The barbaric Macedonians on the opposite side, under the scolding of the leader, had already formed a formation. There were groups of naked Macedonian soldiers, and each group was led by a leader.
Carrying the noise, the shouts shook the sky, just like a group of wild geese, flying storks and cranes, making loud noises to the sky, trying to escape the cold winter and the torrent of rain, screaming and spreading their wings Okeanos The ocean currents brought bloodshed and destruction to the Thessalians.
The blessing of the God of War's halo already existed. This sacred halo washed away the fatigue of the soldiers and soon made them radiant with strength again. []
The Thessalians stood quietly, breathing murderous intent. Everyone was cruel and determined to help each other with their partners.
Achilles drove his golden chariot, like a god of war in the mortal world, standing proudly at the front of the Thessaly team.
In his hand, he had just grasped the sharp legendary spearman, holding the center of the spearman tightly with his strong palm, standing upright beside him.
The savage Macedonians were like wild beasts from the prairie, howling and screaming. The thick weapons were held in their hands, and they were constantly trembling as their bodies moved.
"The infantry spread out, the archers move forward, and the ballistae prepares to fire a volley." Achilles raised the spearman in his hand and gave an order to the soldiers behind him.
Next, it will be the first battle of his newly formed army, and it will also be the initial tentative attack and defense against the barbaric Macedonians, so he chose to command this army himself and teach Zomokos a good lesson. He could learn something from it.
The infantry in the front line dispersed, and the archers who were protected at the back quickly passed through the front line and stood on the front line. The twenty ballistae also tore off the straw mats and revealed their weapons. He had that ferocious look.
Five hundred archers stood around the chariot in turn, raising the strong bows in their hands. The sharp arrows with bronze arrowheads were already placed on the bowstrings and aimed at the distance.
Behind the huge ballistae, the soldiers in charge of the ballistae were busy, stirring the wheel, pulling the bowstring, and then mounting large crossbow arrows soaked in kerosene on it.
The Macedonian soldiers marched rapidly across the plains, and thick clouds of mud and dust were stirred up under their feet, as dense as the thick fog blown by the south wind that covered the mountain peaks.
"A volley of ballistae"
When the Macedonians were still hundreds of meters away, Achilles on the chariot issued an order for the ballista to start firing.
The soldiers pulled the trigger. Although they were a little jerky, they successfully fired the terrifyingly lethal crossbow arrows from the crossbow.
These deadly crossbow arrows flew up from the Thessalian team, like angry wasps, whistling and flying into the distance, streaking through the air, and finally landed on the advancing Macedonian team.
The terrifying crossbow arrow hit the body of the Macedonian soldier. The terrifying force directly penetrated the body without any armor, and then pierced the body of the Macedonian soldier behind.
There were even a few crossbow arrows that accurately landed on the fast-moving chariot. The huge force penetrated the horses pulling the chariot. With a painful neighing sound, the chariot fell to the ground, and the entire chariot collapsed. , hitting the chariot beside it.
This sudden and terrifying crossbow made the Macedonian team that was running at high speed panic. Even the masters of the chariots, the chariots, and the soldiers driving the chariots, felt chills in their hearts.
The bloodthirsty Macedonians were ready to withstand the enemy's bows and arrows when they approached the enemy's position. However, when there were still hundreds of meters between the two sides, they suffered a terrifying attack, which made them immediately vulnerable. Confused.
Whether it was on the vast grassland or on the land of Thessaly, they had never encountered such an unbelievable attack in countless wars.
It seems that the army on the opposite side has received the protection of the God of War, and with the help of the god's power, they send their bows and arrows over the heads of their own team, causing harm to themselves.
During the brief moment of panic among the Macedonians, the soldiers in charge of the crossbows had already adjusted the crossbows and fired the second wave of crossbow arrows.
The terrifying crossbow arrows accurately landed on the heads of the Macedonians once again, ruthlessly taking the lives of dozens of strong Macedonian soldiers and killing several war horses.
"Woooo" A rapid horn sounded from behind the Macedonian team, urging the panicked team and ordering them to continue moving forward.
Achilles, Zomokos and other demigods who were at the front looked at the Macedonians whose formation was in chaos, and everyone had a smile on their face.
?Although the volley of twenty ballistae caused panic in the Macedonian formation, it failed to break their fighting spirit and make them retreat.
Under the urging of the charging horn, these Macedonian soldiers, who were confused and frightened in their hearts, howled and rushed towards the opposite side again.
When the crossbows sent out three more waves of crossbow arrows, killing hundreds of Macedonians, the Macedonians finally approached the Thessaly front.
"A volley of archers fired"
When the Macedonians entered the range of the strong bow, Achilles, who was standing on the golden chariot, raised the spearmen in his hands again and issued an attack order to the archers on both sides.
The archers drew their bowstrings one after another, and the sharp arrows with cold light detached from the bowstrings and fell densely toward the Macedonians.
When the Macedonians approached the Thessalian line, they were already prepared to withstand arrow fire. The soldiers running at the front raised their shields one after another.
But there were too many arrows in the sky. Even if their shields blocked some of the arrows, some of them still hit the target.
These arrows with bronze arrowheads were far more penetrating and lethal than those made of wood. Hundreds of Macedonians fell at first.
Each of the archers in Thessaly has good archery skills, and the strong bows they hold are gifts from the god of craftsmen. The arrows they shoot are not only powerful, but also have good aim.
After sending the first wave of arrows to the heads of the Macedonians, these archers quickly picked up the arrows, bent their bows and nocked the arrows, simply took aim, and shot the arrows again.
These five hundred archers equipped with strong bows caused hundreds of casualties to the Macedonians after just three waves of volleys. However, the tenacious Macedonians still did not flinch. They roared, roared, and stepped on their companions. body and continue to move forward.
"The archers retreated, the infantry moved forward, setting up shields to form a square formation."
"The tank troops moved to both sides and were ready to attack."
Looking at the Macedonians who had already rushed up, Achilles did not choose to attack directly, but ordered the team to form a defensive phalanx, and all the chariots moved to both sides of the phalanx.
One thousand infantrymen set up their shields one after another, building a solid wall of shields in front of them. The soldiers behind the shields bent their bodies so that they could hide behind the shields, and that Between his right hands, a sharp spearman was holding tightly.
And those archers who retreated behind the infantry were not idle. They aimed at the mid-air and fired according to their previous training.
The Greek phalanx, in this era, is almost a symbol of invincibility. A phalanx composed of a thousand elite soldiers, even if the enemy is several times their number, cannot shake it in a short time.
The Macedonians who rushed at the lowest level finally approached the Thessalian phalanx. The phalanx composed of shields easily contained the Macedonian charge.
When the first wave of the Macedonian offensive failed, the Thessalian soldiers hiding behind their shields quickly moved their shields, and the spearmen in their hands penetrated the gaps and stabbed the approaching Macedonians.
????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? A howl of pain and despair, bright red blood sprayed out, dyeing the ground red, and also dyed the shields red. After assassinating the first group of Macedonians, the spearmen retracted and the shields closed again.
Zomokos, who was on one side of the battle formation, couldn't help but frowned when he looked at the Macedonians who kept falling in front of the phalanx.
Seemingly aware of the change in Zomokos's expression, Achilles turned his gaze and said coldly: "War is not a child's play. What a qualified commander needs to consider is how to protect the safety of his soldiers as much as possible. Under certain circumstances, kill the enemy as much as possible instead of trying to be a hero."
"Perhaps in your opinion, what I did was a bit despicable and not heroic at all. But you and I don't think there is anything wrong with what I did. These young soldiers, their parents and wives are waiting for them to return home. , and as a king, what I have to do is to bring them home safely."
"If that commander wants to let these young soldiers fight face to face with the Macedonians just for the so-called heroism, then he is not worthy of being this commander, because he is using the lives of young soldiers to exchange for what belongs to him. legend."
"These young soldiers have given their lives to us, so what we commanders should do is to do everything possible to protect them and reduce their casualties, even if they use the most despicable means."
Having said this, he paused, then looked solemnly??All the demigods said: "You all remember it, history will only remember the winners, and the losers will be forgotten forever."
"These young soldiers are all my people, my brothers. Before I hand them over to you, I make my request. Please cherish their lives and don't let them lose themselves because of your heroism. Precious life." After saying that, he bent towards Zomokos and the others.
Looking at the young king who saluted him and others, including Zomokos and others, they were stunned. The faces were full of complicated expressions.
Their eyes were wandering, and they were fighting in their hearts. When they saw the soldiers who had almost no casualties because of the protection of the phalanx, their hearts were churning again.
Achilles also knows that it is almost impossible to immediately change the four deep-rooted phenomena in these people's hearts. It takes time and patience to boil a frog in warm water.