215 BC = 97 SE = 11 AIII
The seleucid army leaves Susa in two columns. The main force, moving north, is led by Antiochos Hypoleptos himself, with his cousin Ktesikles leading the rearguard. The second army, moving east, is led by the king's uncle Euphorion.
By the end of the year Antiochos takes Apameia. Euphorion falls ill, slowing down his progress.
214 BC = 98 SE = 12 AIII
Ktesikles loses his supply train to parthian surprise attacks.
Euphorion recovers and invades Karmania. In Autumn Karmana falls to his troops.
Antiochos Hypoleptos takes Hekatompylos, previously capital of the self styled Parthians.
213 BC = 99 SE = 13 AIII
Antiochos Hypoleptos takes Asaak in the province Astauene.
Ktesikles dies in an ambush in Hyrkania.
Epiktesis, Adeia's daughter, marries. Antiochos sends her and her husband to Homna on the arabian coast.
212 BC = 100 SE = 14 AIII
Antiochos takes Zadrakata.
Euphorion takes Prophtasia.
Antiochos takes Nisa.
211 BC = 101 SE = 15 AIII
Antiochos Hypoleptos takes Khiva and proceeds east through Sogdiane.
Timarchos dies of old age.
Euphorion turns south towards Gedrosia.
210 BC = 102 SE = 16 AIII
Antiochos Hypoleptos takes Chach in the province Kangha, at the edge of Alexandros' empire.
Ptolemaios Eusebes dies. He is succeeded by his son Ptolemaios Epiphanes (PV). Ptolemaios Epiphanes is Adeia's oldest brother.
Euphorion sends Minnio Arianos to besiege Alexandropolis in the province of Arachosia, at the eastern border of Iran.
He himself takes Pura in Gedrosia, near the coast.
Antiochos takes Marakanda in Sogdiane.
209 BC = 103 SE = 17 AIII
Antiochos Hypoleptos liberates Baktra from the Parthians. He summons the self styled Basileus Baktrios and returns Baktria to the fold. Knowing that he will need a strong viceroy to hold the farthest east when he returns to Seleukeia, Antiochos lets him keep his title and betrothes his daughter (and only child yet) Sabit to Arybbas Baktrinos, who follows him to Mesopotamia.
After seven years, the reconquest of the east is completed.
(I threw this together in something like two mintues, I don't remember the actual routes, it's just to give you a general idea)
207 BC = 105 SE = 19 AIII
Agathe, Antiochos' mother, dies.
In Susa, on the Basileus' return west, three estranged companions, Euphorion (60), Xenoitas (61) and Miltidades (61), each having lost at least one son to war, meet with the king. Together, they are the four last known living descendants in the male line of Seleukos Nikator.
206 BC = 106 SE = 20 AIII
Antiochos enters Seleukeia in triumph. He takes the name Megas Antiochos.
Sabit is married to Arybbas Baktrinos.
Euphorion, whose life has seen many turns, having lost his family and after decades of waging war in the east, perhaps his purpose, withers and dies within the year.
Megas Antiochos, disappointed with his wife's failure to give him a son, starts multiple affairs.
204 BC = 108SE = 22 AIII
Miltidades dies.
Megas Antiochos decides to go to war with the Karchedoi, who still haven't given up their designs on the Kyrenaia.
In winter Antiochos meets makedonian envoys in Ephesos, who demand unreasonable rewards for their support in his plans. Antiochos humiliates them for their hybris and departs towards Krete. From there he intends to sail to Sicily and then Africa.
Phila, the result of one of Antiochos' affairs, is born, 25 years after Sabit, his first daughter.
203 BC = 109 SE = 23 AIII
On Krete, Megas Antiochos receives word that the Makedones and their greek vassals, enraged over his treatment of their envoys, have allied themselves with Pergamon, Byzantion and Pontus to turn on him once he has set sail for Sicily.
Without hesitation, Antiochos turns his fleet around and lands on the Peloponessos.
202 BC = 110 SE = 24 AIII
At the beginning of the year, Rhodos, Trapezus and Kydonia declare against Antiochos.
Megas Antiochos occupies Sparte and presses on through Korinthos, Athenai and Demetria, all of which fall in the same year.
201 BC = 111 SE = 25 AIII
Megas Antiochos temporarily occupies Pella.
Agesias, another illegitimate daughter, is born.
Epiktesis' husband dies during riots in Homna.
Ptolemaios Epiphanes learns that his nephew may still be alive. He pledges the aegean alliance his support and sends out his generals to the Levant.
Antiochos takes Thermon in autumn and Ambrakia in winter.
Sabit and Arybbas Baktrinos have a daughter, Antiochos' first grandchild.
200 BC = 112 SE = 26 AIII
Antiochos takes Epidamnos. He receives word of his granddaughter's birth and reconciles with his wife, Harmonia.
The Ptolemaioi occupy Bostra.
199 BC = 113 SE = 27 AIII
Harmonia gives birth to Apelles, Antiochos' first son and heir.
Pella is occupied again.
In winter, Megas Antiochos marches east, along the Aegean's northern coast.
Without seleucid help, long time ally Kyrene finally falls to the Karchedoi.
198 BC = 114 SE = 28 AIII
The Ptolemaioi occupy Damaskos and Palmyra.
In summer, Megas Antiochos crosses the bosporus and reaches Asia Mikra.
In autumn Hierosolyma falls. Antiochos reaches Ephesos.
197 BC = 115 SE = 29 AIII
The Ptolemaioi are at the gates of Antiocheia. Later in the year, Antiochos defeats them in two battles.
Hekatompylos revolts.
Sidon falls to the Ptolemaioi.
196 BC = 116 SE = 30 AIII
Megas Antiochos continues the war in Syria. Over the year a succession of six commanders take over the ptolemaic forces and all in turn are defeated.
195 BC = 117 SE = 31 AIII
In spring, the aegean alliance (Makedonians, Greeks, Pontians and Ptolemies) occupy Sardis. Ptolemaios Syriakos reveals himself as the son of Seleukos Aphobos and claims the throne as Seleukos Eupator (of a good father, SIV), to both honour his father and underline the source of his legitimacy.
Ptolemaios Epiphanes dies. The ptolemaic armies cease their attacks due to internal struggle and the new situation with Karchedoi in the Kyrenaia.
The Parthians discard seleucid hegemony.
194 BC = 118 SE = 32 AIII = 2 SIV
Megas Antiochos marches to Asia Mikra to face the usurper. Apelles stays with his mother in Syria.
Baktria follows the Parthians' example and sheds seleucid dominion.
In summer Megas Antiochos reaches Kappadokia.
(This is the point until which I actually played the campaign. Everything from here was just planned and thus is obviously less detailed.)
Greatly outnumbered, Megas Antiochos is finally defeated in Galatia by alliance forces.
(I was planning to simulate this with screenshots made in custom battles with Makedonians, Greeks, Ptolemies and Pontus.)
Seleukos Eupator marches to Antiocheia. There he releases his allies, whom he greatly rewards for their help in putting him on the throne: Ptolemaios receives the former ptolemaic provinces Ioudaia, Phoinike, Kypros and Syria Koile. Bithynia and Halikarnassos are granted their independence and lower Kappadokia as well as Galatia are returned to Pontos.
Harmonia, Antiochos' widow, turns to her brother, Parkev Yervanduni, the Arkah of Hayasdan, for help. The Hay defeat Seleukos Eupator in Assyria and Harmonia proclaims her underage son Basileus ton Basileon, under the name Orontes Philometor, after Yervand, the founder of her own dynasty.
Seleukos Eupator flees to Seleukeia. At the same time, the king of Baktria proclaims another Basileus ton Basileon, Seleukos Baktrinos (SV). He is a son of Arybbas Baktrinos and Sabit, Megas Antiochos' eldest daughter.
This leaves Antiochos' empire carved up as follows:
Asia Mikra up to the Taurus: divided among the members of the aegean alliance.
Kilikia and Syria: Orontes Philometor.
Mesopotamia, Arabia: Seleukos Eupator.
Iran (as far as not claimed by the Parthians): Seleukos Baktrinos.
In
183 BC Orontes Philometor comes of age. When his uncle Parkev dies and Hayasdan experiences a succession crisis, Orontes sheds the armenian influence on his reign, but he profits from incorporating exiled Hay nobles into his powerbase (resulting in a bigger ratio of cataphracts in the army), after Artaxias establishes himself as the new Arkah. Sophene falls back under Orontes' rule.
Over the next decade Orontes manages to eliminate Seleukos Eupator as a rival and unites Mesopotamia and Syria once again.
The Parthians defeat Seleukos Baktrinos, leaving Orontes the sole claimant.
Around
160 BC Orontes takes back the Levant from the Ptolemaioi, once again.
The Arche seems to stabilize itself, but after the king's sudden death his successor Antiochos Agathos finds himself unable to hold together the realm.
Epilogue
When I first thought about how it would end – this probably was around 2009 or 2010 – I had not yet realized the scope of my undertaking and assumed I would be able to finish in a timely manner.
Back then, I fancied the idea of writing other AARs that could be unofficial sequels and having the epilogue establish a connection. One of those ideas was to have the last Basileus experience the fall of Antiocheia, at the hands of a Tigranes the Great type of figure.
Then, his sister would be married to one of Tigranes' commanders called Bagatades, who has been speculated to be the ancestor of the Bagratuni/Bagrationi dynasties from later Armenia and Georgia (including the famous russian general from napoleonic times), so if I did an AAR set in a later period I could – as an inside joke without saying it – pretend like my characters were descendants from the characters in this one. But since that will never happen, I'm free to just tell you.
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