attack Mago near Castulo, while Gnaeus Scipio took 35,000 to attack Hasdrubal. Hasdrubal Gisco's force marched to join Mago who, aided by Indibilis and Masinissa, defeated and killed Publius Scipio, then with the combined armies joined Hasdrubal to defeat and kill Gnaeus Scipio, all in a span of 23 days. However, the lack of coordination after the battle led to the escape of the Roman survivors, about 8,000 men, to the north of the Ebro river. These men checked Carthaginian attacks twice, and were reinforced by 20,000 troops from Italy in 210 BC. Publius Cornelius Scipio the Younger, exploiting the lack of coordination between the Carthaginian generals, and the scattered location of their armies, ended up taking Cartagena in a daring expedition in 209 BC. Mago and his army was three days' march from Cartagena at that time. The Carthaginians moved their base to Gades. In 208 BC, after the Battle of Baecula, Hasdrubal left Hispania to invade Italy and bring reinforcements to his brother Hannibal, who was operating in Lucania. Mago moved with his army to the area between the Tagus and Douro rivers in a recruiting mission of Spanish mercenaries with Hanno, a newly arrived general. Their mission was successful, as they gathered large masses of Spanish fighters, among them Cantabrians led by Larus, but they divided the army into two camps and relaxed their vigilance. Their army was surprised and scattered by Roman forces commanded by Marcus Junius Silanus in 207 BC; Hanno was captured, but Mago managed to lead a few thousand survivors to Gades, where he joined forces with Hasdrubal Gisco. The Carthaginians dispersed their army in several towns and focused on recruiting new mercenaries. This tactic frustrated the strategy of Scipio to force a decisive battle that year. Mago enjoyed joint command of the new army and raided the Roman army with his cavalry. The foresight of Scipio Africanus, who had kept his cavalry outside camp in a hidden position, led to the defeat of this raid. After suffering defeat at the Battle of Ilipa in 206 BC, Hasdrubal Gisco returned to Africa and Mago retreated to Gades with the remnants of his army. His deputy, another Hanno, was defeated by L. Marcius at the Battle of the Guadalquivir, and Mago was unable to take advantage of the rebellion of Hispanic tribes under Indibilis or the mutiny of the Roman troops at Sucro in