The Persians are based on the large number of Persian dynasties that existed throughout the Middle Ages. Although their design and description were largely inspired by the Sasanian Empire, they are supposed to represent all Persian factions that existed during the Middle Ages.
They were best known for their rivalry with the Roman Empire and gradual adoption of Islam following the Arab invasions. They would grow to become a major hub and center of the Islamic world, contributing much to Islamic art and culture. Like their predecessor in the original game, the Persians specialize in cavalry and navy.
Since BC, the region of Persia has been known as the place where various large empires like Parthia and Sassanid once stood. In addition, the region of Persia was also part of international trade routes between India, Far East, and the Middle East. This is reflected by two of their bonuses: They start the game with more food and wood, and their Town Centers possess higher HP and working speed. To ensure the safety of traveling ships in the Persian Gulf, the ruling empires stationed their military (including naval vessels) in the region. Therefore, Persian Docks also possess higher HP and work faster.
The Persians were known to employ powerful armored cavalry on the battlefield. This is reflected by their virtually complete Stable. The borders of the Sassanian Empire were often raided by various nomadic tribesmen; by Arabs to the south and by Central Asians to the north and east. Using neighboring vassal states (e.g. the Lakhmid Kingdom of Arab) as a buffer zone was one of the methods used by the Sassanian to stop these raids. To reflect this, the Persians have a team bonus which increases the attack of their Knights against archers.
During the Sassanian, Ghaznavid, and Timurid era, war elephants were part of the Persian military force. This is reflected by their unique unit, the War Elephant. The riders of elephants were known as Mahouts, and this name is used as one of the Persians unique technologies, which increases the War Elephants' movement speed. The Sassanian Empire was also known to build complex fortification lines along their borders. Thus, their other unique technology, Boiling Oil, provides Castles with additional attack against rams.
The Persians are a cavalry civilization. They are in fact the only civilization to have access to the complete cavalry technology tree including the Blacksmith upgrades (bar the Battle Elephant as it is a semi-unique unit to the Southeast Asian civilizations). This also benefits their unique unit, the War Elephant. Their infantry and archer units are not very prominent as important upgrades such as Bracer, Two-Handed Swordsman, and Arbalest are missing. Still, the Persians can utilize fully upgraded Hand Cannoneers and Halberdiers. They also have access to a large variety of siege weapons, but they lack Siege Engineers. Their navy is overall strong, but the lack of Shipwright can be unfavorable in longer games, and the lack of Bracer hurts their Galleons as well. Their Monks are among the weakest of all civilizations, especially the lack of Heresy is unfortunate as the Persians rely on expensive units that are prone to conversion (Paladin, War Elephant). The defensive structures are also weak for the Persians as they cannot even upgrade their Stone Walls. Still, their Castles get all upgrades and the additional Boiling Oil. Their economy is simply excellent; they get all economy technologies as well as a head start with the additional resources given at the game start that is further bolstered by their faster working Town Centers.
The Persians have no campaign devoted to their civilization (apart for their stage Bukhara in Battles of the Forgotten) but still make appearances in various campaigns. They appear in the following campaign scenarios:
The Persians as a culture existed for many centuries when the Middle Ages began. It had been reassembled following the conquest by Alexander in the fourth century BC and the subsequent breakup of his empire in later centuries.
The Persians had been fighting the Romans since the third century AD. The first dynasty during the Middle Ages, the Sassanid Empire stretched from Mesopotamia to India and from the Caspian Sea to the Persian Gulf, encompassing the modern nations of Iraq, Iran, and Afghanistan. They fought the Romans, and later the Byzantines, for control of modern Syria, Turkey, Palestine, Israel, Egypt, and Arabia. The capital of the Persian Empire was Ctesiphon, called Baghdad today. This dynasty is represented in the Attila the Hun campaign in the game, as the Huns briefly tried to invade their lands.
The lands of the Sassanids were eventually conquered by the Arabs in 651 AD, and became part of a larger empire for a time, before a new Persian dynasty emerged in 819 AD, the Samanids. Persian dynasties continued to come and go throughout the middle part of the Middle Ages, some of them being founded by peoples to the north of Iran, such as the Turks. The final of these dynasties, the Khwarezmid Empire, was eventually conquered in 1220 AD by the Mongols under Genghis Khan. As a result, this dynasty is represented in the Genghis Khan campaign in the game.
When the Mongol Empire split up, Persian became controlled by the Ilkhanate (1256-1335 AD), which eventually became more Persian than Mongol in culture. The Ilkhanate eventually fell apart and Iran became divided. A warlord from central Asia, known as Timur took control of Iran, with much bloodshed taking place. Eventually this dynasty took on a Persian culture.
The final Persian dynasty during the Middle Ages were the Safavids. They took control of Persia in 1501 AD from the Timurids, who had already been weakened by civil wars and disputes during the preceding century. The Safavids were arguably the most powerful Persian dynasty since the Sassanids and were a challenge both to the Ottoman Empire, and the Mughal Empire in India, which had been taken over from a descendant from the Timurid Dynasty.
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The Age of Kings
The Conquerors
The Forgotten
The African Kingdoms
Rise of the Rajas