My plan is perfect: a heavily armoured assault force of samurai and imperial swordsmen will march directly toward the gates of the enemy castle with softer reinforcements behind them, covered by wheeled mantlets. This will draw archer fire as I move my siege weapons into position. Preoccupied with the approaching menace, my opponent will not notice the ninja warriors I've directed to scale their walls. The ninjas make their way around the battlements, dispatching archers with shuriken.
Obviously, none of this works. No plan survives first contact with the enemy - or so the old military adage goes - but my plan doesn't even survive long enough to make first contact. This is Stronghold: Warlords, and part of my attacking force is caught out in the open by a cadre of speedy horse archers. Meanwhile my ninja are discovered before even reaching the walls. Compounding matters, a vassal has denied my request for a much-needed fire arrow cart as he's changed allegiances behind my back. And to top it all off, a fire has wiped out a third of my rice fields back home, sending my once-booming economy into collapse.
Warlords may have a new look and setting in feudal Asia, but long-time fans of the Stronghold series can rest assured it gives no quarter to modern notions of difficulty. This game is hard, and while its complexity is daunting, mastering its many systems might just be worth the effort.
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