Persia will be the nation that sets the tempo of the campaign for a long time. The speed will define the strategy of all the Hellenic world, with the effects reaching as far as Italy and Rome. Persia and its ruler, Cyrus II (soon to be known as ‘The Great’), starts the campaign at war with Media and will make short work of this vast empire. The Persian army is fairly strong at start, and Cyrus is a superb leader. But of equal importance, Media will fall only a few turns after its capital falls, which can happen very rapidly, as was the case historically. Custom gameplay [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/34556788/5b2d75c7c36c5ec0b3ee70ee89e76e516d444edc.jpg[/img] During its early period of conquest, Achaemenid Persia (named after the tribe that originally revolted against Media, the Haxāmanišiya) achieved stupendous and lightning-fast success against several neighboring nations. As such, Media, Babylon, Lydia and Elam might spontaneously lose one region a turn to Persia, if they are not Glorious. In addition, Media can crumble in one go if the capital is lost! [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/34556788/d759dc35e7bd0844acf1539eb284ee99dd29089a.jpg[/img] Persia, Athens and Sparta vied for the control of Asia Minor for centuries. These three will not stay at peace for long! Persia will regularly enjoy various moderate rewards as long as Athens and Sparta have poor relations. [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/34556788/67defe7341165b34a7585c75e73c9d0ac60704d2.jpg[/img] Satraps (literally 'Protectors of the Realm') are governors of the Persian provinces, with a lot of independence in how they rule. On the one hand, they will provide free troops for the King of Kings army. On the other hand, they might band together to secede if the central government is weakening. [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/34556788/bfc4f4dca3806fe2801129cca9b7ed3d308eef27.jpg[/img] The Persian ruler will receive missions from time to time (9 in total). There is no penalty in not doing them, but if you succeed, you’ll get extra legacy points and a special reward. Also note that if you fail a mission and if it is still valid, you might get it again in the future. Examples: Conquer Babylon, Build the Royal Road, Return of the Jewish People, etc. [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/34556788/beded1ad7d39fd51e4858d79d5b511ab3e9923b8.jpg[/img] Persia has several custom buildings at its disposal: • Chapar Khaneh A Royal Post placed at regular interval along the royal road, it slightly improves positive token chance. • Persepolis A grandiose city providing culture and legacy. • Palace of the King of Kings Impressive palace providing decadence reduction. As many Persian kings build palaces, you can have 3 of them in the Persepolis region! • Jewish District In Babylon, has a role in one of the Persia missions. Help them and you’ll get new friends. • Qanat This is a sort of underground aqueduct, using no structure slot (common to all Iranian nations). [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/34556788/190af8dce75bc4885a20ae4e14535b6822745598.jpg[/img] The Immortals are a very tough medium/heavy infantry of high effectiveness. Sparabara is Persia medium infantry; they are adept archers. Persia light unit are in fact Eastern Archers, they are deadly in numbers. The heaviest unit is the Mercenary Hoplite. You can get extra through a custom regional decision. The army is also supplemented by hillmen and nomad cavalry. Once you get the right infrastructure in place, the Iranian Armored Cavalry can smash through a lot of opposition! [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/34556788/8c37ba01d0e5bd260d5e8ec480a2ed0f024642ee.jpg[/img] Persia enjoys 3 custom decisions in addition to the 15 or so general ones. • Recruit Mercenary Hoplites Easily get hoplite mercenaries (heavy infantry) in Hellenes regions, if their loyalty is not too high. • Hellenes Interloper Degrade relations between Athens and Sparta – just to be sure these two are not banding together. It can backfire though, depending on the rulers involved and how skilled they are in diplomacy. • Absorb local administration Persia, and Cyrus, had no qualms about using the local nobility and administration. This decision adds a free courthouse in the region and instantly provides 100 culture points. Stay tuned! Field of Glory: Empires - Persia 550 - 330 BCE will be out next week, on May 21st