The Rhode Island Catapult

It is impossible for the hoplites to catch up with the archers in light armor, let alone the faster cavalry. And the charge of the heavily armed hoplites can't last long, and when they stopped to rest, the Persian archers began their attack again.

The Greek hoplites hid their bodies under their round shields, which greatly reduced their chances of getting injured, but it can't be said that they didn't. First of all, their arms and thighs were not protected, and secondly, their thick chest armor was made of linen. Although it can prevent arrows from penetrating, it can't avoid some flesh wounds.

If they can't get close to the enemy, then they won't be able to exert the power of the hoplites, and can only stand and take the arrows. Cleanor didn't dare to send the light infantry, because the range of the javelin is not as far as the arrows, and their defense is not as strong as that of the hoplites, which will increase their casualties.

At this time, Timasion sent 200 Clete archers to reinforce them.

Cleanor, who had high hopes for them, was soon disappointed. In the Greek city-state, the range of the Clete archers, who are known for their archery, is not as far as the Persian archers who dominate the Mediterranean militarily, but in order to shorten the range, they left the protection of the hoplites and caused more than a dozen casualties…

…

At this time, the whole mercenary team stopped, and the leaders were trying to find a way.

Davos was also anxiously listening to the report of the herald on the left wing. At this time, Tolmides came on horseback, "Leader Davos, Cheirisophus wants you to send a unit to detour far away and avoid the detection of the enemy, then go behind the enemy and attack them."

Davos thought about it and understood Cheirisophus' plan. He looked at Philesius who was beside him, and Philesius nodded at him.

"Asistes, quickly inform Kapus to come here!" Davos ordered.

"Yes!"

Philesius thought that Davos would discuss with him who to send, but he didn't expect him to make a decision directly, and he is the most suitable candidate. It seems that the way to consult him was not just a gesture, this young leader is really good at learning.

…

When Kapus led the hoplite squad to set out, Hieronymus on the other side also sent the hoplite squad to circle behind the Persians and then cooperate with Cleanor to surround and annihilate them.

However, the experienced Artaozus was already on guard. The two wings of the goose formation were the Persian archers, and they were spread out. At the same time, they were also used as scouts, and they soon noticed the abnormality, so they quickly retreated and made the mercenaries' attempt to fail.

As soon as the prudent Kapus saw that his plan had failed, he immediately retreated, while the leader of Hieronymus was Xenophon, who took the initiative to fight. He was unwilling to give up and continued to chase, but in the pursuit and stop, not only did he not injure a Persian, but he also caused more than ten people to be injured. If it wasn't for the depletion of the arrows of Artaozus' army, Xenophon's squadron would have suffered more than this. Therefore, when he returned, he was reprimanded by Hieronymus.

Without the entanglement of Artaozus, the Greek army sped up and finally arrived at the villages mentioned by the guide before sunset. Although most of the villagers had fled, it still made the tired soldiers rejuvenated. Davos was no longer in the mood to stop the soldiers from robbing. He only suggested Mersis to capture as many Persian slaves as possible and promised them freedom in exchange for their sincere help, and then rushed to the commander's tent.

Before they entered the tent, they heard Cleanor complaining, "These Persians are like flies, they can't be hit or driven away. We don't have enough cavalry, so we can't do anything to them!"

Davos and Philesius entered the tent, and everyone nodded to them. Compared with the alienation yesterday, they were much more proactive today. Obviously, Davos' performance had won the recognition of everyone, but they were just worried about Artaozus' attack and didn't have the mood to express their enthusiasm.

"If the Persians still attack us tomorrow in the same way as today, then what should we do?" said Cleanor worriedly. He had suffered the most casualties today.

"What's more worrying is that if we can't quickly find a way to repel the Persians, then the Persians will think that this kind of attack is the most effective against us. Not only will they continue to use this method, but the next time they come, it won't be just hundreds of people, but thousands of archers! I think that will be our disaster!" Xenophon said with a heavy heart. Today, he had suffered a lot.

The other leaders looked equally grave. In the previous great battle with the Persian king, they had easily won, and the tolerance of Tissaphernes made them more convinced of their own strength. But today, a small number of Persian troops, composed entirely of archers, had made their proud hoplites suffer, and they suddenly realized the shortcomings of their own troops.

"We must have someone with the same range as the Persians –" said Cheirisophus word by word.

"Rhodesian catapult!!" Xenophon suddenly shouted.

Davos' eyebrows jumped. He had heard from Antonios that the Rhodians in the Greek city-states are good at throwing stones, and the stones they throw can reach as far as 400 to 500 meters, and the accuracy within 100 meters is very high. Therefore, the Mediterranean city-states love to hire the Rhodians as an important support force for the army.

The reason why Davos was familiar with the name Rhode Island was not only because of the pitcher, but also because in his previous life, the "one of the seven great miracles of ancient times" – the huge statue of the sun god of Rhode Island was built on this island, but it seems to have been built after Alexander the Great.

Davos thought to himself, 'In fact, in military terms, there are many unique and elite troops in the Greek city-states, such as the Cretan archers, the Cesarean cavalry, the Rhodesian catapults, the Spartan hoplites and the Athenian navy… if Greece were to unite these troops together, they would be able to dominate the Mediterranean! Unfortunately, the Greeks who love freedom have always been scattered. The last Athens that wanted to make this effort has been defeated, and the current Greek overlord, Sparta, doesn't look at the end of history, but with its extremely closed and conservative political system, it is impossible…'

While Davos sighed in his heart, Timasion said regretfully, "It's a pity that we don't have any Rhodesian catapults!"

"But we have Rhode Islanders!" Xenophon said excitedly, "Everyone, throwing stones is a skill that the Rhode Islanders have trained since childhood, and they make a living with it, just like how the Cretans make a living with bows and arrows! When we recruited mercenaries in Aeolia, many Rhode Islanders joined us, but because of the generosity of Cyrus the Younger, they had prepared a lot of weapons and equipment, so they abandoned the sling and picked up the round shield and spear that they had spent a lot of money to buy. Now it's time for them to pick up the sling again!"

"Xenophon is right, we should immediately gather them and form a catapult to fight against the archers of the Persians." Cleanor then said.

Everyone agreed.

Cheirisophus nodded and said, "Then do it immediately. We have a lot of sheep, so we will slaughter some of them and use the sheep intestines to make the sling."

"In addition, we also need cavalry, otherwise we won't be able to catch up with the Persians when they retreat. I suggest that each camp gather the extra horses and select soldiers who are good at riding to form a cavalry unit." said Xanticles.

"Agree!"

"Agree!"

…

In the face of danger, the leaders united and quickly reached an agreement.

The whole army immediately took action. Soon, more than 300 Rhode Islanders who were good at throwing stones were organized, and more than 50 horses were also gathered. Most of the cavalry selected came from the camp of Davos, because most of the soldiers in his camp were Thessalians.

When Xenophon recommended the Athenian, Lucius, as the captain of this cavalry unit, Davos expressed his objection. He thought that the Cesarean of his camp, Ledes (recommended by Philesius), was more suitable.

In view of the fact that most of the cavalry are Thessalians, the leaders finally agreed.

The next day, the mercenaries did not continue their march, but took a day off to train the newly established catapult unit and cavalry unit.