Stronghold: Crusader is the successor to Firefly Studios

Firefly Studios

Firefly Studios is a computer game developer that has offices in London, England and Canton, Connecticut, with a QA department in Aberdeen, Scotland. The Company was formed in August 1999 by Simon Bradbury, Eric Ouellette and David Lester who had worked together on numerous titles such as the...

's 2001 game Stronghold. Crusader has much in common with the original Stronghold, but differs from its predecessor in the fact that the game is no longer set in a pseudo-Europe

Europe

Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

, instead being set in the Middle East

Middle East

The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...

 during the Crusades

Crusades

The Crusades were a series of religious wars, blessed by the Pope and the Catholic Church with the main goal of restoring Christian access to the holy places in and near Jerusalem...

. The game features several new Arabian units that can be purchased in a new building, the mercenary post. Though the Arabian troops do not require any resources to produce, they are rather expensive. The game was also released as Stronghold Warchest. This version was a compendium of Stronghold and an enhanced version of Stronghold: Crusader, containing additional characters and an additional Crusader Trail.

Stronghold Warchest was only released in North America, meaning players in the rest of the world have never encountered the second Crusader Trail, or second set of characters. This changed when an updated version of Stronghold Crusader, Stronghold: Crusader Extreme

Stronghold: Crusader Extreme

-Reception:The game's new features for the original Stronghold Crusader, including new characters, campaigns, and other features, were generally well-received by the public, but game critics criticized the game for difficulty, lack of new audio, and not having graphical quality up to par for a game...

 was released in early 2008.

Campaigns

Stronghold Crusader features several real-time strategy

Real-time strategy

Real-time strategy is a sub-genre of strategy video game which does not progress incrementally in turns. Brett Sperry is credited with coining the term to market Dune II....

 campaign strings. These document the First

First Crusade

The First Crusade was a military expedition by Western Christianity to regain the Holy Lands taken in the Muslim conquest of the Levant, ultimately resulting in the recapture of Jerusalem...

, Second

Second Crusade

The Second Crusade was the second major crusade launched from Europe. The Second Crusade was started in response to the fall of the County of Edessa the previous year to the forces of Zengi. The county had been founded during the First Crusade by Baldwin of Boulogne in 1098...

 and Third Crusade

Third Crusade

The Third Crusade , also known as the Kings' Crusade, was an attempt by European leaders to reconquer the Holy Land from Saladin...

, as well as conflicts within the individual Crusader states

Crusader states

The Crusader states were a number of mostly 12th- and 13th-century feudal states created by Western European crusaders in Asia Minor, Greece and the Holy Land , and during the Northern Crusades in the eastern Baltic area...

. Each campaign comprises several battles, such as Nicea

Iznik

İznik is a city in Turkey which is primarily known as the site of the First and Second Councils of Nicaea, the first and seventh Ecumenical councils in the early history of the Church, the Nicene Creed, and as the capital city of the Empire of Nicaea...

, Heraclea

Heraclea

-Ancient cities:* Heraclea Cybistra, Konya Province, Turkey* Heracleia by Latmus, near Lake Bafa, Turkey* Heraclea Lucania, Lucanian district of southern Italy...

, siege of Antioch

Siege of Antioch

The Siege of Antioch took place during the First Crusade in 1097 and 1098. The first siege, by the crusaders against the Muslim city, lasted from October 21, 1097, to June 2, 1098. The second siege, against the crusaders who had occupied it, lasted from June 7 to June 28, 1098.-Background:Antioch...

, Krak des Chevaliers

Krak des Chevaliers

Krak des Chevaliers , also Crac des Chevaliers, is a Crusader castle in Syria and one of the most important preserved medieval castles in the world. The site was first inhabited in the 11th century by a settlement of Kurds; as a result it was known as Hisn al Akrad, meaning the "Castle of the...

 and the Siege of Jerusalem

Siege of Jerusalem (1099)

The Siege of Jerusalem took place from June 7 to July 15, 1099 during the First Crusade. The Crusaders stormed and captured the city from Fatimid Egypt.-Background:...

. The game also features the Crusader Trail, a series of 50 linked missions against various opponents. Stronghold Warchest adds one more Crusader Trail, consisting of 30 linked missions.

Gameplay

The gameplay is similar to the original Stronghold, the major difference being that the game is set in the Middle East

Middle East

The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...

. As a consequence, farms can only be built on oasis

Oasis

In geography, an oasis or cienega is an isolated area of vegetation in a desert, typically surrounding a spring or similar water source...

 grass, which leads to rivalry among players for limited farmland and resources. The game adds new AI opponents (the number depending on the version of the game) and several new Arabian units purchasable from a mercenary post. The colour of the player's units have also been changed from blue to red in order to match the colours of the Knights Templar

Knights Templar

The Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon , commonly known as the Knights Templar, the Order of the Temple or simply as Templars, were among the most famous of the Western Christian military orders...

.

Characters

The game contains several different characters, available to be selected as allies and enemies. The opponents from the original game make a return, as well as new Arabian lords and crusaders being available.

• The Rat (Duc de Puce): The Rat was raised as an only child in lands belonging to the de Puce family. The duke showed his mother favour ensuring that she never paid taxes and always had enough to get by. One day a messenger came by and it was revealed that his father was the same Duc de Puce whom his mother had once worked for as a serving wench. Due to an unfortunate accident the entire de Puce family had been lost at sea whilst returning from holiday leaving the Rat as next in line to inherit the title of Duke. As an attacking opponent,the Rat is the weakest opponent, attacking only with poorly armoured spearmen with no siege weapons and only a few archers. Defensively, the Rat is the second easiest castle to besiege after the Sultan's castle. The Rat's economy tends to be relatively stable and reliable, certainly more so than the non-farming Sultan.

• The Snake (Duc Beauregard): The Snake was once governor of some of the richest provinces in the homeland where he made an extremely fruitful living from underdeclaring the taxes he collected but, when the king found out, he had him posted here to the 'new colonies'. During one of his first military encounters, he went up against the Lord’s father losing an eye to him in combat. On that day the Snake swore he would not rest until the decapitated heads of your entire family were lined up on spikes outside his keep. The Snake's attacking forces are easy to kill off if a castle has adequate missile troops but the archers can prove a nuisance in the large numbers which are deployed by him. The slave raids outside of the main attacks, can like the Caliph's destroy some opponents buildings, although the Snake doesn't deploy as many slaves as the Caliph. Defensively, the Snake has a moat around his castle and lots of archers on his towers but no ballistae or mangonels so has an average defensive capability.

• The Pig (Duc Truffe): When the Pig was born it is rumoured he looked so hideous that his parents abandoned him in the street. Whatever the case, it is known that he was taken in by a group of traveling bandits who raided small towns and villages throughout the homeland. Whilst growing up with this small army of rogues he was vastly underfed; however, after developing a crude but effective understanding of basic military tactics and being nominated as their leader, the Pig made sure that he had first call on the best foods after each raid and has overeaten ever since. He is quite tough, and won't go down without a fight. As an attacking force, the Pig's macemen are very fast, and can manage to cause some damage to the walls and destroy several out-buildings of even the most well defended opponent. Defensively, there are large numbers of crossbowmen but no siege weapons and only one layer of low walls around the fortress. His macemen swarm if the wall is breached and can easily surround and kill attacking opponents' overeager men.

• The Wolf (Duc Volpe): The Wolf's past is shrouded in mystery and what is known of his history is mainly patched together from stories and unreliable rumours alone. This aside, it is believed that both his parents died from natural causes in close succession shortly after his eighteenth birthday. Both attacking and defending the Wolf is capable with flammable pitch around his fortress, mangonels, fire ballistae and crossbowmen defending his fortress and increasingly large numbers of swordsmen and pikemen in attack.

• Richard the Lionheart
  Richard I of England
  Richard I was King of England from 6 July 1189 until his death. He also ruled as Duke of Normandy, Duke of Aquitaine, Duke of Gascony, Lord of Cyprus, Count of Anjou, Count of Maine, Count of Nantes, and Overlord of Brittany at various times during the same period...
  
  : The Lionheart has a reasonable grasp of the region's economy for a soldier, but it is in the field of battle where he is in his element. Brave and fearless, his ability to siege a castle is second to none. However defensively, despite having mangonels , archers and ballistae the Lionheart is vulnerable to fire because of the thin walls and not always enough archers on the towers to repel slave and fire ballista attacks. Enemies of the Lionheart do have to be aware of the presence of boiling oil at his fortress.

• Saladin
  Saladin
  Ṣalāḥ ad-Dīn Yūsuf ibn Ayyūb , better known in the Western world as Saladin, was an Arabized Kurdish Muslim, who became the first Sultan of Egypt and Syria, and founded the Ayyubid dynasty. He led Muslim and Arab opposition to the Franks and other European Crusaders in the Levant...
  
  : More than any other Lord, Saladin dominates the desert economy. He will be in no great rush to lead his forces out into the field, but when he strikes, it will be from a position of power. Good defensively, perhaps not as good as the Wolf, but in attack his horse archers can easily neutralise the threat from a defending opponents manned towers. However, unless there is a large force deployed towards the end of the game there will usually not be enough swordsmen and assassins to trouble a well defended enemy.

• The Caliph: Cruel and vindictive, the Caliph is skilled at bringing misery to both his own people and to yours. If he can get his tyrannical act together, his underhand methods of fighting will prove a constant thorn in your side. Periodic slave raids and lots of horse archers in his (relatively rare) attacks, the Caliph is likely to start a few fires at least in his opponents' buildings. Defensively, despite having no ballistae or mangonels on towers, enemies still have to be careful of burning pitch, flamethrowers and boiling oil.

• The Sultan: The Sultan is more...say...a poet, than a warrior, preferring feasting to the humdrum matters of running his own castle. In short not the sharpest sword in the desert. His people love him, however, and his soldiers will fight well to defend him. The worst opponent defensively, with his slingers being easily attacked by archers and with no ballistae or mangonels on his walls. However with large forces attacking, rare as that is with the Sultan, there can be large numbers of swordsmen that may prove a threat to opponents that do not train crossbowmen. The Sultan has a shaky economy because he does not grow food, takes a long time to build his castle and relies heavily on stone once all the trees have been felled as the main source of income.

The following characters only appear in Stronghold Warchest (though the first three are downloadable from the main site)

• Philip II of France
  Philip II of France
  Philip II Augustus was the King of France from 1180 until his death. A member of the House of Capet, Philip Augustus was born at Gonesse in the Val-d'Oise, the son of Louis VII and his third wife, Adela of Champagne...
  
  : King Phillip seeks glory and prestige from his desert adventure. His reckless insistence on the use of his knights as his main fighting force is more often than not, his undoing.

• Emperor Frederick
  Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor
  Frederick I Barbarossa was a German Holy Roman Emperor. He was elected King of Germany at Frankfurt on 4 March 1152 and crowned in Aachen on 9 March, crowned King of Italy in Pavia in 1155, and finally crowned Roman Emperor by Pope Adrian IV, on 18 June 1155, and two years later in 1157 the term...
  
  : Emperor Frederick is perhaps the best all-round strategist in the desert. There are few weaknesses in his armour and left alone he will over time become a mighty force.

• The Sheriff: The Sheriff is the cruelest lord in the land and easily the most underhand. He will use Arab or Crusader alike, along with every dirty castle defense he can lay his hands on, to further his own self-interest.

• The Nizar: The Nizar may catch his enemies by surprise if caught unprepared for his swift and silent tactics. His island like castles are only effective on low ground and can be tricky to attack.

• The Wazir: The Wazir is a mean spirited leader with a fiery temper. His persistent use of horse archers make him an annoyance, although his siege technique leaves a lot to be desired.

• The Emir: The Emir is a kind hearted and easy going Arabian leader. A good all rounder who manages his economy effectively as well as his attack tactics...which he does...in force!

• The Abbot: The Abbot considers himself entrusted with the defense of his faith. His vindictive monks will continually amass in vast numbers to pull down the walls of their enemies.

• The Marshal (Sir Longarm from the original Stronghold): This retired fighter tends to play things a little more cautiously than he once did. The sight of his knights sallying forth from his castle is still a warning to anyone however.

Stronghold Crusader Extreme

On January 28, 2008, Firefly Studios announced Stronghold: Crusader Extreme

Stronghold: Crusader Extreme

-Reception:The game's new features for the original Stronghold Crusader, including new characters, campaigns, and other features, were generally well-received by the public, but game critics criticized the game for difficulty, lack of new audio, and not having graphical quality up to par for a game...

. It boasts "new tactical powers", "new AI opponents and maps", "new crusader extreme trail", "battles featuring over 10,000 units" and Windows Vista

Windows Vista

Windows Vista is an operating system released in several variations developed by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops, tablet PCs, and media center PCs...

 compatibility. It was released May 28, 2008.

External links

• Stronghold Crusader official website
• Stronghold Crusader à télécharger légalement sans DRM sur DotEmu
• Firefly Studios official website
• Stronghold Knights Full-spectrum fan site
• Stronghold Heaven - An Extensive Fansite
• Stronghold Wiki(new)
• Stronghold Crusader at MobyGames
  MobyGames
  -Platforms not yet included:- Further reading :* Rusel DeMaria, Johnny L. Wilson, High Score!: The Illustrated History of Electronic Games, McGraw-Hill/Osborne Media; 2 edition , ISBN 0-07-223172-6...
  
  
• Official Polish Stronghold Website