Units
Here's an overview of the units specific to Stronghold:Crusader
as written up by Ztolk.
You can find the other units here
With special thanks to Jeru and Ztolk who liberated the images.
— Jayhawk
Arab Bow
More powerful than his European counterpart, while
maintaining the same speed, rate of fire, and range, this archer
is great for defending your walls and towers. They work in the
exact same way as the European archer, but are stronger and do
not require any weapons to manufacture. A few towers full of
these guys will send a powerful army to their sandy grave.
Cost: 75 gold
Slave
These shirtless torchbearers make that pathetic
spearman from the original Stronghold look like Superman. They
are the weakest unit in the game. Practically useless for
fighting, their strength is used inside the enemy town. Each one
of these little guys can set a building on fire. Make enough of
them, and your enemies entire castle turns to ash. They do have
the nasty habit of setting themselves on fire, so make sure you
have a lot of them. These are also the only arab unit that can
dig a moat.
Cost: 5 gold
Slinger
Similar to the slave, these guys can barely fight.
They throw a small rock out of a sling towards the enemy.
Although it worked for King David, they barely do any damage in
Crusader. If massed, they are best used for protecting other
units, taking out your enemy's civilians, and manning walls,
towers, and gates.
Cost: 12 gold
Assassin
Assassins are the most unusual unit in the game.
They are like a combination of ladderman and pikeman. They walk
to the enemy's wall under cover of darkness, throw their
grappling hook onto the ledge, and climb up. Once on top, they
can walk on top of gates to open them for your ground troops.
They are also fairly resistant to archer fire and have a nasty
sword in their sheath which will make quick work of the defending
archers. Best of all, or worst of all if your enemy uses them,
they can not be seen until they attack, which is often too
late.
Cost: 60 gold
Horse Archer
These speedy bowman are tied with knights as the
fastest unit in the game, and are great for many uses. They can
shoot while moving, so are great for patrolling an area. Their
quick rate of fire quickly eliminates lightly or unarmoured
enemies, and in large numbers, it's almost impossible to even get
near these guys.
Cost: 60 Gold
Arab Swordsman
Sacrificing strength for the speed advantage over
the European Swordsman, the Arab Swordsman is the melee force of
the arab and mercenary armies. Only swordsman, knights, and the
Lord are stronger, and large numbers of these will tear through
wall and flesh alike in order to vanquish the enemy and their
lord.
Cost: 80 Gold
Fire Thrower
Another odd unit, the fire thrower does what it
says, throws balls of fire at enemy buildings and units. They are
great for taking out enemy towns, with the ability to set them
ablaze in seconds. They also do serious damage on the
battlefield, and can turn many a unit into a burning corpse
before being taken down. Be wary when defending your walls with
them, however, because if the enemy breaches them, the fire
throwers will continue raining flames upon their own
castle.
Cost: 100 gold
Fire Ballista
The giant bow that saved your castle so many times
in Stronghold is now available in a portable form. Once
assembled, the fire ballista can move anywhere on the ground, and
when in near enemy buildings, it can send blazing bolts into
them, lighting them on fire. They are also good for defending the
home front or battlefield. Players have lost entire armies of
mighty swordsman trying to reach the ballistae that were tearing
them apart.
Cost: 150 gold, 2 engineers
Monk
Trained at the Cathedral, these slow moving clergymen pack a
decent punch and can take more arrows than their Stronghold
counterpart. Probably too slow for attacking, you can use them as
a cheap source of castle defense.
Cost: 10 gold
* denotes a former staff member.