u/Expensive-Neck-5826

Saw a few posts and threads a couple of days back on how hard ardabil was and decided to make a video on it on YouTube to help people. I followed this specific guide 3 times and I was able to form Persia 3 times without savescuming. For those who prefer text guides I will type out the strategy here: Ardabil starts as a one province nation and it’s considered a very hard start but it doesn’t have to be. Wait for a month to pass and declare on biapas or shirvan immediately, ideally before they get allies. Usually shirvan is allied to ajam so biapas more often than not is gonna be your first target. Take loans and merc up over your force limit otherwise qq will declare on you immediately. Improve relations with bahmanis (+100) and royal marry them so that you can ally them. Even though you’re so far apart they will serve as an excellent defensive ally which is exactly what you need. Once you annex biapas and get bahmanis as an ally you can get rid of your mercs and pay back the loans. Don’t forget the loans you can take from the estates too. The estate setup is shown in the video if you want to follow that setup. After this you should be in a spot where you wouldn’t get declared on by anyone. Now you need to play the waiting game and wait for the ajam and timurid war to take place. Usually ajam comes out on top. Keep an eye on qq,ajam,gilian,shirvan or mazandran. If you see someone is super weak without allies attack them. Once you’ve blobbed a little bit your economy should be looking good as Persia is a very rich region. Don’t lack on tech. Spawn the renaissance asap and get your mil tech up. It’s also ok to merc up over force limit for a long war with qq or ajam if they’re weakened which is what I did in the video. Once you’re done with a few wars you should be in a decent spot to conquer the cores needed to form Persia. No luck needed with this strategy. Good luck! And if you have any questions you can hit me up here or in the comments of the video. Thanks!