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The government finds a time-travel device that leads back in time to the peak of the Roman Empire, and decides, for whatever reason, to conquer it. However, they don't want to devote any more funds to the project than absolutely necessary, so they've asked you to come up with the absolute minimum modern military force necessary to do the job. What do you reccomend?

Drooling Iguana wrote:The government finds a time-travel device that leads back in time to the peak of the Roman Empire, and decides, for whatever reason, to conquer it. However, they don't want to devote any more funds to the project than absolutely necessary, so they've asked you to come up with the absolute minimum modern military force necessary to do the job. What do you reccomend?

3 Nukes, 500 marines, and someone fluent in latin.

Then I come down, say that we are the gods on earth, and if you don't give us control bad things happen, then I blow up a nuke in the distance, and repeat my demands. They'll cave after two at the most, or maybe a demonstration of the marines smiting sticks...

Why nukes? Just a couple SAM trucks in the distance would suffice to strike the fear into them.

DPDarkPrimus wrote:Why nukes? Just a couple SAM trucks in the distance would suffice to strike the fear into them.

Overkill on my part.

Conquering it would be a trivial exercise. Holding it would be another matter entirely--you're talking about a political entity the size of the continental United States. The locals won't have firearms or explosives unless someone starts smuggling to them (or, more likely, teaches them how to make gunpowder bombs), but there will be an awful lot of them.

RedImperator wrote:Conquering it would be a trivial exercise. Holding it would be another matter entirely--you're talking about a political entity the size of the continental United States. The locals won't have firearms or explosives unless someone starts smuggling to them (or, more likely, teaches them how to make gunpowder bombs), but there will be an awful lot of them.

Make a note: bring along ten million rounds of ammo.

Patrick Degan wrote:

RedImperator wrote:Conquering it would be a trivial exercise. Holding it would be another matter entirely--you're talking about a political entity the size of the continental United States. The locals won't have firearms or explosives unless someone starts smuggling to them (or, more likely, teaches them how to make gunpowder bombs), but there will be an awful lot of them.

Make a note: bring along ten million rounds of ammo.

The US Army fires off about twenty five times that a year just for training, a billion rounds is more like it. Though taking a page from the British in the 1920's and 30's, the most cost effective solution would probably be to employ punitive bombing to keep the countryside in line. A number of piston turboprop designs would be ideal for that, using say C-130's would be just fine and they could save money by also flying logistics missions.

Petrol would be a problem after a while ...

RedImperator wrote:Conquering it would be a trivial exercise. Holding it would be another matter entirely--you're talking about a political entity the size of the continental United States. The locals won't have firearms or explosives unless someone starts smuggling to them (or, more likely, teaches them how to make gunpowder bombs), but there will be an awful lot of them.

Plus, you have the Germans in the West, the Parthians in the East, people rebelling all over the place, etc. The whole thing will be a horrible horrible mess.

Have a very nice day.
-fgalkin

all the bomber fleet
100 marines
1 general

Bomb the crap out of them empire, send in the marines and general who will make the bombing stop if the general becomes emperor. badda bing, badda boom we win.

darthdavid wrote:all the bomber fleet
100 marines
1 general

Bomb the crap out of them empire, send in the marines and general who will make the bombing stop if the general becomes emperor. badda bing, badda boom we win.

That's a lot of land to bomb...

StarshipTitanic wrote:

darthdavid wrote:all the bomber fleet
100 marines
1 general

Bomb the crap out of them empire, send in the marines and general who will make the bombing stop if the general becomes emperor. badda bing, badda boom we win.

That's a lot of land to bomb...

We can bring some old bombers out of mothballs too if we need to.

I'd take a regiment of paratroopers, and enough aircraft to take them from Rome to anywhere in or near the Roman Empire and back, designed to take off and land on grass. I would also use the time-travel device to maintain contact with our own time. My plan would be to go in alone at first, predicting the movements of Rome's enemies by having historians tell me what will happen. I would then wait for the Romans to suffer a defeat, then send for the troops. I'd claim to have an army able to defeat the enemies of Rome in days rather than months. They fly out, drop right on the enemy, and demolish them, then I put the Emperor in one of the planes to see the battlefield when I pick up my men to return to Rome. I repeat the process several more times, and make the Empire depend on us. When we can dictate the military success or failure of Rome, we will basically run it. I can use the combination of knowledge of future events and modern technology to alter many situations (send for modern medicines to cure epidemics, airlift food to starving towns, blackmail recalcitrant officials, etc.). The goal is to take over Rome, which I can do without becoming Emperor. Becoming the Emperor's advisor is so much safer, especially if I withdraw to my own time when not needed.

darthdavid wrote:all the bomber fleet
100 marines
1 general

Bomb the crap out of them empire, send in the marines and general who will make the bombing stop if the general becomes emperor. badda bing, badda boom we win.

Actualy you will need more men than machines. There is no need for more than a handful of aircraft and a few armoured veichles.

One amphibous assault ship should suffice.

Until they realise that these so called gods can be killed....then the fun begin

And that is why I don't present myself as immortal, become Emperor or stick around back there when I'm not doing anything.

I am interested in knowing why a modern government would try to conquer ancient Rome. What gain is there in it for them? It would help refine the strategy to know what I need to accomplish. Right now, all I have tried to do is make the Romans depend on me for victory.

I think about 50.000 Visigoths, 50.000 Ostrogoths, 50.000 Vandals add some 100.000 Huns, throw in some inflation and some dynastic rivalries and i think it could be done fairly costefficent

Ooh you mean that is what happend historically damn, I really need to keep up with the changing times

Lucius Licinius Lucullus wrote:I think about 50.000 Visigoths, 50.000 Ostrogoths, 50.000 Vandals add some 100.000 Huns, throw in some inflation and some dynastic rivalries and i think it could be done fairly costefficent

Ooh you mean that is what happend historically damn, I really need to keep up with the changing times

It was a LITTLE more than that. The Visigoths, when they were allowed to settle by Valens, numbered at least 200,000.

CmdrWilkens wrote:

Lucius Licinius Lucullus wrote:I think about 50.000 Visigoths, 50.000 Ostrogoths, 50.000 Vandals add some 100.000 Huns, throw in some inflation and some dynastic rivalries and i think it could be done fairly costefficent

Ooh you mean that is what happend historically damn, I really need to keep up with the changing times

It was a LITTLE more than that. The Visigoths, when they were allowed to settle by Valens, numbered at least 200,000.

According to the annals written at the time yes, however they are notoriously unreliable, archeologists have estimated the number to about 50.000 of each tribe.

Lucius Licinius Lucullus wrote:

CmdrWilkens wrote: It was a LITTLE more than that. The Visigoths, when they were allowed to settle by Valens, numbered at least 200,000.

According to the annals written at the time yes, however they are notoriously unreliable, archeologists have estimated the number to about 50.000 of each tribe.

My source for that 200,000 is modern from a Professor Strauss of Cornell's history and classics programs.

Montcalm wrote:Until they realise that these so called gods can be killed....then the fun begin

Military police in full riot control gear would be a good idea. Unlike normal soldiers these guys have excellent protection against projectiles weapons like arrows, slings, rocks etc. They even carry sheilds and good close combat weapons like batons, sticks etc. So it would be better to use them instead of conventional infantry.