Page "Battle of Pharsalus" Paragraph 12

Pompey had every tactical advantage an army could hope for ; he held the higher ground, had superiority of numbers, and was better supplied from his many allies in Greece.

This caused the great general to be conservative, careful, and dangerously predictable.

Pompey deployed his army in the traditional formation of three lines with a depth of ten men.

Again according to convention he posted his most experienced legions on the flanks ( the first and the third legion on his left with Pompey himself commanding, the Syrian legions in the center with Scipio, the Cilician legion and the Spanish cohorts on the right with Afranius ), dispersing his new recruits along the center.

In total, Caesar counted 110 complete cohorts in the Pompeiian army, about 45, 000 men.

Pompey's right was protected by the River Enipeus, therefore he amassed all his cavalry on Caesar's right.

He had given command of the cavalry to Labienus, the former commander of Caesar's favourite X legion.

He deployed the rest of the army on his left together with his auxiliary troops.

Pompey's plan was to allow Caesar's infantry to advance, have his cavalry attack and push back the numerically inferior Julian horses, and then attack Caesar's infantry from behind.