Hist. 2.12.1Laeta interim Othōnī prīncipia bellī, mōtīs ad imperium eius ē Dalmatiā Pannoniāque exercitibus.Meanwhile the beginnings of the war were happy for Otho, since the armies from Dalmatia and Pannonia had set out at his command. Hist. 2.12.1Fuēre quattuor legiōnēs, ē quibus bīna mīlia praemissa;There were four legions, from each of which two thousand men were sent ahead; Hist. 2.12.1ipsae modicīs intervallīs sequēbantur, septima ā Galbā cōnscrīpta, veterānae ūndecima ac tertia decima et praecipuī fāmā quārtadecumānī, rebelliōne Britanniae compressā.the legions themselves followed at moderate intervals: the Seventh, raised by Galba, the veteran Eleventh and Thirteenth, and the men of the Fourteenth, outstanding in fame for having crushed the rebellion in Britain. Hist. 2.12.1Addiderat glōriam Nerō ēligendō ut potissimōs, unde longa illīs ergā Nerōnem fidēs et ērēcta in Othōnem studia.Nero had added to their glory by choosing them as the most powerful, which accounted for their long loyalty towards Nero and their eager support for Otho. Hist. 2.12.1Sed quō plūs vīrium ac rōboris ē fīdūciā tarditās īnerat.But the more strength and vigour they had, the more slowness came from their confidence.
Hist. 2.12.1Agmen legiōnum alae cohortēsque praeveniēbant;Cavalry squadrons and cohorts went ahead of the column of the legions; Hist. 2.12.1et ex ipsā urbe haud spernenda manus, quīnque praetōriae cohortēs et equitum vēxilla cum legiōne prīmā, ac dēfōrme īnsuper auxilium, duo mīlia gladiātōrum, sed per cīvīlia arma etiam sevērīs ducibus ūsurpātum.and from the city itself came a force not to be despised, five praetorian cohorts and detachments of cavalry with the First Legion, and in addition a disgraceful auxiliary force, two thousand gladiators, but one that even strict generals had employed in civil wars. Hist. 2.12.1Hīs cōpiīs rēctor additus Annius Gallus, cum Vestriciō Spurinnā ad occupandās Padī rīpās praemissus, quoniam prīma cōnsiliōrum frūstrā ceciderant, trānsgressō iam Alpīs Caecīnā, quem sistī intrā Galliās posse spērāverat.Annius Gallus was set in command of these forces, sent ahead with Vestricius Spurinna to seize the banks of the Po, since the first plans had come to nothing, Caecina having already crossed the Alps, though Otho had hoped he could be halted within the Gallic provinces. Hist. 2.12.1Ipsum Othōnem comitābantur speculātōrum lēcta corpora cum cēterīs praetōriīs cohortibus, veterānī ē praetōriō, classicōrum ingēns numerus.Otho himself was accompanied by picked bodies of the guard's scouts with the rest of the praetorian cohorts, veterans of the praetorian guard, and a huge number of marines.
Hist. 2.12.1Nec illī segne aut corruptum luxū iter, sed lōrīcā ferreā ūsus est et ante signa pedes īre, horridus, incomptus fāmaeque dissimilis.Nor was his march sluggish or corrupted by luxury: he wore an iron breastplate and went on foot before the standards, rough, unkempt and unlike his reputation.