Explanation: While somewhat exaggerated (by the Imperial era, a Roman loss of 15,000 men was history-changing, while in the mid-Republic it was ‘merely’ devastating), the Romans put a great deal of effort into preserving and retrieving their standards - when one was lost, it was considered a major blow to Roman pride and prestige, and entire military campaigns were undertaken in hopes of retrieving lost standards. Follow the eagle!
Explanation: While somewhat exaggerated (by the Imperial era, a Roman loss of 15,000 men was history-changing, while in the mid-Republic it was ‘merely’ devastating), the Romans put a great deal of effort into preserving and retrieving their standards - when one was lost, it was considered a major blow to Roman pride and prestige, and entire military campaigns were undertaken in hopes of retrieving lost standards. Follow the eagle!