Salamis

About this expansion

Salamis is a two-player add-on module for War Galley: Naval Warfare in the Ancient World, with an approximately 360-minute play time. It recreates the decisive naval confrontation in which the Greeks sought to stop Xerxes’ invasion by breaking the Persian fleet’s control of the sea lanes.

After Thermopylae fell, the Greek fleet withdrew to the narrow channel of the Bay of Eleusis, west of Athens, at Salamis. The Persians captured and razed Athens, but Xerxes still needed to destroy the Greek fleet to complete his conquest. Themistocles therefore lured the larger Persian force into the restricted waters around Salamis, where its numerical advantage would be difficult to use.

The bay had two entrances, creating separate strategic problems. Xerxes sent an elite Egyptian squadron to cover the western exit, while Adeimantus and the Corinthians moved to block it. This confrontation appears to have ended in a standoff, with both sides maintaining a blockade rather than engaging in battle.

• Restricted waters: The narrow entrances to the Bay of Eleusis limit the impact of Persian numerical superiority.
• Three-line formations: Greek ships meet Persian formations entering in depth before turning into lines abreast.
• Boarding combat: The battle emphasizes the Greek advantage in crews, marines, weapons, armor, and land-based tactics.

At the eastern entrance, the Greeks formed three lines across a front of roughly 1,800 yards. The ensuing engagement became a boarding battle, where Greek superiority produced a major victory despite the Greeks having half the manpower per ship of the Persians.

In Salamis, the outcome carries consequences beyond the bay. Xerxes withdrew to Thessaly, while later Greek victories at Plataea and Mycale completed the disruption of Persian communications and helped secure Greece.