Union
In a final attempt to unite the Norse clans, Arkantos and his companions undertake a series of quests for the clan jarls.
Starting objective: Follow the trail to Blackhammer’s village. (2)
Difficulty levels:
- Easy:
- Loki’s Minions have less starting units
- Hard/Titan:
- Loki’s Minions cast Walking Woods god power when their camp (7) is under attack
- Loki’s Minions deploy an army of Einherjar near Blackhammer’s village (2) when their camp (7) is under attack
This mission opens in the north of the map. (1) In addition to the heroes your familiar with, you command Reginleif – who is a horridly inaccurate ranged hero, but heals units extremely quickly – as well as three Shieldmaiden Valkyries and two Huskarls. This is a linear and simple mission.
Follow the path south and help out the Blackhammer clan soldiers who are being attacked by some Trolls. Follow them back to their village, and the clan leader will inform you that if you defeat the Trolls in the nearby mines, he will support your cause.
New objective: Defeat the trolls in the mines. (3)
You’re granted control of a few buildings in the Blackhammer clan village, so you can build up if you want – but your starting forces are more than sufficient. The trolls are a pitiful match for your heroes. Head in to the mines and clear them out, then destroy the Underworld Passage to prevent any more of them appearing.
Once this is done, the Blackhammer clan will convert to your control and you’ll be given your next objective.
New objective: Exit the mines and find Lothbrok’s village. (4)
Liberate the dwarves on the west side of the caverns by destroying the fence before continuing.
You may want to return to the Blackhammer village and build up a little before proceeding. Having a couple of Hersir among your forces and a few armory upgrades would probably help here. You can also advance ages if you want – Skadi grants you the Frost Giant MU, which is ideal for stopping other powerful MU’s in their tracks and also a capable building killer. (The Rime upgrade for Frost Giants also makes them significantly more powerful, but is only cost effective if you already have several giants.)
Now head out towards the second village. (4) The chief will inform you that they are besieged by Giants, and would be grateful if you could build some Towers to help defend their attacks. (I’m not quite sure that Towers will do much to stop a group of angry giants, personally. But hey, you have to do it to finish the mission..)
New objective: Build five Towers near the flagged sites around the Norse village.
Drop down five Towers – they don’t have to be near the markers, just somewhere in the village – and have your heroes kill off any Giants who wander into the village. Once the towers are complete, Lothbrok’s clan will convert to your control and you’ll be told to seek out the final clan in the area.
New objective: Cross the river to the east to find the Forkbeard’s clan. (6)
Before proceeding, it would be wise to head south and wipe out the Temple that’s generating the attacks on Lothbrok’s village. (5) Well…if you want to keep the village intact – it’s not exactly necessary. Be sure to wipe out the Hill Fort too, which trains Ballistae – more annoying than dangerous, but will still do damage.
Because your population cap has been raised again, it might be an idea to take this opportunity to expand your forces a bit more. More Hersir and armory upgrades won’t go astray, and you’re going to need some decent siege capabilities soon. (Portable Rams, Frost Giants, Battle Boars and Fire Giants will all fill this role.) Once you’re satisfied with your forces, it’s a short trip west to Forkbeard’s village. (6) Forkbeard will inform you that his daughter is a captive of the Giants to the south and he’ll join you if you liberate her.
New objective: Destroy the Watch Tower (7) to free Forkbeard’s daughter.
The Watch Tower happens to be at the back of a camp full of irate giants and buildings that shoot pointy things. Getting there will require a decent force of heroes and a means of knocking down defenses quickly, but shouldn’t require much in the way of strategy. Complete destruction of the camp is not required for victory, so simply head straight for the tower and kill everything that gets in your way. Once the Tower is destroyed, you’ll be rewarded with victory.