Asophix

Thanks for your response! 🙂 Well, SHN always had its warm hearth, though I haven't been here as long as many other faces. Lately we built up a good cache of content and we also try keeping up with the new things, among others with SH4 and the Crusader DE before. I have a deep respect for modders like you that finish what Firefly couldn't after all these years. AI has been a staple in most Stronghold titles and it's baffling how it got cancelled for SH2. If these mods get a name for themselves, then it would help get even more people to play. For starters, maybe there could be an option to communicate with AI, like in Crusader. Right now it minds its own thing as an independent ally, however there are voice lines indicating that this feature was planned at some point. Are there traces you could work off of, or have you looked into it in the source?

Thanks for bringing this effort to attention. It looks like a humble yet well-oiled project. Is there a long-term plan to spread this and/or collaborate in a more organised matter, to your knowledge? Do you see any points where the project can be further supported?

@ Lord_Chris I think you can consider this resolved, as Ser Steffen has not reported back with any further problems, only with an upvote to my suggestion. Currently I'm a little spread thin, but I'll organise something for the near future.

Since Rat already has his lines fully added, I can only assume that the other lords will follow suit. 🙂 Even in Crusader 2 these guys were serviceable, if corny (SHC2 Pig is just low effort). My takes on the original gang: Rat will field the lowliest units as usual, backed with catapults. It would be fun if he mixed both kinds of bowmen. Snake will like a balanced mix of Archers, Pikemen and Crossbowmen, with the occasional mercenary like those light scouts. Pig should be critting Longbowmen, with a higher emphasis on Macemen and Pikemen. If Vikings are like Berserkers, then he'll field them too. Wolf should be all bells and whistles and a large variety of siege equpment. Captains, Swordsmen, Crossbowmen, Pikemen, Longbowmen. Sir Longarm should be a balanced mix, with a Captain or two mixed in. I can also imagine him fielding Monks. A similar shtick for a character could be used, in fact I wouldn't mind if all had some sort of niche or heavy bias. If we can edit the castles or the AI personalities in the future, then I would really like one like that.

The buildings.txt comes is part of the download, the .jar itself is not enough to run. These are the files you need in your installation: Re-download the Editor and extract everything at a location of choice, or in the same folder as the .jar!

Hi @ Ser Steffen ! We got two editors for SH2: the official Firefly one and the one mentioned. The Firefly editor isn't really recommended since it can only parse intermediary AIV files, however it may work for you until you get your issue sorted out. The 2014 editor requires Java to be installed on your computer, for which there is an article in the upload's description. What exactly do you have problems with?

Greetings to all! Firefly Studios started teasing the upcoming SH4 game with bits of information in a Q&A video. As time goes by, we obtain more and more information that we eventually are going to administer in the on-site wiki. Until then, the SHN staff pleasantly summarises you the points we find most worthy to know about Stronghold 4's lifecycle, release date and other features, in this thread. :-] We ask you however to kindly discuss SH4 in the dedicated forum rather than here. Thanks to the baseline Unreal Engine 5, datamining has been possible to a great extent. If you are really curious and want no stone unturned, you can read about additional potential features and characters here at your leisure. Be warned, there is no turning back! Key Points Release and Support SH4 will be released in 2027, preceded by a six-month-long early-access period that starts sometime in 2026. The price tag for both periods is unknown, but mostly determined by the community. Early Access will launch with Skirmish Mode (8 bots), a 10-mission-long Skirmish Trail, a 22-mission-long Story Campaign and Free Build modes. During Early Access, the Economic Campaign, the Online Multiplayer (with or without bots at will) and a Co-op Skirmish Trail will be added. Gameplay Features Most known features so far have already been unveiled by the first public demo, which we announced a while back here. Map sizes will go as large as 1000x1000, starting from 400x400 with increments of 200. Weather will have limited effect in the form of random events. Unit abilities will return, such as the man-at-arms can throw a recharging spear, or the longbowman can randomly land a critically hitting shot. Most buildings will be able to peeked into with a close enough zoom, or by hovering the cursor above the building while a worker operates it. Building will be possible in a certain radius around the Keep, rather than anywhere within the borders of the estate. Building and troop limits will be set for each player (numbers unknown). Story The main lore precedes that of SH1 by several years, featuring a bunch of characters well-known from that game. The protagonist will be Penryn of Wethel, a shepherd who is forced to climb the ranks. It will not be centered around either The Boy or The Wolf; the Boy is confirmed not to return due to his assumed young age. Stronghold 2 characters will not return. Most of the story will be narrated through interactive pre-rendered cutscenes. If you still got questions remaining, don't panic. Hit us up in the SH4 sub-forum to discuss your ideas, or anything you want to clarify. Until next time, my lord! :-]

Oi, Good Folk! 🙂 It's with pleasure that I can announce the arrival of new maps to our humble repository, from the pen of @ Lord Farckuath , to whom hereby we are thankful! His pack consists of three skirmish maps for Stronghold Legends over the last month, summoning familiar locations with a touch of atmospheric landscape design. These maps are mainly aimed for less serious multiplayer matches, where human players can fight for control from their safe main areas, or roleplay their story of choice. Due to the complex main estates and large number of pre-built buildings, it is not recommended to play against AI players on these maps, unless the starting position allows them to construct their economies in order to them fully function. But let's tarry no longer, here are ye maps: Trails of Transylvania With a winding river that eventually ends up in a freezing estuary, this coastal swath of Transylvania features a large territory of varying flora and fauna. While the mainland is predominantly flat and lush green, offering lots of villages for the taking, an icy canyon with narrow ridges surgically infiltrates the western lands with some crumbling fortifications that can be used for overwatch. On an island further to the northeast sits an Evil Lord on his perch, on an elevated peninsula armed to the teeth, which is nigh impossible to approach. From his seat of power, this player is bound to send the legions of hell, looming over a central city that has been taken over by growth and the elements of nature. Will his corruption spread to the lands? Siege of Camelot Upon one of the rugged hills in a distant region of green pastures stands one of the defenses protecting the estates of the mythical Camelot, 'the jewel of the crown'. Protected by towering spires and an advantageous high ground, Camelot thrives thanks to its vast resources and its noble people. However, war has arrived. With resources strategically scattered, victory will not depend on brute force, but on clever strategy. Can Camelot withstand the onslaught? Will you defended the throne to the last man, or will you coordinate a relentless assault to see the myth fall? The Little Hill An unparalleled struggle for the dominion of these ancestral lands. Monstrous beings and immense creatures station themselves in the distance, lurking in the shadows to hunt down and destroy those who safeguard these realms. The little hill's vast and numerous spires hedge the horizon, which is loomed by an Evil and Ice domain in the distance, their endless legions assembling and waiting for their masters' marks. Defend the walls of the great bastion, forge unbreakable alliances, or descend with fury from the cold, hidden mountain passes and tenebrous crags to claim these lands. The SHN staff wishes you a great deal of fun and immersion with these maps!

Well, most likely the AI players will follow suit. If the AI from Warlords is gonna be ported/reimplemented in SH4, there will be a lot of fun to be had for sure! In general, I expect them to work much like their recent incarnations. I really wish we were able to communicate with them again - the sound files are there for this purpose -, depending on a "mood" variable that makes the AI more or less inclined to obey our commands. I also hope that the unit and siege AI will be a lot more intelligent, already evidenced by the fact that the military mission invasions' catapults will take time to attack targets on the ground.

Hello All! With Stronghold 4 having taken a spotlight for the last few weeks, Crusader DE was forced back in the shadows. Not anymore though, as news of the Summer Update has surfaced with a new teaser from Firefly Studios. This humble content update is planned to release on August 4, 2026. Following suit, the Summer Update brings two-fold content in the form of free contents and paid DLC contents respectively. The downloadable content: The Surgeon and Baibars will be available for purchase at the cost of 5 EUR / 5 USD / 4 GBP on Steam. Note: Kindly be advised that the Summer Update is scheduled to be the last one that is about to bring new content in the game, concerning the devs. Additional content will still be available via the Steam Workshop and alternative sources. Contents - Free Update 3 new maps A new cooperative trail (Dance of the Scorpions) Contents - DLC New Sands of Time Trail: Trail of the Vulture New AI opponent: Sultan Baibars Sultan of the Mamelukes, Baibars is the literal panther of the desert: he will attack and defend ferociously, while neglecting his economy somewhat. His square-shaped castle features medium-sized towers, as well as a large Round Tower with double crenellations on the walls, and all sorts of nasty traps in the perimeter. Wields a streamlined Arabic-Bedouin mix of troops, with a particular emphasis on Eunuchs and Arabian Swordsmen. Also seems to deploy Tunnelers for assaults. New AI opponent: The Surgeon A more mysterious, kind-hearted opponent who likes to build his domain with a sprawling and thriving economy, similar to the Emir or the Trader. His enclosures are densely packed with an average-sized industry, surrounded by Round Towers with Ballistae on top, as well as Killing Pits in generous supply, as well as Moat in his larger designs. Uses European ranged units to defend with Pikemen, backed by an overall preference to Skirmishers.

I see only the exact same thing. It might be something Firefly intends as a culmination of the series, sort of "pinky promise we'll get things right this time". The overall sentiment here on SHN seems to be moderate excitement. It really looks like Firefly wants to bring in a rich castle builder with a realistic touch that earlier games failed to achieve. Though I haven't shared all there is to the demo, almost everything points to the direction that we'll get a 'SH3 done right mixed with SH2's elements'. Essentially, Firefly has always operated with a flawed release management lifecycle: brand new game, keep it alive for 1-1.5 years, then leave it to rot. I suppose they keep branching out with a new release every so often, which improves on its predecessor each, but - as we know - 52% is not much of an improvement over 50%. That said, I really enjoyed Warlords too until the point of no engagement, which sadly came fairly quickly. There is sort of one, as the pathfinding sometimes manages to spread overflowing units along the connecting walls. But it's expected to have bugs like that, such as you can add a tower ballista on top of the existing one in the military mission; also workers can get stuck when you build a tower on top of them, even with a proper path downstairs. Moddability seems to be limited here, as the game bundle would have to be constantly regenerated and signed, but who knows.

Hello Everyone! Stronghold Nation has been given newfound vigor and content in the form of a SH4 quick peek 🙂 Though many of us have already plowed through the modest content the demo offers, we hope that we can spread the fun for more castle fanatics like us. We also wish to bring more interactive videos on a semi-regular basis, with diverse topics like SHN content coverage, or other goodies you wish to appear. We are open to feedback at any given time, under this thread or even in DMs. The Nation serves you all! 🙂

At this moment there are no entity definitions, just the display texts for the mercenaries and many other things, like a Tower Mangonel. Plenty of questions remain to be answered. You must be thinking of the Samurai Lancer, it actually became part of the game as well. It provided a buff to nearby mounted units. That ability is however nowhere to be seen, instead the Captain will be able to boost attack damage, SHL Lancelot-style.

Hello All! As known, Stronghold 4 got its first preview demo with humble, but almost complete gameplay and content. Powered by Unreal Engine 5, it has been possible to peek into the bundled game contents and uncover fun details, which have been left out, or unimplemented. Without further ado, follow me as the mystery of SH4 unfolds! Read at your own risk.