Hyrkanians

The Hyrkanians are a barbarian race that occupied Hyrkania.

History
The Hyrkanian civilization descends from the Lemurian survivors of the Cataclysm. Enslaved at first by a people in the east of the Thurian continent, they rose against their oppressors. Wandering among the ruins of the former civilization, they evolved their own strange semi-civilization and pushed their way westward.

East of the Vilayet they encountered and conquered a curious race of intelligent aborigines, among the mountains, and merged with them.

Around 3000 years after the Cataclysm the Hyrkanians enter history, when one of their tribes established the kingdom of Turan. Toward the latter part of the period, northern Hyrkanian clans push around the northern extremity of the inland sea, and clash with the eastern outposts of the Hyperboreans.

Reinforced by adventurers from east of Vilayet, riders from Turan swept over Zamora, devastated eastern Corinthia and reached Brythunia, where they were stopped by the Aquilonian armies. The Hyrkanians repeated with 3 more invasions upon the Zamorian borders, and the Lands of Shem with larger armies, but they were hurled back by the Aquilonians.

Hyrkanian empire
During the war that destroyed the Aquilonian empire, Aquilonian legions were recalled from Zamora to fight the Picts. This was an incitement for the riders of Turan to renew their assault. Zamora was subjugated and soon the Hyrkanian king established his capital in its largest city. Soon after, a more savage Hyrkanian thrust by steel-clad riders came from the north. They drove the aborigines from the steppes before reaching the western kingdoms, and skirmished with the Hyborians as with their Turanian cousins. These were followed by new drifts of eastern warriors who bickered and fought. Then a great chief came riding from the eastern shores of the continent, who united all of them.

During and after the fall of Aquilonia, the Hyrkanians were invincible under their great chief. They swept over and subjugated Brythunia, and devastated southern Hyperborea, and Corinthia, and drove the Cimmerians before them until the hills of Cimmeria stopped their cavalry.

The Hyrkanians conquered the Kingdoms of Shem, defeated a Stygian army and over-run the country and brought many captives from Amazon and settled them with the Shemites. They also captured Zingarans as they fled the Pictish slaughter and settled them in Zamora, and clashed with the Picts in Ophir. It was because of the Pictish thrusts on their western conquests that they couldn't afford conquering all Stygia.

The new Hyrkanian empire stretched from the ravaged lines of Hyperborea to the north, to the deserts south of the lands of Shem, including its eastern lands, Zamora, Brythunia, the Border Kingdom and Corinthia. They conquered most of Koth, which was a contested battleground with the Pictish empire, which occupied its western part. While they snarled at the Picts over the ruins of the former Hyborian world, Cimmeria, Nordheim and Nemedia, aided by Æsir (Aesir) mercenaries remained unconquered by both invading forces.

Fall
Then the glacier age came and the Nordic drift. The Æsir, who always swept over Hyperborea, now invaded the formed kingdom and blotted it out; across its ruins they clashed with the Hyrkanians. They assailed them so savagely that they retreated back toward Vilayet.

A Hyrkanian army was defeated by the Cimmerians on the borders of Brythunia fleeing the Nordics. These were followed by a band of Æsir who drove the Hyrkanians out and occupied the former kingdom. Meanwhile Nordics from Nemedia assisted Koth and the lands of Shem drive off the Hyrkanian yoke. The Cimmerians, during their irresistible wandering southeastward, destroyed Turan.

The Hyrkanians destroyed all their cities and fled, and after butchering those captives not fit to make the march, rode back into the east, skirting the northern edge of Vilayet, herding thousands of slaves before them, Zamorians and Zingarans.

Millennia later they would ride out of the east again, as Huns, Mongols, Tatars and Turks. Some mixed with Shemites who were not taken with the conquerors in their retreat, and became the ancient Sumerians. Some mixed with clans of Cimmerians who adventured east of the drying inland sea, and returned westward as Scythians.

Population and culture
The Hyrkanians are dark and generally tall and slender, though the admixture with the stunted aborigines of the mountains contributed to a more and more common squat slant-eyed type.

Their territories are occupied by scattered non-Hyrkanian pastoral tribes, who are Shemitish in the south. Wandering Hyborian conquerors contributed the aboriginals with thin strain of their blood. Captured Hyrkanian women by Hyperborea contributed to alien blood in the veins of that kingdom.

They practice archery. Riders wear steel, silk and gold.

Hyrkanian women wear veils. Even commoners and slaves wear silk.

Characters from Hyrkania

 * Subotai
 * Red Sonja