Artabanus was a son of Hystaspes, and therefore brother of Darius I as well as uncle of Xerxes I. Artabanus had a reputation for great wisdom. Artabanus is known to have advised his brother Darius I against the Achaemenid campaign against the Scythians, saying that the Scythians were "impossible to deal with", but he wasn't heard, and the invasion proceeded, but was ultimately unsuccessful as Artabanus had predicted. According to Herodotus, Artabanus saw a ghost enjoining him to allow the invasion of Greece, which decided both him and Xerxes to launch the invasion without delay.