SWORD OF ARAGON Walkthru
 
 The walkthru is written in the form of a story. As in any story, liberties
have been taken with the actual events, and some fictitious elements were
added for dramatic effect. Some interpretation is necessary to use it to
play the game. A detailed walkthru is rather difficult to write for this
game because of all the variations that can occur.

 Timing is very important in SWORD OF ARAGON. Certain events can only
happen within a certain time frame. If you try to perform the event before
or after that time frame, it will not be the same. For example, you must
march on Marinia as soon as you hear of the old Duke's death. If you march
before, you will find the Duke in control. If you march later, you will
find Malacon in control. It is only when the rabble is in control that you
can win Malacon as a vassal. The walkthru contains hints as to when
something is timing-dependent.

 While there is a definite order in which the program would like you to
play the game, you can play it in any order you want. However, the nature
of the game changes depending on the order in which you play. If you attack
Zarnix first, you can make Tentula a vassal. If you attack Tentula first
and make it a direct-rule city, something interesting happens when you
conquer Char that otherwise would not. The walkthru only gives one path
through the game. You can play a different path and get some very different
results. You can get a game sufficiently different to render large segments
of the walkthru useless. For example, you could go for Tetrada directly,
bypassing Estallah and Sothold. Eventually, you will need to conquer those
cities as well, but the battle for them is different when you control
Tetrada.

 I finished the game with only 450 of 500 points, so obviously there are
things I did not do. You do not get points for conquering cities unless it
is necessary for you to capture the city. For example, you get no points
for capturing Nuralia, but you do get points for capturing Gernok.

 In general, vassals are nice, trouble-free sources of income. Given the
choice of conquering a place or making it a vassal, vassalage is clearly
the better choice. The only exception is Malacon in Marinia; however,
Malacon does periodically increase his vassal fee as a result.

 During battles, watch the "M" (morale) number. When it is 1 or less, the
unit is panicked and will run away if you try to move it, even though it's
not Dispersed. If you try to move it with a stack of units, it will panic
the other unpanicked units. If a unit has a morale number of 2, it can
still attack but will be Dispersed no matter what the outcome of the
attack.

 You will usually be fighting at 5 to 1 (or worse) odds. The key to winning
is having better equipment and higher levels. Casualties cost money to
replace, and reinforcements lower the level of the unit. Levels can be
restored by training which costs money, or winning a fight which can cause
more casualties. It is better to fight smart and avoid casualties in the
first place.

 This means softening up targets with missiles and spells before the
attack. You do have to attack. Except for Disintegrate, no missile or spell
inflicts the hit points that an attack does. A high-level infantry or
calvary unit can destroy enemy units in a single attack, whereas missile
fire can take several rounds.

 It is sometimes better to have two units of 50 men than one unit of 100.
Each attack reduces Stamina. One unit facing ten enemy units may tire out
before killing them all. You then lose because the untouched enemy units
are free to attack your pooped-out unit without retaliation.

 Protect your mages and clerics at all costs. When they reach the higher
levels, they can be devastating. The final battles can only be won if you
have high-level spell casters in your party. You do not need very many
spell casters. Two clerics and two mages should be sufficient, and they can
be acquired naturally. Clerics and mages cannot be trained; they advance
only by combat.

 Your knights and warriors can also be devastating at the higher levels.
Keep them all together as a unit. Together they can attack at odds as high
as 10 to 1 and win, but only if they are level 10 or higher. Knights,
warriors, and rangers can only advance by combat. Rangers should be treated
as mages even though they have some fighting ability.

 The program has a definite formula for deciding who to attack. Archers and
spell casters rank low in that formula. Knights, calvary, and infantry
units rank high. With proper positioning and stacking, your bow units,
clerics, and mages will never be attacked in a battle.

 While certain places eventually become pacified (e.g., Paritan after you
take Gernok), you'll still need to place a unit and maintain fortification
in that place; otherwise, the place will be looted. You do not have to
maintain much of a force. Also the attacks do not suddenly end: They taper
off. Zarnix, Char, and Gernok are never free from attack. I suspect that
all three can be abandoned after conquest, although there are practical
reasons for keeping all three of them.

 The proper development of the cities is important. Agriculture provides
food to feed the people; however, you cannot grow food in the winter. In
the winter you must eat surplus or imported food. To store the surplus
food, you must build Structures. To generate money during the winter months
to buy food, you must develop Commerce, Manufacturing, and other industries
that can function all year 'round.

 The likelihood of random monster attacks depends on the state of your
Fortifications. The more formidable they are, the less likely the monsters
are to attack. Each city differs in its ability to grow food, generate
commerce, support lumbering, etc., and requires different development. It
is also important to keep your subjects loyal and happy. Feeding, housing,
and enriching them will keep them content.

 On the IBM when you save a game, you create four files:

 ARAGON.HIx
 ARAGON.HRx
 ARAGON.HSx
 ARAGON.HTx

 The "x" is the save letter. So if you save to "C", you should get files
titled:

 ARAGON.HIC
 ARAGON.HRC
 ARAGON.HSC
 ARAGON.HTC

 Saving a save consists of copying those files to another directory.

 EXCERPTS FROM THE LIFE OF ARTHUR by Dr. Thomas Mallory, Professor of
History, Paritan University

 Arthur of Aladda: No man has a greater place in Aragon history or culture
than Arthur, the Sword of Aragon. Most of what is commonly known about
Arthur is pure fiction and is the creation of the 16th century Arthurian
revival. Some aspects of the legend are grounded in reality. Arthur
frequently used a spare wagon wheel as a table in his campaign. The real
story of Arthur needs no elaboration. It's as exciting and romantic as any
Arthurian fable.

 Contrary to the claims of Geoffrey Anjou, Arthur was a descendent of
Justinid I, although his relationship to the original royal line was
distant; however, his claim to the throne was as valid as that of Lucinian
IV, his main rival.

 Arthur became ruler of Aladda in April 871 when his father was killed by
marauding orcs. Arthur's first task was to rebuild the shattered Aladdan
army. From the remnants of his father's army he built an experienced troop
of heavy calvary: the famous Reds. The best of the Aladdan recruits were
formed into a bow unit: the Greens. The rest were formed into a heavy
infantry phalanx: the Blues. Arthur's new army was immediately tested when
the orcs which killed his father returned. At the battle of Aladda, the new
army defeated the orcs, and Arthur recovered his father's lance.

 The next year was a busy one for Arthur. Aided by the first of his many
commanders, Lancelot, Arthur killed a minotaur that had been terrorizing
the local area. He also lead his army to victory over a cyclops, and
defeated a band of goblins, although he was too late to save the goblins'
prisoners. His pardoning of the "obviously" guilty prisoner was an actual
historical event that took place during this time. It is one of the few
popular legends of Arthur that actually occurred. However, there is some
uncertainty as to whom Arthur actually pardoned, and this episode has been
the source of many an Arthurian fable.

 In the spring of the next year, Arthur took the first step that would lead
him to the throne at Tetrada. Duke Gardwell of Marinia died, and a rabble
took control of the city. Sensing an opportunity that would never come
again, Arthur marched to Marinia with the Reds and Greens, leaving the
Blues behind to protect Aladda. When Arthur arrived at Marinia, he found
the city besieged by the followers of Malacon, the war master of the old
Duke. Even at that early age, Arthur displayed a wisdom that Lucinian IV
never had. He persuaded Malacon to become his vassal. Together their
combined army routed the rabble, and Malacon became the new Duke of
Marinia.

 The rescue of Malacon's daughter, Guinivere, from prison is one of the few
instances where legend is more colorful than reality. It was a group of
Arthur's soldiers -- not Arthur -- who rescued her. One of the soldiers,
Gallahad, is known because he became the leader of the Reds. Contrary to
popular legend, all the historical records are in agreement that Guinivere
loathed Lancelot who, by all accounts, was a vulgar knight of dubious
gentility, and lived up to his name both on and off the battlefield.

 The relationship between Arthur and Malacon was a long and stormy one,
although Malacon was not the venal idiot of popular legend. Malacon was a
better businessman than he was a soldier. The frequent attacks on Marinia
by giants from across the Western River was beyond his control. His defense
of Marinia was competent, but uninspired, requiring Arthur to keep a strong
army in Aladda just to protect Marinia. Malacon was not ungrateful. He
eventually increased his vassal fees voluntarily from 250 gold to 450 gold
to help offse the Arthur's cost of having to maintain three full-strength
phalanxes in Aladda at all times.

 Except for random marauding bands of orcs and goblins, the next three
years were peaceful ones for Arthur; however, Arthur's spies were
constantly reporting stories about Pitlag of Paritan. Like Lucinian IV,
Pitlag had ambitions to reunite Aragon; however, his ability did not match
his ambition. He antagonized the Elves of Tranavan with his logging in
their forest. As a result, Arthur was handed an alliance with the Tranavan
Elves. Paritan was a major city, so Pitlag commanded more resources than
Arthur. Arthur could only prepare for Pitlag's assault.

 When Arthur heard that Pitlag had attacked Brocada, he rushed there with
the Reds and Greens. He found the Brocadan militia camped outside Brocada,
and offered them his lordship and protection. The Brocadans agreed, and the
combined Brocadan and Aladdan forces were able to overthrow the invading
Paritans. Arthur decided the loss of a substantial part of Pitlag's army at
Brocada had weakened Pitlag to the point where Arthur had a chance to take
Paritan. He marched to Paritan, and with the aid of the Tranavan Elves,
defeated Pitlag and conquered Paritan; however, Pitlag escaped and played a
minor part later in Arthur's life. This minor reappearance was sufficient
to make Pitlag the prime villain in Arthurian legend. In reality his role
was minor after the fall of Paritan.

 The conquest of Paritan brought Arthur unexpected trouble. Paritan was
subject to frequent attacks by goblins. At the same time, monster attacks
on Aladda were increasing. In an effort to find the source of the monster
attack on Aladda, Arthur led an expedition south since that was where all
the monsters seemed to generate. Just outside of Sur Nova, Arthur's timely
arrival saved some of the natives from giants. They persuaded the other Sur
Novans to welcome Arthur and accept his protection. By conquering Sur Nova,
Arthur deprived the monsters of a base that they had used to attack Aladda;
however, while Arthur controlled Sur Nova, the monsters controlled the land
around it.

 It took Arthur several years to clear the land around Sur Nova. The Demon
Mages in the swamps just west of Sur Nova, the Horrids in the Tranavan
forest just north of the trail to Gernok, and the Trolls in the mountains
to the southeast were especially hard to fight. The Demon Mage and Horrid
battles have been the subject of many a ballad as they were the last major
battles Arthur and his commanders had to fight.

 It was while searching for the monsters around Sur Nova that Arthur found
The Monastery. What happened there is shrouded in mystery. All that is
known is that only Arthur was allowed into the monastery, and when he came
out, he was smiling. The monks then mysteriously vanished, and even today
people are reluctant to enter the ruins of the place. However, it may not
have been mere coincidence that Arthur attracted a fair number of clerics
to his service shortly thereafter.

 It was about this time that Arthur received an emissary from a Khalikha
Khan claiming to rule all the Khalikha clans. Arthur knew the wild horsemen
of the Khalikha plains could never be subdued, and dismissed the emissary
with a laugh. This one incident has been traced as the root of the whole
Khalikha sub-saga about the tragic love affair of Tristan and Isolde.

 With the monsters driven from Sur Nova, Arthur then turned his attention
to the goblin attacks on Paritan. He knew from history that the goblin
homeland of Gernok was somewhere to the east of Sur Nova. Following the
trail that led northeast from Sur Nova, he passed through Tranavan Forest
and found Gernok. He also found a dragon barring the way to Gernok. The
dragon proved remarkably easy to kill, and contrary to legend, it was his
infantry -- not Arthur and his knigts -- who slew the dragon. Arthur found
the dragon's horde afterwards. It was as huge as legend said it was.

 Gernok was a harder nut to crack. The goblins had enlisted the aid of
minotaurs and cyclopses to help protect their home; however, Arthur
prevailed. To prevent the goblins from regaining Gernok, Arthur left a
heavy garrison of infantry to guard Gernok. Shortly thereafter the goblin
attacks on Paritan stopped.

 Up until now Arthur's actions had been dictated by events beyond his
control; however, Arthur found the lost Crown of the Westrealm in Gernok.
While he did not yet control all the original Westrealm, he could
legitimately claim the title of King of Westrealm. He knew that Lucinian IV
of Tetrada claimed the title of Emperor of Aragon even though Lucinian IV
did not have any of the three relics of the old empire.

 The confrontation between Arthur and Lucinian was inevitable. Arthur had
the choice of when that confrontation would take place. We know from the
writings of Arthur's closest friend and advisor, Merlin, that Arthur was
very uncertain about whether he was ready to confront Lucinian then. The
question was resolved when the dwarves of Xafanta asked for Arthur's help
in driving the orcs out of Zarnix. Control of Zarnix would enable Arthur to
outflank Lucinian in Tetrada.

 The battle for Zarnix was fought in two stages, but the dwarves provided
help only in the first battle. Arthur had to take Zarnix with only his
forces. Like Gernok, Zarnix had to be heavily garrisoned as it was subject
to frequent monster attacks. The pass Zarnix controlled was as important to
them as it was to Arthur. Because of the distance between Sur Nova and
Zarnix, Arthur had to spend the winter in Zarnix. During that time, several
attempts were made to kill him. By pardoning the would-be assassins and
following them, Arthur was eventually able to break up a plot by Lucinian
IV to kill him.

 The winter stay at Zarnix, despite the hardship, had two benefits: Baron
Tentala of Tentula offered to become Arthur's vassal if Arthur would subdue
the giants of Char that had been attacking Tentula. Bored with being snowed
in at Zarnix, Merlin searched the Zarnix archives and found some old
records that indicated the long lost Amulet of Aladda was hidden somewhere
near Zarnix.

 That spring, Arthur lead a reconnaissance composed of his calvary units.
Just north of Zarnix in a plain in the mountains, Arthur found the Amulet.
He also found the Elves of Medeval north of Zarnix. These elves proved to
be extremely hostile, and Arthur decided not to attack them to avoid any
possible trouble with their cousins in Tranaval. Following an old mountain
trail south from Zarnix, Arthur found Char and after a very tough battle,
conquered it. Char proved to be a hard place to keep as the giants and
their big brothers, the titans, periodically tried to reclaim their home.

 That winter also saw a delegation from Pudawala arrive in Zarnix asking
for Arthur's help against Lucinian's vassal, Malthorn. Merlin records that
Arthur was quite ecstatic at acquiring his first ally against Lucinian.

 With Zarnix in his hands, Arthur began to hear rumors from traders
crossing the pass about the titans of Dersh and the trouble they were
causing the Lucedians. When he marched to help the Pudawalans, he decided
to go by Lucedia. The titans were reputed to have the long-lost Scepter of
the Eastrealm. Outside of Lucedia, Arthur was met by the Frahali Knights.
They offered to become his vassals if Arthur would help them throw out the
Counci of the Wise who had "defeated" the titans by bribing them to not
attack Lucedia. Arthur was uneasy about this proposal.

 The Council was the legitimate ruler of Lucedia, and while he would have
preferred to fight the titans, he could understand that sometimes fighting
was not always the best solution; still, the offer of 750 gold a month as
vassal fee was very tempting. Reluctantly, Arthur accepted the offer. After
the Frahali Knights were installed in power, they told Arthur the titans
had been severely weakened before the Council unwisely decided to stop
fighting them. Arthur was suspicious of the statement, and cautiously
advanced west from Lucedia to Dersh. When Arthur found the pass to Dersh
heavily guarded, he decided to retreat and go help the Pudawalans.

 The battle to regain the Soth river crossing was the first confrontation
between Arthur's troops and Lucinian's Imperial forces which were sent to
aid Malthorn. Arthur was surprised at how good the Imperials were. Up until
now, Arthur had fought mostly low-level monsters and human troops; only the
trolls had any ability. Arthur's soldiers were used to fighting at 5 to 1
odds and winning. The Imperials were crack troops, and Arthur won mainly
because of his high-level mages and clerics. Even then it was close because
the Imperials had mages and clerics of their own.

 After recovering the Soth river crossing for the Pudawalans, Arthur
decided to march on Sothold. Just outside the city, he encountered former
supporters of Baron Strumberg who told him of a way around the main
defenses of Sothold in exchange for 2,000 gold. Catching the Imperials in
the rear, Author seized the city and fought off counterattacks by the
Imperials. With the seizure of Sothold, winter brought an end to the
campaigning.

 Arthur used the winter to rebuild and expand his forces. Paritan was a
major source of recruits for new units. That spring, Arthur received fresh
forces from Paritan through the Gernok pass. When Arthur approached
Estallah, the ruler offered to turn on Lucinian and aid Arthur. Arthur
turned down the offer first because he did not trust disloyal vassals, and
second, he sensed the offer was false. The fight for Estallah was in many
ways the toughest fight of all as Arthur had no choice but to make a
frontal assault against 4,000 Imperials. It is during this battle that
Pitlag made his final known appearance in Arthur's life. Pitlag's eventual
fate is unknown. He and Arthur did not fight each other as popular legend
would have us believe, although Merlin recorded that Arthur had seen Pitlag
wearing the armor of an Imperial general on the battlefield; so, that much
of the legend is true.

 The battle for Estallah proved very costly, so Arthur spent the rest of
the year preparing for Tetrada. The assault on Tetrada started well. Scouts
found a weak point in the defenses on the west side. However, Arthur found
the home-based Imperial troops to be of even higher levels than the
Imperials he had been fighting before. Their infantry was actually better
than his infantry. The battle was won mainly by the power of his clerics
and mages and his army fought a defensive battle, attacking only Imperial
units that had been dispersed by Pyro and Disintegration spells, or
weakened with Xhaust and Fear spells. Arthur did have standing orders for
all units to attack any Imperial cleric or mage they could find.

 With Lucinian dead and Tetrada under his control, Arthur needed to find
the Scepter of the Eastrealm to formalize his rule. As soon as his army had
recovered from the losses at Tetrada, Arthur marched south for Dersh.
Again, Paritan proved to be a rich source of new recruits. New units from
Paritan met Arthur at Estallah after marching through the Gernok pass.
Dersh proved to be located due west of Lucedia. After Tetrada, the titans
were rather easy.

 The legends were correct. The titans did have the Scepter. Since Arthur
had no reason to hold onto Dersh, he burnt it to the ground, and left. At
the pass between Dersh and Lucedia, Arthur was treacherously attacked by
the Frahali Knights who claimed the Scepter belonged to them. Weakened by
the fight with the titans, Arthur barely managed to win the battle. With
the Knights destroyed, Arthur became the direct ruler of Lucedia.

 Arthur then headed for Tetrada with the Crown, Amulet, and Scepter, and
was crowned Emperor of Aragon. Most stories of Arthur end at this point. In
reality, Arthur still had much to do. Nuralia had still to be conquered.
The problem of the hostile Medeval Elves had to be dealt with. The monsters
would still be plaguing the areas around Gernok, Zarnix, and Char for many
generations to come. Marinia would still be subject to giant attacks.

 However, with the might of an united Aragon behind him, Arthur and his
descendants were eventually able to deal with these problems. Indeed, after
his crowning as Emperor, Arthur became so busy administrating the empire,
hi son, Mordred, was given command of the army, but that is another
story....