So You Think You Can Rule Persia

Darius is gone and his son Xerxes has inherited a golden age. What will he do with it? His dad still left him some homework but there's so much cool stuff to do in the empire. Tune in to find out how Xerxes balances the two and say a fond farewell to Herodotus   You can find all the images on our website! https://soyouthinkyoucanrulepersia.wordpress.com/2022/08/07/xerxes-i/

The usurper/legitimate ruler is dead! Now what? Well, our friend Darius is going to be very busy throughout his life, sometimes by choice and sometimes by circumstance. Join us for a hefty episode filled with intrigue, war, and a first look at the barbarians in the West   You can find all the images on our website! https://soyouthinkyoucanrulepersia.wordpress.com/2022/07/31/8-darius-i-the-great/

Wait, didn't he die last episode? Who is this guy? He says he's Cyrus' son but can we really trust him? Join us for a murder mystery, a cool action scene, and a look into why Herodotus didn't give us the most scandalous story this time   You can find all the images on our website! https://soyouthinkyoucanrulepersia.wordpress.com/2022/07/24/7-bardiya/  

Cyrus is gone and has left some pretty big shoes to fill, but there is plenty of world left to conquer for Cambyses. But, what's this? The sources aren't reliable? Do we at least get some good stories? Oh thank goodness for Herodotus…   You can find all the images on our website! https://soyouthinkyoucanrulepersia.wordpress.com/2022/07/17/6-cambyses-ii/

Our first great! The child of destiny is all grown up and what was that prophecy about conquering all of Asia? At long last we have our first Persian king and it's going to be a wild ride.   You can find all the images on our website! https://soyouthinkyoucanrulepersia.wordpress.com/2022/07/10/cyrus-ii-the-great/   And here is the link to the interview we mention! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G...

Astyages is handed a large and prospering empire safe from external threats. Is there a way to mess this up or are we in for some smooth sailing? Listen as we wrestle with dreams, prophecies, and a teeny tiny bit of actual facts.   You can find all the images on our website! https://soyouthinkyoucanrulepersia.wordpress.com/2022/07/03/4-astyages/

After the untimely death of Phraortes, it's time to move into plan B for Media and that comes in the person of Cyaxares. Join us for the first ruler we are sure existed and actual details about people and battles! Wild, I know!   You can find all the images on our website! https://soyouthinkyoucanrulepersia.wordpress.com/2022/06/26/cyaxares/

Well now that Media is a thing, we should do something with it! Listen as Phraortes deals with the bubbling chaos around the Assyrian empire and prepares for something big   You can find all the images on our website! https://soyouthinkyoucanrulepersia.wordpress.com/2022/06/19/phraortes/

So here he is, the first king! Wait, why are we in Media? What do you mean he doesn't rule Persia? Why is he in the story at all? All this and much more will be answered during our first review episode! Join us for discordant Greek and Assyrian sources, an introduction to Herodotus, and, oh right, Deioces the king   You can find all the images on our website! https://soyouthinkyoucanrulepersia.wor...

Welcome to the first-ever episode of So You Think You Can Rule Persia! Here we'll give you an overview of what the podcast is going to be like, who counts as a ruler of Persia, and some useful context on the terms we'll be using and when. Once that's done, we'll treat you to a broad history of the Middle East and Iran that should ferry you over to 700 BC. And, finally, you'll learn about our round...

A short guide on which episode to start from if you're new to the podcast Here's the link to our Patreon! www.patreon.com/soyouthinkyoucanrulepersia