Mindes Kalokyres

Mindes Kalokyres
Fictional Character
Videssos Cycle Videssos Series
Appearance(s):	The Misplaced Legion
Type of Appearance:	Posthumous reference
Nationality:	Empire of Videssos
Cause of Death:	Unrevealed
Occupation:	Soldier, Author of Non-Fiction

Mindes Kalokyres was a renowned Videssian military writer. His Art of Generalship was considered the greatest commentary on military matters in the Empire. A century after his death, Ortaias Sphrantzes carried a copy of his work wherever he went so he might refer to it at need. He was keen to meet Marcus Scaurus since his "Ronams" managed to beat an equal force of Namdaleni in a mock training battle on foot. When they did meet, Ortaias cited Kalokyres' recommendation to ply the Namdaleni with arrows from a distance and that they were invincible at close quarters. Scaurus was non-committal, only agreeing that it would be interesting to hear what Kalokyres would have to say over the Ronam victory.

However, some recommendations from Kalokyres had value. When the Videssian army move against the Yezd, Ortaias went with it. One day he studied the Ronam formation and asked Scaurus if equal sized formations marched behind each of the nine manipular signa standards. Scaurus agreed that that was the case and Ortaias cited Kalokyres "It is necessary to take care to not to make all companies exactly equal in number, lest the enemy, counting one's standards, form an exact idea of one's numbers ..." Afterwards, Scaurus and his senior centurion Gaius Philippus agreed that that wasn't a bad notion.

Ortaias did not display tact in his comments. With the army's first contact with Yezda raiders, the Avtokrator Mavrikios Gavras sent a squadron of Videssian horse to give chase but the nomads got away unharmed. Ortaias cited Kalokyres' commentary that only nomads should be employed to pursue nomads since they had been in the saddle from infancy and were superior horsemen. He then said that the Emperor should have sent Khamorth in pursuit. This brought on Mavrikios' ire when Yezda raiders surprised Ortaias' left wing and escaped from his nomad mercenaries.