Sybaris

Attributes: | +50% Tax Output, +50% Mine Output, +25% Food Consumption

**Sybaris** is a small-medium Greek faction located in southern Italy along the coast of the Ionian Sea, at the border of Lucania and Bruttium.

Its starting neighbours are Taras, the Lucani, the Bruttii and Kroton.

### In-game Description

"Sybaris is an Achaean colony in Magna Graecia legendary for its fertility and hedonism. It was one of the most prosperous and powerful cities in Magna Graecia, and often at odds with its more ascetic neighbour Kroton. At one point, Sybaris underwent a popular revolution led by a man called Telys, who banished the 500 richest of Sybaris to seize their wealth. When the banished fled to Kroton, Telys would demand Kroton return them, and when they refused, started the first war between their cities, where the Sybarite armies would be slaughtered completely. Kroton went on to sack Sybaris, and though it was eventually rebuilt, Sybaris would not reach its former prosperity again and later conflicts with Kroton would lead it to be abandoned entirely."

### Starting Cities

* **Sybaris**: An Achaean colony in Magna Graecia legendary for its fertility and hedonism. It had a long-standing rivalry with Kroton and would eventually be destroyed by the Krotoniates.
* **Amendolara**: Amendolara is an old town likely founded by the Oenotrians, a minor Italic people who were pushed inland as the Greeks settled Magna Graecia and finally absorbed by the Lucanians.
* **Castiglione**: Many Italian cities have been named Castiglione, but the site of Castiglione di Paludi is one of the oldest, having been settled since at least the ninth century BCE. It is thought to have been founded by the Greeks of Thurii, possibly even serving as the headquarters for an alliance of much of Magna Graecia versus the Lucani and Syracuse, before eventually becoming a major centre of the Bruttii and later being abandoned.
* **Krimisa**: According to legend, Krimisa was founded by the Greek hero Philoctetes on his return to Thessaly from fighting in the Trojan War.

### Historic Starting General

When playing this faction in a sandbox setting, the player may choose to start with the following pre-defined historic general instead of a generic one. These characters usually have far better bonuses than can be obtained with the generic starting generals.

### Strategy

Your Greek brigade roster is superior to that of your non-Greek neighbours in the early game, since unlike you they don't have immediate access to hoplites and would need to first grow their cities and construct a barracks upgrade. This gives you a significant edge against the nearby Bruttii and Lucani, who may be a good target for expansion in the early game.

You have one of the best bonuses to gold income in the entire game, but this is partially compensated by a penalty that increases food consumption. Be diligent about managing your food stocks, as the winter season can prove to be extra treacherous when playing as Sybaris.

### Trivia & History

* Several cities given to the Lucani in-game (Laos, Pyxous and Paistos) were originally colonies of Sybaris as well, and likely not taken by the Lucani until after Sybaris was already destroyed. As such, Sybaris' starting position is somewhat smaller than historically accurate. Presumably, these cities were taken away from Sybaris because the in-game geography would have otherwise given Sybaris a very disjointed starting territory that is difficult to defend, and the Greek factions are already quite powerful in the early game thanks to their immediate access to hoplites.
* As mentioned in the in-game description, Sybaris was one of the most powerful Greek cities of Italy before being destroyed in 509 BC during a conflict with Kroton, making them one of the first in-game factions to be destroyed and not actually contemporaneous with the Bruttii who neighbour them in-game (though the Bruttii are in this case used as a stand-in for the earlier Oenotrians).
* Various attempts by Sybarite survivors to resettle their city in the early 5th Century BC were repulsed by Kroton. The exiled Sybarites eventually appealed to help from Athens and together founded the new city of Thurii in the 440s BC near the site of ancient Sybaris, but the other Greek settlers drove out the Sybarites after a dispute shortly afterwards. The remaining Sybarites founded a new city in a different location known as Sybaris on the Traeis, but were conquered by the Bruttii in the mid 4th Century BC.
* The city of Thurii, Sybaris' successor, soon had to contend with increasing military pressure from the Lucani and Bruttii, possibly being entirely conquered by the Bruttii at one point in the mid 4th Century BC. In the 280s BC they allied themselves with Rome to protect against Lucanian aggression, which was one of the causes for the Pyrrhic War as Thurii's rival city Taras would appeal for aid from Epirus against Roman expansionism. The city was destroyed during the Second Punic War after defecting to Hannibal of Carthage, and later resettled by Roman veterans.
* The faction's icon depicts Poseidon. The exact design is taken from ancient coins found in the area of Sybaris.