The Cappadocian Lancers were a formidable force in Pontus, defeating the elite forces of Egypt.

This kind of cavalry focuses on refining armor, and the war horses also have iron armor and are armed with hard spears. Discipline is important, and he is good at charging and breaking through the enemy's line. He is an excellent knight who makes the whole of Asia Minor fear three points.

However, the Macedonian pikemen infantry was not even afraid of the ironclad cavalry, so would they be soft in front of the second-rate iron cavalry?

As a result, the Cappadocian cavalry was beaten to pieces, and the men turned on their backs. Sure enough, it was still impossible to confront the sharpness of the spear phalanx head-on.

Ponticus' general, Opit, was also killed in the first wave of the charge, and his soldiers were in disarray, and continued resistance seemed futile. Even though the Bronze Shield Spearmen of Pontus are full of combat effectiveness, they can be reduced to mediocre infantry when the formation is not in order. The few minutes that the enemy's mighty army struggled on the bridge were like cages, inside and out, and the cruelty was incomparable. Soon it collapsed. The Macedonian side took advantage of the situation to cover up, and Apalos won the game.

In this way, using the defense of the estuary, Apalos easily annihilated 20,000 soldiers and horses in Pontus with 17,000 sharp soldiers. This is the convenience of the location.

The Invincible Legion wedged a nail in the door of the main city of Masaka, temporarily establishing a local advantage. Occupying this place not only allows you to advance and retreat freely, but also jams the traffic choke point in eastern Asia Minor. Whether it is attacking, reinforcing or rotating soldiers, it is controlled by this.

When the Macedonian Emperor Podarerios learned about the frontier, he asked with appreciation who had made this move. Knowing that it was Apalos, he nodded affirmatively, he hadn't chosen the wrong person.

The terrain of eastern Asia Minor is complex and diverse, with rivers and mountains forming an insurmountable outer barrier. It provides an ideal natural defense for the three cities of the city. From south to north, the three cities are Tarsus, Masaka, and Sinop. Tarsus, the center of Silesia, is surrounded by the Taurus Mountains and can only be crossed by a pass from east to west. It is the connecting point between Asia Minor and the Middle East.

Masaka and Sinop were both built along the river, surrounded by mountains on three sides, and were easily defensible, and were the main cities of Pontus and Cappadocia. There are only one or two passages to take from the land, so it is easy to defend and difficult to attack. This is also the reason why Bendu has been able to develop steadily and expand gradually. Solid attack on the capital itself, non-decisive and brave can not be overcome.

Macedonia set up a salient fortress on the Harus River, located on the south bank of the Harus River at the northern mouth of the Taurus Mountain, surrounded by mountains and rivers, with superior terrain. It has the advantage of the defense of the estuary, and the support of the third army corps. It can be said that this sudden incursion of Apalos has brought unexpected benefits.

Headquarters of the Asian Army

Now, for Crusader coach Thessaros, the three cities of Pontus are like crumbling ripe fruit on a tree, and they are becoming more and more accessible. The generals, who are in charge of the whole situation, have turned their attention to the south. Across the sea from the southern part of Asia Minor is the island of Rhodes, the territory of Greece.

Once the bridgehead in Asia Minor had established a firm rule and was about to project forces further east, it was time to strengthen the flanks horizontally and destroy the last Greek stronghold.

Thesaros pondered for a long time which legion to send to fight on the island.

Rhode Island has a long and narrow terrain, and the city of Rhodes is large and built near the sea. That is, sending too many soldiers to the island at once is unhelpful and even harmful. In the face of many defenders, a very brave team must be sent to complete the task of seizing the island.

Some generals suggested attacking the city directly, forcing the rest of the troops to return to the city for defense; There are also people who believe that after going to the island, they should look for the enemy's main force for a decisive battle.

After all, landing on the island is a life-and-death battle. After careful consideration, Thessaros decided to personally lead the Seventh Army to attack Greece.

Before leaving, he ordered Clydes and the Trojan Command to coordinate with the rear base, Pergamon.

From Lycia, it's a short boat ride to Rhodes. Thesaros ordered the fleet to land in a large circle from the eastern part of the island.

The weak Greek Navy can only do some work to assist in the defense of ports, transportation, and so on, and even cannot do reconnaissance.

Since the east of Rhodes was a Pontic area, the Greeks had no defenses on this side.

The 7th Army went ashore, and the forward troops immediately repelled the Greek coastal militia posts and marched on land.

Thessaros adopted the tactics of direct siege. Experienced veterans first scattered scouts to maintain contact with the navy. Having a preliminary understanding of the island's defenses, he divided his troops into two, leaving a small part to the student Philotas, and established a defensive line to prevent the small number of defenders in the city from breaking through. He personally led the main force with his back to friendly forces to meet reinforcements coming from other directions. The navy should withdraw from the seashore, but be able to return quickly.

In this way, only two ships were left on the shore for communication, and the main fleet was withdrawn to the sea, and as soon as there was a situation, it quickly came to help. In order to lure the enemy ship closer.

Sure enough, Doros wanted to win with a surprise attack, and sent the main force of the Greek army to quietly outflank the coast from both sides, trying to cooperate with the warships to cut off the Macedonian army's retreat by sea.

This tactic was to encircle the Macedonian army, but if the city could not respond to a two-sided attack, the seaside army would lose its altitude. Rhodes is high in the center and low on the edge.

The Greeks went according to the plan and lit fireworks by the sea. However, the defenders of the city were unable to cooperate, because they were blocked back three times when they barely broke through.

At this time, the two-sailed warship on the coast summoned the main fleet, wiped out the Greek navy in a blink of an eye, and shot the Greek army with bows and arrows.

The Greek coach Doros had no choice but to lead his troops to the island and attack alone without a response.

The bow and arrow units of the New Seventh Army condescended and wantonly attacked the Greek army formation. Thessaros ordered all the Cretan archers to aim at the Greek cavalry. The effect was good, and the enemy cavalry suffered heavy casualties.

The nature of the agrarian society of the Greeks determined the character of their infantry-based army. The Greek cavalry lacked armor and had large targets on horses, making them good targets for archers.

In a short time, there were only a dozen or so people left in Doros's general guard, and there was no escape from the confrontation. Unable to bear this passivity, Nicano personally led some of his men and horses to launch a flank attack, only to be defeated by the Macedonian pikemen and cavalry. The Greek vanguard all fell under the guns of the Macedonian right flank phalanx.

Having weakened the enemy cavalry, the archers shot the Greek javelin troops. The ammunition carried was limited, the arrows ran out, and the fire preparation was over.

The battlefield cooled down again.

The headquarters of the Macedonian Seventh Army was 13,000, and 4,000 were divided into 4,000 to block the attack, and 9,000 elite soldiers were opposed.

The Greek defense army totaled more than 40,000, and the main force led by Doros and Nicano father and son was 20,000, and they were fighting; Agamedis Paisian was in charge of receiving in the city, was blocked, and committed suicide; The other mobile force consisted mostly of javelinmen and javelin cavalry, and the general, Theophrasto, defected and left the battlefield without permission.

The battle evolved into a phalanx of Greek infantry versus a phalanx of Macedonian royal pikes. Although Macedonia had the advantage of cavalry, it could not act rashly in the face of the Greek phalanx.

(End of chapter)