Vercingetorix Twine

Vercingetorix: The Battle Against Rome By: EV [[Start the story->Introduction]] [[Bibliography->Bilbiography]]

Bibliography Ancient Greece and Rome: An Encyclopedia for Students. "Gallic Wars." Edited by Carroll Moulton. Gale Ebooks. Last modified 1998. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX2897200192/GVRL?u=cinc13591&sid=GVRL&xid=4f0b15d1. Collis, John. "Gergovia." Edited by Peter Bogucki and Pam J. Crabtree. Gale Ebooks. Last modified 2004. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3400400160/GVRL?u=cinc13591&sid=GVRL&xid=6775dec4. ———. "Iron Age France." Edited by Peter Bogucki and Pam J. Crabtree. Gale eBooks. Last modified 2004. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3400400159/GVRL?u=cinc13591&sid=GVRL&xid=03a24ebe. Gale Encyclopedia of World History:War. "The Rise of Rome (3rd Century BCE to 2nd Century CE." Gale Ebooks. Last modified 2008. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3048700008/GVRL?u=cinc13591&sid=GVRL&xid=248ee308. Lloyd, James. "Roman Army." Ancient History Encyclopedia. Last modified April 30, 2013. https://www.ancient.eu/Roman_Army/. Mark, Joshua J. "Vercingetorix." Ancient History Encyclopedia. Last modified January 14, 2016. https://www.ancient.eu/vercingetorix/.

The year is 52 BCE, and your name is Vercingetorix. Your father, Celtillus, who led one of the strongest and long lasting tribes in Gaul, recently passed, putting you in command as chief of your tribe. At only 28 years old, you are faced with many challenges and situations as leader of the Averni tribe. Caesar, a Roman general and polititcian, has recently enrolled some of the Gallic people, including you, as mercenaries to help drive the Germanic tribes back after they crossed the Rhine River. During this you gained lots of experience about the Roman army and war tactics. After the German invasion was settled, Caesar began expanding and enforcing Roman law and culture over everyone, including the Gallic tribes. As a result, Ambiorix, another Gallic leader, revolted, insisting on freedom in their own country. Caesar then proceeded to kill every member of his tribe without thinking twice. As head of your tribe, you are forced to make the difficult decision of what to do next. You have thought about declaring war against Rome, but when bringing it up with the elders on the tribal council, they denounce the idea, worrying that it is too risky. Ultimately it is your decision so what will you do next; choose to go to war and drive the Romans out of Gaul or take the submissive path and continue to follow Roman law? [[Declare war against Rome->Declare War on Rome]] [[Wait and contiue to follow Roman law->Continue to follow Roman law]]

The elders on the tribal council are very happy with your decision and agree that war would have been too risky and could have ended badly. Because of this, they gain trust in you and don’t second guess your choices, rather letting you make the final calls. You and the other Gallic tribes are submissive and continue to follow Roman law and culture. Although some of them are unhappy and disagree with your decision, you are able to win them over by explaining that you did so to enforce their safety and health. By following Caesar’s mandates, you and your tribes remain safe and unthreatened. You decide to wait three years until reassessing the situation. By the end of those three years, many people are frusterated and want change. Some are tired of following Roman law, while others believe it is too dangerous to start a war. The elders on the tribal council still feel war would be risky, as waiting it out allowed the Roman army to grow and become stronger, however they allow you to make the final decision. Do you take the safe route and accept Roman law, ensuring that there will be no risk or peril, or do you finally declare war on Rome after waiting three years, knowing that they have had time to progress and grow stronger? [[Accept Roman law->Accept Roman law]] [[Finally declare war on Rome->Finally declare war on Rome]]

Although the elders on the tribal council disagree with you, you decide to declare war on Rome and seek vengeance for the Euborne tribe. You start by attacking the prosperous commercial city of Cenabum. In doing so you burn villages, farms, and cities in order to keep them from falling into Caesar’s hands. You take out all the Roman settlements as revenge for the deaths within the Euborne tribe. A few months go by, and the tension between you and Caesar is intensifying. You will soon encounter Caesar and the Roman army at Gergovia. Gergovia, the capital of the Averni, is on a giant raised plateau and is surrounded by hills, allowing for an intense battle. While enrolled as a mercenary for Caesar, you learned war tactics and gained experience about the Roman army. You know Caesar and his army will be arriving at Gergovia soon, leaving you with the important decision of w hen to leave and get stationed at the capital. Will you wait a while longer to further prepare for the battle and gather more supplies, or will you leave now and hopefully arrive before the Roman army? [[Wait and prepare for battle->Wait and prepare for battle]] [[Leave for Gergovia now->Leave for battle now]]

Although some people are frustrated with your decision to officially accept Roman law, the elders on the tribal council agree with you and help convince everyone that it was the right choice. With a little time, everyone comes to their senses and agrees to follow Roman law and culture. Your decision to do so eliminated any threat of war, allowing everyone, including yourself, to safely live the rest of your life in peace. At first everyone was very hesitant to allow a young, unexperienced man like you to become chief of your tribe, but you have gained their trust by putting the lives and safety of your people first. [[Go home->First Slide]]

You decide to go with the majority of your people and agree to finally declare war on Rome. It has been three years since you initially chose to wait and accept Roman law until further notice. Since then, many things have changed, including the Roman army. They have grown in size and in strength. Although you fear the Caesar’s army is now too dangerous, you declare war anyways. The majority of your people are angry and advocating change, and the only way to get it is to revolt against Rome. In the last three years, the Roman army has managed to triple in size and come up with new inventions to help them during battle, but you hope your time as a mercenary will make up for this. During the first battle against Caesar you try to manipulate his allies, but this backfires. Your soldiers get surrounded and are quickly defeated. Unfortunately, you get captured and are held prisoner for five years where you are eventually paraded through the streets of Rome as part of Caesar’s triumph and strangled to death. [[Go home->First Slide]]

Many are happy and agree with your decision to wait and prepare for the battle before proceeding. This extra time allows you to gather more supplies and finalize your tactics before fighting the famous Roman army. You and your army decide to try and manipulate Caesar’s allies during the battle. You convince the Gauls that Caesar enlisted to protect his supply lines to turn on him instead. With this in mind, you feel that it is finally time to head to Gergovia. Unfortunately, when you arrive, you realize that Caesar and his troops are already stationed on the high ground, forcing you to capture a smaller, less defended hill at the bottom of Gergovia. You attempt to lure Caesar from the high ground, but fail, and get surrounded by the Roman Army. You eventually surrender and are captured and taken to be imprisoned in Rome. [[Go home->First Slide]]

Although you are less prepared for battle, you decide to leave now in hopes you will arrive at Gergovia early and before the Roman army. As you arrive at the capital, you realize that Caesar and his army are not yet there, allowing you to take the high ground. You get stationed on top of a hill near Gergovia and wait. You watch patiently as Caesar arrives and is forced to capture a smaller, less defended hill at the bottom of Gergovia. Wary of being ambushed, Caesar sends some troops to the far side of Gergovia. You too, grow suspicious. You feel you should send some troops to watch the marching Romans, however you are not sure how many. You can send your whole army to look out for the Romans, leaving no one to defend, or you can send only a few troops to watch for Caesar’s army. You understand that the Roman army is powerful, and if caught off guard with only a few troops, you would be easily defeated, but sending your whole army is risky and could potentially lead to a disaster. What will you do? [[Send your whole army->Send whole army]] [[Send a few troops->Send only a few troops]]

Deciding to risk it all, you send your whole army to await the Romans. Your troops head over to the far side of Gergovia where they wait among the trees. A few moments later, you start hearing nearby footsteps. You order everyone to remain in hiding and stay put. As the sound gets closer you can make out the approaching figures. ROMANS. Thankful you decided to send your whole army, you notice the great amount of soldiers coming your way. When close enough, you start firing arrows at the Roman army. They continue on at a slower pace with their shields above their heads. Out of nowhere, you send you whole army to ambush them. They are quickly surrounded and easily defeated. You go on to defeat Caesar in direct assault, winning the Battle of Gergovia. Congratulations! [[Go home->First Slide]]

You decide that sending your whole army would be too risky because getting ambushed would mean an immediate defeat, so instead you send 200 troops to go watch for the Romans. They head over to the far side of Gergovia and wait patiently in the woods. While hunkered down amidst the trees, they start to hear footsteps. As the noise gets closer, they are able to make out the faces of the Romans approaching. Your troops remain in hiding until the Romans get close enough to attack. Although there are roughly double the amount of Romans than Gallic soldiers, you hope that by ambushing them, you can catch them off guard and defeat them. As they get closer, your soldiers start firing arrows, signaling the start of the battle. The Romans continue on, and your troops run out to attack them. After a long, gruesome fight, your troops are surrounded by the immense amount of Roman soldiers and are defeated. [[Go home->First Slide]]