Persian War

Begin
Enter Cyrus, Persian Prince 553 BC and Astyages, Median King 553 BC. Cyrus leads a rebellion against his grandfather, Astyages.
Cyrus: It has been nearly three years since the start of this rebellion, but we the Persians have emerged victorious. I shall replace the Median Kingdom with my own. Presenting the Achaemenid Empire.
Enter Croesus, Lydian king.
Croesus: Now that there is unrest between the Persians and the Median Empire, I have the opportunity to extend my empire. I shall go ask the Oracle what to do.
Oracle of Delphi: If Croesus was to cross the Halys he would destroy a great empire.
Cyrus: Ionians, would you revolt against the Lydian rule over you?
Ionian: We are loyal to the Lydian empire and deny your request
Croesus attacks Cyrus but is defeated.  
Ionian: Now that you have defeated the nation that once ruled over us, we shall be your subjects.
Cyrus: I refuse as you refused to aid us in the conflict.
Cyrus sends Harpagus, a Median general to conquer them. Every city is conquered.
In the years following Cyrus was successful in obtaining new subjects such as the priesthood of Judea. Cyrus demands for a tyrant to rule each of the conquered Ionian cities, as they are getting hard to rule. The people of Ionia were preparing for rebellion.

Ionian Revolt
449 BC
Greek cities in Asia Minor are dissatisfied with the Persian appointed tyrants.
Enter Aristagoras, tyrant of Miletus and Persian satrap Artaphernes.
Aristagoras: Artaphernes, we shall join forces and conquer Naxos and perhaps I shall become higher in position in Miletus.
The mission failed miserably.
Aristagoras: People of Ionia, as I may be removed from position in the Persian government I propose to you that we join together and rebel against Darius the Great, the Persian king.
The Ionians, 498 BC, march on and lay siege to Sardis. On their return to Ionia they are trailed by Persian troops. The Ionian troops are beaten at the Battle of Ephesus. The Ionians go defensive. 497 BC, the Persians launch a three scale attack to recapture rebellious forces. A large army under the control of Darius has been relocated to Caria and is destroyed by enemy troops. 496-495 BC stalemate.
494 BC Persian army and navy are regrouped and head for Miletus. Defending Ionians are defeated at the Batt;e of Lade. Miletus and its people are captured. The revolt has ended and Caria surrender.
493 BC Persians destroy west cost cities still opposed to their rule. A peace settlement is imposed.

First Invasion of Greece 492-490 BC
Enter Mardonis, son-in-law of Darius.
Mardonis takes control of Thrace and forces Macedon to become more connected to Persia. He is injured during a Thracian raid on his camp. He returns to Asia
491 BC
Darius sends ambassadors to demand Greek cities to submit to Persian rule. All comply except Athens and Sparta. Darius orders more military power to make Athens and Sparta comply.
490 BC
Enter Datis and Artaphernes, son of Atraphernes. They set sail from Cilicia. They arrive on the island of Rhodes. Datis is unsuccessful in his attack on Lindos. They sail to Naxos to punish the residents for their resistance to the Persian empire. The Persian troops burn the city. The troops travel the islands, taking hostages. The troops sail to Euboea and target Eretria. The Persians attack the cities walls. A week goes by until two Eretrians open the city gates and the Persians lay siege to the city.
Battle of Marathon
The Persian fleet traveled to Marathon and were met by the Athenian army. Stalemate occurs for five days until the Athenians attack the Persians. The Persian troops were ravaged by the lighter Athenian army. The opportunity lost, Artaphernes returns to Asia.

Interbellum 490-480 BC
Darius raises a new army to bring Greece under Persian control.
486 BC Darius's Greek subjects revolt, postponing the journey to Greece. Darius dies in preparation for the march on Egypt and Xerxes, his son, takes the throne. Xerxes destroys the Egyptian revolt and restarts the Greek invasion. Xerxes decides that Hellespont is to be bridged to allow for his army to cross Europe and that a canal should be dug across Mount Athos. These tasks are delayed by another Egyptian and Babylonian revolt.
481 BC
Xerxes finally gathers troops to invade Europe. The army gathers in Cappadociaand and is led by Xerxes to Sardis to pass the winter. In spring it moves to Abydos where it joins the western forces and crosses the Hellespont on pontoon bridges.

Second Invasion of Greece 480-479 BC
The Persian army travels to Greece, traveling by way of Hellespont to Therme. The army pauses at Doriskos and joins forces with the fleet.
480 BC
Xerxes takes a path that requires him to traverse a narrow path of Thermopylae.
Xerxes arrives at Thermopylae in August. He and the troops wait for three days for the blockade of Allies to move. Xerxes sends his troops in to attack. The attack the Greek phalanx for two days. By the end of the second day a man comes up to Xerxes and reveals to him a secluded mountain path. The Persians re-encounter the Allies in a wider part of the path and slaughter them.
Simultaneous with this battle another battle on the Strait of Artemisium occurs. The Persians are held off by the Allies for three days before they hear news of the Battle of Thermopylae and forsake protecting the flank and leave to Salamis.
The Persians take Athens with little trouble as it was evacuated earlier save for a few Athenians who stand on the acropolis but are razed as well as their city.
Xerxes wants to complete the war quickly now that he has control of the majority of Greece.
The Persian navy is lured to Salamis. In the cramped spaces the Persian ships are sunk and the Allies win that battle.
479 BC
Mardonius, a Persian general, offers peace to the Athenians but they refuse.
The Persians lose control of Athens but move quickly south and regain possession. The Athenians evacuated to Salamis. Mardonius repeats his offer of peace. In return the Athenians send Spartans to fight the Persians. Hearing th news of this Xerxes moves to open terrain, attempting to draw the Allies here to so that Xerxes could use his calvary. The Allied troops perform a fatal maneuver that leaves certain groups on separate hills. Mardonius orders his entire army forward. This is an even more fatal move as the Allies break through Mardonius' army and kill him. The surviving Persians flee to a Persian camp and are slaughtered by the Greeks.  
End.

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