Timoleon then commanded his army to descend into the plain. He assigned the other Sicilian Greeks and a few of his mercenaries to his wings. He commanded the center, which was composed of the Syracusans and his best mercenaries. He saw that his cavalry could not attack the enemy infantry because of the chariots. He ordered his cavalry to ride past the line of chariots to attack the infantry on the flank. He then charged the enemy with the infantry. The Carthaginian citizen infantry resisted the Greeks sturdily however, thanks to their excellent armor and large shields. Fortunately for the Greeks a thunderstorm rose up behind them and started a shower of hail and rain. The storm hit the Greeks in the back, but the Carthaginians in the face. The storm put them at a severe disadvantage: the water and mud made them ineffective fighters because of their heavy armor. To make things worse for the Carthaginians, the storm caused the Crimissus to overflow from its banks and many smaller streams to flow over the plain.