The Sasanian heavily armored cavalry unit was called the Savaran. Savaran is an accepted spelling of Aswaran, the elite cavalry arm that formed the backbone of the Sasanian army.
The cavalry was largely drawn from the aristocracy and, in some cases, the imperial family. Riders could wear mail, scale armor, helmets, and protective equipment for their horses. They fought with lances, swords, bows, maces, and other weapons, combining shock charges with mounted archery.
Savaran was a broad cavalry force rather than the name of one narrowly defined regiment. Some of its troops were cataphract-style heavy cavalry, while others served as mounted archers or lighter cavalry. That distinction explains a common mix-up: “cataphract” describes a heavily armored cavalry type, whereas Savaran identifies the Sasanian cavalry institution.
The corps influenced neighboring armies, including Rome and Byzantium. After the Sasanian defeat during the Muslim conquest of Persia, elements of this military tradition survived in later Persian, Caucasian, Arab, and Indian cavalry cultures.