Settlers 2 - hints

                          From Sue

General
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If you find soldiers aren't being recruited, make sure you have
(1) swords and shields and (2) beer. I didn't realise how vital
the beer was for quite a while.

Scenario 4 - On the High Seas
-----------------------------

In the 4th campaign scenario, On The High Seas, you are first
introduced to ships. You start on the large piece of land along
the top edge of the map. There are several smaller islands and
your red and yellow opponents live on a large island to the
southeast.

The first time you attack one of them - it doesn't matter which
one - both will pile in and retaliate in force. I found the best
tactic was to reduce the number of soldiers I was attacking with
on this first attack. I used just one soldier, just enough to make
them retaliate but since my defenders were numerous and strong,
they couldn't over-run my land. The next time I attacked, the
double retaliation didn't take place so I could attack as normal.

Scenario 5 - In the Wasteland
-----------------------------

In the 5th scenario, In the Wasteland, there isn't much room to
build because of spires of rock which always seem to be in the
most unhelpful places. The yellow opponents are to the west and
the red to your east. Both, again, pile in if you attack one of
them. To reach the yellow ones, build a quarry near the west edge
of the map, where there is what looks like a rocky mountain range.
Your Settler will gradually clear away the rock, making a route
through for your builders.

Build quickly and densely or you'll be left behind by your
opponents. I restarted after 20 hours of play, because I had got
trapped in a small area and couldn't grow any more. You need to
extend your territory to the southwest and southeast as much as
you can.

Train your soldiers as much as possible, you'll need them as
strong as they can be. After many hours of play on this one
scenario, I felt I had tried every tactic ... whatever I tried, I
got wiped out. Eventually this worked - I attacked the Yellows
with everything I had. I think 22 soldiers attacked the first
building!  On the red side, my Settlers just had to take their
chances; I concentrated on recapturing any buildings pinched by
the Yellows.  Sometimes ownership went back and forth several
times. However, once this initial skirmish is over, when you
subsequently attack one side, the other keeps out of the fight,
making it a lot fairer (I never liked two against one!)

If you run out of iron and/or coal, you'll be unable to create
more soldiers. I sneakily destroyed some guardhouses in the north,
replacing any other buildings that got destroyed as a result.
That way the soldiers get moved closer to the 'front'!

Also build a lot of catapults. There is loads of granite and wood
in this scenario and the fire power provided by the catapults can
really help.

Of course, the relative strengths of Red and Yellow may vary in
different games. But, for me, it was worth concentrating on the
Yellows who weren't as strong as the Reds. I didn't worry if odd
barracks were left around the edge of their territory - I don't
aim for total domination - I forged across the middle of their
land, aiming especially for areas where I could mine, in the hope
I would find some coal! (I didn't find any but by then it didn't
matter too much).

I continued removing odd barracks etc as the scenario progressed.
In the end, I removed peripheral ones along the east of my
territory. Then, again, as I pressed through the Yellows'
territory, I removed the rear barracks, freeing more soldiers for
fighting where I wanted them, and lowering the numbers kept in
huts in the inner parts of my land. The gateway was on the far
west edge of the Yellows' land.
















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