I hate to say it because I love classics but you are beating a fossilized dinosaur.

I mean that literally, nobody has any perception at all about Persian, Greek or well any type of force other then the Romans (who of course are all powerful, cruel beyond belief, evil and always in their trademark Lorica Segmentata). Sorry to ruin that part of the thread but our field here is one in need of popularity, I wish there was some type of popular conception of Greece vs Persia.

That said I wouldn't go too far in the direction you are. Persians had training in three things, riding, archery, and telling the truth (Herodotus), and their cavalry usually proved decisive in battles outside of Greece. It is not a coincidence that the Athenians at Marathan feared facing Persian Cavalry more than Persian Infantry who had already landed in force so forced a battle on the shore, nor is it a coincidence that the Spartans chose fields that could reduce the impact of cavalry. Greeks minimized the Persians greatest weapon and won as a result

The Persians themselves didn't consider their infantry equal to the Greeks and hired Greek Hoplite Mercenaries century after century. Alexander the Great was extremely brutal towards captured Hoplites and never at any point gave them any of the mercy he usually gave captured enemies.

I also wouldn't go to far into Persian Bribery, Themisticles had no choice in going to Persia, he was exiled, accepting Themisticles was I think an example of Xerxes being a good ruler not an example of bribery.

p.s. somebody had to take the conservative position in this thread.