The outnumbered Spartans' skill in hoplite warfare…
394 BCE
The outnumbered Spartans' skill in hoplite warfare (use of heavily armored foot soldiers) enables them to encircle and crush the Athenians on the battlefield in the Nemea River valley (near modern Neméa) before turning against the other opponents.
The Spartans' defeat of the troops from Thebes, Corinth, Athens, and Argos temporarily breaks the force of the coalition.