Armored Horse

At the height of her power, Parthia controlled all lands between the Euphrates river and China's western border. In contrast to empires of ages past, Parthia allows its vassal kingdoms to continue to function as they always have with little to no oversight. These vassal monarchs even maintain their titles. Thus, rulers like King Mithridates of Babylon and King Mehradates of Nineveh continue to sit on the throne so long as they pledge fealty to Parthia. This policy has led to some political trouble, as Nimrud is currently held by a group of mercenaries pretending to be politicians, and the throne of Teredon has been empty for decades. Because of Parthia's hands-off approach, many of these kingdoms are left wondering who is really in control.

Because of her relationship with her vassal kingdoms, the empire of Parthia is ruled by a monarch who calls himself the "King of Kings." The current king of kings is Artabanus II (Noble), who rules from a majestic palace along the Silk road far to the east of Nimrud. Although the throne of the king of kings is distant, the presence of the Parthian empire is felt in most vassal kingdoms. The impressive armored cavalrymen known as cataphracts are known to patrol in great numbers in major cities east of the Euphrates.

Parthia is currently locked in a bitter standoff with another distant empire to the west: Rome. With both Rome and Parthia desiring full control of the Middle Kingdoms, the question is not if the conflict will escalate to full frontal warfare, but when.

Swift and deadly. These mounted combatants are both accomplished riders as well as deadly accurate archers. Riding their heavily armored Arabian Horses into battle, the Parthian cavalrymen had no trouble flanking and outmaneuvering the marching tides of Roman Legionaries. While the cataphracts did not have the same organization and discipline as the Roman legion, they made up for it by staying out of range of Roman spears, and firing arrows while traveling back and forth on the battlefield at high speeds.

Did You Know? The Cataphract's ability to turn and fire backwards in the saddle while galloping away became famously known as the "Parthian shot" in ancient times. The pronunciation and meaning of this phrase changed over time, and has today become "parting shot:" a hurtful and pointed comment that someone makes before they walk away.

Medium humanoid on a large mount

Armor Class 18

Hit Points 12

Speed 60 ft.

STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
14 (+2)	12 (+1)	12 (+1)	4 (-3)	10 (+0)	6 (-2)

Senses Passive Perception 10

Challenge 1/4 (50 XP)

Bible5e custom monster. Its specific traits supplement the current rules. See Using Bible5e Monsters.