Carthaginian Commander

Psychologically, this was an army that had known nothing but the most decisive sort of success since it had entered Italy. In a life and death struggle, confidence is crucial, and the recent past had given these men every reason to believe in their own fighting skills, as well as their commander's ability to drive opponents into positions of utter vulnerability and near helplessness.

~ Robert L. O'Connell, The Ghosts of Cannae, 2010.