Mediterranean Hegemon of Ancient Greece Chapter 912: Catana Military Conference (2)

"During the battle at Minoa, aside from the Carthaginian Sacred Band causing us some trouble, the rest of the Carthaginian army collapsed at the first strike. The Numidians, in particular, suffered from abysmal morale. A single charge from our heavy infantry was enough to break them. Because of this, our forces easily pushed into the west, forcing the Carthaginians to huddle inside their cities for a long time, too afraid to march out and face us. During this period, we never found an opportunity to engage the Iberian army stationed in Palermos."

"However, the situation changed after Carthage dispatched its second massive army to land in Sicily. First, the Carthaginian commander in chief is Mago, the governor of Iberia. He has fought in Iberia for years and possesses a wealth of battlefield experience. According to all gathered intelligence, Mago brought over twenty thousand soldiers with him from Iberia. Adding the twenty thousand Iberian soldiers already in Palermos, there are now over forty thousand Iberian soldiers on the Island of Sicily. Most of them are Carthaginian mercenaries who have followed Mago in his Iberian campaigns for years, making them highly capable fighters."

"At Gela, I led the Eighth Legion, the 4th Cavalry Legion, and our allied forces into a pitched battle against an Iberian army. Our numbers were roughly equal. The Eighth Legion fiercely assaulted the Iberian heavy infantry, and even with the 4th Cavalry Legion assisting from the flank, the enemy maintained a stubborn defense and never broke—"

"Oh?!" Hearing this, Brelius sat up straight, a look of surprise crossing his face. Although the Eighth Legion was numbered after the Seventh Legion, they had pacified the Sicel region a few years ago. Most recently, they had defeated the Sacred Band at Minoa, a unit the Carthaginians hailed as their 'strongest heavy infantry.' Their actual combat experience was far richer than that of the Seventh Legion, which hadn't seen battle in years. Even if Brelius wouldn't admit it out loud, deep down he suspected that the Eighth Legion might be slightly stronger than his own. To hear that a heavy infantry force from Iberia could hold its ground against the combined assault of the Eighth Legion and a cavalry legion genuinely shocked him.

"Moreover, many in this Carthaginian army were likely indigenous Iberians," Leotychides continued, his expression and tone barely shifting as if recounting an event that had happened to someone else. "They were tall and fiercely aggressive, yet capable of obeying discipline. Most notably, they fought with a long shield in one hand and a short sword similar to those used by our legionaries in the other. They routed the phalanx formed by the Gela and Camarina heavy infantry in a frontal clash, which ultimately led to my defeat at Gela..."

However, inside the conference room, it wasn't just Brelius; even Secilian and Cyprolus were taken aback.

"By the sound of it, the combat prowess of the Carthaginian heavy infantry from Iberia is no weaker than that of our legionaries!" Cyprolus exclaimed. Like Secilian, he had only known the rough details of Leotychides's defeat at Gela and had not yet found the time to look into it deeply. Hearing the specifics so suddenly left him understandably uneasy.

"It's not just the heavy infantry; the light infantry of Carthage's Iberian army isn't weak either. During the battle, they fielded over a thousand slingers, likely from the Balearic Islands. They hurled their lead bullets with fierce accuracy, rivaling the slingers of our First Legion Light Infantry Cohort, and inflicted significant casualties on the Eighth Legion's light infantry. They also had several hundred javelin throwers made up of indigenous Iberians. Their javelins were not only heavy but barbed. Once struck, they were incredibly difficult to pull out. The resulting wounds were massive, causing soldiers to bleed to death in large numbers. Even the field hospital had no effective way to treat them." Only when he reached this point did Leotychides's tone grow slightly somber.

"It seems Daionia only holds the advantage in cavalry—" Secilian sighed after listening to Leotychides, only to be interrupted by a cough beside him.

Sure enough, Leotychides added, "Perhaps because this specific Carthaginian army needed to cross the mountains for a rear assault, they didn't bring any cavalry along. However, intelligence shows that among the Carthaginian forces that landed in Sicily, there are between six and seven thousand cavalrymen. The majority are Numidian Cavalry, along with some Carthaginian cavalry, Mauretanian Cavalry, and Iberian cavalry. Their sheer numbers exceed the combined total of our four major cavalry legions."

"This Carthaginian army from Iberia has heavy and light infantry that rival our legionaries, and their cavalry might even be slightly stronger than ours. It seems we are facing a formidable enemy!" Brelius's expression was grave. Over the course of his military career, he had fought the armies of Syracuse, the Messapii, and the Peuceti. The armies of those city-states and tribes had always possessed one flaw or another, leaving him constantly proud of the Theonia Legion's formidable might. This was the first time he had ever heard of an army that matched the Theonia Legion in every aspect. While he felt a sense of unease, a sliver of excitement also stirred in his heart.

He cautiously asked, "Aside from the Iberian forces, how is the combat capability of the rest of the Carthaginian army?"

"According to intelligence, aside from the forty thousand Iberian soldiers, the enemy forces that landed in Sicily this time include roughly sixty thousand troops from the city of Carthage, the Phoenician Allied States in Africa, and soldiers from Numidia. Among them, the Numidians make up the largest portion. After the Carthaginian army surrounded Selinunte, I ordered our forces to take the initiative and launch a night raid against them, which was successful. According to the returning soldiers, many of the enemies they slaughtered were Numidian soldiers. Once ambushed, those Numidians failed to mount any effective defense. The majority only knew how to run..."

Noticing the expressions of the other men ease considerably, Leotychides continued, "Afterward, this very same army was dispatched to attack Minoa. We all know the Carthaginian army had attacked the City of Minoa before, yet they failed to make any headway, which was what prompted me to lead our troops out to rescue them. But this time, the Minoans clearly felt the pressure. They constantly sent envoys begging me for reinforcements, and in the end, they were forced to evacuate the City of Minoa...

"I asked the refugees fleeing Minoa. They said those dark-skinned Numidians threw their lives away charging the walls. When one wave was repelled, another would immediately surge forward, endlessly wearing down their meager defending garrison until the city finally fell... From this, we can see that their combat capability isn't weak either. Going from a total rout during a night raid to capturing Minoa—they were like two completely different armies. I'm guessing Mago must have done something in the interim to boost their morale," Leotychides analyzed calmly.

"One hundred thousand men! One hundred thousand capable soldiers!" Brelius sighed softly.

"The Carthaginian army numbers far more than one hundred thousand this time," Secilian interjected. "When I was at the Port of Lilybaeum, I made some private inquiries. The City of Lilybaeum alone holds over ten thousand troops. And the other Phoenician City-States like Mazara, Eryx, and Palermos surely have several thousand Citizen Soldiers among them. If they gathered them all together, Carthage's total military strength in Sicily would far exceed one hundred thousand men."

Cyprolus inhaled sharply. Rubbing his jaw, he pondered for a long time before saying, "Such a massive army must also require an astronomical supply of rations."

"Lord Cyprolus, you've hit the nail on the head!" Secilian praised. He pointed to the map of Sicily spread across the center of the wooden table they were seated around and declared loudly, "Therefore, we must hold Selinunte! As long as we hold it, our fleet can frequently sortie into the western waters to raid their merchant and cargo ships. We can cut off Carthage's shipping lanes to Western Sicily and cripple their army's food supply. I could even dispatch fleet infantry to land and launch assaults on the Carthaginian rear... After all, looking at the current situation, our navy holds a significantly greater advantage against Carthage compared to our army."

Secilian looked toward Leotychides and said confidently, "Although the Carthaginian navy matches us in courage and seamanship, and they are much more familiar with the sea conditions in the west, they still employ traditional naval tactics. They can't change that in the short term. Once the Sicilian Fleet's Warships are restored to their previous numbers, I could even blockade the Port of Carthage!"

Cyprolus offered a helpless reminder, "The Senate has already passed a resolution regarding this matter. Every port city in the kingdom is currently constructing Warships. However, time is too tight. We simply can't manufacture the hundreds of Warships needed to meet your demands right now."

"But there is one thing you can help with," Secilian said earnestly. "Right now, twenty Warships previously captured by... Phalarios off the coast of Serodium are docked at the naval base in Catania, along with another thirty Warships I recently captured off the Southern Coast. As long as they undergo a bit of repair and refitting, some of these Warships can be integrated into our fleet and sent into battle. In this way, the Sicilian Fleet could field sixty or seventy Warships in a very short time, allowing us to maintain our naval superiority over Carthage. Therefore, Lord Cyprolus, I need you to temporarily gather the shipwrights from several Sicilian cities at the naval base to help us refit these Phoenician Warships as quickly as possible!"