Xanthippus and the Carthaginian Cavalry

The battle began when xanthippus sent the elephants in, who duly caused their patented brand of havoc while the romans were focused on the giant beasts. Of the 15 thousand or so who entered the battle, only two thousand made it out alive. When the roman fleet finally arrived, it was not to preside over a final victory for rome, but rather to pick up the pitiful survivors of a devastated army. The carthaginian nobility let their own paranoia take precedence over actually winning the fight.