User blog:HiddenVale/Commentary on LOTR:T3A game

This text was originally a part of the article for the game LOTR: The Third Age, but has been moved here for its opinions and unencyclopedic tone.

Good commanders
At the start of the game you can choose between these heroes and the Evil characters.

Aragorn - High HP, perfect Morale, Great CP, high Attack, average Range, high SP. Aragorn specializes in destroying the enemy personally, using Sweep Attack and Arms Mastery to slay any creature of Mordor or Isengard that he sees. His Curse of the Dead enables him to cripple foes on his particular flank, making it easier to eliminate the enemy, whether he does it or someone else does. He also has great natural leadership, with an extremely high 1-4 CP per turn, and Inspire to add more CP to those numbers. With 29 HP, great melee capabilities, and high leadership, Aragorn is a great leader and fearsome warrior to behold on the battlefield. Woodsmen resemble Aragorn's range attack. Whilst he is the popular choice, hes honestly the 2nd best commander of Good Forces.

HP: 29 (at Max)

ATK: 7 (6 at range) (at Max with Anduril)

Range: 4

Move: 3

Morale: Fearless

CP: 1-4

Talent: none

Appears in: Darkness Upon Bree, Flight From Moria, Balin's Tomb, Amon Hen, The Ride To Helm's Deep, Helm Deep Breach, Forth Eorlingas, Pelennor Fields, The Black Gate Opens,Balin's Tomb.

Skills -
 * Sweep Attack (Up to 3 additional attacks, unless Point blank foes aren't killed)


 * Arms Mastery (+3 attack)


 * Inspire (+2 CP on flank, additional +1 to other flanks)


 * Curse of the Dead (1-5 damage on 1-8 enemy units in flank)

Gandalf - Low HP, perfect Morale, Average CP, good Attack, bad ranged attack, great SP. Gandalf is another great leader for the forces of Good. Like Aragorn, he has leadership potential with Inspire, even though 1-3 CP is not as great as Aragorn's. Gandalf's Stealth and Blinding Light skills are particularly useful, since Stealth makes him a great decoy without him being damaged by range, and Blinding Light can ruin an enemy flank position instantly. His ranged attack, while bad at first, significantly improves after Glamdring is purchased, even though Glamdring is only supposed to benefit melee. Oddly, he shares no resemblance to any other character.

HP: 25 (at Max)

ATK: 7 (6 at range) (at Max)

Range: 6

Move: 3

Morale: Fearless

CP: 1-3

Talent: Regeneration (+1 HP per turn, must obtain damage to work)

Appears in: Attack on Fangorn, Forth Eorlingas, The Black Gate Opens, Walls of Minas Tirith, Siege of Minas Tirith.

Skills -


 * Evasion (Slip past enemy units, +3 movement)


 * Stealth (-99% damage on enemy ranged attacks)


 * Inspire (+2 CP on flank, +1 to other flanks)


 * Blinding Light (Makes enemies flee based on morale)

Elrond - Solid HP, perfect Morale, Average CP, great attack, and good range(that can be improved with Keen Eyes),very good SP. Elrond specializes mainly in both destroying his enemies and keeping his own forces intact. Hold Fast! and Keen Eyes allow him and his units to survive and beat down enemy forces in melee or range, while Defensive Stances and the Elven Blade allow Elrond himself to take down one enemy unit after another, or weaken powerful enemies like trolls and heroes. Elven Duress removes CP from his enemy flank AND increases chances of enemy Disorder, an anti-Inspire on the enemy. Overall, Elrond is most likely the best commander. Wood elves have Elrond's range motion and high elves have his hand-to-hand attack.

HP: 26 (at Max)

ATK: 8 (6 at range) (at Max)

Range: 5

Move: 3

Morale: Fearless

CP: 1-3

Talent: Elf Archery (Terrain doesn't affect attack ability)

Appears in: Mission From Rivendell, The Last Alliance

Skills -


 * Hold Fast! (Heals 3-6 HP on every unit in flank)


 * Defensive Stance (-75% on all attacks against Elrond)


 * Keen Eyes (Gains Sharpshooter Talent, every unit on flank with range greater than 1 gains +3)


 * Elven Duress (-3 Enemy CP on flanks next turn, +30% chance of Disorder)

Evil commanders
At the start of the game you can choose between these heroes and Good ones.

Witch-king- Very High HP, perfect Morale, Average CP, good attack, no range, average SP. With his upgrades, skills and items, he can easily kill almost anything (Except Ents, of course). His major weakness is that he is not as good of a leader as the other commanders; most of his skills affect only him. The Witch-king also has no resemblance to other characters though orc brutes have a similar attack.

HP: 32 (at Max)

ATK: 8 (at Max)

Range: 1

Move: 3

Morale: Fearless

CP: 0-3

Talent: Shock(more likely to cause lesser morale units to flee)

Appears in: Darkness Upon Bree, Pelennor Fields

Skills -


 * Terror (All enemy units on flank -3 movement)


 * Flurry (+3 attacks)


 * Rage (+4 damage)


 * Invulnerability (-45% damage from non heroes, can only be slain by heroes)

Saruman - Low HP,(15) average Morale, the best CP in the game (1-5), average Attack(4-8(with Rage), great Range attack (7) that can cause less morale units to flee more often, and good SP. He is quite frail, but he doesn't need to fight in melee; his lightning ranged attack takes care of enemies. With his upgrades and skills, his soldiers will do all the killing. Swarm of Crebain is also very useful (3-12 damage on single unit, plus they cannot attack that turn, regardless of Morale). His ability to heal units with On Your Feet and limit a pesky adversary with Curse of Orthanc (-2 damage) make him easily the premier Evil Commander choice. With Rage, he will be able to wreck almost anything from a distance. Like Gandalf, he has no resemblance to other characters.

HP: 15

ATK: 4

Range: 7 (at Max)

Move: 3

Morale: Average

CP: 1-5 (at Max)

Talent: Magic Attack (works like Shock) / Regeneration (+1 HP per turn,must obtain damage to work)

Appears in: Attack on Fangorn, Fall of Isengard

Skills -


 * On Your Feet! (Heals all units on flank 3-6 HP)


 * Rage (+4 damage on all attacks)


 * Curse of Orthanc (-2 enemy unit damage; morale penalty) Range: 7. Lasts 10 turns


 * Swarm of Crebain (3-12 damage on single unit, plus unit cannot move) Range: same as Saurmans current Range

Mouth of Sauron - Solid HP, average Morale and CP, good attack and no Range, great SP. Like Saruman, his soldiers do most of the killing, but he is more resistant. Intimidate helps his soldiers to keep moving. With his upgrades, the Mouth of Sauron himself can do some serious damage (10 base total) on the battlefield, though he is not as resistant as the Witch-King. He attacks like Sauron.

HP: 26 (at Max)

ATK: 10 (at Max)

Range: 1

Move: 3

Morale: Average

CP: 1-3

Talent: None

Appears in: Conquest of Osgiliath, Fall of Osgiliath, The Black Gate Opens

Skills -


 * Strength of Mordor (Causes enemy to flee up to 5 spaces always from MoS)


 * Rage (+4 Attack)


 * Intimidate (+2 CP on flank, +1 on other flanks)


 * Eye of Sauron (All units on flank +3 damage to Good heroes)

Good heroes
On almost every mission, you can choose Secondary Heroes to help you. They are Theoden, Eomer, Eowyn, Gimli, Legolas, Boromir, Faramir and Haldir.

Theoden -Low HP, good Morale, average CP, average attack and no Range, average SP. Without his upgrades, he is weak, but with them, and his Double Move Talent, he can be a decent front line fighter. His main use is for CP, otherwise amongst the main eight captains, he is least useful. Gondor horsemen resemble him.

HP: 21

ATK: 5

Range: 1

Move: 4

Morale: Brave

CP: 0-4

Talent: Shock (causes lesser morale units to possibly flee) /Double Move (can Move, Attack, then Move again)

Appears in: The Ride To Helm's Deep, Helm's Deep Breach, Forth Eorlingas

Skill: Inspire (+2 CP to flank, +1 to other flanks)

Eomer - Good HP and morale, average CP, good attack and no Range, low SP. Stronger than his uncle, his upgrades make him a great Hit-and-Run fighter. Rohimr riders resemble him.

HP: 28

ATK: 6

Range: 1

Move: 3

Morale: Brave

CP: 1-3(with Standard of Rohan)

Talent: Shock/Double Move (see Theoden for details)

Appears in: Crossing of the Ford, Edge of Fangorn, Scourging of the Villages, Forth Eorlingas, Ride to Helms Deep

Skill: Arms Mastery (+3 Attack)

Eowyn- Low HP, good morale and average CP, good attack, no range, great SP. While she is not very strong, she is good to get SP, and to kill enemy Heroes. Her Hold Fast! skill and Move are also positives, making her a good choice in almost any situation. Theodred and Rohan warriors resemble her.

HP: 19

ATK: 6

Range: 1

Move: 4

Morale: Brave

CP: 1-3

Talent: Shield Maiden(+3 Damage to enemy heroes)

Appears in: Ride To Helms Deep, Pelennor Fields

Skills: Hold Fast! (Heals all units on flank 3-6 HP), Stealth (with Armor of Rohan) (-66% Damage from ranged enemy attacks)

Gimli - Good HP and morale, ordinary CP, good attack and good ranged attack, low SP. He can deal a lot of damage with his upgrades, items and skills (he can get 14 attack), but is also very slow. He is most useful for missions that require a tank or lots of close quarters combat (Helms Deep Breach and Forth Eorlingas). He has no resemblance to other characters.

HP: 30

ATK: 9

Range: 3

Move: 2

Morale: Brave

CP: 1-2

Talent: none

Appears in: Flight From Moria, Amon Hen, Balin's Tomb, Helm's Deep Breach, Forth Eorlingas, The Walls of Minas Tirith, The Black Gate Opens

Skill: Arms Mastery (+3 Attack)

Legolas- Pathetic HP, good morale and average CP, low attack, but wonderful Range, average SP. Frail, but with Sweep Attack and Galadrim Bow, he can easily be one of the best attackers in the game. He is most useful against heroes as his great Range and Talent make him the ultimate sniper. If you combine him with Elrond and Haldir, no enemy will be out of reach with their combined Keen Eyes making his Max Range 15. He has no resemblance to other characters but Gondor archers have two daggers as well.

HP: 18

ATK: 4

Range: 9

Move: 4

Morale: Brave

CP: 0-3

Talent: Elf Archery/Sharpshooter (Range attacks not affected by distance nor terrain)

Appears in: Balin's Tomb, Amon Hen, Helm's Deep Breach, Pelennor Fields, The Black Gate Opens, Walls of Minas Tirith

Skill: Sweep Attack (+3 additional attacks, unless point blanks enemies aren't slain)

Boromir - Low HP, good morale and great CP, good attack, average range, and low SP. He should be used when you need CP, and if you need someone to take damage and deal. Shares no resemblance to anyone.

HP: 21

ATK: 7

Range: 4

Move: 3

Morale: Brave

CP: 0-4

Talent: none

Appears in: Conquest of Osgiliath, Balin's Tomb, Flight From Moria, Amon Hen

Skills: Defensive Stance (-75% damage from all attacks), Horn of Gondor (all units on flank receive +1 defense, all enemy units receive morale penalty)

Faramir - Low HP, good morale and average CP, good attack, great range and good SP. One of the best archers because of his Sharpshooter Talent. Shares no resemblance to anyone.

HP: 23

ATK: 5

Range: 5

Move: 3

Morale: Brave

CP: 1-3

Talent: Sharpshooter (distance doesn't affect Range damage)

Appears in: Conquest of Osgiliath, Fall of Osgiliath, Ambush at Ithilien, Assault on Osgiliath

Skill: Evasion (can move past enemy units, +3 movement)

Haldir (must be unlocked) - Average HP, good morale and average CP, good attack and great range, average SP. A great reward for beating the game. Once Elven Cloak is obtained, he will take -1 damage from all attacks. Along with other elves, he is even better, because of Keen Eyes. High elves attack the same way as does Elrond.

HP: 26

ATK: 6

Range: 6

Move: 4

Morale: Brave

CP: 0-3

Talent: Elf Archery (Range not affected by terrain)

Appears in: Helms Deep Breach, The Last Alliance

Skill: Keen Eyes (Gains Sharpshooter￼ talent, +3 Range to all units on flank with Range greater than 1)

Evil Heroes
On most missions, you can choose Secondary Heroes to help you. They are Gothmog, Gorbag, Lurtz, Gríma, Ugluk, Sharku, Grishnakh and Shagrat.

Gothmog - Low HP, average morale and CP, good attack but no range, good SP. A great leader, since he can increase the CP with Intimidate. Ringwraiths attack like him.

HP: 22

ATK: 7

Range: 1

￼Move: 3

Morale: Average

CP: 1-3

Talent: Shock(Morannon Blade required)

Appears in: Fall of Osgiliath, Ride of the Rohirrim

Skill: Intimidate (+2 CP on flank, +1 to other flanks)

Gorbag - Low HP, good morale and average CP, good attack and medium range, low SP. Not a very good choice initially( he's still better than most evil heroes), but he can be quite useful with Udûn Sword + Armor Spikes + Rage + Shelob Poison, giving him 14 attack. Orc chiefs resemble him.

HP: 21

ATK: 8 (7 at Range)

Range: 4

Move: 4

Morale: Brave

CP: 0-3

Talent: none

Appears in: Conquest of Osgiliath, Flight From Moria, Assault on Osgiliath

Skill: Rage (+4 Attack)

Lurtz - Average HP, good morale and average CP, good attack and great range, average SP. A good hero, with Flurry, he can be a major headache. Easily one of the top choices for evil heroes with his only draw back being the chance at 0 CP. Orc lieutenants resemble him.

HP: 24

Attack: 8 (7 at Range)

Range: 5

Move: 3

Morale: Brave

CP: 0-3

Talent: none

Appears in: Amon Hen, The Last Alliance

Skill: Flurry (+3 additional attacks unless Point Blank enemies aren't slain)

Gríma Wormtongue - Abysmal HP and morale, great CP, low attack and no range, average SP. The only purpose to use him is to get the 2-3 CP he gives. And, with Vial of Poison, he can deal great damage on his first strike. But, if there are archers, he will die fast. Very fast. Original compared to others.

HP: 9

ATK: 3 (8 on 1st attack, though not guaranteed to work as you can still do less than 5 damage) ￼

Range: 1

Move: 4

Morale: Cowardly

CP: 2-3

Talent: Regeneration￼

Appears in: Attack on Fangorn, Fall of Isengard

Skill: Curse of Orthanc (-2 damage to single enemy unit, gives them a morale penalty) Range 7, Lasts 10 turns

Ugluk- Good HP and morale, ordinary CP, very high attack but no range, good SP. One of the strongest attackers in the game, he is a wonderful front line attacker. Orc leaders resemble him.

HP: 30

ATK: 9

Range: 1

Move: 3

Morale: Brave

CP: 0-2

Talent: none

Appears in: Edge of Fangorn, Forth Eorlingas

Skill: On Your Feet! (Heals all units in flank 3-6 HP)

Sharku - Good HP, average morale, ordinary CP, average attack, good range, and abysmal SP. A great choice if you need something to die. With Double Move and ranged attacks, he can annoy anyone without Stealth. Should only be used in conjunction with a hero with great SP. Warg-riders resemble him.

HP: 27

ATK: 6 (5 at Range)

Range: 4

Move: 3

Morale: Average

CP: 1-2

Talent: Shock/Double Move

Appears in: The Ride To Helm's Deep

Skill: Strength of Mordor (Attacked enemy units flees 5 steps away from Sharku)

Grishnakh - Low HP, abysmal morale, ordinary CP, average attack and range, low SP. A coward, but he can deal good damage on his first strike (9 attack). It's best to use him on missions with several units as his Morale can be quite frustrating to deal with. Mainly use him for ranged attacks or depleted flanks at close range. Orc captains resemble him.

HP: 23

ATK: 7 (5 at Range, 9 on 1st attack)

Range: 4

Move: 4

Morale: Cowardly

Talent: none

Appears in: Edge of Fangorn

Skill: Take Cover! (All units in flank take 75% less damage from ranged attacks)

Shagrat (must be unlocked) - Low HP, good morale and average CP, good attack and strong ranged attack, average SP. A great reward. He can deal good damage ranged or mêlée. His sword also provides +10% Onslaught. Overall, he is the best evil companion and should be used on the later missions like The Last Alliance or Gap of Rohan. Mordor orcs attack in a similar manner and resemble him.

HP: 25

ATK: 8 (7 at Range)

Range: 5

Move: 4

Morale: Brave

CP: 0-3

Talent: none

Appears in: The Black Gate Opens, Mt. Mindolluin (you will hate him on this mission, fair warning)

Skill: Rage (+4 Attack)

Additional Heroes
Besides these secondary heroes, the player will fight against or fight alongside certain heroes already placed on the battlefield.

Good Additional Heroes
Theodred - Low HP, average morale, average attack, no range, average SP, average CP. Theodred only appears in one battle, Crossing of the Ford. He isn't that great of a hero in himself, but the extra SP, CP, and the "Hold Fast!" will definitely help if he survives. He does better staying far in the back and letting his soldiers do the work, helping them out with a "Hold Fast" when necessary. Rohan warriors resemble him and he attacks like Eowyn.

Skill: Hold Fast!

Captain - Low HP, high morale, high attack, no range, poor SP, average CP. The player will only get to use them once in Ambush of Ithilien for the Good campaign, but must fight them many times in the Evil campaign. These heroes do decently well up in the front ranks, but their health will run out faster than you think. When used correctly, their Arms Mastery skill can make them a major nuisance for Evil. Take after Isildor.

Skill: Arms Mastery

Treebeard - Very High HP, average CP, average SP, good range, fearless morale, very high attack. Treebeard appears in two levels, At the River Isen and Fall of Isengard. He is a very powerful hero, especially when surrounded by his Ents. Keen Eyes allows him to shoot far in the enemy ranks with devastating power, while Defensive Stance helps him survive. Overall, a great hero for battle. Ents resemble him.

Skills: Keen Eyes, Defensive Stance

Isildur - Very High HP, good SP, average CP, fearless morale, no range, high attack. Isildur appears in the tutorials and "Sauron Comes". He is basically an alternate version of Aragorn, only slightly weaker and with no range. Also, his four skills, which solely benefit him, can make him a powerful warrior on the battlefield. Captains take after him.

Skills: Arms Mastery, Sweep Attack, Stealth, Defensive Stance

Evil Additional Heroes
Orc Chief - Low HP, average SP, average CP, low morale, average attack, average range. The Orc Chief, as a warrior, is rather low-quality. He does not have much power, and will die rather quickly. However, he is only one of two heroes that have the "Take Cover!" skill, particularly useful against archers like Legolas. Also, with Rage, he can deal powerful damage in melee or range. He looks like a yellow version of Gorbag.

Skills: Take Cover, Rage

Orc Captain - Average-Low HP, average SP, average CP, average Morale, high attack, high range. The player does not get to use Orc Captains often, but will fight them many times. The Orc Captain is a fairly good warrior, with a damaging 6 ATK and Strength of Mordor/On Your Feet! to boost their effectiveness. The CP they provide isn't too bad either. The player should know when to pull them back and when to use them to their fullest extent, or they will die quicker than expected. He takes on the same appearance as Grishnakh.

Skills: On Your Feet!, Strength of Mordor

Chieftain - Low HP, average SP, ordinary CP, average Morale, average attack, no range. Arguably, the Chieftains of Dunland are the worst Evil heroes in the whole game. They serve little use as warriors, apart from using Flurry to browbeat various enemies. These heroes should stay as far away from the real fighting as possible, using their leadership and SP to benefit their troops, and occasionally placing a Curse of Orthanc to weaken heroes or strong units. Wildmen resemble him.

Skills: Flurry, Curse of Orthanc

Uruk-hai Lieutenant - Average HP, average SP, average CP, average Morale, high attack, high range. The Uruk-hai Lieutenant, with Rage activated, can be a deadly shooter. He is decent in the fields of leadership and damage, and can hit a nice chunk of the enemy, if used correctly, before he is finally slain. He looks like a blue version of Lurtz.

Skills: Rage, On Your Feet!

Uruk-hai Captain - Average HP, average SP, average CP, average Morale, high attack, no range. The Uruk-hai Captain is a rather damaging warrior on the battlefield, with base 7 attack and Flurry to kill or at least strike three units at once with powerful effect. His true speciality, however, is Terror, which can delay or even completely ruin an enemy position, giving time for the forces of Evil to mobilize, leaving Good powerless to move until it is FAR too late. He should not be the only hero on the battlefield, or else it will take a long time to develop Terror. He takes on the same appearance as Ugluk.

Skills: Flurry, Terror

Sauron - Very high HP, Very high SP, Great CP, Perfect morale, Extremely high attack, two range. Sauron was a mighty warrior in the books and movies, and is just as powerful in this game too. He is a combination of the Witch-King and the Mouth of Sauron, with the high damage capabilities and endurance of the Witch-King, but also the high skill and leadership of the Mouth. With these qualities, and with adequate protection, Sauron can demolish countless enemy units and make even the best heroes falter and wither away. The mouth of Sauron resemble him in combat.

Skills: Intimidate, Strength of Mordor, Flurry, Invulnerability

Mission from Rivendell
The days had grown long and the nights cold, and still there was no sign of  Aragorn in Rivendell.

''"He has not been seen for some months now," Elrond admitted to his friends. "We must scour the outlying lands in search of some sign that he lives yet."''

A simple mission, where Good need to cross the Bridge and Evil to kill Good's heroes. Good has the advantage in this battle, since they have High Elf Swordsman. OBS: In Multiplayer, Evil gets Warg Riders.

GOOD: This is a mission designed to show you the basics of play, concentrate on moving the center flank hero towards the bridge, but keep units around him at all times. It's best to begin using the High Elf Swordsman closer to the enemy to strike. If you can, the third H.E.S. in the center, closest to the the right flank, use him to help clear the right flank. While the objective of victory is to reach the bridge, its better to kill all the enemies on the map to gain all the xp. Remember, this is just a warm up.

EVIL: The objective is straight forward, kill the enemy captains. Try not to focus on eliminating Elrond, but rather kill the two Captains who are vulnerable from the start on the left and right flanks. Keep your heroes protected, as the Elvish troops will cause serious damage if he's left vulnerable. It isn't possible to kill all the enemies, so just go right at the objective.

Darkness upon Bree
''The icy needles of the Nazgul screams pierced heads and hearts. The citizens '' of Bree, driven indoors by the relentless pounding of rain, trembled with anxiety within their darkened houses.

''But a few townsfolk and warriors rose to the challenge... these undead kings'' of old had no business in the west.

Hard times to Good, that needs to fight the Nazgul. There are actually only 4 of them (5 if you use the Witch-King), but Good have a lot of peasants and 6 woodsmen, that need to be used with intelligence, because the Nazgul are very powerful. Watch out for the Dark Riders, with their Double Move.

GOOD: Remember, you only have one hero, so keep him well guarded and in the center at all times. Use the Free Move to either mount assaults on the Ringwraiths or bring units into the center flank. Slaying the Witch-King isn't of paramount importance and can cost you a multitude of troops. Rather focus on halting the enemies progression; use the peasants on the front line and Woodsmen and hero to continuously do ranged damage. Evil almost always attacks straight down the center, but if they use the side flanks, remember the Ringwraiths move at 2, much slower than their mounted brethren. It would be most useful to have a skill acquired to boost damage.

EVIL: Yes, you are severely outnumbered, but you aren't outclassed. The peasants and woodsmen are rather easy to eliminate and deal only small amounts of damage. The issue is their large number. Priority number one is to slay Aragorn, as without him GOOD is leaderless and will fall easily. Focus on moving your Dark Riders towards Aragorn and killing him as quickly as possible. Keep your hero away from the fight unless your using the Witch-King of Angmar. Once Aragorn has fallen, reaching the flags will be a cake walk.



Attack on Fangorn
At the foot of Fangorn Saruman surveyed the progress of his growing war machine. An eager Orc approached.

"The roots are deep my Lord."

''The White Wizard grimaced. This forest could grow angry if pushed, yet he felt his own will was stronger.''



"Cut them down."

In this battle, Good has a powerful ally: An Ent. Ents can deal a lot of damage even when they are far, and are some of the hardest units in the game. This is true in levels like Fall of Isengard. Evil will gain 2 points in the first turn by burning a tree. Good defenses and use of ranged attack is essential in this battle, especially since the Uruk-hai can deal good damage close-up.

GOOD: This mission is strictly about defense. The enemy moves first and will claim 2 points on the turn. Their focus is primarily on slaying your Rohan soldiers, then marching up towards the left flank flag. In the middle they will attempt to march towards the flags by the Ent. They rarely mount an offense to the right so use this to your advantage. Using Legolas on the right flank is a smart choice as he can constantly pressure Saruman. Just make sure to keep him out of Range of the Uruks. Press your Ent as early as possible, as it is by far your best defender. Don't move it south of the hill until you have the advantage and keep it's focus on the Orcs and Uruks first, until Grima makes his eventual climb to the north. Use the archers south of the hill in the center flank to wipe out the Goblins, clearing a path for your Woodsmen to begin their assault. The central archers on the hill, use them to keep the left and central enemy movement from reaching the stairs. It's best to have your main hero obtain skills by this point.

EVIL: This is an easy mission, but you can lose it if you get too greedy. Priority number one is to clear the two archers south of the hill in the central flank as you don't need them assaulting your heroes. Grima is a great choice in the middle as well as a ranged hero like Lurtz, Saruman or Gorbag. Once you begin attacking the archers in the middle, the enemy will press their Ent forward. Eliminating it is the next most important thing as it's attack power can devastate your troops quickly and push GOOD close to victory. Once the tree has fallen, concentrate on the right flank and dispatch the Captain and his Woodsmen￼. On the left flank, begin marching towards Gandalf and the Archers right from the start. Gandalf uses Stealth quite often, so slay his Archers first then move in for the kill. With Gandalf, the Captain and the Ent eliminated victory is inevitable.

Conquest of Osgiliath
"Osgiliath was once the jewel of our kingdom," Lord Denethor mused, sitting ''alone before a large banquet table. His two sons, Boromir and Faramir, stood'' silently behind the aging steward as he ate.

"The city must be reclaimed," Denethor continued, "if we hope to keep our kingdom intact. The Lords of Gondor must return to their rightful place. Recapture the city, my sons! Restore it to its former glory!"

In this mission, Evil needs to defend Osgiliath from Gondor's forces, while Gondor must attempt to kill off Evil's heroes and take over the buildings. Evil will get some reinforcements after a few turns, and some time later, Knights of Gondor will assist the offensive.

GOOD: The enemy can be easily outclassed by using Gimli/Legolas/Faramir/Boromir. Place Faramir￼/Legolas on the right flank with the focus of keeping them in a position to continuously assault the Flag bearer. You want him slayed as quickly as possible, before the Lieutenant appears and raises their CP on that flank. As soon as the mission starts begin assaulting the flagbearer immediately and push your Gondor soldiers up the right entrance of the wall. Don't use your hero on the right flank to attack the Orcs until the Flagbearer has been slain. On the left flank, keep your 3 rangers behind the wall until the Mouth of Sauron falls. He will press his attack early with one or two Orcs. Use your hero on the left flank and his accompanying ranger to slay the few Orcs on the wall in front of them. Once these Orcs fall, push the ranger onto the wall, claiming those 4 points and positioning him to mount a ranged assault on the upper levels. In the middle, use your Gondor Soldiers to barricade the enemy from attacking your central hero but always keep them marching forward. Use your Gondor Knight to march quickly up to Gorbag and slay him. You only need to capture two walls and slay two heroes to achieve victory.

EVIL: This mission depends a lot on your main hero and companion. If they are both non ranged units, then they're flanks are all about defense. If they can strike from range then you can assault the enemy without much trouble. On the left flank try to keep at least one Orc on both walls while using the rest to slay the rangers. Rather than attacking the rangers and Faramir￼ head on, keep to the right and use ranged attacks, as the terrain will slow your movement and allow them to clear troop after troop if you try to enter their area. Attacking from the right allows you to mount a significant assault, as well as placing pressure on the advancing Boromir￼. In the middle, the enemy will begin by marching the Gondor Knight as far North as possible, along with keeping Boromir￼ close to his Gondor Soldiers while attacking the right and left flank walls. Kill the Knight as quickly as possible, then target Boromir￼. After two turns reinforcements from Mordor arrive in the form of Orcs on the upper left, Orcs and a Mordor Uruk in the upper center and an Orc Lieutenant with a few Mordor Uruks on the top right. They should help you dispatch the Knight and then assault Boromir￼ with little trouble. Just remember to only press your heroes if they have Range and still keep them away from the main fight. On the right, play defense the first few turns by using the Orcs to kill the oncoming Soldiers who are trying to mount the wall. Protect the Flagbearer at all costs. Once the Lieutenant￼ arrives you can begin attacking the Captain while maintaining defensive positions. Don't use the South most Orcs to descend to the Captain until you push the Northern units down. With this combined assault, you can slay all three heroes and either clear the field or wait them out until turn 20. Remember that GOOD gets reinforcements on turn 7 and 15, unless you reach the positions where they started from, thus cancelling their reinforcements.



Flight from Moria
''Breathless and beaten, the Fellowship escaped the Mines of Moria. But there'' was little time for rest.

Aragorn was adamant: "By nightfall these hills will be swarming with Orcs!"

Yet no sooner had the warning been spoken than the hills began to thicken with ''the hideous faces of Goblins and Trolls. But the Fellowship was not alone...''

This battle looks hard for Good, but it's pretty easy, actually. After you kill the Troll, there's only a sea of cannon fodder, the goblins. For Hard, the group of Woodsmen can be the difference between victory and defeat. They are worth 4 points, and each hero 2, and Good wins points if the battle lasts enough time. So, every action of evil must be cautious.

Amon Hen
Beneath the pillars of stone atop Amon Hen, Frodo made his intentions clear. ''He would carry the Ring alone to Mordor. Aragorn nodded, then leapt suddenly'' ''to his feet. Something was approaching from the rear!!''

Aragorn drew his sword.

''"Run Frodo! Run!" he cried, for the Uruk-hai were close at hand''

This battle is easy for both sides, since Good need to kill 12 enemies and Evil must kill 6 heroes, 2 of them are Merry and Pippin who are extremely weak. Good heroes can kill most enemies in 2 attacks, except the Berserker, that only has 6 HP. For single player, the Berserkers only appear when the player works for Evil.

Balin's Tomb


Gandalf read aloud the final entry in Balin's tome: "Drums! Drums in the deep... we cannot get out. A shadow moves in the dark. Will no one save us? They are coming."

''A nervous silence froze the Fellowship. All were still. And then, from some'' unknown depth far distant, the drums began again.

It's basically Flight from Moria in another place. A Cave Troll, tons of Goblins and your heroes. But, one of them will be unable to fight (unless he has good range) because of position, so heroes like Legolas should be used. Evil will need to use the Goblins with intelligence, since they are very weak and die quickly.