Sorry about the delay in getting this one up. Had a horrendously busy weekend. Anyway, enjoy!

This looks tough and one haven't played in the past. I am actually planning to get to grips with quite a few of your challenges this week-end Sparrow.

I'll let you know how badly I get on

[This message has been edited by NAT (edited 03-01-2006 @ 05:35 PM).]

Hoping to see some successful reports, NAT.

Tried downloading the scenario, but Stronghold crashes as soon as I try to open it. Same thing happened with the previous challenge.

Wonder if it's because I'm using a Mac...

Have you played other downloaded maps?
Very many?
Very many old ones?

I've downloaded quite a few maps over the years, yes.

I seem to recall occationally having problems with a map not opening, but that's quite rare, most of the maps I've tried have worked fine...

If you look up my email address and send me yours (I wouldn't recommend posting it here) I could send you a resave of the map.

I can't guarantee that it'll make any difference but I have found while creating mini maps from some of the files in the download section that a few will fail to make a mini map when run through the PNGer utility, or will make only half the map. Opening these up in the editor and resaving usually allows me to then create the mini map. So obviously the resaving is changing something in the file. Perhaps these maps were created in earlier versions to 1.2, I don't know.

It just might help. Let me know.

Sparrow,
I'm not a LOTR fan and therefore was about to pass completely on this map. However, after reading your write up I must give it a go right away. I like the look of the map and it sounds very challenging.

Glad you're in on this one and hope to see you posting a victory soon.

Played at Very Hard level, scores as follows ...

Playing Level = 15000
Troops Lost 19% = 8100
Score = 23100

I tried to play this one in a conventional manner a couple of times and got my butt well and truly kicked for my troubles. Both times I attempted to rebuild the castle more or less as it was and once the invasions started they just tore me to pieces. So I decided what I needed was a rather more radical approach.

At the start of the game I immediately moved my stockpile and built my entire economy separate from the keep, protected by a thin wooden wall. (As most players probably know by now, by doing this the attacking AI will invariably leave the spearate enclosure alone and concentrate solely on the players keep and it's defences). All the existing stone from the ruins was salvaged and used to fortify my keep, turning it into a 'super-keep'.

The first couple of invasions caused a bit of panic and I lost towers on both occasions, but once my economy was thriving and producing ample weapons I gained the upper hand and the subsequent invasions became less and less of a threat.
From the third invasion onwards I was confident of a win, it was just a question of balancing my economy, recruiting troops and repairing the 'super-keep' whenever I could.

I realize this approach is taking advantage of an AI weakness to a certain extent but I hope it's acceptable for your challenge Sparrow.
The scenario still provided one of the best prolonged invasions I've faced and was most enjoyable.

[This message has been edited by brave sir robyn (edited 03-22-2006 @ 11:03 AM).]

I don't know that there's any other way to do it. My approach was very similar with an even smaller castle than yours. Did you fence in food production as well? I left mine open but fortified the granary. I fenced my weapons production and stockpile.

Ah, I just examined your mini map. I see your wooden wall now. I actually put my stockpile and weapons workshops on the plateau near the edge southwest of the keep. They pretty much left it alone. But they went after my unprotected farms and the granary.

Glad you made it through. Congratulations. I've put you up on the honour roll.

Hi Sparrow,

playing level = 15,000
troops lost 11% = 8,900
score = 23,900

I still can't figure out how to add my images, so I'll try to be descriptive.

I was kinda disappointed to open up the map and find no moat. I already had a strat in mind. Oh well, on to plan B. Even more disappointing was no wheat. I love wheat and knowing I would need a large economy things werent looking very promising.

After a few trial runs with little success esatblishing an economy, I decided to move the granary down to the arable land. This helped a great deal. With a few bad things I was able to supply double rations and set my tax between 6 and 8.

However, no matter what I tried I still couldn't produce enough x-bows fast enough. Once the attacks began my supply of leather was cut off. I also couldn't produce enough pitch to make archers a viable option. I decided I would need to move the stockpile as well.

I started off by deleting the granary and the stockpile as fast as i could. I lost about 1/3 of my rations and 1/4 of my wood. Next I deleted all existing structures except the dairy farm, barracks and stable. I placed the stockp[ile 2 tiles north of the stockade in the south. Then I built a dairy farm north and caddy corner to the existing one and placed another just to the left of it. I placed my granary one tile to the left of that. I placed 2 tanners one tile south of the dairy farms, an armory 1 tile south of that, a fletcher 1 tile south of that and another fletcher one tile south of that.This brought me within one tile of the stockpile. Next I placed a quarry. While I waited for these buildings to be occupied I went about deleting the 2 wooden stockades and most of the castle, i got rid of the 2 useless trebs and the shields (I rarely use shields) and brought the lone knight in the east up to the keep.

By this time my buildings were functioning. I placed about 15 woodcutters and slowly added a dozen or so apple orchards, 6 hunters, 3 more dairy farms, 5 pitch rigs, 3 oxen, 4 more tanners, 8 more fletchers (set to x-bow) and one pole turner (I learned the hardway I would need spearmen on the walls). I built a stockade around this entire area, including the swamp.

I had a population of 70, which I cut back to 54 when the attacks started. I placed enough bad things near the keep to give me a 20% increase in production, set my granary for extra rations and a tax of 6. When I had about 10 bows I switched the 2 original fletchers over to x-bows as well.

I recruited my 4 knights and deleted the stable. I would not be producing any armoured units so it wasn't needed. Hopefully my knights could survive past the first siege this time.

The only thing that remained of the existing castle was the south wall and gatehouse. I built off of this back to the keep and around the barracks. I built a crenalated wall 3 tiles thick and placed 2 perimeter turretts inside the walls. I lined the outside of the walls with pitch ( I had around 40 pitch in stock by now). The only structures in the keep area were the barracks, market, hovels and bad things.

The second attack was the worst. Along with your guidlines (most of which I agree with) I have a few of my own. One of them is, I never repair walls, towers, gates while under siege. This was a slow process and I feel you should not be able to do it during a siege. Maybe throw up some wood replacements, but not masonry repairs. Unfortunately I had to do it twice the this siege. I'm fairly certain I would have been overrun if I hadn't and after 30 or so tries I just wanted the win. I will probably go back and try this map again though for that reason.

I had my knights sally forth to take out siege tents and they survived quite a long time. I still had 2 left for the final siege.

By the final siege I pretty much just sat back and watched. I had an army of about 200. Around 175 x-bows lined my walls and filled my towers. 15 or so archers scattered about near braziers.

This was one tough map. I really enjoyed it.

Regards,

Lord Blok

Great going, Lord Blok. And nice write up. I've marked you off on this one in the honour roll.

You can count me in, Sparrow

This map is a great map to play.

I located the stockpile away right from the beginning and set my economy around it, building a wooden wall surrounding it. I got rid of all the buildings already built and of the stone to build a wall around the keep.

Once this was done, the main worry was to produce many weapons fast. I ran for the crossbowmen, and although I had to face some damage, the enemy never made it inside the castle, except on the first invasion, they destroyed the gate. I guess I handled it like the others did, anyway there are no so many ways with this map.

Great going, Duc de Noisiel. Yet another one under your belt. Glad to see it. I've marked the honour roll for this one under your name.

Hey, Dexter.

What, Martin.

I think that fool monk has gone and got us lost again.

Not such a bad thing, Martin, when you think about where he's taking us.

True, true. It's just my Mary was going to cook me up a pork roast for Sunday dinner.

She's not a cannibal is she Martin.

A what!?! What do you mean by that.

Oh, nothing. Forget about it. Why don't you go ask the monk where we are.

I'm not asking him nothing, Dexter. Besides where has he even got himself off to.

Not sure. Off meditating or flagellating. Whatever monks do. Maybe he's got himself lost and we can go home.
I wasn't too keen on helping this fancy lad Ironfist fight that brutal bastard Wolf in the first place.

I heard he's a pedarast.

What?

Huh?

Who? Which one.

Which one what. Hold on, Dex. I think I see some fellas up by that signpost. I'll give them a try.

Martin, hold up there. Martin!

Hey you. You lot in the tunics with the black hand sewn on 'em.

What do you want?

Well, we're some outlaws from the woods. We've come to aid the castle in their defense against the Wolf and his Band of the Black Hand. And we were in need of some directions.....

You are worm food.

Such was the fate of most of my reinforcements. However, it was not a problem. I was able to produce and train more than enough here. I just built a strong and tough defense similar to some others I see here. I thought I would try to get fancy and build something original, but after a couple of hours of playing around I went for a standard defense.

One thing I did was go pure archer and no crossbow. I used about 8 fletchers plus I cut the cheese. From being used in the granary that is and then sold it. That and double rations and a -8 tax gave me the money to build constantly. Around 450 to 500 by the end. I used some pitch in support. I used some knights to rally out and assault their engineers when I could. That's it. It was a slugfest, but not one in which I was threatened. I just made sure I had a good amount of archers by the first battle and constantly added as quickly as possible from there.
I walled off my prodution to protect it. It would have probably been taken out otherwise. I wish I could have found a more original way, but it seems that is what the map is. A grinder.

Finished on VERY HARD.

After getting my tail kicked severely trying to rebuild the original castle (that might work on normal-who knows), I built my castle similarly to the others who have finished.

I moved my stockpile near the pitch swamp, then built several fletchers north of the stockpile, armoury and leather armours north of that. I placed my granery near this as well and put a ton of farms all around it. I walled the whole production area off.

I did not use any towers in my castle, but built 5-6 tile thick walls with wooden walls around it. With killing pits and pitch, not many made it to the walls after the first 3 invasions. I had about 85 crossbowmen at the end.

ALSO, I used one of my favorite weapons, engineers hurling dead cows at the enemy! Lots of FUN!

One of the easier of these challenges for me (after getting stomped several times), but have to play very differently than normal.

Fun map for me. These are the kind I love to play. THANKS.