Map of the Near East and the Mesogeian Sea, circa 500 BCE
In the Near East, the Hittites and Egyptians have been able to remain regional powers. Part of this is because, while they often go to war with each other, whenever a third power gains too much influence with the Near East, the Hittites and Egyptians join forces against them. However, internally the two powers aren't as stable: Egypt in particular is facing more and more insurrection in its outer provinces, and there is growing friction between the priests, the regional governors, and the pharaoh.
To their east, the New Assyrian Empire has benefitted greatly from its early adoption of iron in warfare, almost 500 years ago, enabling them to capture large swathes of territory either. When their westward expansion was repulsed by an alliance between the Egyptians and Hittites, they focused on Mesopotamia instead. The Assyrians now control most of Mesopotamia, and hold the kingdom of Elam as a vassal, but their hold over the region has been shaky for over a century. The Medes, their neighbours to the north, have already sacked major Assyrian cities several times, and there is widespread fear among the Assyrian rulers that if there is another civil war, the Medes would once again take advantage.
Over in the Balkans, the Thracians - one of the few kingdoms in the Balkan mountains not under Achaean control, though their civilisation is still influenced by the Achaeans - have been involved in several conflicts between the Hittites and the Achaeans, switching sides depending on who was a greater threat to the Thracians themselves. The Thracians are more peacable than the Illyrian tribes to the west, but they are no strangers to warfare, and their armies have become feared in much of the Balkans.
The Achaean States are incorrectly named, since few of them would call themselves Achaean, and few are actually unified states. The most prominent is the Mycenaean Empire, which is genuinely a single, Achaean, state, which is the reason for the states' collective name, but Mycenae's two main rivals are the Kingdom of Iolcos (actually a collection of city-states with their own kings, but the king of Iolcos as the high king) and the League of Pylos (a confederation of city-states led by Pylos, but not yet under the control of Pylos). Mycenae and Iolcos both have colonies in the Aegean, Western Anatolia, and the Sea of Adur, as well as vassals in the Balkans. The League of Pylos, unable to keep a foothold in the Aegean, settled westwards instead, bringing them into conflict with New Knossos.
After Keftiu was laid low by a volcanic eruption followed by Achaean invasions, the Keftian population was gradually replaced and absorbed by Achaean settles - however, a small Keftian population does remain on the island. Centuries ago, Keftian sailors established the city of New Knossos on the North African coast, and from there they spread out and founded colonies all over the Western Mesogeian.
With influence from the Knossians and the Pylosians, tribes near Western Mesogeian coasts have formed their own cities and kingdoms. Some are vassals of Pylos or New Knossos, some are small kingdoms fighting among each other, like the Celts and the Sabines, but the most powerful of these kingdoms is the Kingdom of Rasenna: the early Rasna city-states coalesced into a single kingdom, which has since been gaining territory along the peninsula.
In the Near East, the Hittites and Egyptians have been able to remain regional powers. Part of this is because, while they often go to war with each other, whenever a third power gains too much influence with the Near East, the Hittites and Egyptians join forces against them. However, internally the two powers aren't as stable: Egypt in particular is facing more and more insurrection in its outer provinces, and there is growing friction between the priests, the regional governors, and the pharaoh.
To their east, the New Assyrian Empire has benefitted greatly from its early adoption of iron in warfare, almost 500 years ago, enabling them to capture large swathes of territory either. When their westward expansion was repulsed by an alliance between the Egyptians and Hittites, they focused on Mesopotamia instead. The Assyrians now control most of Mesopotamia, and hold the kingdom of Elam as a vassal, but their hold over the region has been shaky for over a century. The Medes, their neighbours to the north, have already sacked major Assyrian cities several times, and there is widespread fear among the Assyrian rulers that if there is another civil war, the Medes would once again take advantage.
Over in the Balkans, the Thracians - one of the few kingdoms in the Balkan mountains not under Achaean control, though their civilisation is still influenced by the Achaeans - have been involved in several conflicts between the Hittites and the Achaeans, switching sides depending on who was a greater threat to the Thracians themselves. The Thracians are more peacable than the Illyrian tribes to the west, but they are no strangers to warfare, and their armies have become feared in much of the Balkans.
The Achaean States are incorrectly named, since few of them would call themselves Achaean, and few are actually unified states. The most prominent is the Mycenaean Empire, which is genuinely a single, Achaean, state, which is the reason for the states' collective name, but Mycenae's two main rivals are the Kingdom of Iolcos (actually a collection of city-states with their own kings, but the king of Iolcos as the high king) and the League of Pylos (a confederation of city-states led by Pylos, but not yet under the control of Pylos). Mycenae and Iolcos both have colonies in the Aegean, Western Anatolia, and the Sea of Adur, as well as vassals in the Balkans. The League of Pylos, unable to keep a foothold in the Aegean, settled westwards instead, bringing them into conflict with New Knossos.
After Keftiu was laid low by a volcanic eruption followed by Achaean invasions, the Keftian population was gradually replaced and absorbed by Achaean settles - however, a small Keftian population does remain on the island. Centuries ago, Keftian sailors established the city of New Knossos on the North African coast, and from there they spread out and founded colonies all over the Western Mesogeian.
With influence from the Knossians and the Pylosians, tribes near Western Mesogeian coasts have formed their own cities and kingdoms. Some are vassals of Pylos or New Knossos, some are small kingdoms fighting among each other, like the Celts and the Sabines, but the most powerful of these kingdoms is the Kingdom of Rasenna: the early Rasna city-states coalesced into a single kingdom, which has since been gaining territory along the peninsula.
