AHC: An Empire based around the Caspian Sea.

With a POD in the year 2000 BCE, your challenge if you choose to accept it, is to create an empire or power/culture wherein the heart of said civilization or empire, is around the Caspian Sea and its river way connections, such as the Volga and Don rivers. Preferably this empire would control the Caspian sea as the Romans ruled the Mediterranean, wherein the power uses this sea as a sort of linkage for sea travel between coastal cities.

How exactly could this be done? What are some ideas?

A note, while the POD is 2000 BCE, this can be moved back if necessary. Also, it does not entail that you are forced to begin to develop this culture in 2000 BCE, if you can create this empire or civilization in 1000 CE, then that too is fine.

There is also restrictions, this challenge is not a scenario wherein Russia simply controls all of the Caspian sea or any other Empire simply controlling it. Rather to complete the challenge, the Caspian sea and its river ways and corresponding land surrounding, must be the centre point of the civilization/empire.
 
Much of the land that surround the Caspian sea aswell as it's tributaries is flat, unlike the mediterranean which is comparativly more mountainous. Flatter land is easier to traverse than mountainous terrain. Therefore the region is more vulnerable to land based raids.

One option could be that a city state perhaps located in the Volga delta has outposts around the waterways. Something like the Delian League or the Carthaginian Empire.
 
Much of the land that surround the Caspian sea aswell as it's tributaries is flat, unlike the mediterranean which is comparativly more mountainous. Flatter land is easier to traverse than mountainous terrain. Therefore the region is more vulnerable to land based raids.

One option could be that a city state perhaps located in the Volga delta has outposts around the waterways. Something like the Delian League or the Carthaginian Empire.

This was somewhat of the idea that I had. A city at the delta of the Volga and then projects itself into the Caspian sea and the coastal areas.

Also, a point, Daylam-Tabaristan is not flat and is protected from the steppe to a degree that even presented itself as a truly daunting task in the mountain regions for even the Mongol hordes of Hulegu and the Abbasid Caliphate. Say, if the city and local rural area around the Volga delta, is able to project itself toward Daylam, it would have the ability to at least influence these regions and possibly rule them indirectly and use them as buffers to some of the dangers from the steppe. Meanwhile on the eastern ends of the Caspian, suppose coastal cities with walled forts could pose a block for the steppe hordes?
 
This was somewhat of the idea that I had. A city at the delta of the Volga and then projects itself into the Caspian sea and the coastal areas.

Also, a point, Daylam-Tabaristan is not flat and is protected from the steppe to a degree that even presented itself as a truly daunting task in the mountain regions for even the Mongol hordes of Hulegu and the Abbasid Caliphate. Say, if the city and local rural area around the Volga delta, is able to project itself toward Daylam, it would have the ability to at least influence these regions and possibly rule them indirectly and use them as buffers to some of the dangers from the steppe. Meanwhile on the eastern ends of the Caspian, suppose coastal cities with walled forts could pose a block for the steppe hordes?

I'd almost consider going the opposite way. A sheltered civilization based in Daylam uses the Caspian sea to project mercantile power north into the Volga and Don systems and thus direct trade in furs, amber, lumber, and slaves to itself which is then sold onward to civilizations in Mesopotamia and the Iranian plateau. Heavily fortified outposts or colonies at the river mouths and at key points on the rivers plus contacts with the local nomadic tribes would protect the trade routes.
 
I'd almost consider going the opposite way. A sheltered civilization based in Daylam uses the Caspian sea to project mercantile power north into the Volga and Don systems and thus direct trade in furs, amber, lumber, and slaves to itself which is then sold onward to civilizations in Mesopotamia and the Iranian plateau. Heavily fortified outposts or colonies at the river mouths and at key points on the rivers plus contacts with the local nomadic tribes would protect the trade routes.

Right, this was another good possibility. It would have to be at one of these edges of the Caspian sea. I suppose with a POD in the far gone past, this civilization in Daylam could then be influenced at least partially by Sumer, Akkad, etc...
 
One way to achieve this would be to account for the fact that the Balkan region of Turkmenistan around Lake Garabogazköl wasn't a region of dusty arid plains but rolling green grasslands and even pasturelands in 2000 BCE. However there was no recorded Bronze Age city-building civilization present in the archaeological record of the area until the discovery of Altyndepe in 1988.

Since the IVC and BMAC both disappeared around 1750-1600 BCE to give rise to the Indo-Iranian Iron Age cultures of Yaz and Swat, with the former being the hypothetical society described in the Avesta and the latter the one where the Rigveda was composed, we can assume that migrating into these different and distant locales caused a gradual division between the Indo-Iranians till the split into the Iranians and Indo-Aryans. Thus if the Iranian peoples were to diverge further to just post Andronovo around in this semi-steppe rich pasture land at the earliest possible time and form an Iron Age society prior to the Indo-Aryans who will settle in the Gandhara region in 1700 BCE and the Avestan-speaking peoples who will do the same in the westernmost regions of the BMAC around 1600-1500 BCE.

Accounting for linguistic drift this might mean a third satem language might form from proto-Indo-Iranian which is distinct to both Avestan and Vedic, which might then slowly spread further up the eastern Caspian coast as well as into Daylam forming a separate ethno-linguistic group to the Medes and Persians in the southern Iranian plateau. This hypothetical civilisation (lets just give them the exonym Caspians for now) can then go onto develop maritime capabilities to trade for amber and the high carbon peat that the Volga tribes produced. Since these Caspians would not be an Iranian speaking peoples it is also likely that they may not follow any form of Zoroastrianism that might end up developing in this timeline.
 
One way to achieve this would be to account for the fact that the Balkan region of Turkmenistan around Lake Garabogazköl wasn't a region of dusty arid plains but rolling green grasslands and even pasturelands in 2000 BCE. However there was no recorded Bronze Age city-building civilization present in the archaeological record of the area until the discovery of Altyndepe in 1988.

Since the IVC and BMAC both disappeared around 1750-1600 BCE to give rise to the Indo-Iranian Iron Age cultures of Yaz and Swat, with the former being the hypothetical society described in the Avesta and the latter the one where the Rigveda was composed, we can assume that migrating into these different and distant locales caused a gradual division between the Indo-Iranians till the split into the Iranians and Indo-Aryans. Thus if the Iranian peoples were to diverge further to just post Andronovo around in this semi-steppe rich pasture land at the earliest possible time and form an Iron Age society prior to the Indo-Aryans who will settle in the Gandhara region in 1700 BCE and the Avestan-speaking peoples who will do the same in the westernmost regions of the BMAC around 1600-1500 BCE.

Accounting for linguistic drift this might mean a third satem language might form from proto-Indo-Iranian which is distinct to both Avestan and Vedic, which might then slowly spread further up the eastern Caspian coast as well as into Daylam forming a separate ethno-linguistic group to the Medes and Persians in the southern Iranian plateau. This hypothetical civilisation (lets just give them the exonym Caspians for now) can then go onto develop maritime capabilities to trade for amber and the high carbon peat that the Volga tribes produced. Since these Caspians would not be an Iranian speaking peoples it is also likely that they may not follow any form of Zoroastrianism that might end up developing in this timeline.

Interesting. How do you propose that these Caspians defend their exposed east to possibly incursions from the wide steppe? Perhaps a tradition of fort construction heritage takes hold for varied reasons. Regardless, I do believe if such as Caspian civilization can begin and have a period of approximate golden age and spread itself across the Caspian sea to its shores and up the rivers Volga and Don, that at least there becomes a fair chance of this culture style surviving at least some invasion by way of influence and prestige. However, there is also the issue of the Tocharian experience, wherein the sort of mercantile city state civilization do not seem to have to same level of stay power as settled rural populations with deep folk traditions.
 
Interesting. How do you propose that these Caspians defend their exposed east to possibly incursions from the wide steppe? Perhaps a tradition of fort construction heritage takes hold for varied reasons. Regardless, I do believe if such as Caspian civilization can begin and have a period of approximate golden age and spread itself across the Caspian sea to its shores and up the rivers Volga and Don, that at least there becomes a fair chance of this culture style surviving at least some invasion by way of influence and prestige. However, there is also the issue of the Tocharian experience, wherein the sort of mercantile city state civilization do not seem to have to same level of stay power as settled rural populations with deep folk traditions.

A tradition of building fortified settlements will nullify a lot of the power their more unruly cousins of the steppe have.

A good way to root the traditions of the Caspians is to subjugate the Kassitic peoples that resided in Daylam at the time and impart their cultural values top down as the Vedic Aryans did. If the Caspians go the way of the Mitanni Aryans and simply impose an upper strata of Caspian elite instead of encouraging assimilation with the previous rulers they will have very little staying power just like the Khotanese city states you mentioned.
 
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Scythians are good candidates for this. Otherwise,it would be Tocharians or Indo-Greeks apart from Persians.

Problem is that by the time a visible distinction between what was 'Scythia' was defined most of the civilised world had already written that place off as a sort of 'Here Be Dragons' deal. Even when Darius finally did bring the Saka to heel he only made the Tigrakauda and Haumavarga stop their attacks into Persian territory rather than attempt expansion into what was a land of barbarians along the Caspian coast.
 
Maybe a Shirvan-based state could pull this off? A city-state on the site of modern-day Baku, which sits on a nice, defensible peninsula, could hypothetically be a good candidate. Also doesn't have quite the same level of steppe raider issues that a Volga Delta-based state, or one centered in Turkmenistan, likely would. Not sure who'd found such a city, though it's close enough to Sumer, etc. that influence from there is possible.

Meanwhile for a later POD, maybe an alt-Khazar state, based at or near Atil on the Volga Delta, that emerges from the Gokturk breakdown in the early 600s and for some reason (maybe taking advantage of the Sassanid collapse at the hands of the Rashiduns?) directs the bulk of its energy southward instead of north and westward, sweeps through the Caucasus and conquers Daylam? While they would be a decent bet to eventually unite the Caspian coastline, they wouldn't be the kind of maritime-based state you're looking for, at least not at first; the existence of Atil does make me wonder if it might be possible for this alt-Khazaria to gradually transition fully away from nomadism and into a more urbanized state based on sea trade.
 

Vuu

Banned
Thing is, a sea needs connections to not be a barrier. If somehow the Manych gets dug up, flooding the Caspian depression, it would work, but like this, the only way is to have some Volga delta based state, as the Volga is pretty much the only really navigable river that empties into the Caspian
 
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