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Post by Royal Joker on Oct 27, 2021 14:22:49 GMT -5
Unfortunately for Sulla, the city refuses to surrender and prepares for a lengthy and brutal siege. As for the scouts sent to chase down the defeated army of Mithridates, and shadow it, the army was lost sight of just north of the Halys river. Given their direction, there were several cities that could be its destination. Closest being Sebasteia with the furthest being Zela and Komana Pontica, north of the Iris. If Sulla left the enemy without further confrontation, it was an absolute certainty that Pontic troops would rebuild with its available resources and allies. Seeing the city would not yield itself so easily, Sulla lets the infantry auxiliaries hold the siege under Caesar while he sends for the two Asian legions in Cappadocia to march northwards and assist in the siege. Felix has every confidence in his subordinate to bring the city to heel, and leaves the fortified Roman encampment under his command. Should the city fall quickly, Caesar is to press northwards towards Sinope, where the Roman fleet will join him to cut off the city by both sea and land. Caesar orders the legions and auxiliaries to prepare ladders, battering rams, and siege towers. He suspected that this would be lengthier than he would like. Squads were sent out under the cover of night to explore the walls for any potential weaknesses. Otherwise, distance was kept from the walls, outposts were set up to surround the city and watch the gates.
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Post by Gandalf on Oct 27, 2021 15:01:58 GMT -5
Amaseia was running low on supplies, but eager to hold out until the fight between Mithridates and the Romans was concluded. While their garrison was not particularly large, the city occupied a defensible spot atop a number of cliffs, and would thus be rather difficult to penetrate even with siege weapons.
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Post by Magnate Lucius on Oct 28, 2021 14:33:54 GMT -5
The Battle of the River Iris
In the battle to determine the conclusion of the war, whether it was favorable to Rome or Pontus, the two armies clashed near the River Iris. Mithridates army surged forth just as the Romans locked shields and drew their gladium. Pontic troops fought hard and stubbornly, seeking the victory that the King of Kings desired, but Fortuna was not on his side this day. Simply put, the Roman legions did not budge and only ensure an attrition that cut down more of Mithridates soldiers than his enemy.
In the end, the battle turned into a massacre as nearly ten thousand men were lost. Many tried to escape over the river, but they were cut down with ease by the oncoming legions. Mithridates was captured by the Romans, a prize unlike any other. Sulla, for his stunning victory, is hailed as Imperator by the legions under his command.
And with this victory, the Republic could secure a total victory over the Pontic foe.
Decisive Roman Victory
927 Romans killed, spread evenly through the ranks. Centre under regulus took most of the brunt near the end.
9150 Pontics killed in total. Neoptolemus escapes, Mithridates captured
Sulla hailed imperator (passed 15/20 chance with a roll of 13). Lepidus Jnr sustains a minor wound.
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Post by Gandalf on Oct 28, 2021 15:06:24 GMT -5
Sulla's ears were filled with the din of the legion's acclaiming him victor as the battle came to an end. In truth, it was more of a slaughter. Wiping blood and sweat from his eyes, the Imperator grimaced as he saw the mound of corpses piling in the river, proving such a natural blockage that the water had not only turned black but stopped running altogether. That was what remained of the great army of Mithridates Eupator, King of Kings, or at least those who were brave enough to stand and fight. Mithridates himself had attempted to kill himself, only to be prevented by the timely arrival of a Roman cavalryman. Losing his nerve, the King of Kings had surrendered to Sulla's men and been bound in gilded fetters. For his massacres in Asia, there could be only one punishment. Death. But that would come later.
First, Sulla would drink in the victory. A great feast would be thrown in the walls of Mazaka for the victorious Romans, attended by every officer that fought in the war that was not still in the field. Roman emissaries went far and wide announcing the surrender of Pontus. In the coming months, the fate of the Kingdom, and indeed all of Roman Asia, would be decided. The legions were allowed to go forth and plunder, with every town in Pontus, and indeed all of Roman Asia, being subjected to a 'tax' that would refill both the coffers of Sulla himself and the Roman treasury. The King of Kings himself, temporarily ushered out of confinement, would place the official seal of the Sullan settlement of the Roman East. While there was still a clean up operation to be done, of course, this was now a mere formality. Whatever Legate that was left out in the east would be tasked with fulfilling the terms of this settlement, such as it was, conducted with the authority of the Imperator of the Eastern Provinces, Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix.
With this complete, Sulla would keep his legions here for some time before leading them back to Italy. News from Greece rendered his western flank secure, so after attending to some diplomatic business he would return to Rome to receive his triumph.
First, there was the matter of Pontus. Marching into the Kingdom, it was clearly more valuable to keep the state around as a client kingdom rather than absorb it into the Republic. Roman presence was thin on the ground in Asia to begin with, so it did not take long for Sulla to reach an agreement with the son and namesake of Mithridates to ascend in his father's place. With his brother Arcathius out the way, there was no obstacle between him and the Pontic throne. Pharnaces, second surviving son of Mithridates, was despite his infant status raised as King of the Bosporus. It was a tightening of Rome's grip around the Euxinos; his advisors and regents would be Roman or at least partial to Roman governance, while the young man himself would be raised in Pergamum under the watchful eye of the Republic. Nevertheless, the hedges needed to be trimmed, or else another Mithridates might rise up to contest hegemony. Pontus' borders were shaved of valuable lands and assets, with Bithynia in particular gaining large swathes of land at the expense of their longtime rivals. Nicomedes, a puppet if there ever was one, would hopefully prove a useful buffer the next time around should any would-be conqueror look to kick Rome out of Asia.
But that left the problem of Cappadocia. A large and wealthy kingdom without a natural ruler, it was only natural that this land should fall under the stewardship of Rome; the only issue being that this opened up a large eastern frontier with the Armenians, and put the Republic next to the sphere of influence of the enigmatic Parthian Empire. Sulla could not return home without first shoring up this frontier with a permanent legionary garrison.
Sullan Settlement of the East:
- The entirety of Cappadocia shall be annexed to Rome and made into a Roman province, with the lands of the King converted to Ager Publicus. Its capital shall be the Roman city of Colonia Corneliopolis.
- Nicomedes IV shall be named the client King of Bithynia. Paphalagonia, up to the city of Sinope, shall be seceded in its entirety to the Kingdom of Bithynia.
- Mithridates VII, son of Mithridates VI, shall be named as the client King of Pontus and a friend and ally of the Republic. His newly born brother, Pharnaces, shall with Roman backing receive the Mithridatic territories in the Bosporus and be named friend and ally of the Republic.
- The Galatian tribes shall be seceded lands up to the Pontic city of Zela.
- The Kingdom of Pontus shall contribute a 50,000 denarii tribute to the treasury of the Roman Republic.
- The cities of Pergamon, Ephesus, and Halicarnassos shall likewise contribute a 50,000 denarii tribute to the Roman Republic.
- The Legio XIV Cappadocia and Legio XV Asiatica shall be garrisoned within the provinces of Asia and Cappadocia, respectively.
Cappadocia will be a Roman province with a base tax of 8000 denarii.
Asia will lose 3 provincial goodwill due to the hefty tax levied on their cities.
Rome gains client kingdoms in Bithynia, Pontus, and the Bosporus.
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Post by Gandalf on Oct 28, 2021 17:25:52 GMT -5
Seeing the city would not yield itself so easily, Sulla lets the infantry auxiliaries hold the siege under Caesar while he sends for the two Asian legions in Cappadocia to march northwards and assist in the siege. Felix has every confidence in his subordinate to bring the city to heel, and leaves the fortified Roman encampment under his command. Should the city fall quickly, Caesar is to press northwards towards Sinope, where the Roman fleet will join him to cut off the city by both sea and land. Caesar orders the legions and auxiliaries to prepare ladders, battering rams, and siege towers. He suspected that this would be lengthier than he would like. Squads were sent out under the cover of night to explore the walls for any potential weaknesses. Otherwise, distance was kept from the walls, outposts were set up to surround the city and watch the gates.
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