Sicily 412 BC: the infinite duel between a man and a superpower begins. The man is Dionysius, who has made himself Tyrant of Syracruse. The superpower is Carthage, mercantile megalopolis and mistress of the seas. Over the next eight years, Dionysius' brutal military conquests will strike down countless enemies and many friends to make Syracruse the most powerful Greek city west of mainland Greece. He builds the largest army of antiquity and invents horrific war machines to use against the Carthaginians, who he will fight in five wars. Was Dionysius just a ruthless, egocentric despot or could he be better regarded as a patron of the arts?