Let's Play "Stronghold: Definitive Edition" [Part 6]
3Learn about historical figures leading troops through dysentry and Roland Le Fartere!
Stronghold is a series of real-time strategy video games developed by Firefly Studios known for its detailed graphics and its deep and complex gameplay. Set in medieval times, players take on the role of a lord or lady who must build and defend their castle, as well as conquer their enemies. Stronghold, was released in 2001. In 2023, a definitive edition of the game was released on Steam, featuring updated visuals, new campaigns, multiplayer support, Steam workshop support and much more. The game is set in medieval England and follows the story of a young lord who must unite the country after the death of the king. The player must gather resources, construct fortifications, and train an army to defeat their enemies. The game features a single-player campaign, a multiplayer mode, and a variety of skirmish maps.
In Stronghold, the player takes the role of a lord in a medieval kingdom. The goal is to create a stable economy and a strong military to defend against invaders, destroy enemy castles, and accomplish various mission objectives. Stronghold contains several modes of gameplay, with both combat and economic missions. The main game mode is the military campaign, which is based upon a map of England and Wales. The backstory to the campaign explains that the king was captured and held for ransom while invading a neighboring barbarian kingdom. Four lords take control of the kingdom, dividing it into their personal territories. The player is represented by a young, inexperienced commander whose father is killed in an ambush by one of the villains. He is helped by two lords who remain loyal to the king. The player must regain control of the kingdom by reconquering counties from rival lords one by one. The player has to defeat each of the four lords in the campaign, receiving help from the king once he has been successfully ransomed mid-game.
Combat in Stronghold is based on a strength and hit point system. There are a variety of unit types in the game, with each successive unit being stronger, and hence more expensive, than the preceding unit, in general. Even though the expensive units are stronger in combat, all units have abilities that are necessary to defend the castle, both melee units (such as the basic spearman and the stronger swordsman), and ranged units (such as archers). The game also contains support troops such as engineers, who provide additional combat options such as constructing siege engines. Unlike some other strategy games there are no counters for units, and units do not take up space, allowing them to overlap each other. Several non-combat characters can fight against enemy units, although most have no ability to fight. Injured soldiers remain injured for the rest of the game—there is no healing system—and since the lord is the central figurehead of the player's kingdom, despite being a powerful fighter, the game is automatically lost if he dies.