Trireme Commander

Trireme Commander is an animated, single-player simulation of ancient Greek and Persian triremes, the rowed war galleys of the period. You command vessels in battles around the island of Salamis, learning about trireme performance and tactics through 16 scenarios.

Training and ranks

You begin with the Helmsman Tutorial, which guides you through a training area. Completing it makes you a cadet, with two challenges: a trireme race and an attempt to ram and sink an empty enemy vessel. Passing both advances you to Helmsman.

As a Helmsman, you face four scenarios: two conflicts against a single enemy trireme, one damaged and one undamaged; a reconnaissance of the Salamis straits; and a Signals Tutorial on signalling vessels under your command to form different formations. Completing these scenarios earns the rank of Captain.

Commanding squadrons

As a Captain, you lead a single squadron against enemy squadrons that are smaller, equal in size or larger. Completing the final, challenging scenario earns you the rank of Commander. At that rank, you fight two battles in which each side has three or four squadrons.

After those battles, you can re-enact the Battle of Salamis and the Battle of Artemisium, where the Athenians used the Kyklos, a defensive circle. The remaining scenarios are two fictional encounters: an open-sea battle that greatly favours the Persians, and a battle in the straits of Megara between Corinthians, allies of Athens, and Egyptians, allies of Persia.

Ships and historical context

In many of the larger scenarios, you can choose which ancient leader to play, including the Athenian commander Themistocles, the Corinthian admiral Adeimantos, and the Persian commanders Ariabignes, brother of King Xerxes, or Queen Artemisia. The ships have names, and the Athenian triremes use names from a list that was left behind and later rediscovered.

The Athenian trireme's physical performance is based on the replica Olympias, which was built and underwent full sea trials in 1988. The Persian triremes are portrayed as slightly smaller and lighter than the Athenian vessels; their performance is partly estimated, though they were reported to be seaworthy enough for voyages across the Mediterranean. Many scenarios include audio and diagrams introducing the events and their historical background.