 Alexander was forced to leave his dead behind to save the rest of his army—a great mark of disgrace to the Macedonians and to other Greeks who valued highly the recovery and proper burial of their fallen.Ariobarzanes had some reason to believe that success here could change the course of the war.Preventing Alexander's passage through the Persian Gates would force the Macedonian army to use other routes to invade Persia proper, all of which would allow Darius more time to field another army, and possibly stop the Macedonian invasion altogether.