Questions about Historical Fiction with fantasy elements

An idea popped in my head yesterday for my first novel. I am well versed in the time period and I think I can make vivid characters/ plot / setting with the help of a few fantasy elements. It's a very exciting time for me as I have been mulling over many ideas in my head for the last few months figuring out what I want to commit my time to. I believe this is it.

I want to get some feedback on the time period/ setting and if you've heard of something similar before. From my own research I didn't find anything, but maybe you have. I want to keep the subject discrete for now, so if you are interested in helping, shoot me a pm and I can give you a short 2 sentence summary of what I'm trying to go for. If I find out it's a more common/talked about time period, I'll just talk about it in the open, but for now hush hush .

Second, what are your opinions on minor fantasy elements in historical fiction (e.g. Song of Fire and Ice)? I think Martin's series has really influenced me, because I think my story is going to be structured very similarly (switching character perspective) and including some supernatural elements. In the same vein as Martin, I think I'm going to create a land similar to what we have here on earth, but slightly different which allows me some freedom from dates, names, and events.

Essentially, I want to tell the story of a time period, but with different names, landmarks, cultures etc, as well as some minor magical elements. Basically following the Sword of Fire and Ice formula to a T. I'm just wondering if this is popular in the historical fiction/fantasy market, if its overplayed etc.

I know I should just write the story and deal with that stuff later, but it's just some info thats been really nagging at me lately. Any help you can provide would be very much appreciated.

Edit:

Ok, what I'm doing is a retelling of world history around 340-250 BC. This is the time of Alexander the Great. What many westerners don't know is that at the same time, China was in this long period of civil war. At this point in history, China was probably the most advanced civilization in the world. They had iron weapons, armies of 600 thousand or more, repeating crossbows, advanced bureaucracy/legal system (conscription, census, taxation), and some of the greatest generals ever known (Sun Tzu is a biggie).

I'm writing about what would have happened if Alexander, rather than dying in India from a wound dealt by what was probably a commoner, had survived and conquered Europe and set his eyes east to sea, and the vast empire of China. I think the story as its coming along is really playing off of the tensions between East and West, and one of my goals is to highlight the benefits of both schools of thought (the aggressive head on tactics of Alexander and the cunning, patient tactics of China really exemplify their different cultures).

So, now that it's out there...have you heard of any similar novels, stories, etc? Anything from that time period that I should take a look at? The fantasy would come into play because as I see it, Alexander needs something to even the score because a battle against 1 to 6 numbered, technologically and geographically advantaged, and at best equally accomplished generals is a fight that even Alexander would lose.

Ok, what I'm doing is a retelling of world history around 340-250 BC. This is the time of Alexander the Great. What many westerners don't know is that at the same time, China was in this long period of civil war. At this point in history, China was probably the most advanced civilization in the world. They had iron weapons, armies of 600 thousand or more, repeating crossbows, advanced bureaucracy/legal system (conscription, census, taxation), and some of the greatest generals ever known (Sun Tzu is a biggie).

I'm writing about what would have happened if Alexander, rather than dying in India from a wound dealt by what was probably a commoner, had survived and conquered Europe and set his eyes east to sea, and the vast empire of China. I think the story as its coming along is really playing off of the tensions between East and West, and one of my goals is to highlight the benefits of both schools of thought (the aggressive head on tactics of Alexander and the cunning, patient tactics of China really exemplify their different cultures).

So, now that it's out there...have you heard of any similar novels, stories, etc? Anything from that time period that I should take a look at? The fantasy would come into play because as I see it, Alexander needs something to even the score because a battle against 1 to 6 numbered, technologically and geographically advantaged, and at best equally accomplished generals is a fight that even Alexander would lose.

"where are you getting your sources that the Chinese had multiple armies of 600,000 people in 300 BC"

Like in any ancient text, as you mentioned, there is definitely exaggeration. But if you look at the Records of the Grand Historian you can read the biography of Bai Qi who fought in the battle of Chanping where he slaughtered 400,000 soldiers and fielded an army of 500,000 himself. Although, like you said, western historians used large numbers that no one really understood, the Chinese had a very developed bureaucratic system that allowed for census and taxes. This at the least suggests more historical accuracy than the hyperbole seen in Plutarch and Herodotus.

But I'll admit the numbers do look a bit super crazy. At first I thought that I would have to infuse magic to give Alexander an edge, but I realized that Chandragupta Mayur would have been alive exactly at the same time, and he fielded an army of maybe 350 thousand indians, along with maybe 6000 war elephants. This along with Alexander's army would create a sizeable force that would offer a threat to China. It's really a very exciting time for me

I mispoke about Alexander, I know he died in Persia, but he received a wound in India that many believe led to his death (thereby me saying that he "died by a commoner").

Re: The phalanx. That's where some of this east vs. west culture thing really shines. The phalanx is like this glimmering beacon of that "western" bravado that really makes me want to tell this story. The phalanx is this impenetrable wall of death, like a moving meat grinder, right? They line up, then basically mow their enemies down. The hardier and more disciplined the men, the more effective it was. But it was nowhere near invincible. The phalanx lacked lateral mobility and was very very weak at the sides. This was exploited by Alexander himself who would equip his soldiers with longer sarissas to keep the opposing army at length then he would just rush his cavalry in from the sides and flank them to death.

Interestingly enough, I see Alexander's defeat of the phalanx as a very "eastern" way of thinking--"lateral thinking", quite literally. Sun Tzu would be alive at this time (maybe they should meet!) and the difference in military strategy would be like night and day. The Greeks never encountered Chinese military strategy which utilized tactics such as starvation, tactical retreat, guerilla warfare, espionage, and even chemical warfare.

The chukonu was also a major major advantage when it comes to the Chinese armies. The chukonu was this crossbow that was very easy to operate and was able to shoot maybe 10 bolts a minute or so. It was so easy to use that even a peasant could use. Combine that with conscription and you have the sky turning black with arrows. The campaign into India by Alexander would exemplify the difficulty of even Alexander to deal with these "dishonorable" tactics. This is why I really want to write this story...it has all these great themes: the power of assimilation, honor vs cunning, aggressiveness vs. patience...and that's just at the macro level.

Honestly, I think a lot of the potential in this story is the characters, rather than the big sprawling lord of the rings style battles. The potential for fleshing out legends such as Alexander, Chandragupta, Bai Qi, Sun Tzu and the possibility for them to interact is just...it's exciting.

I think a big decision for me right now is whether or not to keep the real names and places or create my own alternate world not too different from our own (GRRM's Westeros is basically England'ish). I'm leaning towards keeping the real names/places, but there are some really kinda "out there things" I want to include such as : The Tower of Babel, Shangrila/Simbala, perhaps some legends that may or may not be factual. What I'm scared of is the fantasy elements weakening the suspension of disbelief. I want the reader to feel that this could have happened if different decisions were made, but at the same time I'm thinking "since we're in the realm of what if's, why not jazz it up with some supernatural goodies?". Any thoughts?

So, i've jumped feet first into getting this thing fleshed out, and its looking like it will be Greece and China. The characters are essentially legends anyway, the historical sources being limited to one or two accounts. This means I have a lot of freedom with personality, and I can take some artistic liberties with the specifics. I tried to see if the story works without fantasy...but the plot is just speaking to me. Trying not to fall into the soap opera twists (evil wizards, twins, clones) but I'm writing some pretty "out there" elements. I'm just going to take everyones advice and just get the story down, ask questions later.