Thermopylae

When Xerxes became King of Persia, he set out to avenge his father Darius's defeat at Marathon by subjugating Greece. Though the Oracle of Delphi warned the Greeks to “Fly to world’s end!”, they sent 7000 men, including 300 Spartans led by King Leonidas, to Thermopylae, a coastal pass to Athens.\n\nXerxes arrived with 80,000 men, expecting the defenders to surrender their arms. “Come and get them!” Leonidas roared, and a fierce battle ensued. The Greeks held out for three days until a traitorous shepherd led the Persians along the cliffs to encircle them. The army was lost but the delay gave Greece time to assemble a force capable of defending the mainland from the invaders.

• This map can be divided into three areas: a canyon called the "hot gates" in the north by the sea, a central plain with a forest, and a mountain in the south.
• The small northern forest is strategically important for controlling both the central plain and the centre of the hot gates.
• Whoever takes control of the top of the mountain will have the height advantage.
• The goat path through the southern mountains gives access to the rear of both bases, but it's a long road.