Volume 6: The Meeting of Two Heroes, Chapter 113: Dionysius's Succession Strategy

“Yes, exactly! We besiege them! Then take the remaining troops across the Neto River and strike straight for Crimissa!” Phoebidas looked at Dionysius and offered his advice. “Right now, most of Daonia’s main force is still in Lucania, and since Tarentum has just retaken Metapontum, the Daonians will surely strengthen their northern defenses. Here in Asperustum, there are still remnants of two—uh—what do they call them—Daonian Army Corps. I imagine Daonia’s territory is already quite vulnerable! I hear Crimissa is just a small town; taking it should be no great difficulty for you Syracusans.

After taking Crimissa, march north, seize the other small town of Castron, and you’ll be able to threaten Thurii itself, joining forces with Tarentum to encircle it! By then, Daonia will surrender, and even if the Crotonians hold out in their city, it will be useless. All of Magna Graecia will inevitably be conquered by Syracuse!” As he spoke, even Phoebidas himself was startled by the prospect he had just described, and he couldn’t help sighing inwardly: If that happened, the entire western Mediterranean would truly be at Syracuse’s mercy—what city-state could possibly restrain it?

The others were bright-eyed at Phoebidas’s words, and Dionysius was somewhat tempted, but he knew two things the others did not. First, Davos’s army had won a great victory in Lucania, reportedly wiping out over twenty thousand Samnites. Though he knew from experience that the Samnites would not give up easily, the return of Daonia’s main force to Thurii had been greatly accelerated (he had not yet received word of the Samnites’ complete rout). Second, a new Daonian legion had been stationed in Crimissa. Dionysius had already witnessed the ferocity of Daonian legions on the battlefield; though he didn’t know how well they would defend a city, he assumed they wouldn’t be too bad. Thus, Crimissa’s garrison would be no fewer than ten thousand men—not so easily taken.

More importantly, Crimissa had been a key target for Syracuse’s intelligence operations. In the past, besides the Bruttii region, it had been the most unstable area within Daonia. Before the war, Syracuse’s intelligence chief, Hipparinus, had sent several agents to operate in the city. Months ago, the “Crimissa citizens’ protest demanding an Assembly, and the subsequent assassination attempt against Davos” had all been their handiwork. Later, when the plot was exposed, the Daonians conducted a massive investigation, capturing some and forcing others into hiding. After the war broke out—especially following the victory at the Battle of the Lamato River—espionage in Crimissa had become active again.

Dionysius had been receiving constant intelligence from Crimissa about the latest developments in Daonia: that Thurii had raised two new legions, that the Daonian fleet was conducting secret training on the Crati River… and they had even signaled that once the Syracusan army reached Crimissa, they would open the gates for them.

This had come as quite a pleasant surprise to Dionysius. But ever since the new Daonian legion entered Crimissa, communications from the north had abruptly ceased as of yesterday afternoon. Not only had the entire city been placed under martial law, but the port had also been sealed.

Dionysius understood full well that such decisive action by Crimissa would likely ruin the intelligence network’s efforts, and it made him cautious. He was a man who preferred to act only after thorough planning and careful preparation. Whether it was his westward campaign along Sicily’s southern coast all the way to Motya, or his northward then westward push along the eastern coast to Solus, his strategy had always been methodical and gradual, with virtually no reckless, bold advances.

His rapid maneuvers after landing in Magna Graecia this time had been possible only because of his overwhelming naval supremacy and his larger army. Even so, before the battle with the South Italian Allied Army, the news of the Rhegians suddenly besieging Medma had given him a real scare. Fortunately, he was already confident of victory in the coming battle, and not far from Medma, he had tens of thousands of Locrian troops—so he remained unperturbed.

Now, to attack Daonia, besides stationing a few thousand soldiers each in Medma, Trina, and Scylletium, he had concentrated the vast majority of his forces here. If he followed Phoebidas’s plan—first besieging Croton and Asperustum, both packed with enemy troops—he would need to leave behind at least half his army. Even if he then took Crimissa and Castron, Thurii itself would not be easy to storm. From what he knew, after Polyxides and the others had been arrested, Thurii had become a solid block, nothing like when Croton had first attacked it. What’s more, Daonia’s main force could return at any moment.

Given that, if the Syracusan offensive stalled while having to split forces everywhere, leaving the rear weak, any problem arising in Medma, Trina, Asperustum, Croton, or Thurii over time would be disastrous. That was why he was reluctant to accept Phoebidas’s seemingly excellent suggestion.

Just then, Phasipesas, who had been silent while listening, spoke up: “Lord, I disagree with General Phoebidas’s proposal. Motya—Carthage’s most important military stronghold on Sicily, separated by a bay—we took it, let alone the other cities we’ve captured on the island. Though Croton is larger, it’s not nearly as hard to assault as Motya was. Besides, a large city is harder to defend. And it’s on a plain, making it easier for us to besiege. My lord, look—”

Phasipesas rode his horse a little closer to the wall. Seeing Dionysius follow, he pointed at the wall a hundred meters away and continued: “The wall here is old; the gaps between the stones are probably quite large, the mortar filling is loose, and the stones look aged, as if they haven’t been frequently repaired. Some areas might even be crumbling. This is worse than the cities we’ve taken in Sicily (since the frequent wars between Carthage and Syracuse on the island, and both powers being formidable besiegers, other city-states put great effort into maintaining their walls to survive—unlike in Magna Graecia where siege warfare is rare, and walls are still maintained in the outdated style of decades ago). As long as our ballistas keep pounding, it will surely collapse! And we have plenty of manpower; we can build earth ramparts to approach the walls, construct siege towers and battering rams to breach them and seize the parapets… We can use multiple methods simultaneously to break into Croton and open the road into Daonia’s territory!”

Dionysius was deeply impressed after hearing this. He carefully observed the wall ahead, his expression growing more relaxed. Then he turned and asked: “Phoebidas, what do you think of this siege plan?”

Phoebidas’s expression did not change; he stubbornly insisted: “I still stand by my opinion. We have no need to waste time under Croton’s walls. Once Daonia is conquered, Croton will naturally surrender.”

“Lord, you don’t need to discuss siege tactics with a Spartan. Even Plataea, defended by only a few hundred men, took them over two years to capture—what good advice could they offer?” Astagoras mocked.

Phoebidas’s face changed.

In the fifth year after the Peloponnesian War began, the Spartans and their allies, unable to breach the Long Walls and break into Athens, had to turn against Athens’s ally, Plataea in Boeotia. The Plataeans, seeing the danger, evacuated most of their people and left only a few hundred to defend the city.

As a result, the Spartan allied army—tens of times larger than the Plataean garrison—took over two years to capture the city. Finally, the Spartans killed the defenders and handed Plataea over to its then-ally Thebes. The key point was that decades earlier, during the most important battle of the Greco-Persian Wars—the Battle of Plataea—the Greek allied army, powerfully supported by the entire population of Plataea, had defeated the invading Persian forces. After the victory, the Spartan king Pausanias, leading the Greek allies, had sworn an oath: to forever uphold Plataea’s independence and freedom together!

Thus, when Plataea was destroyed and the Spartans themselves broke their vow, it immediately sparked an uproar throughout the Greek world, forcing Sparta to debate the matter. The Council of Elders had to dispatch ephors to question the Spartan king while on campaign… That incident had left a deep impression on Phoebidas, who was just a child at the time. Astagoras was essentially reopening old Spartan wounds.

“Don’t speak nonsense!” Dionysius glared at Astagoras, then said to the visibly angered Phoebidas: “No city-state dares to meet Sparta in open battle. But when it comes to siege warfare, Syracuse does indeed have more experience. I have decided to take Croton first!”

Phoebidas snorted and said no more.

Having delivered his polite words, Dionysius no longer cared about the Spartan’s feelings. He spoke solemnly to the others: “Phasipesas, Astagoras, organize all siege engineers, craftsmen, and soldiers to start building siege equipment and constructing earth embankments. Do everything possible to gauge the thickness of the wall… Prepare everything for the siege!”

“Yes, lord!” The two generals answered in unison, excited.

Dionysius turned to the two foreign leaders, his gaze stern: “Chief Achilita, and Chief Gaba, you won’t be of help in the siege, but you won’t be idle either. Take your men across the Neto River, raid into Daonia’s territory, burn their villages, seize their people, and plunder their wealth. I want the Daonians to have no peace day or night, complaining about the incompetence of their Senate and magistrates!” Dionysius said ruthlessly.