darius iii

The move that secured the Macedonian victory at Gaugamela - a massive charge straight into the Persian center, where Darius III was - was an immensely risky gamble for Alexander. Case in point, his manouver created a gap in his army's line, one which was exploited by a detachment of Persian and...

Tripolis, Phoenicia. ~November 333 BC: There’s trouble on the docks. Soldiers are taking control of ships, men are running, the citizens are panicking. Just a few moments ago, these very same soldiers were hurriedly making their way towards the city, claiming to be the mercenaries of Darius...

So, as it says on the tin, what if Alexander loses the Siege of Tyre. Let's say the cyprians don't help him out and then in a battle the defenders are able to beat the Macedonian navy, and then they offer a truce with Alexander, which he eventually accepts. Now, Tyre wasn't just a city, it was a...

The Battle of the Persian Gate was the Achaemenid Empire's last act of resistance against Alexander the Great. After an ambush that caused heavy casualties among the Macedonians, the Persians held the pass for a month before the invaders found an alternate path through the terrain (the battle...

This is likely to differ significantly from a scenario where he dies, as the legitimate Great King is still alive, however, he has suffered an even greater humiliation than simply fleeing from the battlefield, but being captured. The Achaemenids have suffered a huge defeat, but the empire hasn't...

After the defeat at Gaugamela, Darius III, having suffered a large defeat, had only a limited set of options, which including fleeing eastward, towards the core of the empire, to raise another army. It was clear that the military might of the Achaemenids had been completely shattered, and areas...

The Achaemenid Empire has had many conflicts with the steppe people on its' borders, from the Scythians and Sarmatians to the Dahae, and their Iranic cousins in Central Asia. Most famously this was embodied in Darius' invasion where he attempted to subjugate them, but failed. Fast forward to the...

One of the greatest and most successful of the Hellenic incursions into the Achaemenids came into the form of Alexander, son of Philip the Great. After Philip was assasinated by a bodyguard by the name of Pausanias, Alexander took the throne, and was remarkably successful in wrestling away the...

Technically it's not "Pyrrhic" because Pyrrhus isn't even born yet and will probably be butterflied away with this POD, but what would be the implications if Alexander the Great still won at Gaugamela, but instead of having his army relatively intact, he suffers heavy casualties due to the left...

In 333 BC, Alexander the Great battled the Achaemenid King of Kings Darius III at the battle of Issus. The battle initally went relatively poorly for the Macedonians, with both the left flank and the center pushed back, but the Hypastpists managed to break through the Kardakes infantry on the...

After the Battle of Gaugamela, Darius III and what remained of his armies fled eastwards into the Upper Satrapies, leaving Babylonia behind. The satrap of Babylonia, Mazaeus, quickly defected to Alexander and Darius III was murdered by his own generals. What if he fled southwards into Babylonia...

In 331 BC, during the battle of Gaugamela, Alexander had successfully drawn much of the Achaemenid Cavalry to the flanks, allowing him to strike a blow at Darius III himself. Alexander then quickly overran his personal bodyguard, causing Darius III to panic and flee. Alexander apparently threw a...

Some time after Darius III ascended to the throne of the Achaemenid Empire, Bagoas tried to poison him. But Darius got wind of this, and forced Bagoas to drink the poison himself. What if Bagoas had successfully poisoned the king?

When Darius III was mortally wounded and left for dead by some conspirators against him, Alexander the Great was disappointed, since he wanted to capture the Persian King alive. What if he had? Let's say Darius somehow survived and was taken captive by Alexander. What would change?