Stronghold: Crusader

Journey to distant lands renowned for brave warriors and fearsome weaponry in Stronghold Crusader. The sequel to Stronghold challenges you to lead a determined group of crusaders, forged by centuries of barbaric conflicts, or wage war against a powerful foreign invader. Within the castle walls is a society full of Fletchers, Brewers, and Armorers, while outside stalk enemy Assassins, War Engines, and the constant threat of fire. As European nobles or Arabian warriors, you must conquer this wasteland, defend desert fortresses, and decimate enemy troops during the legendary Crusades of the 11th and 12th centuries.

Stronghold: Crusader will take the game far beyond what Stronghold provided in its original form some time ago. The gamer will find that economically based missions are a thing of the past, and skirmishes depicting the historical period of the crusades will take over. Gamers will have a chance to face numerous AI controlled enemies within one campaign, to forging ahead and trying to complete the Skirmish Trail through some 50 prepared missions. Crusader comes with a wealth of new units to keep the gamer thinking and an all new and improved military AI will make the planning out of defenses much more important. Many new units come in the form of the Arab units. Horse Archers, Slaves, Fire throwers, fire throwing ballista, all will provide some great and exciting new battles. No longer will your castle walls defend the city within. Fire throwers will burn your cities from outside their walls, assassins will scale your walls and open castle gates, fierce horse archers will move about killing the weaker armed victims. Waves of cheap slaves will burn down everything in site. The ability to purchase or hire mercenaries to do your bidding will prove to be of great value because now you don't have to make the weapons just pay in gold. The entire approach to this game and how to play it will be an all new learning curve even for those hard core Stronghold players. Having the ability to hire a military and defend your castle takes on an all new economic importance to some valued resources. Will you choose to build your own army to defend your land? Or will you hire a band of defenders at a high cost. Playing out all of the scenarios in this game will take countless hours of dedication. Learning which style of game play to use at which precise moment in time will make the difference between victory and eventual defeat. Although the economic missions are not to plentiful, gamers will find a few great historical campaigns to play through. Battling with or against the mighty King Richard, planning and designing their own custom campaigns and playing against countless other gamers online will make Crusader another smash hit.
With the climate and setting, fire will wreck havoc on your population and industry. Large enemy forces will attack with little or no warning. Much more powerful predators will attack your farmers and livestock. Vast waste lands are broken up by sparse oasis in the dessert, providing the much needed waters and soils to produce food goods. With the fertile soils being so rare, often times you will find yourself battling your enemy over some much desired landscape. Stronghold Crusader, a definite plus to any RTS gaming collection.