Unboxing HELLAS by Sound of Drums

About History of the Ancient Seas I: HELLAS, from BoardGameGeek:

The Mediterranean Sea in ancient times. Images of magnificent coasts to be explored and legendary civilizations that rose to power come to mind. The game series History of the Ancient Seas is the ultimate journey through these exciting times. Build new fleets in your city to explore unknown lands, conquer islands and build a great empire. In HELLAS, the first instalment in the History of the Ancient Seas game series, you will lead one of the great City States - Athens or Sparta. Your goal is to become the leading empire in known world. To achieve this, you will need to build armies and fleets to increase your military might, expand trade routes, conquer islands and provinces, develop your military skills, economic efficiency and culture, while always keeping an eye on the wealth, happiness and stability of your people. The game is played in highly interactive micro-impulses. The heart of the game system is the action cycle: The players choose one of the eight possible actions. Actions chosen by a player can't be chosen subsequently by the next player. The number of possible actions is limited each turn. War or peace: That is your decision! You can expand your empire by leading your people to war! But war is costly and the outcome is uncertain. You can lead your empire to the golden age of civilization by keeping the peace and bringing stability and wealth to your people without following the path of war. Offer terms to aggressive enemies to distract or delay them, but always be prepared to defend your empire. You will move your 3D wooden playing pieces (representing fleets and legions) across the beautifully illustrated map from the center of the Hellenistic world to the shores of Persia in the east and the sandy beaches of Sicily in the west to expand your trade network and increase your trading status. -description from the publisher