HttT walkthrough (hardest, permadeath, v1.14 & 1.16) + General campaign guides

Share and discuss strategies for playing the game, and get help and tips from other players.

Moderator: Forum Moderators

Post Reply
Orek
Posts: 27
Joined: June 24th, 2020, 1:02 am

HttT walkthrough (hardest, permadeath, v1.14 & 1.16) + General campaign guides

Post by Orek »

  • Introduction
    Walkthrough in the official wiki is helpful but too generic in order to cater to multiple difficulties and old versions. Therefore, a new and more specific walkthrough is presented in this thread. This walkthrough is based on 3 runs of Heir to the Throne (HttT) on challenging (hardest) difficulty in version 1.14.17 under the permadeath principle, which means that not a single loading is allowed once the campaign starts. Although 1.14 is not the latest version, and many players are probably playing other campaigns today, approximately 20% of this walkthrough is general single-player Wesnoth guides. Therefore, all campaign players can benefit from reading this walkthrough.

  • 5 chapters per scenario
    Each scenario is described in 5 separate chapters for readability. However, scenario 2 has 10 chapters because many important universal ideas are described there. As for the diverging campaign paths, scenario 5b, 19c, and 20b are described thoroughly, but scenario 5a, 19a, 19b, and 20a are described only briefly in chapter 04-5, 18-2 and 18-3.

  • For players in 1.16 or later
    Major differences between 1.14.17 (played version) and 1.16.9 (latest version as of writing) are listed at the end of this walkthrough (2 posts below).

    HttT in 1.14 is drastically different from 1.16 or later. Therefore, future players should ignore most of the specific numbers, especially gold amount, in this walkthrough. Instead, just keep in mind how specific strategies/tactics are in this walkthrough, and modify numbers accordingly for the newer version. Compared to 1.14, in many scenarios, 1.16 provides less gold for both Konrad and the enemies, which then translates into fewer XP (experience points) throughout the campaign. Therefore, 1.16 is less preparation-based in the prior scenarios and more strategy/tactic-based in the current scenario that is being played. Also, some notoriously difficult bottleneck scenarios such as scenario 6 and 9 are made so much easier in 1.16 that they are no longer “impossible” for new players although they may be still difficult compared to other scenarios.

  • For players playing other campaigns
    The following chapters (20% of this walkthrough) include mindset/knowledge/strategies/tactics that are useful even outside HttT. Any campaign player can learn a thing or two by reading these chapters:
    General Campaign Guides
    00-1 RNG (random number generator)
    00-2 Save-loading
    00-3 Knowledge
    00-4 Math
    00-5 Hotkeys
    01-5 No trait picking
    02-3 AI behavior: moving toward hostile leaders (Tactic: Konrad as a decoy)
    02-4 AI behavior: afraid grouping
    02-6 AI behavior: attacking from the most advantageous hex (Tactic: adjacent-to-village decoy)
    02-7 AI behavior: assigning village grabbing units (Tactic: intentional village loss)
    02-8 AI behavior: leader protection
    03-4 AI behavior: going back to the keep (leader unit only)
    04-2 AI behavior: priority attacks on close-to-advancement units
    05b-1 Fog and Shroud
    05b-4 Northern Lich (Tactic: no-retaliation decoy)
    06-1 Basic recruiting/recalling strategy (extremely specific plan for a difficult scenario)
    07-5 AI behavior: passive leader
    08-4 Extra income
    08-5 Recruitment placement order
    09-1 Special AI behavior: very aggressive units
    10-4 All villages
    10-5 Status Table
    11-5 General priority order of the auto-recalled advisor
    16-5 Ally leader’s keep
    18-5 Intentionally wasting gold now to save more later
  • Videos and Replays
    YouTube videos of the 3 permadeath runs are available here:

    Image Run 1 Image Run 2 Image Run 3

    Timestamp links for each scenario are available in each scenario section of this walkthrough. Note that Run 3 is at normal speed, but Run 1 and Run 2 are at ×2 speed due to the YouTube video length limit of 12 hours. Run 3 is the closest to the descriptions in this walkthrough because it is the improved version of the previous 2 runs.
    Replay files are attached at the end of this walkthrough (2 posts below). Run 2 Demo is a demonstration for scenario 14 as described in chapter 14-5.

  • Speedrun
    Although all 3 runs were speedruns just for an extra challenge, this walkthrough assumes normal gameplays; in general, what works in speedruns should always work in normal runs with extra time to think. Of course, this walkthrough presents one of the many ways to play HttT, and it is not intended to present the only way.
    Due to the word limit, this walkthrough is divided into 3 posts.
00 General
  1. RNG (random number generator)
    Never blame bad luck for a failure. RNG is absolutely fair. Don’t whine. Be a better gamer.

  2. Save-loading
    There are roughly 4 levels of the loading policy:
    1. Save-loading within the scenario is allowed.
    2. Restarting the scenario from the start is allowed.
    3. Permadeath but recklessly playing early turns/scenarios to restart the campaign is allowed.
    4. Permadeath and every campaign start should aim at finishing the campaign without ever restarting.
    Most players probably play with 1 although 2 is the recommended way to play Wesnoth according to Help in the game. Both 3 and 4 are pearmadeath, but this walkthrough attempts to prove that even 4 is possible.

  3. Knowledge
    Knowing is half the battle.
    Official wiki is a good starting point to learn Wesnoth in general. More specific information is available in the following locations:
    • Unit data
      Wesnoth Units Database
      • Help>Units in the game (Go to Preferences>Advanced, and check “Show all unit types in help” if necessary.)
      • In the downloaded Wesnoth folder, “wesnoth-1.14.17/data/core/units” for most units,
      and “wesnoth-1.14.17/data/campaigns/Heir_To_The_Throne/units” for HttT original units
    • Scenario data
      • In the downloaded Wesnoth folder, “wesnoth-1.14.17/data/campaigns/Heir_To_The_Throne/scenarios”
    • Wesnoth AI
      Default AI (RCA AI) and other related pages in the official wiki
      This walkthrough focuses on practical applications of AI behaviors rather than the exact codes, calculations, and definitions.
  4. Math
    Do the math.
    Anticipate the future by calculating damage/gold/probability etc. BEFORE something bad happens.
    Knowledge of binomial distribution is required to accurately calculate probabilities.

  5. Hotkeys
    Bind frequently used actions to keys that are easier to hit on the keyboard because the default hotkey setup is far from ideal.
    For example, “Show Enemy Moves” at (ctrl+v) and “Best Possible Enemy Moves” at (ctrl+b) are often used multiple times per turn.
    Therefore, it is better to remove ctrl key requirement and make them 1 key, (v) and (b), respectively.
01 The Elves Besieged
  • Turn limit: 12
    Starting gold: 100
    Enemy/ally starting gold: 400, 500, 500, 170, 170
  1. Carryover gold
    Finish this scenario with 63 carryover gold or more. It requires 67 remaining gold when finished on turn 9 [(67+30×3)×0.4=63] or 97 remaining gold when finished on turn 10 [(97+30×2)×0.4=63]. 63 carryover gold is necessary to recruit/recall enough units to acquire Simyr consistently in the next scenario. In Run 1~3, this scenario was finished with 66, 66, and 74 carryover gold, respectively. It seems that, on average, approximately 67 carryover gold can be earned with a similar playstyle to these runs, which means that earning 63 carryover gold is not very difficult.

  2. Recruiting strategy
    Recruit 2 Elvish Scouts, 1 Elvish Fighter, 1 Elvish Shaman, and 2 Elvish Archers clockwise from (18, 23). 1 Elvish Scout is used for village grabbing in the south, and the rest are used for village grabbing in the north, protecting Konrad/Delfador, and gaining XP to advance. Send 2 Elvish Archers to eastern villages on (26, 20) and (23, 12) first to earn some extra gold. Grab as many villages as possible whenever it is safe.

  3. Konrad and Delfador
    Send Konrad northwest along the river, and send Delfador north to (20, 12) village instead of sending them together. Because both Konrad and Delfador are high-priority targets in this scenario, Delfador can lure some green enemy units to the east to make it easier for Konrad to move forward safely. Make sure that Konrad and Delfador have an absolutely 0% chance to die even on enemy turns.

  4. Level 2 unit
    Focus XP on 1 Elvish unit, preferably an Elvish Archer. Having a level 2 unit makes it much easier to kill the enemy leader in the next scenario. Elvish Marksman is the best level 2 unit for this purpose because of his/her powerful ranged weapon as described in chapter 02-10. If given a choice, in order to save some upkeep gold in the next scenario, it is better to keep a unit at close-to-advancement level 1 (e.g., 43/44 XP Elvish Archer) than to advance a unit to level 2 (e.g., 44/44 XP Elvish Archer to 0/80 XP Elvish Marksman). In Run 1, XP was focused on an Elvish Fighter because things didn’t go well for Elvish Archers.

  5. No trait picking
    Don’t restart the campaign just because traits for initial recruits are not desirable. A good strategy should be flexible enough to work even in suboptimal situations. Have a higher moral standard of 1 restart = 1 failure.
02 Blackwater Port
  • Turn limit: 9
    Minimum starting gold: 100
    Ally/enemy starting gold (+extra income): 40, 220(+20)
  1. Simyr
    On challenging difficulty, killing the enemy leader is rewarded with a special bonus unit: Simyr, a loyal Knight with intelligent trait. Acquiring Simyr consistently without relying on RNG seems to be the most difficult part of this entire campaign in version 1.14 or earlier. Acquiring Simyr has been known to be possible, but many have assumed that it is RNG-dependent. However, with the strategies/tactics described in this walkthrough, Simyr was acquired at least 100 times in a row in practice runs. Therefore, it is safe to say that acquiring Simyr is skill-based, not luck-based. To achieve this consistency, scenario 1 and 2 were practiced at least 500 times each. Some of the strategies/tactics are not original but refined versions of old ones. Relevant old posts are listed here:
  2. Basic recruiting/recalling strategy
    On turn 1, recruit 2 Elvish Fighters, 2 Elvish Shamans, and 2 Elvish Scouts. On turn 2, recruit 1 Elvish Shaman and 2 Elvish Archers; also, recall 1 Elvish Archer with a lot of XP from the previous scenario. This recruit/recall composition is the basic one which requires 163 gold in total [(14×2+15×2+18×2)+0(turn 1 income)+(15+17×2+20)=163]. Depending on the amount of carryover gold and XP situation, the actual composition should be modified from this basic one. Replacing the 3rd Elvish Shaman with the 3rd Elvish Fighter is better in some situations.

  3. AI behavior: moving toward hostile leaders (Tactic: Konrad as a decoy)
    Most enemy units move toward hostile leaders when no hostile unit is in range to attack. In most scenarios, Konrad is the only hostile leader, but because the ally leader (Sir Kaylan) exists in this scenario, the enemy units may split into 2 groups if Konrad is far away from the ally leader. To prevent this, send Konrad north after recruiting/recalling. By using Konrad as a decoy in the north, the army led by Delfador in the south faces fewer enemy units.

    As for the ally’s villages, Konrad should steal as many villages as possible in the north. However, it is sometimes necessary to control the amount of gold the ally earns; for example, in Run 3, Konrad didn’t steal any of the ally’s villages on turn 6 because it barely lets the ally have 34+6=40 gold to recruit a Knight on turn 6 instead of turn 7. Without this kind of safety measure, the ally leader (Sir Kaylan) occasionally dies, which leads to failure.

  4. AI behavior: afraid grouping
    AI seems to evaluate how safe it is to move to a direction or attack a hostile unit. When an enemy unit is trying to move to a direction or attack a hostile unit, but a very formidable hostile army (Konrad’s or ally’s army) is near the target location/unit, then the enemy unit sometimes acts as if it is afraid to move forward and spends only a part of its full movement points (MP) to move forward or simply retreats a few hexes. Then, this enemy unit becomes the core unit to attract many other enemy units that would otherwise move elsewhere. This group of units are usually a little bit far from Konrad’s/ally’s formidable army. Therefore, attacking them on Konrad’s turn can be risky because more enemy units usually catch up with them on the same enemy turn. Most of the time, it is better to prevent this “afraid grouping” from happening because it is easier to kill enemy units that come closer without hesitation. Although the exact mechanism is not clear, the afraid grouping tends to happen when Konrad’s/ally’s army is overwhelmingly powerful in a small area. Therefore, ironically, intentionally playing worse to make the army look weaker is the key to better gameplays.

    The afraid grouping is the biggest cause of failure in this scenario because these enemy units may block the southern path to prevent Delfador’s army from killing the enemy leader in time. There are a few tactics to minimize the chance of it happening by playing “worse” in a sense.

    The afraid grouping didn’t happen in this scenario in Run 1~3, but it was observed on turn 7 in scenario 4 in Run 1 as described in chapter 04-3.

  5. Delfador and Haldiel
    Their movements help prevent the afraid grouping. Send Delfador west as fast as possible so that he can be attacked in the forest by the enemy unit on (3, 28) village on turn 4 (Run 1, Run 2). This enemy unit could become the core unit for the afraid grouping when no unit is in range to attack. Therefore, having Delfador as an attack target is important. However, if 2~3 Wolf Riders are assigned south, it may be better to avoid fighting with Delfador alone on turn 4 (Run 3). Also, keeping Haldiel (loyal Horseman) away from the main army until turn 6~7 reduces the risk of the afraid grouping because the main army becomes less formidable without him.

  6. AI behavior: attacking from the most advantageous hex (Tactic: adjacent-to-village decoy)
    When an enemy unit has a hostile unit to attack in range, it tries to attack from the most advantageous hex. If none of the available hexes to attack from yields good enough battle results, it may refrain from attacking the hostile unit. In order to exploit this AI behavior, place a decoy unit on an adjacent hex to a village. An enemy unit is almost always lured out to the village hex because of its high defense and healing for the enemy unit. This adjacent-to-village decoy tactic is especially useful in scenario 2, 3, 6, and 10.

  7. AI behavior: assigning village grabbing units (Tactic: intentional village loss)
    While most enemy units move toward hostile leaders as described above in chapter 02-3, some enemy units are assigned for grabbing villages. In this scenario, it is important for Delfador’s army to face as few village grabbing enemy units as possible because these enemy units can become the core units for the afraid grouping. Therefore, it is better to let the enemy grab the southern villages on (3, 28), (11, 29), and (15, 27) so that fewer enemy units are assigned for grabbing villages in the south. This is where the adjacent-to-village decoy tactic comes in; place an Elvish Fighter on an adjacent hex to (11, 29) village on turn 4 so that an enemy unit can attack the Elvish Fighter from the village. By losing (11, 29) village, usually, 1 fewer enemy unit is assigned for grabbing villages in the south because village grabbing units are usually assigned after attacks are made. It is not always possible to keep all 3 villages in enemy hands, but the more, the better in terms of preventing the afraid grouping.

    Of course, having fewer villages means less carryover gold for the next scenario, but preventing the afraid grouping in this scenario is so much more important for beating this campaign consistently. Note that the enemy units that do have a hostile unit to attack in range usually attack the unit and such enemy units don’t care where hostile leaders are on the map. Use “Show Enemy Moves” and “Best Possible Enemy Moves” frequently to avoid unnecessary engagements.

  8. AI behavior: leader protection
    Enemy units often group around the leader for protection if the leader can be attacked on the next turn. Therefore, in this scenario, on turn 6 (Second Watch) or earlier, no unit should be able to attack the enemy leader to avoid triggering the enemy leader protection. That is to say, no unit should be able to reach not only the enemy leader on (3, 19) but also any adjacent hexes to it because an attack is made from an adjacent hex in Wesnoth. Extra attention needs to be paid to Elvish Scouts, especially if they are quick, because they may accidentally get too close. Make sure to count hexes to the enemy leader. It is crucial to avoid triggering the enemy leader protection until the last moment, especially in scenario 2, 5b, 12, and 24.

  9. Killing the enemy leader
    On turn 7 (Dawn), lure out the enemy leader to (8, 21) village. Place full HP units, preferably Elvish Shamans, on (8, 22) and/or (9, 22) forest as adjacent-to-village decoys so that the enemy leader is lured out to (8, 21) village. Also, place a full HP sacrificial Elvish Scout in the west around (2, 23) as a decoy so that fewer units are placed around the enemy leader on the village (Run 2). This scenario has a tight turn limit, so making the enemy leader come closer in this manner greatly increases the chance of success. Elvish Shaman is the best choice for luring out the enemy leader because, with only 2 strikes in a retaliation attack, she has the highest chance of 36% to keep the enemy leader at full HP. The enemy leader has 58 HP, which is higher than the maximum damage by Delfador, 14×4=56. Therefore, by keeping the enemy leader at full HP, Delfador’s attack on turn 8 has a 0% chance to kill the enemy leader so that XP can be given to other units (Run 2, Run 3). If Elvish Shamans cannot reach these forest hexes, it is okay to use other units although the chance of the enemy leader staying at full HP decreases (Run 3). Note that these decoy units should be close to full HP because low HP Elvish Scout in the west may lure out the enemy leader to the west instead of the village, or low HP Elvish Shamans in the forest may lure a non-leader unit to the village.

    On turn 8 and 9, attack the enemy leader and other enemy units. When there are only 5 or so enemy units around the enemy leader on turn 8, it is okay to wait to kill the enemy leader until turn 9. However, if the number is close to 10, it is better to kill the enemy leader on turn 8 because the remaining enemy units often block the adjacent hexes to the enemy leader on turn 9.

  10. Level 2 unit comparison
    Elvish Marksman is the better level 2 archer choice in this scenario because, with his/her marksman weapon special, non-dextrous one has the expected value (EV) of 9×4×0.6=21.6 damage against the enemy leader on the village (60% defense) while Elvish Ranger counterpart only has the EV of 7×4×0.4=11.2, approximately half the EV of Elvish Marksman. Elvish Sorceress has the EV of 7×4×0.7=19.6, but it is more difficult to focus XP on an Elvish Shaman than an Elvish Archer.
03 The Isle of Alduin
  • Turn limit: 21
    Minimum starting gold: 140
    Enemy starting gold: 100
    Note: This scenario starts in the afternoon. (Most scenarios start at dawn.)
  1. Preparation for scenario 4~6
    Scenario 4: 2 close-to-advancement Elvish Scouts
    Scenario 5b: Konrad as level 2~3, preferably at close-to-advancement level 2
    Scenario 6: Simyr as Paladin, Haldiel as Knight, another Knight, Elrian as Red Mage, 1 White Mage, 4 close-to-advancement Elvish Shamans or Elvish Sorceresses (preferably 2 of which are quick for scenario 10)

    Also, no elvish unit should advance to level 3 so that Paladin (Simyr) becomes the auto-recalled advisor in scenario 6 as described in chapter 08-1. Ideally speaking, the preparation for the last scenario 24 should start from scenario 1, and every decision has to be made with future scenarios in mind. However, there are some scenarios that are relatively easy and suitable for making a good recall list for a few scenarios ahead. In the list above, the preparation for all units except for the extra Knight needs to start in this scenario or earlier. To prevent recalling and thus wasting extra money in the next scenario, finishing a White Mage and 2~3 close-to-advancement Elvish Shamans is ideal although the top priority is on 2 close-to-advancement Elvish Scouts that are needed in the next scenario.

  2. Western and Eastern army
    Find Elrian, a loyal Mage with resilient trait, on (21, 10) village. Then, a descent western army should consist of Delfador, Simyr, Elrian, 1 Elvish Scout, 1 Elvish Fighter, and 2 Elvish Shamans. The rest are fielded to the east. The total number of recruits + recalls should be around 11~13 to be safe enough and rich enough at the same time.

  3. Konrad
    As described in chapter 02-3 and 02-7, most enemy units move toward Konrad, and some enemy units are assigned for grabbing villages. In this scenario, because both western and eastern paths have almost the same castle-to-castle distance, it is difficult to tell which path enemy units take to approach Konrad. Therefore, in order to somewhat control the number of enemy units on a particular path, use Konrad as a decoy by moving him northwest or southeast after recruiting/recalling to make one path shorter than the other for the enemy units. Although some village grabbing enemy units may take the longer path to Konrad anyways, more units take the shorter path.

    Also, note that Konrad doesn’t have a ranged weapon at level 1. Therefore, he may be a prime target for Orcish Archers. Protect him very well and give him XP to advance to level 2 if possible although XP should be prioritized to other units as described above in chapter 03-1.

  4. AI behavior: going back to the keep (leader unit only)
    Whenever an enemy leader is not on a keep, and it is possible to go back to the keep in 1 turn, the enemy leader’s highest priority is going back to the keep. Combined with the adjacent-to-village decoy tactic as described in chapter 02-6, this AI behavior can be exploited very well in this scenario. First, place an adjacent-to-village decoy to lure out the enemy leader to (11, 35) village. Then, continue to slow the enemy leader with Elvish Shamans during the night. On turn 17 (Dawn), let the enemy leader go back to the castle keep so that more enemy units can be recruited for more XP. This timing seems to be the best because the enemy units are weak on turn 18~19 (Morning~Afternoon).

  5. Gold and XP tradeoff
    Finish this scenario with approximately 25~30 kills and 400~450 gold. Intentionally keep some villages in enemy hands because more gold for the enemy = more enemy units = more XP. Note that gold here is worth only 40% of that in the next scenario due to the carryover gold mechanism while XP here is worth 100% of that in the next scenario. Therefore, prioritize XP over gold in this scenario.
04 The Bay of Pearls
  • Turn limit: 21
    Minimum starting gold: 140
    Enemy starting gold: 110, 210
    Note: When 5b path is taken, carryover gold in this scenario is added to the minimum starting gold in scenario 6, not 5b.
  1. Water battle
    Be defensive in the water battle. Form a defensive line and reduce enemy units’ HP in retaliation. Attack an enemy unit on Konrad’s turns only if there is a high chance of killing the target unit. It is much more important to conserve HP of merfolk units than to reduce HP of enemy units because villages are the only sources of healing in the water battle. Try to place resilient or strong Merman Fighters at the corners of the defensive line where he can be attacked by 3 units instead of 2. Against 2 Naga Warriors in the northwest, try to engage them one by one. Lure out one of them by placing a decoy unit, and surround the Naga Fighter with 2 units in backstabbing positions so that ZoC (Zone of Control) prevents the Naga Fighter from moving out far.

    Focus XP on a resilient Merman Fighter and give him the Storm Trident because he can survive better against the Lich as described in chapter 05b-5. Also, give the Mermaid Initiate some XP if possible so that she has an opportunity to advance to Mermaid Priestess in the next scenario 5b. For example, killing a Naga Warrior and the sea leader makes her at 32/40 XP. Killing the sea leader gives the option to go to scenario 5b Isle of the Damned. This 5b path is recommended because it gives some bonus units. In all of Run 1~3, 5b path was taken.

  2. AI behavior: priority attacks on close-to-advancement units
    Enemy units prioritize attacking a unit that is expected to advance to the next level due to the XP gained from the engagement. For example, an Elvish Scout at 31/32 XP is prioritized by level 1 or higher units, but an Elvish Scout at 30/32 XP is prioritized only by level 2 or higher units. This mechanism allows a close-to-advancement unit to withstand 1 more attack on the enemy turn than a higher-level self would because advancement fully heals the unit. Intentionally keeping a unit at close-to-advancement to bait an attack is one of the most useful tactics and should be fully employed throughout the campaign whenever possible.

    In this scenario, the water battle becomes so much easier with 2 close-to-advancement Elvish Scouts because they can withstand several attacks each (1~2 as Elvish Scout + 3~4 as Elvish Rider). These sacrificial Elvish Scouts greatly increase the survivability of Merman Fighters, especially when 5 or more out of the initial 8 enemy recruits in 2 turns are Naga Fighters; the number of Naga Fighters determines the difficulty of the water battle. While it is not necessary to save all merfolk units, keeping more alive tends to earn more carryover gold. If 2 Elvish Scouts couldn’t be brought up in the previous scenarios, 1 may be fine.

  3. Land battle
    As for the land battle, continue the preparation for scenario 6. Because no land unit can be recalled in the next scenario 5b, make sure to finish the preparation except for Konrad. It is recommended to play with 14~15 total recruits/recalls for balancing safety and gold. Sacrifice cannon fodders to move forward faster. Losing units is not necessarily bad in the early part of the scenario because upkeep cost gets reduced, which leads to more carryover gold. Also, cannon fodders in vulnerable locations prevent the afraid grouping as described in chapter 02-4. For example, on turn 7 in Run 1, unit placements were so good that the afraid grouping happened, which made it difficult to move forward safely. In hindsight, a sacrificial Elvish Fighter should have been placed in a worse location where he can potentially die so that AI thinks that it is worth attacking him. Killing the land leader gives the option to go to scenario 5a Muff Malal’s Peninsula. This 5a path is not recommended, but it is okay to take this path if gold and unit preparation for scenario 6 is not finished.

  4. Carryover gold
    Finish this scenario with 130 carryover gold or more. That is to say, finish with 324 or more remaining gold on turn 21. Carryover gold in this scenario is added to the minimum starting gold in scenario 6, not 5b, because scenario 5b is independent in terms of carryover gold. With 130 carryover gold, scenario 6 can be played safely when scenario 5b path is taken. Sending a quick Merman Fighter northeast once the initial battle settles gives some extra gold. For villages around the sea leader, it is useful to remember that the leader’s maximum damage during the night is 12×3=36. Therefore, resilient (41 HP) and strong (37 HP) Merman Fighters can take these villages with impunity.

  5. Summary of scenario 5a Muff Malal’s Peninsula
    The scenario objective, “Escape down the road to Elensefar” means sending Konrad to (5, 1). However, meeting this objective doesn’t give early finish bonus gold. Therefore, just running usually ends up having less gold than the starting gold due to 40% carryover gold mechanism. Instead, try to finish this scenario 5a on the very last turn 21 while taking many villages. Alternatively, kill the enemy leader, Muff Malal, so that early finish bonus can be earned. Although 5a path makes scenario 6 slightly easier due to extra gold and XP than 5b path, it actually makes the rest of the campaign more difficult due to the lack of Moremirmu and outlaw units. Therefore, take 5a path only if scenario 6 is the bottleneck scenario.
05b Isle of the Damned
  • Turn limit: 24
    Starting gold: 100
    Enemy starting gold: 110, 110
    Note: No gold is carried over to or from this scenario.
  1. Fog and Shroud
    Use “Delay Shroud Updates” and “Update Shroud Now” hotkeys. With the default automatic shroud updates, rethinking and undoing unit movements are impossible once a new hex is revealed or a unit is recruited. Make sure to manually update the shroud to play more strategically. Technically, this scenario doesn't have the shroud but the fog. The fog only hides units and village ownership of enemy sides, and it is cleared only temporarily while the hex is still visible by a unit. On the contrary, the shroud hides everything, but once it is cleared, everything stays visible permanently. Both fog and shroud updates can be controlled by the same hotkeys mentioned above. The fog and the shroud exist in the following scenarios in this campaign:
    • Fog only: 5b, 19c, 20a
    • Shroud only: 14, 15, 16, 17
    • Fog and Shroud: 20b
  2. Moremirmu
    Moremirmu, a loyal White Mage with a special melee weapon, is hiding in one of the 3 temples on (11, 13), (9, 15), or (10, 17). Moremirmu may or may not join Konrad in future scenarios depending on how this scenario ends:
    1. Moremirmu becomes available in the recall list from the next scenario.
      Moremirmu has been met and alive. This scenario is finished by killing both Liches.

    2. Moremirmu as a Mage of Light and 3 loyal White Mages temporarily join Konrad on turn 7 in scenario 9 around (20,48), but they disappear at the end of scenario 9.
      Moremirmu has been met and alive. This scenario is finished by surviving until the end of turn 24.

    3. Moremirmu never joins Konrad after this scenario.
      All the other situations lead to this result.
    Killing both Liches in time may seem impossible at first, but careful management of gold and units described below should ensure a nearly 100% success rate.

  3. Land units
    Recruit 2 Footpads on turn 1, 1 Poacher on turn 2, 3 Thugs on turn 4~6, and 1 Footpad on turn 7. This is the basic composition of 7 recruits, but the actual composition has to be modified depending on the gold situation and enemy composition. Konrad should start to move out to the main island to join the battle on turn 7, or earlier if early Chocobone is a threat. Konrad should be level 2 at this point, so his leadership ability helps new recruits. If Konrad is at close-to-advancement level 2, he can withstand as heavy an attack as Chocobone’s charge attack at Dawn/Dusk (11×2×2=44 < 45 HP) and advance to level 3. Make sure that Konrad can get back to the castle keep on turn 13~14 to recruit additional merfolk units.

    Note that the content of a temple (Moremirmu, trap, or empty) is randomized. Therefore, when searching a temple to release Moremirmu, place a unit on an adjacent hex first, then move 1 hex on the next turn so that the unit can escape with the remaining MP if it is the trap with 1 Revenant and 3 Walking Corpses. Keep Delurin alive if possible because he is very useful in scenario 13. Keep recruiting outlaw units (Thug, Footpad, and Poacher) with extra gold at the end of the scenario because no gold is carried over to the next scenario, and outlaw units cannot be recruited in future scenarios.

  4. Northern Lich (Tactic: no-retaliation decoy)
    1 Merman Fighter, 4~5 Mermaid Initiates, and land units are used to kill the northern Lich. Recruit a Merman Fighter on turn 15 at the latest, then recruit as many Mermaid Initiates as possible until turn 17~18. On turn 18 or earlier, make sure that no merfolk unit is in range to attack the Lich to prevent the enemy leader protection as described in chapter 02-8.

    On turn 19 (Dawn), place the Merman Fighter on (8, 3) to lure out the Lich to (8, 4) shallow water. Because the Merman Fighter doesn’t have a ranged weapon for retaliation, the Lich is always lured out to attack him. This kind of no-retaliation decoy tactic to lure out an enemy unit seems to work most of the time although it is not guaranteed as described in chapter 24-4. No-retaliation decoy tactic is especially useful in scenario 5b, 6, 9, and 24.

  5. Southern Lich
    3 Merman Fighters/Warriors and 4~5 Mermaid Initiates/Priestesses are used to kill the southern Lich. On turn 1, recall the Merman Fighter/Warrior with the Storm Trident and the Mermaid Initiate. Send the initial eastern Merman Fighter on (31, 14) immediately southwest so that he can serve as a scout. It is crucial to have this scouting unit because having vision early greatly reduces the risk of sudden deaths by a Chocobone, Ghost, or submerged Skeleton. The other Merman Fighter is used for village grabbing on the southeastern island. Recruit a Mermaid Initiate on turn 2 and 2~3 additional ones around turn 13. Turn 20~21(Morning~Afternoon) is the best time to kill the Lich. Note that the maximum damage dealt by the Lich in retaliation during these 2 turns is 9×3×2=54, and resilient Merman Warrior’s HP is 56. Therefore, he can attack the Lich with the Storm Trident 2 turns in a row without fear of death even if RNG is the worst.
06 The Siege of Elensefar
  • Turn limit: 29
    Minimum starting gold: 120
    Enemy starting gold: 240, 220
  1. Basic recruiting/recalling strategy (extremely specific plan for a difficult scenario)
    Turn 1: Auto-recalled advisor = Simyr as Paladin, Moremirmu on (16, 42), Elvish Shaman on (15, 43), Elrian on (15, 44), Elvish Scout on (16, 44) (recruit), Haldiel on (17, 44)
    Turn 2: Knight, Elvish Shaman
    Turn 3: White Mage, Elvish Shaman
    Turn 4: Elvish Shaman, 2 Elvish Fighters (recruit), 3 Elvish Shamans (recruit)

    For these 6 recruits and 9 recalls, [(14×2)+(15×3)+(18×1)+(20×9)] = 271 = [120 (minimum starting gold) + 130 (carryover gold) + 4 (turn 1 income) + 7 (turn 2 income) + 10 (turn 3 income)]. When the bridge can be blocked and the enemy is delayed, it is possible to earn 10 more gold and recruit/recall on turn 5 (Run 2, Run 3). Depending on the amount of carryover gold and XP situation, the actual composition should be modified from this basic one. For a difficult scenario like this, a plan needs to be extremely specific as described here.

  2. Thieves
    1 Rogue and 2~3 Thieves join Konrad in this scenario. On turn 4, choose “Help us infiltrate the city. We can do the rest.” for the ford option or “I want you to reinforce us once we break through their line.” for the village option. After choosing either option, Thieves become recruitable immediately.
    • Ford option
      On turn 6, shallow water hexes near the Meeting point on (6, 32) turn to ford hexes, which makes it easier to reach the small island west of Elensefar. Also, 1 loyal Rogue and 2 loyal Thieves appear near the ford.
    • Village option
      Once one of the villages on the main Elensefar island is grabbed, 1 loyal Rogue and 3 loyal Thieves appear in the north of Elensefar castle.
    The village option is recommended not because of the extra Thief who makes little difference but because the other ford option helps skeletons reach Konrad’s army earlier using the ford hexes in the 2nd night (turn 11~12). Note that the 2nd traits of loyal Rogue/Thieves are randomized. Therefore, there is a chance that not a single one of them has a desirable trait.

  3. Main battle
    DO NOT rush to Elensefar castle or fight near the river. These strategies seem to work only if RNG is favorable. It is much safer to stay near the western forest and encampment where units have high defense. Avoid engaging enemy units during the night as much as possible and use close-to-advancement units effectively. After most orcs are killed on turn 7 (Dawn) ~ 10 (Dusk), pull back further southwest to avoid engaging skeletons during the night. Keep Konrad in the west and use him as a decoy as described in chapter 02-3 so that skeletons waste their MP in the water as they try to move toward Konrad. After most skeletons are killed on turn 13 (Dawn) ~ 16 (Dusk), cross the bridge to kill the orc leader. In order to lure out the orc leader, use the adjacent-to-village decoy or no-retaliation decoy tactic described in chapter 02-6 and 05b-4, respectively. Although this scenario has a tight turn limit, as long as the orc leader is killed around turn 20, Konrad’s army is moving fast enough to the north.

    Note that White Mages adjacent to Level 3 Konrad is powerful against skeletons even at Dawn/Dusk. They have 9×1.5×1.25=17 damage per strike against skeletons (34HP Skeleton and 31HP Skeleton Archer). Therefore, they have a 78.4% chance to kill the skeletons alone instead of 34.3% without Konrad’s leadership.

  4. Enemy reinforcements
    When a unit enters a cave entrance hex on (12, 3), (12, 4), (16, 6) or (17, 6), a loyal Revenant and a loyal Deathblade appear on (13, 2) and (22, 2), respectively. Also, the green side gains 60 gold to recruit more units on the next turn. In order to engage these reinforcements in a timely manner, send an Elvish Scout recruited/recalled on turn 1 immediately to the northwest and trigger this event on turn 22 (Dusk) before Konrad’s main army arrives. According to experiments, turn 21 seems too early and turn 23 seems too late. Triggering this event on turn 22 allows Konrad’s main army to engage these reinforcements outside the cave on turn 25 (Dawn) ~ 26 (Morning).

  5. Cave
    Because most of Konrad’s units, especially elvish units, are slow in cave, it takes time to reach the Dark Sorcerer leader from the cave entrance. Therefore, use the no-retaliation decoy tactic described in chapter 05b-4 with a Thief, Knight, or Paladin on (17, 6) so that the Dark Sorcerer is lured out to the cave entrance. This tactic alone can easily save 2~3 turns. Because the leader’s priority is going back to the keep if possible as described in chapter 03-4, it is safe to attack the lured-out Dark Sorcerer with ranged weapons as long as the attacker doesn’t die in retaliation. In Run 2, the Dark Sorcerer was not lured out because a Skeleton Archer was lured out instead, which made it more difficult to finish this scenario in time.
07 Crossroads
  • Turn limit: 31
    Minimum starting gold: 200
    Enemy starting gold: 190, 150
  1. Ambush rules
    Any hill that is completely surrounded by other hills, mountains or forest is eligible as an ambush location. In other words, any hill that has an adjacent flat hex is not an ambush location. Note that enemy units avoid entering hexes where ambush units are hiding because ambush units are assigned at the beginning of this scenario and Wesnoth has 1 unit per hex rule. The number of ambush units are set as follows:
    1. (5~35, 1~7): 7
    2. (9~24, 8~15): 7
    3. (1~17, 17~24): 11
    4. (18~25, 16~23): 7
    5. (26~40, 16~23): 7
    Among these 5 areas, “a” and “e” are far, vast, and thinly populated with ambush units. Therefore, hunting for ambush units for gaining XP is not as effective in these areas. Killing the enemy leaders in scenario 1 reduces the number of ambush units by 25% each, but it is nearly impossible to kill a leader in version 1.14 on challenging difficulty. The ambush units are Orcish Grunt, Orcish Archer, Orcish Assassin, and Goblin Spearman, but Orcish Archer is twice as likely to spawn as the other 3. Also, all ambush units are loyal.

    In order to play strategically, use “Set Label” (red label) for potential ambush locations and use “Set Team Label” (blue label) for locations where no ambush can happen. When a potential ambush location is cleared, blue labels can override red labels. It is not necessary to label all locations, but it helps to label nearby hexes to avoid any surprise ambush or hesitation to move forward.

  2. Preparation for scenario 9~10
    Scenario 9: Level 3 Kalenz, Simyr and Haldiel as Paladin, Elrian as Silver Mage, 2 Mages of Light including Moremirmu, 2 quick Elvish Enchantresses, 2~3 Elvish Sorceresses, 1 Highwayman, 1 Knight, 1 close-to-advancement resilient Elvish Fighter or Elvish Hero
    Scenario 10: 2 quick Elvish Sylphs, 1~2 Elvish Riders

    Kill as many ambush units as possible to gain XP. Without proper preparation, finishing scenario 9 safely and killing the Mother Gryphon in scenario 10 can become impossible or too RNG-dependent. It may be better for these prepared units to be at close-to-advancement in order to withstand an extra attack as described in chapter 04-2. However, 2 quick Elvish Sylphs should be already Elvish Sylphs at the beginning of scenario 10 because they need to fly fast.

  3. Loyal Elvish Fighter and Elvish Archer
    Find Loflar, a loyal Elvish Fighter, on (3, 15) village, and Niodien, a loyal Elvish Archer, on (12, 11) village. Their 2nd traits are randomized. Therefore, they may not have desirable traits. Advancing them to level 3 and having Elvish Marshal/Champion/Avenger/Sharpshooter who costs 0 upkeep can be helpful in some future scenarios although the importance of elvish units diminishes in the later part of the campaign. They and Telerandor, a loyal Elvish Rider with dextrous trait from scenario 20a, are the only loyal elvish units in this campaign.

  4. Cannon fodders
    Intentionally suicide cannon fodder units when necessary. This scenario only has 20 villages in total, and most of them are far from the starting keep. Therefore, it takes time to turn around the negative income. To solve this gold problem, try to lose all cannon fodder Elvish Fighters and Elvish Shamans once the initial battle settles. Also, the afraid grouping described in chapter 02-4 often happens in this scenario because Konrad’s powerful units tend to cluster together in a small area. Although the afraid grouping doesn’t immediately lead to failure in this scenario, it slows down the pace to kill enemy units. Therefore, place cannon fodders in vulnerable locations to prevent the afraid grouping.

    By carefully calculating gold to balance cannon fodder recruits and other recalled units, Konrad has time to head north as a decoy on turn 4 to lure enemy units. This Konrad as a decoy tactic as described in chapter 02-3 makes some enemy units waste a few MP, which allows fewer enemy units to engage Konrad’s army during the 1st night (Run2, Run3).

  5. AI behavior: passive leader
    Both enemy leaders are passive leaders in this scenario. Passive leaders never move from the hex they are on or attack adjacent units on their turns. The only damage they inflict is in retaliation. Therefore, they are very safe targets for milking XP by damaging them bit by bit with as many engagements as possible. The following leaders are passive leaders in this campaign:
    • Scenario 1: Elvish Shyde (side 6, ally, moves out from the keep if Konrad is nearby)
    • Scenario 7: Orcish Warlord (side 2), Orcish Warrior (side 3)
    • Scenario 8: Princess (side 2)
    • Scenario 10: Mother Gryphon (side 3)
    • Scenario 19c: Armageddon Drake (side 2)
    • Scenario 20a: Orcish Warlord (side 2), General (side 3), Elvish Marshal (side 4, ally)
    • Scenario 20b: Saurian Oracle (side 2), Ancient Lich (side 3)
08 The Princess of Wesnoth
  • Turn limit: 25
    Minimum starting gold: 200
    Enemy starting gold (+extra income): 280(+16)
  1. Auto-recalled advisor
    Unit priority order for the auto-recalled advisor is as follows:
    Elvish Sylph, Great Mage, Elvish Marshal, Elvish Champion, Elvish Avenger, Elvish Sharpshooter, Elvish Shyde, Elvish Enchantress, Elvish Outrider, Paladin, Grand Knight, Mage of Light, Arch Mage, Silver Mage, Merman Triton, Merman Hoplite, Merman Javelineer, Merman Entangler, Mermaid Diviner, Mermaid Siren, Highwayman, Fugitive, Huntsman, Ranger, Assassin

    The order continues to level 2 and level 1 units, but usually, there should be at least one level 3 unit in the recall list at this point. The advisor is usually an Elvish Enchantress or other level 3 unit which cost 3 upkeep gold, but if the loyal Elvish Fighter or Elvish Archer from the previous scenario is already at level 3, then the loyal unit which costs 0 upkeep gold can have the highest priority.

    The same order is used for scenario 6, and that is why level 3~4 elvish units that have higher priority than Paladin (Simyr) should not be in the recall list at that point of the campaign as described in chapter 03-1.

  2. Special AI behaviors in this scenario
    While assassins (Duelist and Fencer) target Konrad, all the other units target Delfador in this scenario. Not everything can be accurately described in words, but the general idea is as follows:
    • Assassins
      Target Konrad, but if Delfador is in range, attack Delfador. Ignore all the other units, but if a hostile unit happens to be on an adjacent hex while moving toward Konrad, then consider attacking the unit.
    • Non-assassins
      Act normally, including assigning some units for village grabbing. However, instead of targeting Konrad (leader) like other scenarios, target Delfador if no unit is in range to attack.
    Because of these behaviors, sending Konrad and Delfador in different directions can divide enemy forces. Elvish Shaman’s ranged weapon with slows weapon special is very useful near both Konrad and Delfador because many enemy units have powerful melee weapons in this scenario.

  3. Special recruiting rules in this scenario
    How Li’sar recruits units in this scenario can be summarized into 4 rules:
    1. Only 1 Cavalryman, Duelist, and Fencer each can be recruited per turn.
    2. The order of recruiting is always Cavalryman, Duelist, Fencer, and other units.
    3. The number of Cavalryman, Duelist, and Fencer is limited to 2 each on the map. Dead ones can be replaced with new recruits.
    4. All Duelists and Fencers have quick trait.
  4. Extra income
    Li’sar has 16 extra income per turn. Because she earns 2(base income) + 16 = 18 gold per turn, she keeps recruiting a Cavalryman (Cost=17) every turn due to the recruiting rule “b” as described above in chapter 08-3. Therefore, once all the other units are killed, use Li’sar and these recruited Cavalrymen to gain XP in preparation for the next 2 scenarios. Note that Li’sar is a passive leader as described in chapter 07-5. Therefore, it is very safe to approach her despite her powerful melee weapon. Most sides in this campaign have the base income of 2, but the following enemy/ally sides have some extra income on top of the base income.
    • Scenario 2: Side 3 (+20)
    • Scenario 5a: Side 2 (+40)
    • Scenario 8: Side 2 (+16)
    • Scenario 11: Side 2 (+50)
    • Scenario 12: Side 2~3 (+8)
    • Scenario 13: Side 2 (+22), Side 3~4 (+18)
    • Scenario 16: Side 3 (+12)
    • Scenario 17: Side 4~7 (+6)
    • Scenario 19a: Side 2 (+32)
    • Scenario 20a: Side 2 (+16), Side 3 (+20), Side 4 (+20, ally)
    • Scenario 20b: Side 2 (+15), Side 3 (+20), Side 4 (+2, ally)
    • Scenario 23: Side 2~4 (+8), Side 5 (+12)
  5. Recruitment placement order
    When an enemy/ally leader recruits units, they are always placed in the following order:

    NW (northwest)
    SW (southwest)
    N (north)
    S (south)
    NE (northeast)
    SE (southeast)

    It starts from the first ring that is adjacent to the keep and continues to the 2nd ring and so on with the general rule of NW first and SE last. In all scenarios, it is worth remembering that the next enemy/ally recruit is always on NW of the keep unless the hex is occupied or non-castle.

    In this scenario, as described above in chapter 08-3 and 08-4, Cavalrymen are always recruited on (34,8) that is NW of the keep as long as the hex is unoccupied.
09 The Valley of Death — The Princess’s Revenge
  • Turn limit: 12
    Minimum starting gold: 200
    Enemy starting gold: 440, 600, 400
  1. Special AI behavior: very aggressive units
    Usually, enemy units evaluate how much damage they are likely to take from potential engagements, and they may refrain from some engagements as a result of the evaluation. However, in some scenarios, enemy units ignore all the negative aspects of engagements and they only care whether any damage can be inflicted on hostile units. This scenario is one of them, and enemy units are extremely aggressive and even suicidal in some cases. Against these aggressive enemy units, retaliation is more effective than usual because they are not afraid of taking heavy retaliation damage. Aggressive AI is used in the following scenarios:
    • Scenario 5a: Side 2
    • Scenario 6: Side 3 (Dusk, First Watch, Second Watch only)
    • Scenario 7: Side 2~3 (First Watch, Second Watch only for both sides)
    • Scenario 9: Side 2~4
    • Scenario 11: Side 2~4 (Side 4 is monster side and hidden in the Status Table.)
    • Scenario 13: Side 2~4
    • Scenario 14: Side 2 (Hidden monster side)
    • Scenario 17: Side 2~3
    • Scenario 18: Side 3
    • Scenario 19b: Side 2~6 (First Watch, Second Watch only)
    • Scenario 20a: Side 2 (First Watch, Second Watch only), Side 3 (Morning, Afternoon only)
    While all of these enemy sides are very aggressive, some AI parameters are different for each side. Therefore, not all of them behave in the exact same manner.

  2. Basic recruiting/recalling strategy
    The following composition is for killing all 3 Liches not for bragging but for safety. It is much safer to finish this scenario on turn 8~9 (Morning~Afternoon) by killing all 3 Liches than to play until the end of turn 12 because surviving the 2nd night tends to be the riskiest part of this scenario. Killing all 3 Liches has been considered RNG-dependent because assassination often relied on charge attacks by Grand Knight or Lancer, who only has 2~3 strikes per attack. However, the following composition with Paladin, Silver Mage, and Rogue/Thief, makes assassination quite independent of RNG and almost guaranteed to succeed.
    • Assassination army
      4 Thieves (recruit), 2 Paladins (Simyr and Haldiel)
    • Main army
      Silver Mage (Elrian), Mage of Light (not Moremirmu who is auto-recalled), 2 quick Elvish Enchantresses, 2~3 Elvish Sorceresses, Highwayman, Knight, close-to-advancement resilient Elvish Fighter or Elvish Hero, Elvish Fighter/Shaman with all the remaining gold (recruit)
    4 Thieves, Highwayman, Knight, and close-to-advancement resilient Elvish Fighter or Elvish Hero need to be recruited/recalled on turn 1 because they need to move fast, but other units are more flexible. Depending on carryover gold and unit composition in the recall list, usually around 20 units are recruited/recalled. Run 2 is the closest to this basic composition, and Run 3 is better in some aspects but worse in other aspects.

  3. Purple Lich in the north
    The main army heads north to kill the purple Lich. Initial purple Chocobones are big threats. On turn 3 (Afternoon), a close-to-advancement resilient Elvish Fighter can withstand Chocobone’s maximum damage (17×2=34 < 36~39 HP) and additional 3 strikes by other Chocobones as Elvish Hero (17×3=51 < 54~58 HP). Highwayman can withstand 3~4 strikes as well. As described above in chapter 09-1, enemy units are so suicidal that retaliation damage may kill some Chocobones. Kill the remaining Chocobones and other purple units to move further north. Unfortunately, most engagements happen on turn 4~5 (Dusk~First Watch) when enemy units are powerful. Therefore, many casualties are expected. At this point, Highwayman, Knight, Elvish Hero, and Elvish Sorceress are all expendable as well as other level 1 units. Knight can take the Holy Water in the west and join the main army, or sacrifice himself in the south to slow enemy movements. Purple Lich can be killed on turn 7 (Dawn) by the main army. Make sure that Silver Mage is near a safe village at the end of turn 7 so that he can teleport on the next turn. Also, make sure that 2 Elvish Enchantresses advance to Elvish Sylphs in this scenario if not already.

  4. Blue Lich in the south
    2 Thieves, Haldiel (strong Paladin), and Elrian (Silver Mage) are used for this assassination. On turn 7 (Dawn), place a Thief on (12, 42) village to lure out the Lich to (12, 43) flat hex. This is the no-retaliation decoy as described in chapter 05b-4. If the Thief has 24 or fewer HP, then he/she has a 78.4% chance to die while 25 or more HP one has only 34.3%. On turn 8 (Morning), attack the Lich from (12, 44) hill with Haldiel’s sword, not lance. Haldiel’s sword has 5 strikes and a 33.7% chance to kill the Lich. If the Lich survives, teleport Elrian to (12, 42) village and attack the Lich. Because the expected value (EV) of Haldiel’s attack is 16×5×0.6=48 and the EV of Elrian’s attack is 11×4×0.7=30.8, the Lich (60 HP) is expected to take 48+30.8=78.8 damage per turn on average. If the Lich survives, repeat these attacks on turn 9. With Haldiel’s 2 attacks on turn 8~9 and Elrian’s 1 attack on turn 8, the total EV is 48×2+30.8=126.8, which is almost guaranteed to kill the 60 HP Lich in 2 turns. The second Thief is used to block blue enemy units if some decide to come back south to protect the Lich leader.

    Run 1: 1 Thief and Haldiel were assigned. Haldiel killed the Lich alone on turn 8.
    Run 2: 2 Thieves and Haldiel were assigned. Haldiel and Elrian killed the Lich on turn 8.
    Run 3: 1 Thief and Haldiel were assigned. Haldiel and Elrian killed the Lich on turn 8. Haldiel was used to kill a Chocobone in retaliation on turn 4, which had a small risk but was insured by having an extra Paladin in the south.

  5. Green Lich in the east
    2 Thieves, Simyr (non-strong Paladin), and Elrian (Silver Mage) are used for this assassination. Take the Holy Water on (31, 43) with a Thief, preferably a strong one. On turn 7 (Dawn), place the other Thief as a no-retaliation decoy, as described in chapter 05b-4, on (36, 34) flat hex to lure out the Lich to (36, 33) flat hex. Also, take the village on (32, 35) with Simyr so that Elrian can teleport later. On turn 8 (Morning), attack the Lich with Simyr’s sword, not lance. Simyr’s sword has 5 strikes and a 7.8% chance to kill the Lich. The Thief with the Holy Water should attack from a backstabbing position. Elrian can teleport to (32, 35) village and join the attack if the blue Lich has been killed by Haldiel alone. On turn 9, repeat these attacks. Elrian can attack the blue Lich on turn 8 and then attack the green Lich on turn 9 by teleporting. Taking drains weapon specials into account, it may be slightly better to attack with the Thief first on turn 8 because the Lich can waste its healing through drains at full HP. The EV of Simyr’s attack is 14×5×0.6=42, the EV of Elrian’s attack is 11×4×0.7=30.8, the EV of non-strong Thief’s attack is 8×3×0.6=14.4, and the EV of strong Thief’s attack is 10×3×0.6=18. Therefore, with Simyr’s 2 attacks on turn 8~9, Elrian’s 1 attack on turn 9, and Thief’s 1 attack on turn 8, the total EV is 42×2+30.8+14.4 or 18=129.2 or 132.8, which is almost guaranteed to kill the 60 HP Lich in 2 turns.

    Run 1: 2 Thieves and Simyr were assigned. Simyr killed the Lich alone on turn 8.
    Run 2: 2 Thieves and Simyr were assigned. Simyr and a Thief killed the Lich on turn 8.
    Run 3: 1 Thief, 1 Rogue, Simyr, and another Paladin were assigned. Simyr and Rogue killed the Lich on turn 8. The extra Paladin was used to kill a Chocobone in retaliation on turn 3.
Last edited by Orek on September 14th, 2023, 4:58 am, edited 5 times in total.
Orek
Posts: 27
Joined: June 24th, 2020, 1:02 am

Walkthrough part 2 of 3

Post by Orek »

10 Gryphon Mountain
  • Turn limit: 21
    Minimum starting gold: 200
    Enemy starting gold (+extra income): 350, 0(-2)
  1. Gryphons
    There are 3 Gryphon unit types in this scenario.
    • Mother Gryphon
      Mother Gryphon is a passive leader who never moves or attacks except in retaliation as described in chapter 07-5.
    • Sleeping Gryphon
      Contrary to their name, Sleeping Gryphons are actually awake; they just have 0 MP, which allows them to attack adjacent units only. Sleeping Gryphons turn into Gryphons after they are attacked on Konrad’s/loyalists’ turns or after they attack on Gryphons’ turns. When adjacent hostile units are too powerful, Sleeping Gryphons may not attack the units and stay as Sleeping Gryphons.
    • Gryphon
      When Sleeping Gryphons turn into Gryphons, they have 9 MP. They treat both hostile sides equally. Therefore, they may attack Konrad’s units or loyalist units depending on the situation. However, practically speaking, Konrad’s units are attacked most of the time unless loyalist Mages are in range of Gryphons.
  2. Gryphons in future scenarios
    Gryphons may or may not join Konrad in future scenarios depending on how this scenario ends:
    1. Gryphon Riders become recruitable in scenario 15.
      Mother Gryphon is killed by Konrad’s unit.
    2. Gryphons become recruitable on turn 4 in scenario 22 when 5 loyal Gryphons join Konrad.
      b1. Mother Gryphon is killed by a loyalist unit. At least 1 Gryphon unit is alive. Konrad’s units never attack any Gryphon units on Konrad’s turns. No Gryphon unit is killed by Konrad’s units.
      OR
      b2. Mother Gryphon is alive. Loyalist units attack any Gryphon units at least once on loyalists’ turns. Konrad’s units attack any Gryphon units only once or never on Konrad’s turns. No Gryphon unit is killed by Konrad’s units.
    3. No Gryphon unit joins Konrad after this scenario.
      All the other situations lead to this result.
    Note that retaliation attacks don’t count as “attacks” in the definitions above. Therefore, no matter how many times Konrad’s units are attacked on Gryphons’ turns and thus damage Gryphon units in retaliation, b1 or b2 is still achievable as long as no Gryphon unit is killed by retaliation damage.

  3. Killing the Mother Gryphon
    If unlucky, the Mother Gryphon may be killed on turn 5 by loyalist Ogres and other units. While non-quick Elvish Sylphs cannot attack the Mother Gryphon on turn 5 before the loyalists’ turn, quick Elvish Sylphs can. When 5 strikes out of 10 of 2 Elvish Sylphs’ faerie fire attacks hit, the Mother Gryphon dies in 1 turn, which statistically has a 95.3% chance. However, a 4.7% chance of failure is too high to be consistent. Therefore, Elvish Riders/Elvish Scouts need to be used to block loyalist units’ paths to the Mother Gryphon. Also, they can attack the Mother Gryphon for extra damage and/or lure other Gryphons away from the Mother Gryphon. It is important to lure the first Gryphon on (16, 16) that has been attacked by a loyalist unit into somewhere far from the Mother Gryphon so that Elvish Sylphs’ paths are not blocked.

    In Run 2, an Elvish Scout, the weakest unit in the area, was strategically placed on turn 5 to lure the Gryphon. In Run 3, an Elvish Rider was placed on turn 4 as an adjacent-to-village decoy as described in chapter 02-6 so that the Gryphon is lured out to (17, 20) village. Alternatively, the Mother Gryphon can be killed on turn 6 with the help of Delfador and Kalenz, but they are so slow on hills/mountains that protecting them against Ogres and Duelists is difficult after the Mother Gryphon is killed (Run 1, Run 2). Run 3 is the only example with 2 quick Elvish Sylphs.

  4. All villages
    In most scenarios, once all villages are taken, and (upkeep cost) ≤ (# of controlled villages), then no carryover gold is lost for staying a turn longer. Therefore, finish scenarios on the very last turn to gain as much XP as possible without losing a gold. Enemy sides usually have at least 2 basic income per turn. Therefore, another unit may be recruited in a few turns if waited. This rule applies to all scenarios except for the ones with special carryover gold rules (scenario 5a, 5b, 14, 21).

    In Run 3, this scenario was finished on turn 13 instead of 21 due to the time pressure of speedrunning, but finishing on turn 21 would have provided extra 20 XP or so.

  5. Status Table
    Open “Status Table” to check the order of sides. Konrad is always side 1 and his turns always come first. In this scenario, side 2 is loyalists (team Asheviere), and side 3 is Gryphons. Therefore, loyalists’ turns come before Gryphons’. In scenario 1, enemy turns come before ally turns, but in scenario 2, ally turns come before enemy turns. Always open Status Table to check sides in a new scenario in order to play more optimally.
11 The Ford of Abez
  • Turn limit: 21
    Minimum starting gold: 200
    Enemy starting gold (+extra income): 200(+50), 260
  1. Storm Trident
    Give the Storm Trident to a quick Merman Fighter. When this quick Merman Fighter eventually advances to a Merman Hoplite, he has 6 MP instead of 5, which allows him to move 3 hexes instead of 2 on flat terrains in scenario 23. Alternatively, a non-quick Merman Fighter with the Storm Trident can stay at close-to-advancement Merman Worrier so that he retains 6 MP. There are 3 Storm Tridents in this campaign in scenario 4, 11, and 19c.

  2. Off limits to monsters
    Monsters (Cuttle Fish and Water Serpent) don’t enter (any x, 1~12) and (any x, 21~34). By taking advantage of this rule on turn 8 in Run 1, the injured Merman Fighter on (28, 11) shallow water was totally safe against monsters because all the adjacent hexes were off limits. Also, place 1~2 sacrificial Merman Fighters right in the middle of monsters to lure as many of them as possible in the west and nullify them (Run 1~3). Water battle from turn 8 on becomes easier with fewer monsters near Konrad.

  3. Recommended career paths for merfolk units
    Merman Fighter < Merman Warrior < Merman Hoplite
    Merman Hunter < Merman Netcaster < Merman Entangler
    Mermaid Initiate < Mermaid Priestess < Mermaid Diviner

    Steadfast ability of Merman Hoplite is useful for holding positions in scenario 19c, 20b, and 24. Also, it increases the chance to survive against charge attacks by Horseman line units in scenario 23.
    Slows weapon special of Merman Netcaster and Merman Entangler can weaken powerful melee weapons in scenario 19c and 20b.
    Healing provided by Mermaid Priestess and Mermaid Diviner is usually more useful than extra damage and HP from the other advancement line.

  4. Objective
    “Move Konrad to the north side of the river” in the objective actually means “Move Konrad to (any x, 1~8)” in the code. Therefore, contrary to the natural interpretation of the objective, most of the sand hexes and some grassland flat hexes such as (27, 9) and (35, 9) don’t meet the objective. For a quick finish, after recruiting/recalling for 2 turns, Konrad can reach (32, 8) dirt flat hex on turn 9. It is okay to stay longer and gain more XP for merfolk units, but approximately 6 carryover gold is lost every turn.

  5. General priority order of the auto-recalled advisor
    Different unit types have different priority order set by the scenario as described in chapter 08-1, 12-1, and 13-1. On the contrary, among the same unit type, the priority order seems to be automatically decided by the general rule described in the following example:

    In Scenario 101, A, B, C, D, and E are recruited in this order.
    In Scenario 102, F, D, B, C, and G are recruited/recalled in this order.
    In Scenario 103, the priority order is B, C, D, F, G, A, and E. Therefore, B is auto-recalled as an advisor.
    Simply put, the most senior unit recruited/recalled in the most recent scenario is auto-recalled as an advisor.

    By applying this rule, in the next scenario, non-loyal Thieves recruited in scenario 9 are prioritized over loyal ones from scenario 6. Therefore, unless the non-loyal Thieves have a lot of XP or useful traits, dismiss them from the recall list in this scenario to make sure that the loyal one becomes the auto-recalled advisor in the next scenario. Among the 3 loyal Thieves from scenario 6, the priority order is always Gelgar, Gamlel, and Darglen if none of them is recalled in the following scenarios. If Gamlel or Darglen has the best trait, it may be worth recalling her/him in scenario 9~11.

    The priority order can be checked in the following manner:
    1. Open the recall list.
    2. Click “Type” at least 3 times so that ascending/descending order from “Name,” “Lvl,” “XP,” and “Traits” don’t affect the order. (Without this resetting operation, the displayed order among the same unit type is affected by other attributes.)
    3. Click “Type” again, if necessary, to make it either ascending or descending order. (Either ascending or descending is fine because it is used only for comparison against other unit types, not among the same unit type.)
    4. Find the unit type of interest by manually scrolling or by searching with the textbox.
    5. Units are displayed according to the priority order from top to bottom. Therefore, the top unit is auto-recalled as an advisor. (For both ascending and descending settings, units of the same unit type are displayed in the same order. That is to say, the same unit is displayed at the top for both settings.)
12 Northern Winter
  • Turn limit: 40
    Minimum starting gold: 200
    Enemy starting gold (+extra income): 210(+8), 230(+8)
  1. Unit priority order for the auto-recalled advisor
    Thief, Poacher, Footpad, Thug, Mage, Horseman, Rogue, Trapper, Outlaw, Bandit, Red Mage, White Mage, Lancer, Knight, Assassin, Ranger, Huntsman, Fugitive, Highwayman, Silver Mage, Arch Mage, Mage of Light, Grand Knight, Paladin, Great Mage

    As described in chapter 11-5, non-loyal Thieves should be dismissed before coming to this scenario. A quick Thief is useful for taking more villages early. Note that in this scenario, low-level units are prioritized unlike scenario 6, 8, and 13 where high-level units are prioritized.

  2. Preparation for scenario 13~16
    Scenario 13: A few close-to-advancement Elvish Fighters or Elvish Heroes, a few close-to-advancement Elvish Scouts or Elvish Riders
    Scenario 14: Konrad at close-to-AMLA, Kalenz at close-to-AMLA, Delfador with at least 1 AMLA for having 63 HP
    Scenario 15: 1 close-to-advancement Elvish Rider or Elvish Outrider (preferably quick)
    Scenario 16: 1~2 Highwaymen, 1~2 Assassins

    AMLA=After Maximum Level Advancement
    These units may not be essential, but they make each scenario safer and easier.

  3. Assassination of the blue leader
    This scenario provides so many enemy units that killing the blue leader early and thus losing some potential XP may be fine. In fact, by having fewer enemy units fielded on the map, it is easier to give XP to the units that need it the most without having to use powerful units that don’t need XP any more. In Run 3, 2 Elvish Sylphs, 1 Elvish Outrider, and 1 Elvish Scout were immediately sent northwest. On turn 5 and 6, they stayed in locations where the blue leader couldn’t be attacked to avoid triggering the enemy leader protection as described in chapter 02-8. On turn 7 (Dawn), the assassination army closed the distance, and on turn 8, the blue leader and surrounding enemy units were killed with the help of a Silver Mage teleported to (4, 7) village.

  4. Extra income
    As described in chapter 08-4, both blue and green sides have 8 extra income per turn. Therefore, even if all villages are taken by Konrad’s army and the leaders are alone, they have 2 (base income) + 8 = 10 income per turn to recruit a unit every 2~3 turns. For milking more XP, it may be better to intentionally let the enemies keep a few villages so that they can recruit a unit every turn instead of 2~3 turns.

  5. Snowfall
    The map gets gradually covered by snow every turn in this scenario, but new snow never falls on hills and mountains. Also, finishing this scenario later = more snow hexes in the next scenario. Therefore, there is a trade-off between XP and the difficulty of the next scenario. Because Konrad and Delfador are very slow on snow (3 MP per hex), the benefit of having fewer snow hexes in the next scenario shouldn’t be underestimated.
13 The Dwarven Doors
  • Turn limit: 15
    Minimum starting gold: 200
    Enemy starting gold (+extra income): 140(+22), 115(+18), 70(+18)
    Note: This scenario starts at dusk. (Most scenarios start at dawn.)
  1. Auto-recalled units
    There are 2 types of auto-recalled units in this scenario. The priority orders are as follows:
    • Auto-recalled horse unit
      Haldiel (regardless of unit type), Elvish Outrider, Paladin, Grand Knight, Elvish Rider, Knight, Lancer, Elvish Scout, Horseman.
    • Auto-recalled outlaw advisor
      Delurin (regardless of unit type), Highwayman, Fugitive, Huntsman, Ranger, Bandit, Outlaw, Trapper, Thug, Footpad, Poacher, but only if at least one of them is in the recall list.
    Therefore, keeping Haldiel and Delurin alive up to this scenario is important.

  2. Uncle Somf
    When Konrad’s unit enters (18, 24) village while the outlaw advisor is still alive on the map, then Uncle Somf, a loyal Bandit, joins Konrad. Note that the unit that has triggered this event stays on the village and cannot use the remaining MP. In the conversation, Uncle Somf speaks about the true entrance location;
    Western entrance on (14, 3):
    “The mine entrances were all collapsed intentionally during the fighting. The doors, while heavily defended, remain accessible. The orcish hordes that assault them are repulsed, but you may be able to sneak in unnoticed.”
    Eastern entrance (25, 2):
    “The best way is through the mine tunnels. The orcs have never found all the mine entrances, and many still lead deep underground.”
    The other way to find out the true entrance location is from the conversation when Konrad’s unit, usually a fast horse unit, arrives at either entrance.

  3. Running
    There is nothing wrong with fighting enemy units, but it is possible to just run to the entrance if some casualties are accepted. Recruit/recall Elvish Fighter line units on turn 1 and then Elvish Scout line units on turn 2 (Run 1, Run2). Alternatively, just recruit/recall Elvish Scout line units on turn 1 (Run 3). Then, just run to the entrance while sacrificing all the recruited/recalled units on the way. It is even okay to sacrifice Haldiel, Delurin, and Uncle Somf if necessary. Konrad can recruit/recall extra 2 units per turn on (16, 20) keep for some reinforcements. When the true entrance happens to be on the eastern side on (25, 2), this scenario is easier, but running to the western entrance on (14, 3) is possible as well. As described in chapter 12-5, the later the previous scenario is finished, the more snow is present in this scenario. However, the number of snow hexes doesn’t increase over time during this scenario.

    Run 1: recruiting/recalling for 2 turns, western entrance
    Run 2: recruiting/recalling for 2 turns, western entrance
    Run 3: recruiting/recalling for 1 turn, eastern entrance

  4. Cuttle Fish ambush
    When Konrad’s unit enters (10~15, 10~15), a Cuttle Fish appears on (13, 13). This Cuttle Fish is hostile to all units. Therefore, it can be used to block purple enemy units. The unit that has triggered this event can use the remaining MP to escape from the Cuttle Fish unless it is triggered by taking (15, 10) village. It is better to trigger this event when the Cuttle Fish has a purple enemy unit to attack in range because, otherwise, it may block the path to the western entrance.
  5. Aggressive enemy units
    As described in chapter 09-1, enemy units in this scenario are very aggressive and even suicidal. For example, in most other scenarios, Delfador is almost never attacked by a ranged weapon because his retaliation damage is very powerful. However, in this scenario, enemy units don’t hesitate to use a ranged weapon against Delfador even if it is extremely likely to lead to their own death.
14 Plunging into the Darkness
  • Turn limit: unlimited
    Starting gold (+extra income): 0(-2)
    Ally starting gold: 0
    Note: 100% of the remaining gold is carried over to the next scenario.
  1. Blood Bats
    There are 4 Blood Bats, but 1 of them always goes north and attacks a Dwarvish Thunderer. Therefore, Konrad’s army needs to engage 1~3 Blood Bats depending on their traits (quick or non-quick), how well dwarvish units handle the first Blood Bat, and Konrad’s army movement. In order to increase the chance of more Blood Bats going north, it is recommended to wait and do nothing until around turn 6. This is because a dwarvish unit may get in range of the Blood Bat on (21, 31) on turn 3~5 and rarely on turn 6 or later.

    Placing a unit on (27, 41) or (26, 40) causes the Blood Bat on (17, 36) to attack the unit. Despite the fact that (27, 41) has 10% less defense than (26, 40) hill, (27, 41) is recommended because it allows 2 units to attack the lured Blood Bat on the next turn without getting in range of another Blood Bat on (21, 31).
    Placing a unit on (26, 38) causes the Blood Bat on (21, 31) to attack the unit if this Blood Bat hasn’t attacked a dwarvish unit in the north.
    Placing a unit on (24, 37) causes the Blood Bat on (15, 32) to attack the unit although this Blood Bat is almost always fighting dwarvish units in the north.

    Blood Bats are very aggressive and even suicidal as described in chapter 09-1. Kill the Blood Bats one by one and heal between battles. A unit that doesn’t move, attack, or isn’t attacked heals 2 HP per turn. This scenario has no turn limit, and 100% gold is carried over instead of normal 40%. If Konrad and Kalenz are at close-to-advancement in preparation for the engagements against the Giant Spider, Delfador should be the one to kill the Blood Bats.

  2. Chest of treasure (200 gold) behind a secret passage
    When Konrad’s unit enters (17, 36), a secret passage is found. This passage leads to a small room that holds the chest of treasure (200 gold) on (9, 39). However, once the passage is found, a Giant Spider comes out of it. This Giant Spider is a very formidable enemy, and engaging it can be quite risky. Therefore, it may be a good idea to skip finding the passage although taking the chest of treasure makes protecting Li’sar in scenario 16 slightly easier as described in chapter 16-5.

  3. Giant Spider’s relevant stats
    Basic stats: 54 HP, 6 MP, chaotic
    Defense and Movement Cost: Hill (60%, 1), Cave (50%, 1), Flat (30%, 1)
    Melee weapon attack damage: 18×2=36 on lit hexes, 22×2=44 on non-lit hexes; poison weapon special
    Ranged weapon attack damage: 8×3=24 on lit hexes, 10×3=30 on non-lit hexes; slows weapon special
    Maximum damage it can inflict in 1 turn on a lit hex when it is attacked by a ranged weapon = 24(retaliation) + 36 = 60 damage
    Just like Blood Bats, the Giant Spider is very aggressive and even suicidal as described in chapter 09-1.

  4. HP and XP of Konrad, Kalenz and Delfador
    • HP
      Konrad with 0 AMLA: 68 HP > 60 damage
      Kalenz with 0 AMLA: 63 HP > 60 damage
      Delfador with 1 AMLA: 63 HP > 60 damage
      Therefore, it is necessary for Delfador to gain 200 XP in scenario 1~13 for 1 AMLA, which gives him extra 3 HP. 63 HP Delfador with 1 AMLA has a 0 % chance to die in 1 turn when he attacks the Giant Spider with his ranged weapon, while 60 HP Delfador with 0 AMLA has a 7.8% chance to die if all 5 strikes of the Giant Spider hit.
    • XP
      The Giant Spider is a level 3 unit. Therefore, as described in chapter 04-2, it prioritizes attacking close-to-advancement units within 3 XP away from advancement including AMLA. By keeping Konrad and Kalenz at 147~149/150 XP, the Giant Spider is guaranteed to attack one of them. However, even better, by keeping them 1 more engagement worth of XP away, which is 144~146/150 XP, it is possible to attack the Giant Spider on Konrad’s turn and to be attacked on the enemy turn so that the attacked unit starts the next turn with full HP due to AMLA. It is recommended to keep one of Konrad and Kalenz at 144~146/150 XP and the other at 147~149/150 XP so that the Giant Spider can never kill a unit for 2 turns if played wisely. Considering the fact that it is sometimes unavoidable to engage Blood Bats and gain 1~2 XP, 144/150 XP for one and 147/150 XP for the other seem to be the best combination.
  5. How to safely kill the Giant Spider
    DO NOT trigger the secret passage event without HP and XP preparation described above in chapter 14-4. In Run 1 and Run 3, the Giant Spider was killed without XP preparation, but it was a huge mistake and by far the riskiest moment in the entire campaign, especially for Run 1. Because this scenario in Run 1 ended up with very unlucky “-29% Inflicted and +14% Taken” stats, Kalenz had a whopping 22.5% chance to die in the last engagement. Nothing can be done to overcome this much bad RNG in this scenario where no unit can be recruited/recalled. Therefore, stay away from the Giant Spider without proper preparation.

    When HP and XP are well prepared, kill all Blood Bats and heal all 3 units. Kalenz and Delfador should stay on (30, 41) and (30, 40), respectively. Send Konrad to either (18, 35) or (18, 36), and end the turn. On the next turn, move Konrad to (17, 35), which triggers the secret passage event, and then run back to (29, 41) as fast as possible. By this movement, the Giant Spider should be lured to (27, 41) lit cave without catching up with Konrad. In all of Run 1~3, the Giant Spider was attacked in this location, but Run 2 was the only run with proper XP preparation.

    From the scenario save of Run 2, Run 2 Demo was played to demonstrate a safe way to kill the Giant Spider despite very bad RNG (-59% Inflicted and +1% Taken) artificially created by save-loading. It shows that, with proper preparation as in Run 2, the following 8 attacks never result in the death of Konrad/Kalenz/Delfador regardless of luck. The number shows the potential lowest HP of the unit after the attack.
    Turn 27: Delfador (ranged, 39), Kalenz (ranged, retaliation, 66)
    Turn 28: Konrad (ranged, 44), Kalenz (ranged, 42), Delfador (ranged, 15), Konrad (ranged, retaliation, 71)
    Turn 29: Konrad (melee, 35), Kalenz (melee, 6)
    Although Delfador’s extra 3 HP doesn’t come into play in this particular method, it is necessary to safely survive 3 enemy turns instead of 2. Even when the Giant Spider’s slows weapon special is taken into account, these risk-free 8 attacks have the total expected value (EV) of 170 damage against the Giant Spider (54HP) if played correctly as in Run 2 Demo. Therefore, there is a very small risk of failure.
15 The Lost General
  • Turn limit: 54
    Minimum starting gold: 100
    Ally/enemy starting gold: 150, 410, 360
  1. Dwarvish Guardsman
    If the ally leader is alive at the end of this scenario, Dwarvish Guardsmen become recruitable from the next scenario. However, saving him can be difficult when the ally’s dwarvish army is overwhelmed early by the troll/orc army. In order to save the ally leader consistently, it is necessary to have a sacrificial unit fast enough to block the path to him. An Elvish Rider/Outrider and/or Dwarvish Fighters are the best for this role because these units can arrive at the blocking position around (15, 11) on turn 6 before the enemy units. Just in case all the initially recruited Dwarvish Fighters are non-quick (Run 3), bring up an Elvish Rider/Outrider for this scenario. Elvish Rider/Outrider is fast enough regardless of quick trait, while non-quick Dwarvish Fighters can be too slow. With Dwarvish Guardsmen in the arsenal, some future scenarios are easier, especially scenario 23.

  2. Battle against the troll/orc army
    Recruit/recall for 3~4 turns. This scenario is long but only has 18 villages. Therefore, having too many units hurts the carryover gold. In preparation for the next scenario, focus XP on 2~3 Dwarvish Fighters so that they can become Dwarvish Lords by the end of this scenario. Other Dwarvish Fighters can be sacrificed to pay less upkeep. An extra ally Dwarvish Fighter can be found in the south on (17, 24) village. Once the battle near the chasm is over, divide the army and send some units to kill the Troll Warrior leader and other units to the water in the south to engage the undead army.

  3. Dwarvish Ulfserker
    When a merfolk unit enters (13, 22) whirlpool, a loyal Dwarvish Ulfserker is found in a secret room. Then, when the merfolk unit enters (7, 23) whirlpool to get back to the other side, the Dwarvish Ulfserker joins Konrad. Therefore, recruit/recall a merfolk unit on the initial keep, ally’s keep, or Troll Warrior’s keep to acquire this unique unit.

  4. 3 undead related events
    1. On turn 20,
      cave walls on (15, 26) and (16, 26) collapse to open the passage for the undead army. 1 loyal Skeleton spawns on (23, 28).
    2. When Lionel (Death Knight leader) is sighted,
      3 Revenants spawn on (23, 28).
    3. When a unit enters (26~30, 24~25),
      cave walls on (26, 25) and (28, 26) collapse to open the passage for the undead army. 2 Revenants spawn on (23, 28).
  5. Battle against the undead army
    Once “event a” is triggered on turn 20, hold (15, 26) and (16, 25) with a Dwarvish Fighter/Steelclad and an Elvish Sylph backed up by a Mage of Light on (15, 25) for healing them. Keep holding these positions by cycling units. This is the best way to focus XP on 2~3 Dwarvish Fighters/Steelclads because enemy units come out one by one. Kill all units except for Lionel. Before killing Lionel, place units in all of the following 10 hexes: (22, 27~29), (23, 27~28), (24, 27~29), and (25, 28~29). Then, trigger “event c” so that 2 Revenants spawn on (23, 30) and (24, 26) inside the impassable cave wall where they have 0% defense due to the lack of spawnable hexes (Run 2, Run 3). Enemy units at 0% defense are extremely rare. Therefore, they are very good targets for the Dwarvish Ulfserker, who has a 0% chance to die if HP is well calculated.
16 Hasty Alliance
  • Turn limit: 27
    Minimum starting gold: 200
    Ally/enemy starting gold (+extra income): 400, 220(+12)
  1. Goblin Knight in the south
    Although it may appear something natural, DO NOT attack the Goblin Knight on (8, 20) from (8, 19) on turn 1. If this Goblin Knight in the south survives, and another enemy unit can reach (7, 19~20), then the unit on (8, 19) can die on the enemy turn. While this case is rare, it can happen and therefore should be avoided in order not to rely on RNG. The only time attacking from (8, 19) is justified is when all 3 of Troll on (5, 15), Troll on (6, 15), and Goblin Knight on (5, 16) are non-quick because then they cannot reach (7, 19~20) to attack the unit on (8, 19) on turn 1.

  2. Recalling strategy on turn 1~2
    It is crucial to kill the initial enemy units in the west as fast as possible so that more units can be assigned to the east early to protect Li’sar from enemy attacks. Therefore, on turn 1, recall 4 units with high HP and powerful melee weapons such as 2 Highwaymen + 2 Dwarvish Lords (Run 1, Run 2) or 1 Highwayman + 3 Dwarvish Lords (Run 3). All of these units are sacrificial. Their job is damaging/killing enemy units as fast as possible and protecting units recruited/recalled on turn 2. On turn 2, primarily recruit/recall units with powerful ranged weapons such as Elvish Sylphs to kill enemy units without taking damage in retaliation. Note that this scenario’s time of day is “Deep Underground” where chaotic units have +30% damage and lawful units have -30%.

    Recruiting Dwarvish Guardsmen on turn 1~2 is not recommended because their attacks are weak, and therefore initial enemy units in the west live too long to protect Li’sar. In practice runs, recruiting Dwarvish Guardsmen actually worked about 90% of the time, but a 10% chance of failure is just too high to call it a good strategy.

  3. Invincible Li’sar
    Li’sar evades all strikes and takes no damage until the end of turn 4. Therefore, she needs to be protected from turn 5 on. When there is an enemy unit in her range, and a hex is available for her to attack the unit from, she may move out from the keep and attack the unit, which may lead to her death in the following enemy turn. When she is out of the keep, as a leader, her priority is getting back to the keep as described in chapter 03-4 for enemy leaders. Therefore, it is usually best if she moves out to attack a unit on turn 4 because then she comes back to the keep on turn 5 when she becomes vulnerable. All measures have to be taken to prevent her death. Once she is in a safe situation on turn 7 or so, the rest of the scenario is relatively easy.

    DO NOT play this scenario casually. Protecting Li’sar consistently without relying on RNG seems to be the 2nd most difficult part of this entire campaign only after acquiring Simyr in scenario 2.

  4. Assassins and Gryphon Riders
    Trolls are often on adjacent hexes to Li’sar’s castle, which prevents Konrad’s units to move to the eastern side to protect Li’sar. However, skirmisher ability of Assassins ignores enemy ZoC and allows them to go to hexes that other units cannot. Therefore, recalling 1~2 sacrificial Assassins on turn 3 increases the chance of successful protection of Li’sar.

    Floating a Gryphon Rider on a chasm hex around (11, 15) gives vision in the north. Also, it can go to hexes that even Assassins cannot. Therefore, a sacrificial Gryphon Rider recruited on turn 3 is a helpful asset to protect Li’sar.

  5. Ally leader’s keep
    Ally leaders seem to be coded to move out of the keep they occupy to let the player’s leader recruit/recall if the following 7 conditions are all met.
    1. The ally leader cannot attack any enemy units.
    2. The ally leader cannot take any enemy/unoccupied villages.
    3. The ally leader doesn’t have enough money to recruit a unit any more after recruiting units on the current turn.
    4. The player’s leader can reach the keep that the ally leader currently occupies on the next turn.
    5. The player’s leader is expected to have enough money to recruit a unit at the beginning of the next turn.
    6. There is at least 1 empty castle hex for the ally’s keep so that the player’s leader can recruit a unit there on the next turn.
    7. There is at least 1 empty nearby hex for the ally’s leader to move out to. These hexes cannot be any nearby hexes that the ally leader can reach; depending on the nearby terrains on the map, there are only a few eligible hexes generally in the western direction from the keep. Eligible hexes for ally leaders to move out to are, from the highest priority to the lowest, as follows in each scenario.
      Scenario 1 [Galdrad, Elvish Champion, (24, 16) keep]: (22, 14), (23, 15), (22, 15), (23, 16), (24, 15)
      Scenario 1 [Chantal, Elvish Shyde, (3, 23) keep]: (1, 21), (2, 21), (1, 22), (3, 22), (2, 22)
      Scenario 2 [Sir Kaylan, Grand Knight, (27, 7) keep]: (24, 8), (25, 8), (26, 7)
      Scenario 15 [Geldar, Dwarvish lord, (15, 2) keep]: (14, 2)
      Scenario 16 [Li’sar, Princess, (12, 18) keep]: (9, 17), (10, 17), (11, 18)
      Scenario 16 [Li’sar, Princess, (8, 17) keep, where Konrad is originally on]: (7, 17)
      Scenario 20b [Haralamdum, Ancient Wose, (2, 3) and (3, 3) keep]: (1, 1), (1, 2), (1, 4), (2, 2), priority is not necessarily in this order because 2 adjacent keep hexes seem to produce complex priority.
      Scenario 20b [Bona-Melodia, Elvish Sylph, (48, 2) keep]: (45, 1), (46, 1), (47, 1)
    In this scenario, Li’sar gives up her keep to Konrad when these conditions are met. Let Li’sar move out if possible so that she is in a safer location in the west. Taking the chest of treasure (200 gold) as described in chapter 14-2 may be necessary to meet the condition “e.”

    Run 1: Li’sar didn’t move out because multiple conditions weren’t met.
    Run 2: On turn 4, Li’sar moved out to (10, 17) because all the conditions were met and (9, 17) was occupied.
    Run 3: On turn 4, Li’sar stayed on her keep because all eligible hexes were occupied although all the other conditions were met.
17 The Sceptre of Fire
  • Turn limit: 35
    Minimum starting gold: 500
    Enemy starting gold (+extra income): 70, 70, 50(+6), 50(+6), 30(+6), 40(+6)
  1. Randomly generated map
    Every time this scenario is played, the map is different. However, there are some general rules. The purple enemy (side 4) is in the southwest, the black enemy (side 5) is in the northwest, the brown enemy (side 6) is in the northeast, and the orange enemy (side 7) is in the southeast. The blue enemy (side 2) or green enemy (side 3) is usually the closest to Konrad’s castle, and one of them is randomly removed at the beginning of the scenario. The blue enemy’s castle is relatively in the west and the green enemy’s castle is relatively in the east. Therefore, check the status table at the beginning of the scenario to have an idea of where the closest enemy castle might be. Note that side 2 and side 3 enemy units are very aggressive and even suicidal as described in chapter 09-1.

  2. Lava
    All units die on lava hexes (unwalkable chasm) except for Gryphon Riders and Gryphon Masters. Lava expands every turn in the following manner:

    Step 1: There is 1 lava hex on the map at the beginning.
    Step 2: Lava expands to adjacent hexes for 3 turns.
    Step 3: At the same time as the 3rd expansion, one of the impassable cave wall hexes somewhere on the map turns into a lava hex. (New eruption happens.)
    Step 4: Back to step 1.

    Rule A: Lava never completely blocks a path.
    Rule B: When no hex is available for lava to expand due to rule A, a new eruption happens somewhere on the map. (Example: turn 8 in Run 3)

    Because a new eruption always happens on an impassable hex, no unit suddenly dies without warning. In Run 1, a Dwarvish Guardsman and an Elvish Shaman were carelessly lost to expanded lava on turn 8 and turn 10, respectively.

  3. Elvish units in cave
    In most scenarios up to this point, slows weapon special of Elvish Shaman line units has been the key to playing this campaign safely. However, elvish units are slow in cave, especially on this big cave map. Elvish Sylphs and Elvish Shydes are faster than other elvish units, but gold is better spent for sacrificial Dwarvish Fighters/Guardsmen. Both Konrad and Li’sar have leadership ability that helps level 1 dwarvish units fight better. In Run 2 and Run 3, no elvish unit was recruited/recalled, but no major problem happened.

  4. Sceptre of Fire
    It is recommended to capture the Sceptre of Fire with Li’sar. She doesn’t have a ranged weapon without it. Also, because Konrad has to recruit/recall on the initial turns, Li’sar often reaches the battlefields earlier than Konrad in future scenarios.

  5. Resting Delfador
    When Delfador rests, he can tell the direction of the Sceptre of Fire. The message is quite vague, but he often says one of northwest, north, or northeast. Send an army led by Li’sar to the direction he says, while other units can go elsewhere. As long as Delfador doesn’t move, he can tell the direction regardless of enemy attacks on him on the enemy turn.
18 A Choice Must Be Made
  • Turn limit: 27
    Minimum starting gold: 200
    Enemy starting gold: 300, 310
  1. 3 diverging campaign paths
    There are 3 ways to finish this scenario, and each leads to a different scenario. Different bonus unit/item is available for each path. Because 19c to 20b path was taken in all of Run 1~3, the other 2 paths are described only briefly here.

  2. 19a to 20a path
    Killing the Orcish Warlord leader in scenario 18 leads to scenario 19a Snow Plains, which is followed by scenario 20a Home of the North Elves.

    In scenario 19a, a bonus item, the Flaming Sword, can be found on (29, 9). It gives 3 bonuses to the melee sword attack of the unit who picks it up:
    Bonus 1: 25% increased damage,
    Bonus 2: magical weapon special
    Bonus 3: fire damage type replacing default blade/arcane
    The only units that can pick it up are Konrad, Li’sar, Kalenz, Elvish Marshal, Elvish Captain, Elvish Champion, Elvish Hero, and Paladin.

    In scenario 20a, a bonus unit, Telerandor, joins Konrad. He is a loyal Elvish Rider with dextrous trait.

  3. 19b to 20a path
    Killing the Death Knight leader in scenario 18 leads to scenario 19b Swamp Of Dread, which is followed by scenario 20a Home of the North Elves.

    In scenario 19b, a bonus item, the Void Armor, is dropped by one of the 4 Death Knights when it is killed. Which Death Knight has the Void Armor is randomly decided at the beginning of the scenario. The Void Armor gives 4 bonuses to the resistances of the unit who picks it up:
    Bonus 1: 50% blade
    Bonus 2: 40% pierce
    Bonus 3: 40% impact
    Bonus 4: +10% fire
    Fire resistance is additive, but the other 3 are replacing the existing resistances. The only units that can pick it up are Konrad, Li’sar, Kalenz, Elvish Marshal, Elvish Captain, Elvish Champion, Elvish Hero, Elvish Fighter, Elvish Avenger, Elvish Ranger, Dwarvish Lord, Dwarvish Steelclad, Dwarvish Fighter, Dwarvish Sentinel, Dwarvish Stalwart, Dwarvish Guardsman, Grand Knight, Paladin, Knight, Lancer, and Horseman.

    In scenario 20a, a bonus unit, Telerandor, joins Konrad. He is a loyal Elvish Rider with dextrous trait.

  4. 19c to 20b path
    Sending a merfolk unit to either (38, 28) or (38, 29) leads to scenario 19c The Cliffs of Thoria, which is followed by scenario 20b Underground Channels. The merfolk unit that reached the location to end this scenario gets auto-recalled in the next scenario 19c.

    In scenario 19c, a bonus unit, Warven, may join Konrad. He is a loyal Sergeant with fearless trait. Also, the 3rd Storm Trident can be obtained in addition to the ones in scenario 4 and 11.

    In scenario 20b, a bonus item, the Wose Lore book, can be found on (1, 1) by killing the Ancient Lich leader after meeting a wose unit. It gives 3 bonuses to the unit who picks it up:
    Bonus 1: 70% defense in forest,
    Bonus 2: ambush ability in forest
    Bonus 3: movement cost reduced to 1 for forest
    The only units that cannot pick it up are Elvish Avenger and Elvish Ranger because they already have all of these bonuses without the Wose Lore.

    This path is described more in detail in 19c and 20b chapters. When taking this path, this scenario 18 can be finished on turn 5 by recalling a merfolk unit with 7 MP on (14, 27). A merfolk unit with only 6 MP is not recommended because he/she may be caught up by a Chocobone and die on the way.

  5. Intentionally wasting gold now to save more later
    Some units cost more than 20 gold to recruit but only 20 gold to recall. For these units, instead of recruiting them when they are needed, it is sometimes cheaper to recruit them in a prior scenario and recall them later. For example, due to the carryover gold mechanism, 24 gold spent to recruit a Gryphon Rider in this scenario 18 is equivalent to 24×0.4×0.4×0.4= 1.5 gold in scenario 22, which means that a Gryphon Rider can be virtually recruited with 21.5 gold instead of 24 gold in scenario 22. Note that this strategy works well in this scenario because it is unlikely to run out of gold until scenario 22, and temporarily wasted gold isn’t going to be the limiting factor. In Run 2, some Gryphon Riders (24 gold) and Horsemen (23 gold) were recruited and used to help Li’sar gain some XP.
19c The Cliffs of Thoria
  • Turn limit: 45
    Minimum starting gold: 250
    Enemy starting gold: 100
    Note: This scenario starts in the afternoon. (Most scenarios start at dawn.)
  1. Objective
    The objective changes mid-scenario. The initial objective (victory condition) is “Make it to the end of the river.” The end of the river is not just (55, 3) as indicated on the map, but it is (53~55, 1~5). Once Konrad’s unit enters one of these hexes, the objective changes to “Move Konrad to the cave,” which is (37, 1).

  2. Drake units
    There are 9 drake nests on the map. If a nest is empty with no drake unit on the hex, a drake unit may spawn from the empty nest until it gets captured by Konrad’s unit. Level 1~3 drake units seem to spawn with the following rules:
    • Level 1 drake
      may spawn any time the nest is empty. Therefore, it takes 1 or more turns for a level 1 drake to spawn.
    • Level 2 drake
      may spawn only when the nest remained empty on the previous turn. Therefore, it takes 2 or more turns for a level 2 drake to spawn.
    • Level 3 drake
      may spawn from the nest that was occupied by a level 1 drake on the previous turn. Therefore, it always takes 1 turn for a level 3 drake to spawn but only where the previous occupier is a level 1 drake.
    Although the way level 3 drake units spawn doesn’t make a lot of sense, this is the way it is in version 1.14.17. Note that a nest may remain empty for several turns because level 1~2 units don’t always spawn in 1~2 turns.
    With these rules, the ratio becomes approximately level 1: level 2: level 3 = 30%: 60%: 10%.
    When a nest is captured, 10~50 gold is gained.

  3. Sergeant and Water Serpents
    When Konrad’s unit enters a hex within 7 hexes away from (45, 16), Warven, a loyal Injured Sergeant with fearless trait is found on (45, 16) mountain. At the same time, 5 Water Serpents spawn around the mountain. These Water Serpents in this scenario are modified from the default unit stats, and they cannot enter mountain hexes so that Warven is safe as long as he is surrounded by mountain hexes.

    When Konrad’s unit enters an adjacent hex to Warven on (45, 16), he joins Konrad as a loyal Sergeant with fearless trait. He is poisoned and at 1 HP. Therefore, make sure to protect him from nearby enemy units. Although there are only 4 more playable scenarios, once this level 1 Sergeant advances to level 4 General, his leadership ability can give bonus damages to even level 3 adjacent units.

  4. General strategy
    Recall many loyal merfolk units and a few Elvish Sylphs. Recruit some cannon fodder merfolk units and a few Gryphon Riders. Elvish Sylphs and Gryphon Riders are used for providing vision because, without these flying units, some drake nests surrounded by mountains are difficult to see with merfolk units. Give the Storm Trident on (17, 11) to a quick Merman Fighter/Warrior for scenario 23 as described in chapter 11-1. Keep moving east and save Warven if possible. Send a merfolk unit to the end of the river to change the objective as described above in chapter 19c-1.

  5. XP from level 4 Armageddon Drake
    Before finishing this scenario, it is a good idea to milk some XP by attacking Keh Ohn (drake leader) on (28, 9). Keh Ohn is a very powerful level 4 Armageddon Drake, but this passive leader never moves or attacks except in retaliation as described in chapter 07-5. Keep a Mermaid Priestess/Diviner for healing, and engage Keh Ohn to gain 4 XP per engagement. In Run 2 and Run 3, Li’sar and Warven were advanced in this manner.
20b Underground Channels
  • Turn limit: 60
    Minimum starting gold: 200
    Enemy/ally starting gold (+extra income): 225(+15), 400(+20), 70(+2), 50
    Note: Carryover gold in this scenario is added to the minimum starting gold in scenario 22 as if scenario 21 doesn’t exist (40% as usual, not 40%×40%=16%).
  1. Wose Lore book
    As described in chapter 18-4, the Wose Lore book is a bonus item that gives 3 bonuses to the unit who picks it up: 70% defense in forest, ambush ability in forest, and movement cost reduced to 1 for forest. The only units that cannot pick it up are Elvish Avenger and Elvish Ranger because they already have all of these bonuses without the Wose Lore.

    In order to get the Wose Lore, meet a wose unit while Muff Argulak, the Ancient Lich leader on (25, 15), is still alive. Then, kill the Ancient Lich while Haralamdum, the Ancient Wose leader, is still alive. Once the Ancient Lich is dead, all the wose units disappear and the Wose Lore appears on (1, 1). If the Ancient Lich is killed by a unit from other sides (saurians, ally woses, or ally elves), the Wose Lore doesn’t appear. Because the Ancient Lich is a passive leader as described in chapter 07-5, it is safe to approach it despite its very powerful ranged weapon. In all of Run 1~3, the Wose Lore was ignored because killing the Ancient Lich would have taken too much time for these speedruns.

  2. Running path
    The easiest and safest way to finish this scenario is just running away with minimum engagements. Recalled merfolks, dwarves, and a few Elvish Scout line units can safely escort Konrad, Li’sar, Kalenz, and Delfador to the ally elves. Head straight north first and take the northernmost cave path to the east. Then, it is safer to take the backdoor waterway around (34, 6) than the frontdoor cave path around (37, 8). This scenario ends when Konrad reaches one of the following hexes: (41, 3), (42, 2), (43~44, 1~3), (45~46, 1~4), (47~48, 1~5), and (49~50, 1~6).

  3. Saurians in the south
    1 Mage of Light and 2~3 units can successfully block saurians on (14, 33) ruined castle (Run 2, Run 3). Merman Hoplite is the best unit for this role. Without this blockage, saurians can become threats to the running army led by Konrad in the north. At least 2 units are needed to completely block the path because Saurian Skirmisher line units have skirmisher ability. Because saurians and undead are hostile to each other, this (14, 33) is about the only place where engaging saurians is unavoidable. Although it is not necessary to actively engage saurians in the south, note that the Saurian Oracle leader is a passive leader as described in chapter 07-5. Also, it is a good idea to have a scouting merfolk unit around (17, 27) just in case saurian or undead units sneak in from this waterway.

  4. Shadow and Nightgaunt
    Their nightstalk ability makes them invisible during the night except if one of Konrad’s or ally’s units is adjacent to them. Because it is always considered night in cave, they are difficult to anticipate and prepare for. What is worse, they also have skirmisher ability and backstab weapon special. Therefore, always try to completely block the path around the cave entrance to prevent sudden deaths of important units. For example, Nightgaunt from a backstabbing position in cave has a whopping 25×3=75 maximum damage, which means that even level 3 Konrad (65HP) may suddenly die without warning.

  5. XP focused play
    As described in chapter 08-4, saurian and undead sides in this scenario have 15 and 20 extra income per turn, respectively. Therefore, with their extra income, leaders being passive, and a very long turn limit of 60, this scenario can be a good place to gain a lot of XP for non-speedrunning gameplays.
21 The Elven Council (Dialog only)
22 Return to Wesnoth
  • Turn limit: 25
    Minimum starting gold: 400
    Enemy starting gold: 180, 190, 200
  1. Recruiting/recalling strategy
    Recruit/recall for 4 turns. Coming from scenario 20b, the initial gold should be higher than 1000. Although many units can be recruited/recalled, only 24 or so units should be enough in this scenario. It is better to save some gold for the next scenario where more units are needed for safety. In Run 3, units were recruited/recalled only for 2 turns on the initial keep, and the rest were recruited/recalled on the (38, 14) castle keep after the blue General leader was killed.

  2. No level 1 enemy units
    This is the only scenario where all enemy units are level 2 or 3. Expect heavy damage from all enemy units. Recruit sacrificial Elvish Shamans to slow enemy units with powerful melee weapons. Recall Dwarvish Lords or other units with powerful melee weapons to deal with Master Bowman and Orcish Crossbowman.

  3. Lawful and chaotic enemy units
    This is the first scenario where both lawful and chaotic units are in the same enemy team. Therefore, unlike other scenarios, the tactical retreat at an unfavorable time of day doesn’t work well. Engage the enemy army head on. The other such scenario is scenario 24.

  4. Enemy reinforcements
    When one of the General leaders is killed, 3 enemy loyal Halberdiers appear in the south around (33, 37). Usually, the blue General leader is killed first, but killing the purple General leader first triggers the same reinforcements.

  5. Gryphons
    As described in chapter 10-2, Gryphons may join Konrad on turn 4 in this scenario. If the conditions have been met in scenario 10, 5 loyal Gryphons appear around (5, 5) on turn 4. At the same time, Gryphons become recruitable with 40 gold. Although having Gryphons in the arsenal is nice, another option of having Gryphon Riders from scenario 15 is usually better.
23 Test of the Clan
  • Turn limit: 47
    Minimum starting gold: 400
    Enemy starting gold (+extra income): 180(+8), 180(+8), 180(+8), 200(+12)
  1. General strategy
    Recruit/recall 3~4 turns, and head south to kill the green Grand Knight leader on (76, 42) castle. Recruit/recall more units on this castle, and head northwest to engage enemy units head on. It takes approximately 20 turns to finish this scenario by killing 50 enemy units in this manner. An alternative way to finish this scenario is assassinating all 4 Grand Knight leaders before killing 50 enemy units, but it is quite difficult on challenging difficulty.

  2. Merfolk units
    Recall 3~4 merfolk units on turn 1. Their role is blocking blue and purple enemy units at the river from turn 8 on (Run 2, Run 3). Close-to-advancement Merman Warriors are the best, but quick Merman Hoplites are fine as well because at least 6 MP is needed to reach the river on turn 8. Their pierce melee weapons are very effective against Horseman line units. In order to use ranged weapons, recalling merfolk units with the Storm Trident is ideal. With these sacrificial merfolk units killing blue and purple units, the main army led by Konrad is much safer.

  3. Dwarvish Guardsman
    Make a defensive line with Dwarvish Guardsmen. Their steadfast ability and pierce melee weapon make them the best unit against Horseman line units. With leadership ability by Konrad, Li’sar, or Warven as a level 3 General, a non-strong Dwarvish Guardsman can deal 5×1.2×1.5×2=18 damage per strike and 18×3=54 damage per attack as retaliation damage against charging Horseman line units. Never place important units in vulnerable locations outside the defensive line. Konrad, Li’sar, Kalenz, and Delfador should be protected very well because Horseman line units’ charge attacks are very deadly. For example, even at Dawn/Dusk, a non-strong Lancer can deal 12×2×3=72 damage per attack.

  4. Northern villages
    Grab villages in the north and kill village grabbing enemy units. As described in chapter 02-7, some enemy units are assigned for village grabbing while most units that have no hostile unit to attack in range move toward Konrad. Therefore, try to kill village grabbing enemy units so that new units are assigned to replace the dead ones. The more enemy units are assigned for village grabbing, the safer the main army led by Konrad becomes. In Run 3, 3 Horseman line units were killed in the north that would have otherwise become threats to Konrad’s main army.

  5. Grand Knight
    Every killed Grand Knight joins Konrad in the next scenario. Therefore, 0~4 Grand Knights are auto-recalled in the next scenario. However, unless an assassination strategy is used, only green Grand Knight is killable in most cases. Extra Grand Knights are nice to have, but it is not something crucial.
24 The Battle for Wesnoth
  • Turn limit: 60
    Minimum starting gold: 400
    Enemy starting gold: 300, 400, 400, 500
  1. Knight
    Knights become recruitable with 40 gold in this scenario. However, for holding a defensive line, recalling 2 units with 40 gold or recruiting 2 Dwarvish Guardsmen with 38 gold are usually better.

  2. Assassination of Asheviere
    Recall/recruit flying units on turn 1 to assassinate Asheviere, the Dark Queen. The safest and easiest way to finish this scenario is the assassination of Asheviere on turn 8. At least 1 Gryphon unit and 2 ~3 Elvish Sylphs need to be recruited/recalled on turn 1. They should cross the river in the south and skirt around the enemy units to move west in the southern grassland.

  3. Up to turn 6
    In order to prevent the enemy leader protection as described in chapter 02-8, on turn 6 (Second Watch) or earlier, Asheviere should not be attackable by any units. Count hexes and make sure that Asheviere is outside the range of all units so that enemy units don’t pull back to protect her. Also, stay away from the green General leader for the same reason. In Run 2, a Gryphon Master carelessly went too close to Asheviere on turn 6 to cause the enemy leader protection, which could have been a catastrophic mistake.

  4. Turn 7 and 8
    On turn 7 (Dawn), lure out Asheviere with Gryphon units. As described in chapter 05b-4, because Gryphon units don’t have a ranged weapon in retaliation, they are suited to be no-retaliation decoys. Make sure that at least 1 Gryphon unit is in her range, (16, 20) for example, and Elvish Sylphs are positioned so that they can attack Asheviere on the next turn. This scenario shows that the no-retaliation decoy tactic is not guaranteed to work; on turn 7 in Run 2 and Run 3, the purple Cavalier leader was not lured out by a Gryphon Rider/Master. Also, Asheviere is occasionally not lured out perhaps due to something similar to the afraid grouping mechanism as described in chapter 02-4. Therefore, Elvish Sylphs should be close enough to attack Asheviere on the keep just in case.

    On turn 8 (Morning), kill Asheviere to finish this campaign. In all of Run 1~3, Asheviere was killed in this manner on turn 8, but it was actually possible to kill her on turn 7 by luring her out on turn 6 instead of turn 7.

  5. Defensive line around the keep
    Keep recruiting/recalling Dwarvish Guardsmen, Dwarvish Lords, and any high HP units to form a defensive line around the keep to survive for 7 turns until the assassination army finishes its job. Keep Li’sar, Kalenz, and Delfador in the back so that they don’t accidentally die. Because enemy Duelists have skirmisher ability, make sure that the defensive line is as tight as possible.
Last edited by Orek on June 3rd, 2023, 4:36 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Orek
Posts: 27
Joined: June 24th, 2020, 1:02 am

Walkthrough part 3 of 3

Post by Orek »

Statistics
ImageImage
Scenario Difficulty Order
Scenario difficulty order is subjectively judged and the reasons for each scenario are described briefly. It is based not only on how difficult it is to finish the scenario once but also on how consistently the scenario can be finished with a satisfactory result in multiple permadeath runs.

[Difficult] 02, 16, 14, 04, 09, 06, 05b, 10, 13, 12, 23, 08, 07, 03, 15, 17, 19c, 22, 01, 20b, 11, 24, 18 [Easy]

02 Blackwater Port
There is only 1 prior scenario to prepare for this scenario. Killing the enemy leader in time and thus acquiring Simyr consistently requires multiple tactics to exploit AI behaviors.

16 Hasty Alliance
Protecting Li’sar consistently requires a well-prepared army. Also, a small mistake in unit placements can lead to her death.

14 Plunging into the Darkness
No unit can be recruited/recalled. Specific XP and HP preparation is necessary to safely kill the Giant Spider.

04 The Bay of Pearls
Water battle is extremely difficult when 6 Naga Fighters are recruited in turn 1~2. On the contrary, when the number is less than 4, it is relatively easy. Also, intentional “bad” gameplays are needed on land to prevent the afraid grouping.

09 The Valley of Death — The Princess’s Revenge
Killing all 3 Liches for safety requires specific movements. Dealing with purple enemy units at an unfavorable time of day requires a lot of preparation and tactical decision-making.

06 The Siege of Elensefar
This scenario is impossible without preparation in prior scenarios. Even with a well-prepared army, some specific tactical maneuvers are needed to finish this scenario in time.

05b Isle of the Damned
Only Konrad and merfolk units can be prepared for this scenario. Killing both Liches and thus keeping Moremirmu is possible only with a clear plan.

10 Gryphon Mountain
Killing the Mother Gryphon requires preparation in prior scenarios. Only a handful of units can be recruited/recalled due to the lack of carryover gold.

13 The Dwarven Doors
Unlucky snow patterns may slow Konrad’s movements. Also, having to go to the western true entrance is relatively risky.

12 Northern Winter
Konrad’s army can be overwhelmed by a massive number of enemy units. Retreating at an unfavorable time of day is difficult due to the gradual snowfall.

23 Test of the Clan
Enemy Horseman line units’ charge attacks are threats to important units.

08 The Princess of Wesnoth
Level 2 non-leader enemy units are quite deadly at this point of the campaign.

07 Crossroads
Finding too many ambush enemy units at a time can cause problems. Some “bad” gameplays may be necessary to prevent the afraid grouping.

03 The Isle of Alduin
Balancing the western and eastern armies can be sometimes difficult.

15 The Lost General
Once the ally leader is protected, the rest of the campaign is relatively easy with a long turn limit.

17 The Sceptre of Fire
Dwarvish units can protect other units very well in this scenario. Also, the turn limit is long enough.

19c The Cliffs of Thoria
Merfolk units are very good in the water. Being familiar with unit stats of drakes is necessary.

22 Return to Wesnoth
While enemy units are very powerful in this scenario, units in the recall list must be much better at this point of the campaign.

01 The Elves Besieged
Preparation for the next scenario may not be easy at first, but practice makes perfect.

20b Underground Channels
Although some enemy units are deadly, running away from them is not so difficult.

11 The Ford of Abez
Because enemy orc units have low defense in the water, merfolk units can easily protect Konrad, Kalenz, and Delfador.

24 The Battle for Wesnoth
The assassination of Asheviere is very easy.

18 A Choice Must Be Made
Running takes no skill.
Changes from 1.14.17 to 1.16.9
Major differences between 1.14.17 (played version) and 1.16.9 (latest version as of writing) on challenging difficulty
  • AI
    Some changes are made to the AI, but nothing is different in approximately 95%+ of the situations. Generally speaking, healing is valued higher than before. Therefore, injured enemy units are more eager to retreat, and some injured ally units may try to heal by hugging Konrad’s healing unit (e.g., Li’sar in scenario 16). Check RCA AI for more details.
  • Unit stats
    Many changes are made to unit stats. However, most changes are relatively minor compared to the scenario changes listed above. The most impactful change is probably Chocobone’s cost reduction from 38 to 28, but because enemy sides have less gold in scenarios where Chocobones are recruited (5b, 9, 18), it seems that these scenarios are still balanced enough without becoming impossible with mass Chocobones.
Scenario 1 The Elves Besieged

Code: Select all

{Turn limit} [Konrad]  [Side 2 ~ 6]
1.14.17 {12} [100]     [400, 500, 500, 170, 170]
1.16. 9 {12} [100]     [325, 300, 300, 175, 225]
Scenario 2 Blackwater Port

Code: Select all

{Turn limit} [Konrad]  [Side 2, 3]
1.14.17  {9} [100]     [40, 220(+20)]
1.16. 9  {9} [100]     [80, 200(+12)]
Scenario 3 The Isle of Alduin

Code: Select all

{Turn limit} [Konrad]  [Side 2]
1.14.17 {21} [140]     [100]
1.16. 9 {22} [110]     [ 50]
Scenario 4 The Bay of Pearls

Code: Select all

{Turn limit} [Konrad]  [Side 2, 3]
1.14.17 {21} [140]     [110, 210]
1.16. 9 {21} [140]     [90, 210]
Scenario 5a Muff Malal’s Peninsula

Code: Select all

{Turn limit} [Konrad]  [Side 2]
1.14.17 {21} [140]     [100(+40)]
1.16. 9 {21} [130]     [ 80(+28)]
Scenario 5b Isle of the Damned

Code: Select all

{Turn limit} [Konrad]  [Side 2, 3]
1.14.17 {24} [100]     [110, 110]
1.16. 9 {24} [100]     [ 60,  60]
Scenario 6 The Siege of Elensefar

Code: Select all

{Turn limit} [Konrad]  [Side 2, 3] [Enemy reinforcements at the cave]  [Map inside the cave]
1.14.17 {29} [120]     [240, 220]  [60 gold, 1 Revenant, 1 Deathblade] [  no flat hex   (harder entry to the cave)]
1.16. 9 {32} [120]     [200, 160]  [40 gold, 2 Revenants]              [some flat hexes (easier entry to the cave)]
Scenario 7 Crossroads

Code: Select all

{Turn limit} [Konrad]  [Side 2, 3]
1.14.17 {31} [200]     [190, 150]
1.16. 9 {28} [200(+2)] [180, 150]
Scenario 8 The Princess of Wesnoth

Code: Select all

{Turn limit} [Konrad]  [Side 2]
1.14.17 {25} [200]     [280(+16)]
1.16. 9 {25} [180]     [300(+16)]
Scenario 9 The Valley of Death — The Princess’s Revenge

Code: Select all

{Turn limit} [Konrad]  [Side 2 ~ 4]
1.14.17 {12} [200]     [440, 600, 400]
1.16. 9 {12} [220]     [300, 340, 280]
Scenario 10 Gryphon Mountain

Code: Select all

{Turn limit} [Konrad]  [Side 2, 3]
1.14.17 {21} [200]     [350, 0(-2)]
1.16. 9 {21} [180]     [320, 0(-2)]
Scenario 11 The Ford of Abez

Code: Select all

{Turn limit} [Konrad]  [Side 2, 3]
1.14.17 {21} [200]     [200(+50), 260]
1.16. 9 {21} [200]     [250(+50), 260]
Scenario 12 Northern Winter

Code: Select all

{Turn limit} [Konrad]  [Side 2, 3]
1.14.17 {40} [200]     [210(+8), 230(+8)]
1.16. 9 {28} [160]     [180(+6), 180(+6)]
Scenario 13 The Dwarven Doors

Code: Select all

{Turn limit} [Konrad]  [Side 2 ~ 4]
1.14.17 {15} [200]     [140(+22), 115(+18), 70(+18)]
1.16. 9 {20} [200]     [140(+16), 100(+13), 70(+14)]
Scenario 14 Plunging into the Darkness (no difference)

Code: Select all

{Turn limit} [Konrad]  [Side 3]
1.14.17  {-} [0(-2)]   [0]
1.16. 9  {-} [0(-2)]   [0]
Scenario 15 The Lost General

Code: Select all

{Turn limit} [Konrad]  [Side 2 ~ 4]
1.14.17 {54} [100]     [150, 410, 360]
1.16. 9 {42} [125]     [150, 320, 240]
Scenario 16 Hasty Alliance
Special note: Less gold for Li’sar ironically makes protecting her much easier due to the condition “c” in chapter 16-5 = She runs out of her gold earlier to meet the condition to give up her keep.

Code: Select all

{Turn limit} [Konrad]  [Side 2, 3]
1.14.17 {27} [200]     [400, 220(+12)]
1.16. 9 {22} [150(+3)] [300, 200(+ 9)]
Scenario 17 The Sceptre of Fire

Code: Select all

{Turn limit} [Konrad]  [Side 2 ~ 7]
1.14.17 {35} [500]     [70, 70, 50(+6), 50(+6), 30(+6), 40(+6)]
1.16. 9 {37} [475]     [70, 70, 50(+6), 50(+6), 30(+6), 40(+6)]
Scenario 18 A Choice Must Be Made

Code: Select all

{Turn limit} [Konrad]  [Side 2, 3]
1.14.17 {27} [200]     [300, 310]
1.16. 9 {24} [170]     [250, 260]
Scenario 19a Snow Plains

Code: Select all

{Turn limit} [Konrad]  [Side 2]
1.14.17 {37} [200]     [220(+32)]
1.16. 9 {37} [175]     [300(+20)]
Scenario 19b Swamp Of Dread

Code: Select all

{Turn limit} [Konrad]  [Side 2 ~ 6]
1.14.17 {27} [200]     [260     , 260     , 260     , 210     , 210     ]
1.16. 9 {27} [170]     [100(+10), 120(+10), 180(+12), 100(+10), 120(+10)]
Scenario 19c The Cliffs of Thoria

Code: Select all

{Turn limit} [Konrad]  [Side 2]
1.14.17 {45} [250]     [100]
1.16. 9 {45} [220(+3)] [100]
Scenario 20a Home of the North Elves

Code: Select all

{Turn limit} [Konrad]  [Side 2 ~ 4]
1.14.17 {15} [200]     [460(+16), 460(+20), 350(+20)]
1.16. 9 {19} [175(+3)] [400(+20), 400(+20), 400(+20)]
Scenario 20b Underground Channels

Code: Select all

{Turn limit} [Konrad]  [Side 2 ~ 5]                     [Side 5 leader]
1.14.17 {60} [200]     [225(+15), 400(+20), 70(+2), 50] [Elvish Sylph]
1.16. 9 {45} [175]     [200(+12), 250(+16), 70(+2), 50] [Elvish Enchantress]
Scenario 21 The Elven Council (Dialog only)

Scenario 22 Return to Wesnoth

Code: Select all

{Turn limit} [Konrad]  [Side 2 ~ 4]    [Side 2 recruits] [Side 4 recruits]
1.14.17 {25} [400]     [180, 190, 200] [Royal Guard]     [Royal Guard +4]
1.16. 9 {25} [300]     [160, 190, 200] [Swordsman]       [Swordsman   +4]
Scenario 23 Test of the Clan

Code: Select all

{Turn limit} [Konrad]  [Side 2 ~ 5]                          [Units to kill] [Lancer is recruited by]
1.14.17 {47} [400]     [180(+8), 180(+8), 180(+8), 200(+12)] [50]            [Side 2, 3, 4]
1.16. 9 {36} [200]     [120(+8), 120(+8), 120(+8), 150(+12)] [40]            [Side 5]
Scenario 24 The Battle for Wesnoth

Code: Select all

{Turn limit} [Konrad]  [Side 2 ~ 5]                             [Side 3 recruits] [Side 4 recruits] [Side 5 recruits]
1.14.17 {60} [400]     [300     , 400     , 400     , 500     ] [Royal Guard +4]  [Cavalier +3]     [Royal Guard, Halberdier +4]
1.16. 9 {60} [300(+3)] [175(+10), 175(+10), 250(+12), 350(+13)] [Swordsman   +4]  [(None)   +3]     [Swordsman  , Pikeman    +4]
As these changes suggest, HttT on challenging difficulty in 1.16 seems to be significantly easier than in 1.14. After coming up with extremely specific strategies/tactics to solve very difficult situations and finishing 3 permadeath runs, it is a little bit sad to see some challenges disappear. However, it may be a good thing that fewer players get stuck in this novice level campaign and come to the forum to complain about RNG/difficulty although these players often underestimate the word “challenging” in Wesnoth.
Special Thanks
  • oaq
    Great strategies/tactics written by oaq, Elves Besieged (hard/challenging): the Full-Map Strategy in 2013 and Simyr in 2014, are the foundations for contents in scenario 1 and 2.
    Also, oaq is probably the first player to finish a permadeath HttT on challenging difficulty in Heir to the Throne hard permadeath victory in version 1.12.6 in 2018.
    Without oaq’s dedication to permadeath HttT for 4 years and paving the way for the future, this walkthrough would have never been written.

  • wesnothpoet
    Permadeath replays by wesnothpoet in Novice+intermediate campaigns on permadeath have shown that it is possible to finish other novice/intermediate level campaigns on the hardest difficulty on permadeath. Replays in 1.12.6 played in 2019~2020 can be downloaded from here.
    Watching wesnothpoet’s gameplays, some of the general campaign guides in this walkthrough must be applicable in other campaigns.

  • Zrevnur
    Zrevnur’s HttT gameplays on challenging difficulty in ironman mode in 1.14.9 in 2020 are the only permadeath 1.14 replays outside this walkthrough:
    1 2 3 4 5b 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 15 16 17 18 19a 20a 22 23 24
    Also, Zrevnur’s “I have not been able to find a 99% strategy.” feedback comment in scenario 2 has been the motivation to play scenario 1 and 2 at least 500 times each to prove that acquiring Simyr is nearly 100% possible with the strategies/tactics in this walkthrough.
Thank you for reading this walkthrough. Feedback is always welcome.

EDIT on May 21, 2023: Videos and replay files in version 1.16.9 is added.
EDIT on Sept. 14, 2023: Videos and replay files in version 1.16.10 is added.
Image 1.16.9 Replay Image 1.16.10 Replay
Attachments
HttT-hardest-v1_16_10-Orek.zip
(1.3 MiB) Downloaded 32 times
HttT-hardest-v1_16_9-Orek.zip
(1.23 MiB) Downloaded 60 times
HttT-hardest-v1_14_17-Orek-Run1~3.zip
(3.75 MiB) Downloaded 64 times
Post Reply