Kester |
Posted on 10/28/04 @ 12:00 AM (updated 11/14/04)
Mission 20 - The Saracen
In this mission the Human Lord joins forces with Richard Lionheart against three versions of the Caliph: The Scorpion, The Jackal, and The Camel. You begin with 2000 gold, and the computer lords each start with 8000 gold.
This is not a fast game, as you start with a severe monetary disadvantage. Unlike some other skirmishes, building up a good economy and a happy populace will be important in this mission. Begin with placing apple farms on the available land, even before placing the granary, or the computer lords will take the space. If they do, send your spearmen over to destroy their farms. Next place your granary, two quarries and ox tethers, marketplace, barracks, armory and mercenary post.
Enclose your keep by building walls on the edge of the rivers, to block off the enemy. On the side near The Camel, make the wall about 3 tiles deep. On the side near Richard Lionheart, build a gatehouse.
Add an inn, chapels, iron mines, additional quarries (across the river in Lionheart's land), two fletchers (for crossbows), a blacksmith (to make maces), a tanner, dairy farms, wheat farms, mill and bakeries as resources become available to pay for them.
Once your economy is stable, begin building catapults and direct them towards The Camel. At first this mission can seem quite daunting, because all three of the caliphs immediately begin building castles with a lot of towers. However, once their gold is spent, they don't seem to have very good ways of replenishing it. For example, the only caliph with a quarry is The Scorpion. Once you begin knocking down their towers and walls, it becomes fairly easy to attack. Just be sure to have enough forces built up first, as each of the caliphs concentrates all of their own forces right on their keeps. When I attacked The Camel I had about 80 macemen, 30 Arabian swordsmen, and 20 crossbowmen. I had flung several cows prior to the attack, and that helped to kill off some of his forces. Gameplay began in 0 A.D., and The Camel died in February of year 12.
A note on Richard Lionheart: Just as I was conquering The Camel, Lionheart fell to The Jackal. I had given him every assistance he asked for, while he gave me nothing the few times I requested his help. His main purpose in this mission seems to be to occupy the attentions of The Jackal and The Scorpion until you have time to take out The Camel.
After The Camel is gone, build up your forces again, concentrating on macemen and crossbowmen. Again, let catapults do the preliminary work against The Jackal. Set several to attack from where Lionheart's castle used to be. Also send catalpults to the little island in the center to take out the fire ballista that lies between the two enemy castles. Otherwise, your advancing forces will be destroyed by fire when you finally march on The Jackal. When I attacked The Jackal, I had about 100 macemen, 20 Arabian swordsmen, and 20 crossbowmen. He finally fell in May of year 19.
Use the same strategy to take out the final enemy, The Scorpion. Try to get one of the catapults close enough to take out the quarry, or his castle will be rebuilt as soon as you can knock it down. This time, after knocking down all the towers and killing the milling peasants with diseased cows, I sent in about 20 crossbowmen to pick off the forces huddled on the keep. The Scorpion's army was down to about 40 when I attacked with my 80 or so macemen, and 20 Arabian swordsmen. The Scorpion finally died in January of year 28.
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