IftU -- Crossfire

[Scaeb]

I'm looking for a strategy.
I'm playing ItfU - Episode I on normal difficulty. Arrived at "Crossfire" (after crossing the desert with dehydration).
I've got plenty of level 2 and 3 units in my army, but only 118 gold. -- I recruited to much in the last episode, and amassed a huge negative amount, so even finishing like 25 turns early gave me 118 in the next scenario.

Now, I'm looking for a strategy with 118 gold -- if it's doable (of course, it depends on my skill as well, I guess). I'd rather not replay the 75-turns scenario (lot of time!).

I tried both first going against the Chaos "loyalists" directly (so that if I manage to take over their stronghold, I also get like 5 villages, but with only 118 gold, which is like 5 recalls and a dark adept, I did not manage against his 330 starting gold + plenty of gold/turn. My front quickly dissolved and boom.

Then I tried a different strategy, which showed some promise, but ultimately failed. I wanted to go along the north bank of the river to attach the lich directly from there, hoping in the meantime that the three parties would decimate each other. Basically it worked out. I killed the lich and took over his keep. However, by this time, I had again negative amount of gold, because my original villages were taken by chaos riders. And the negative gold disabled me to recruit new units, losing again.

Do you have some tips for a strategy with so little gold, or do I really must replay over the sands?

[StandYourGround]

Recall maybe one elf captain (if you have one), then recruit only L1 units. Mostly adepts, and a few elves. Send the bulk through the desert with healer/leadership backup, and always try to take the hill terrain (leaving the enemy with only flat). You should be able to advance a little at day, and defend well at night. Go through the desert so that the outlaw, undead, and Chaos fight each other the most. Let the enemies fight each other as much as possible, and keep your distance for a while. If you're far enough away, only the scouts will be able to attack you, and they aren't much. If you're concerned about Undead attacking from the North, then maybe send Mal Keshar and another hero to keep them contained. You shouldn't really need to recall anything for this, as your heroes should be powerful enough. You're building an army, not a tiny team of elite fighters. This is a great scenario for training Adepts.

[Scaeb]

Hm, my only captain is Galas, and I'll probably need him in the encampment for reinforcements? -- I'll try some and see... thanks!