NOVEL WEB Chapter 203 Before the Battle
The next morning, reinforcements arrived from Cilitium and Trina, and Crotone also received intelligence from Thurii: Amendolara had sent approximately 4,000 reinforcements to Thurii. Dionysian citizens from the Sybarite Plains gathered in the forum, reportedly numbering approximately 8,000. They then moved into the military camp north of Thurii, but no further action was seen. It seemed the Dionysians were still awaiting reinforcements from Nieutum and Laos.
This news prompted Myron to take immediate action. Under his active urging, the council passed a resolution to attack Thurii. Myron, the chief general, was appointed commander, with Philadephus, another talented general, as his lieutenant. They led approximately 27,000 soldiers, including 20,000 heavy infantry and 6,500 light infantry. Four thousand of these light infantry were lightly armored, wearing leather armor, carrying leather shields and spears, and lacking projectile capabilities. There was also an additional 800 cavalry. In addition to the regular troops, a large number of slaves and freedmen transported the baggage, bringing the total force to a staggering 40,000 men.
To this end, Crotone assembled a massive fleet at the harbor. Loading supplies and embarking the soldiers took nearly three hours. It wasn't until noon that the troop transports, escorted by the Crotone fleet, sailed north. Passing through Crimisa, they were joined by another 500 soldiers, bringing the total number of troops to 27,500.
Because the embarkation process at Crotone harbor was cumbersome and chaotic, Myron feared even worse conditions during the beach landings. He and Philadephos, mindful of Teratus's intelligence reports that the Dionysian coastline was under cavalry surveillance, chose to proceed with caution, avoiding a landing north of Castellon. Instead, after crossing the swamps, they immediately docked at the beach where the Temasone mercenaries had landed a few days earlier. Myron
first disembarked the cavalry and expanded the security perimeter to a two-mile radius. Only after confirming the enemy's presence did he begin the large-scale landing. Countless soldiers, carrying weapons and equipment, some even leading their horses, leaped from the cargo ships and waded to shore. Because there were no docks, slaves and freedmen carried provisions, tents, and other supplies ashore...
The entire beach was a sea of bodies, a chaotic mess. Shouting and neighing, the officers frantically panicked. The chaotic piles of baggage hampered the soldiers' formation, and Philadelphus beat and scolded the slaves... It took a long time to organize the entire landing force and sort out all the affairs. After all this hassle, the men and horses were exhausted, and dusk was approaching.
After securing a nearby campsite, Myron issued strict orders: Each unit must build a strong camp and establish sentries. No negligence was allowed!
Melanthus's defeat was a lesson learned. This time, Crotone held a clear advantage and the initiative. They only needed to advance steadily, and victory was within reach.
Tomorrow, we'll capture Castellon first and use it as a forward base for Crotone's army and fleet... Myron, mentally formulating the next military action plan, gradually drifted off to sleep.
.........…
In the large tent at the Thurii military camp, Davos, Military Officer Philisius, First Legion Commander Capus, Second Legion Commander Drax, and Cavalry Captain Ledes were analyzing the enemy situation.
On the wooden table in the center was a smooth wooden board two meters square, on which was drawn a detailed map of Magna Graecia. Philexius, holding a wooden stick, pointed at the map on the board and said, "Everyone, I just received intelligence from the front that Crotone has sent about 30,000 soldiers. They have landed here - on the coast south of Castellon. It is estimated that they will attack Castellon tomorrow!"
"30,000 people?!" Cavalry Captain Rhodes took a breath: "In order to deal with us, Crotone may have sent out all the citizens of the city-state!"
"30,000 people are nothing!" Drax shouted unconvincedly: "If the Third Army map can arrive in time, plus those recruited free people, our strength will exceed 30,000! And even if there are no 30,000 people, Crotone is not our opponent!"
"But Crotone's soldiers are all citizen soldiers!" Capps looked at Davos with a little worry: "Sir, are we really not going to wait for the Third Legion to arrive and rush to Castellon directly?!"
Davos said calmly: "There is no time. Crotone is determined to destroy Dionysia this time, so it has made preparations early and marched so fast! If we wait, it means giving up Castellon, which will not only damage the reputation that Dionysia has just established, but also let the enemy enter the Sybari Plain, which also violates the promise we made before! Fighting with Crotone's citizen soldiers on the plain, we are not sure of winning, and relying on the city wall defense will take too long, which is not good for our new alliance!" Davos took the stick from Felicius and pointed at The map marked the curve of the Trionto River. He said in a deep voice, "So we must make full use of this river!"
Everyone present was well aware of Davos's plan. Felicius opened his mouth, but finally raised a question: "Lord Davos, will the Crotoneans rashly lead a large army across the Trionto? I've heard their commander, Milon, is a seasoned general."
Davos smiled and said seriously, "No plan can be fully implemented, but Milon has been misled by the false information I spread. Seeing how eager he is to gather his troops, hoping to attack the city before we're fully assembled, it's very likely he's fallen for it. Of course, if he doesn't fall for it, we can retreat to Thurii and engage in a long defensive battle with the Crotoneans!"
"He'll fall for it!" Drax expressed the generals' hopes. They also didn't want the Crotoneans to set foot on Dionysian soil.
"How many cavalry do they have?" Ledes asked an important question.
"About 800," Felicius replied.
Rhodes clenched his fists. His cavalry lacked numbers or experience, so it all depended on whether Lord Davos's ingenious tactics would work.
"Brothers!" Davos gazed at these generals, who had braved danger together and were now eager to fight. He knew there was no need to mobilize them; their fighting spirit was bound to be high. So he said calmly, "It's getting late. Return to your respective teams immediately and proceed according to the previous plan! Hades will protect us, and everything will go smoothly tomorrow!"
"Yes!"
That
night, the Crotone camp passed peacefully.
The next morning, the sky was clear and rainless. Milon awoke feeling refreshed. Moreover, Thurii's intelligence had arrived just in time: the reinforcements from Laos and Niutum had not yet arrived, and that afternoon, Thurii had sent three thousand men to Castellon.
This secret letter must have been sent last night. Meanwhile, the Crotone warships cruising off the coast of Thurii that morning hadn't spotted Thurii—no signs of large-scale troop movements along the Via Castellon… Myron pondered: The Dionysians must have known of the Crotone army's arrival, but they were still mobilizing for war, sending only 3,000 reinforcements. And with just 3,000 men, they were supposed to hold Castellon?! He knew that even with Castellon's soldiers, there were no more than 4,000. And with Castellon's walls, less than four meters high, there was no way they could stop the Crotone army from crossing the Trionto and capturing Castellon. Myron even hoped Castellon would send all its forces to prevent him from crossing the river, allowing him to inflict the greatest damage on them in the field and more easily capture Castellon. The weather and enemy situation were both favorable for Crotone—this was Apollo's blessing! Crotone must seize the opportunity when the Dionysian League has not yet completed its war mobilization and the army has not yet assembled and arrived, quickly cross the Trionto River, capture Castellon as soon as possible, and then fight a decisive battle with the Dionysian army!
Myron immediately consulted with Philadephos and devised a plan for the crossing.
Under Myron's urging, the army quickly assembled, with 22,000 men, led by Myron, heading northwest; another 4,500 men and 500 cavalry, led by Philadephos, heading north.
The Trionto River offers two ideal fords: one in the middle reaches, shallow and flat, with a fordable stretch of over two miles. This is where Davos crossed to attack Melanthus; the other, downstream, west of the city of Castellon, offers a shorter, deeper stretch.
The Crotones' crossing plan entailed Philadephos's 5,000 men to hold off the enemy but not cross immediately. Myron's main force would then make a full-scale crossing of the broad middle reaches.
Myron's Crotone army formed eight columns, forming a long line four or five miles long.
Myron, riding in the center of the column, was filled with the clatter of footsteps and the clashing of armor... but he found it unusually pleasant. The sheer size of the force gave him ample confidence, and he even had the leisure to ponder: Castellon and Crimissa were both built on the north bank of the river. This was because they were originally vassal states of Sybaris, pro-Sybaris and wary of Crotone. And after this war, they must be forced to move their cities to the south bank! As for Thurii... if all went well, he wouldn't mind destroying it for the fourth time!
"Report to the general, the scouts crossing the river were surrounded by enemy cavalry. Four were killed, and two escaped."
"Did they find anything?"
"They saw thousands of enemies marching along the north bank." Thousands? Are they following us? Myron thought for a moment, then said, "Did Philadelphus reach his destination?"