patient face of Athena, towering above me. This routine has become a favourite of mine, and is perhaps the only thing about Athens that has remained unchanged over the years.
In the farmlands, where once there were nearly empty paddocks with small squares of crops, now there are large enclosed plantations with a variety of grains and fruit trees. Large storehouses are full to overflowing with produce, ready to go to market.
At the markets themselves, large Emporia or permanent marketplaces have been established. Among the many permanent buildings, traders and customers wander, and gaily coloured cloth sails are erected to mark the site of a new stall. The stalls are full of food and goods, many brought from foreign lands by the many working harbours in our realm.
In the city square, the Agora, nobles, philosophers and common people hurry from task to task. Occasionally there are visitors to the treasury building in one corner. Next to the Agora a large philosophy school has been erected, with towering Ionic columns and an impressive marble stairway leading to the main buildings. On the stairs, Meton the philosopher addresses a small cadre of rapt students. He paces and explains his ideas about the workings of the stars and the moon, and his ideas for a new calendar.
A large Temple Complex dominates the South West corner of the city. Pious citizens file into it slowly to pay their respects to the Gods and pray for further good fortune. On the flanks of the building a large bas relief has been constructed in Marble, and painted using imported clay paints. Depicting my great victories over the Corinthians and the taking of that great city, it marks a highlight of my career and turning point in our security.
On the outskirts of the city a large marble mine with a single shaft drilled deep into the rock is continually worked. Slaves and citizens cooperate to expose the rock and cut it as needed, providing the raw materials for much of the grandeur of the city and surrounding areas. Large areas of timber are planted and even from here I can faintly hear the working of axes on timber.
Closest to my position, a large building has been established to form the central administration for the Athenian League, the empire that has grown up around this great city.
Over the past 33 years Athens has grown and developed into the strongest power in the world, and with our embassies established throughout Greece, we have maintained peace, commerce and stability throughout the region. Our philosophers, students and merchants have invented great new technologies for our army and for commerce. With the progress made to date, I wonder some times if there is anything left to invent?!
For the benefit of all we have had to maintain our governance of regions such as Thebes. This city, once conquered and dying, now stands as a beacon to Greek citizens everywhere, both metaphorically and literally. Metaphorically, because it shows the progress that Athenian governance can make, and literally, because we have constructed a colossal statue at the entrance to the city. The giant figure of Zeus holds a pyre in his left hand, which burns oil at all times to show the way to those in darkness.
The people of Athens are well, and their health will surely not be in doubt any time soon. The happiness of the people, the wealth of our coffers, the preponderance of food and new trade goods, surely it has been a Golden Age for Greece.
Cimon of Athens

[te_wooglebug]

This is more a bump than a reply. I am having problems printing the AAR's on this forum, and it could be that there has to be a reply in order for it to print completely, so this is a test. Note though that this is a good AAR, and so well worth bumping.

[te_wooglebug]

Unfortunately, my theory was incorrect, I still can't get this thread still to print fully . My apologies if I've annoyed anyone. If anyone knows of a way to get a "printible" version of threads on this forum, please let me know. Thank you.

[IainMcNeil]

What happens when you click print? I would have though it just appears as it does on your screen?

An alternative is to copy the text to a notepad or word doc and then print it from there.

[te_wooglebug]

Ian:

Thank you for your excellent suggestion. I copied the post into Word, and was able to print it off just fine.

To answer your question, when I try to print it directly from the forum, it shows several pages without text, followed by the first page of the post, followed (if I recall correctly) by a page with the signature, and the end of the post. The rest of the post does not get printed. My suspicion is that if any single post runs more than 1 page, it can cause problems. Perhaps, however, it is just an oddity of this specific computer. In any case, your suggestion works fine, and I appreciate your taking time to respond.

[Redpossum]

AWESOME AAR, Anguille! Very well written, and entertaining as well

You, my friend, obviously have a talent for this sort of thing!

[anguille]

AWESOME AAR, Anguille! Very well written, and entertaining as well

You, my friend, obviously have a talent for this sort of thing!

Thank you but it's not my AAR. It was written by Hunter some time ago in the old Paradox forum.