when the athenian line was ready, according to one source, the simple signal to advance was given by miltiades: "at them".p191 most likely, they marched until they reached the limit of the archers' effectiveness, the "beaten zone", (roughly 200 meters), and then broke into a run towards their enemy.p66 herodotus suggests that this was the first time a greek army ran into battle in this way; this was probably because it was the first time that a greek army had faced an enemy composed mainly of missile troops (archers, spear-throwers).