Stronghold: Warlords News

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Earlier this week we released our latest update for Stronghold: Warlords, alongside the reveal of our next content roadmap! Now available on Steam, Version 1.5 introduced a host of bug fixes and general improvements requested by players, while the reveal of our summer and autumn roadmap details our planned updates over the next few months:



Having now completed our Spring/Summer content roadmap, which added many requested features and improvements to the core Warlords experience, it's time to move onto our second phase of post-launch development. Our initial content plan addressed feedback received at launch, which was tracked and discussed internally before the roadmap reveal. This included frequent requests for new AI opponents, which led to the addition of Sun Tzu, but also changes to AI behaviour and other fixes and improvements that needed attention post launch. We built on this soon after with other pre-planned features, such as the addition of Free Build AI Invasions, our first Skirmish Trail, new warlords, the Samurai Lancer unit and more.



As we progress to our second planned phase of content we decided to kick this off with a general fixes and improvements update, sticking largely to bug fixes while also looking at other tweaks that could be made in the time available to us after launching v1.4. Now that this update is out in the wild, we can turn our focus back to new content, one of the most common requests from players, along with continuing work on optimisations. We'll continue to grow the AI roster with the addition of Kublai Khan, while also adding new maps, a second skirmish trail, the new Wolf warlord, Thunderbomb Thrower unit, a classic Stronghold map pack and other unannounced additions!



We hope this next stage of content for Stronghold: Warlords sounds exciting and brings the game more in line with your hopes for it post-release. As a studio we'll continue to build out the game with extra features, while also introducing requested tweaks and polish expected of such a long running and beloved series. Everyone at the studio would like to thank you for your continued interest in and passion for Stronghold, which we'll continue to improve in both Warlords and future titles.

Thanks for playing!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/907650/Stronghold_Warlords/

Stronghold: Warlords v1.5 Update - 27 July 2021
Build Number: v1.5.22007
Update Size: 545.3 MB

Wall Bug Fixes

• Wall attachments (Arrow Turret, Ballista Tower etc) now have their full build cost refunded if removed by deleting/placing adjacent walls.
  
• Fix for troops dropping down inside walls after gates or towers were destroyed.
  
• Fixed engine tower healthbars not decreasing when taking damage.
  
• Fixed a rare issue where areas of the player estate would stop the player from building after a section of walls were destroyed.
  
• Walls attached to towers now take damage as normal instead of passing all damage to the tower.
  
• Walls attached to towers can now be deleted as normal.
  
• Fixed an issue where repairing damaged walls around towers made them unpathable.
  
• Fixed an issue where damaged but still pathable walls would become unpathable after loading a save game.
  
• Fixed troops getting stuck in unpathable positions on walls after a repair.
  
• Fixed damaged walls attached to stairs creating a path through walls.
  
• Fixed troops sometimes walking off damaged walls at tower exits onto the ground.
  
• Fixed wall attachments clipping through gates and towers when placed adjacent on diagonal walls.
  
• Fix for troops falling down into walls attached to the barracks.
  
• Laddermen in formations will now spread out more evenly on walls.
  

General Fixes

• Fixed an issue where Crossbowmen would fire at troops at the edge of their range but do no damage.
  
• Fixed formatting in Warlord edict tooltips.
  
• Fixed an issue where housing would rotate extremely fast when clicking and holding the mouse button during placement.
  
• Fixed an issue where the edge of the map would tear due to rivers.
  
• Fixed rocket launchers playing the audio of siege equipment wheels after being fired.
  
• Fixed an issue where units could not be selected/deselected on the HUD in certain positions.
  
• Stopped unit selection circles persisting after troops were disbanded.
  
• Stopped the audio of thunder playing indefinitely after a lightning event.
  
• Fixed the Made Per Day reporting for Clothes.
  
• Fixed incorrect audio being played when using archer’s volley fire.
  
• Stopped the Allies/Greatest Lord Panel staying open after changing the map.
  
• ESC Button no longer functions when viewing the mission briefing screen.
  
• Fixed incorrect mission briefing being shown after loading a save.
  
• Buy/sell button now shows the correct gold deducted when holding the SHIFT key to buy/sell more goods.
  
• Border of goods summary panel fixed.
  
• Added a scrollbar to the Freebuild map listing.
  
• Stopped water from rice farms appearing through flames.
  
• Fixed Greatest Lord panel showing the incorrect player avatar with certain avatars selected.
  
• Fixed the Warlord selection wheel in the skirmish lobby being empty after loading a save.
  
• Fixed Ninjas having no burn animation.
  
• Fixed an issue where Ninjas would gracefully slide along the floor after throwing shurikens.
  
• Stopped progress circles still showing after cancelling edicts.
  
• Stopped walls clipping through stairs after a repair.
  
• Fix for player name text highlighting.
  
• Fixed influence panel help tooltip and text.
  
• Fixed mission narration sometimes playing during loading when restarting a mission.
  
• Various stability improvements.
  
• Some minor optimisations.
  

Map Editor

• Fixed the Map Editor freezing and becoming unresponsive when closing.
  
• Fixed some textures in the scenario editor not appearing.
  
• Updated some resource icons.
  
• Stopped troop bounding boxes becoming misaligned when placing/deleting walls and buildings.
  

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Today's Skirmish Trail Update introduces the game’s first ‘skirmish trail’, a series of challenging missions with unique conditions to overcome and achieve victory. Other features added in v1.4 include a new cavalry unit, two additional AI warlords, the return of a popular building for healing units and two extra multiplayer maps!

Stronghold: Warlords v1.4 Hotfix - 25 June 2021
Build Number: v1.4.21694

• Fix for a crash in 'Siege of Odawara"
  

Stronghold: Warlords v1.4 Hotfix - 24 June 2021
Build Number: v1.4.21650

• Added 'Casual' difficulty for the Skirmish Trail
  
• Fix for a crash that could occur when loading old saves/maps that had a General in them
  
• Actually added the 'Purge Entities at origin' tool to the Map Editor
  
• Fix for incorrect idle animations for pre-placed siege equipment in maps
  
• Fix for IME text input in some langauges
  
• Fixed missing voicelines for the Bear Warlord
  

Stronghold: Warlords v1.4 Update - 21 June 2021
Build Number: v1.4.21570
Update Size: 319.7 MB

Updates

• Added a new game mode; the Skirmish Trail.
  - A set of skirmishes against different foes across a range of maps. Each mission will present its own set of challenges as you strive to complete the trail.
  
• Added new unit; the Samurai Lancer
  - A fast, heavily armoured support unit with a light attack. Nearby mounted units will deal increased damage to enemies.
  
• Added 2 new Warlords; the Beetle and the Bear.
  - The Beetle is not to be underestimated. Although defense is his specialty, his healing skills and armor shipments make him a valuable component in any offensive strategy.
  - None can match the power of the Bear. His armies are expensive but you will be rewarded for your investment. Increases the range of Imperial Bannerman’s buff ability.
  
• Added new building; the Field Hospital
  - The Field Hospital can only be built by the Beetle Warlord. When the edict is activated, the Beetle Warlord will build a Field Hospital within his lands.
  - Any allied troops standing within the vicinity of the Field Hospital will be slowly healed over time. Upgrading the Beetle will increase the amount of healing given to troops.
  
• Added 2 new skirmish maps:
  - Guarded Crossings. While the northern player has plenty of land to build in, the other two players must keep a close eye on each other as they race to capture the surrounding Warlords.
  - Ascendance. Some lords are more equal than others. You may have been given similar lands but it will soon be obvious who truly has the favour of the sun.
  
• Added some missing pathing tiles to Down River
  
• Updates to Flows Like Time:
  - Added more details and decorations to the map
  
• Updates to Unfavourable Odds:
  - The southern player has more space in their estate and a small amount of stone
  - The northern player now has saltpetre in their estate
  - Added more details and decorations to the map
  
• Updates to Princes and Paupers:
  - Improved the free pathfinding area to better match the open ground in estates
  - Added saltpetre and iron to the north-eastern estate
  - Added saltpetre to the south-eastern and south-western estates
  

General fixes

• Addressed multiple situations which may have resulted in the game crashing
  
• Fixed an issue that could cause warlord armies to become stuck when targeting a defeated player in campaign missions
  
• Fixed a bug that could cause troops in formations to run backwards when they were ahead of the rest of the formation
  
• When towers are destroyed, troops standing on them will now instantly fall to the ground rather than animating in mid-air first
  
• Siege weapons emerging from the siege camp will no longer move somewhere if it requires passing through a gate
  
• Walls with hoardings or turrets attached can no longer be docked by laddermen
  
• Troops in siege towers can no longer capture nearby gatehouses
  
• Fixed an issue that could make area target indicators visible when loading a save
  
• Fixed an issue that caused two siege towers to be briefly visible after a siege tower docked
  
• Troops in siege towers no longer judder about while the siege tower is moving and are much better at staying at their correct positions inside the tower
  
• Fixed an issue causing siege tower passengers to jump backwards a few meters when the tower is docked
  
• Siege projectiles (including diseased animals) are now able to hit troops standing on the top floor of keeps, rather than colliding with the keep roof
  
• Ranged units are now able to fire projectiles directly at barricades and now attack them at range when commanded to target them
  
• Fixed an issue that could cause new turrets to be placed when warlord castles repair, when the original turrets had not been destroyed
  
• Warlord Launch Attack and Request Relief Force edicts can no longer be triggered in peace time
  
• Fixed an issue that could cause troops defending warlord castles to move to the wrong positions after loading a save
  
• Fixed a bug that was preventing warlord castles being upgraded via edicts if they were assigned a level above zero in the map editor
  
• Fixed an issue where Warlord’s castles would have multiple instances of certain buildings placed on the same spot after upgrading/repairing
  
• Siege Camps placed via Warlords edicts are now destroyed when the Warlord changes owner
  
• Fixed the peace time remaining icon not showing correctly
  
• Added AI difficulty to Skirmish loading screens
  
• Stability improvements
  

AI Improvements

• Boosted the extra gold income for Extreme mode skirmish AI by 30% to provide more of a challenge
  
• Skirmish AI now wait for minimum intervals before upgrading captured warlords, based on the warlord rank
  
• AI armies are now more accurate at scanning for enemy units and buildings, based on the unit composition of the army
  
• AI armies are better at noticing when they can capture nearby warlords
  
• In skirmish games, AI Auxiliary Archers, Blowpipe Tribesmen and Fire Lancers will now attempt to retreat from enemy troops that get too close when on Hard or Extreme difficulty
  
• Fixed a case where the AI could get stuck unable to train enough troops to attack if it had run out of town space
  
• Fixed a bug where the AI would get stuck endlessly trying to place a silk chain building
  
• Fixed a bug that could prevent the AI from completing its castle if it has no stone in its estate
  

Map Editor

• Added a new toolbar option to toggle Shadows visibility, in the Options menu
  
• The Landscape brushes are now displayed in a grid
  
• Enabled the “Remove entities at origin” tool
  

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Today we released both version 1.3 of Stronghold: Warlords and our first DLC, The Art of War Campaign! Now available at 10% off during launch week, Warlords' first DLC adds six missions to the base game and two brand new warlords for use in the DLC campaign, skirmish mode and online multiplayer.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1615010/Stronghold_Warlords__The_Art_of_War_Campaign/

Beginning in the ashes of the Western Zhou dynasty and culminating in the Battle of Boju, The Art of War Campaign is designed for series veterans and skilled warlords alike. The six new missions feature fresh challenges and historical conflict, with players experiencing several years from Sun Tzu's legendary exploits, new tactical scenarios and stronghold sieges. Face new challenges as Sun Tzu’s story progresses with new maps, gameplay and the addition of two brand new warlords!



The Rat and Panda Warlords introduce a new tactical challenge to Warlords' core gameplay. Subdue your enemy without lifting a finger using their new perks, edicts and upgrades or indeed team up to combine your military prowess and conquer rival lords using a joint attack force. Cause mischief with the Rat Warlord with effective early game skirmishes or bide your time with the Panda, who combines unique anti-archer protection with industry-boosting edicts.



Our version 1.3 update was also released earlier today for owners of the base game. Adding another round of optimisations, fixes, AI improvements and our first official map pack, this new update is part of our long term commitment to updating Warlords in 2021.

In terms of content today's new maps invite players to battle the elements among thick jungle hills on Thunder Strikes, construct castles to their heart's content on Lost Kingdoms' larger build areas and skirmish across river crossings in Flows Like Time. This is the first of several map packs coming this year, so let us know what you think in the comments below as we continue to iterate on player feedback with each update.

Read the Full Version 1.3 Patch Notes!



Please Note: The Art of War Campaign is downloadable add-on content, requiring the full Stronghold: Warlords game to play. Players who own the DLC may host multiplayer games with those who do not, giving them access to the Rat and Panda Warlords for the duration of their match.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/907650/Stronghold_Warlords/

Stronghold: Warlords v1.3 Hotfix - 21 May 2021
Build Number: v1.3.20992
Update Size: 25.4 MB

Updates

• Removed time limit from mission 1 and 5 of the Sun Tzu DLC campaign
  
• Fixed an issue where buffs were not applied to surrounding troops from save games or when pre-placed in maps.
  
• Note: The healthbar indicator for buffs will not show when loading saves or if the General/Imperial Bannerman are pre-placed in maps, but the buffs are active. We will address the healthbar indicators in a future update.
  

Stronghold: Warlords v1.3 Updates Notes - 18 May 2021
Build Number: v1.3.20928
Update Size: 1.4 GB

Updates

• Added icon to diplomacy map showing progress of ongoing castle upgrade orders
  
• Icons above Warlords keeps now show active orders
  
• Roads now appear through gatehouses when connected
  
• Multiple troops can now be recruited with one-click
  
  • Hold SHIFT when recruiting to recruit up to 5 troops
    
  • Hold CTRL when recruiting to recruit the maximum number of available troops
    
• Added 3 new skirmish maps
  
  • Thunder Strikes - Thick jungle, heavy rain and dark skies await for two rivals to carve a path into the annals of history.
    
  • Flows Like Time - Troubled waters, past grievances and dissent among local lords paint a picture here. Will you side with old enemies to oppose larger foes, or take on all enemies with the aid of your subjects?
    
  • Lost Kingdoms - Nature has reclaimed this long forgotten land, where empires once stood and wars of the ages were fought.
    

General fixes

• Fixed a bug with the way the Tiger’s perk was being applied
  
• Buildings in warlord castles no longer build below ground if the warlord isn't placed on an exact plateau
  
• Fixed an issue with roads counting as connected between buildings when road tiles are diagonally adjacent
  
• Fixed a bug that would allow troops in invasions get stuck on the edge of unpathable areas after spawning
  
• Troops standing on keeps, walls and towers will no longer auto-attack enemy troops which are at the same height but on a different building
  
• Laddermen and siege towers can no longer dock at walls broken down to an unpathable level
  
• Troops ordered to target enemy docked ladders are much better at deciding whether push the ladder off the wall or attack it from the ground
  
• Fixed a bug that would allow troops to push ladders from walls even if they failed to reach the correct position on the wall
  
• Fixed an incorrect shader assignments with Bastions
  
• Fixed river and sea around map edges
  
• Fixed incorrect graphics on goods panel
  
• Fixed Japanese text to be left-aligned in several places
  
• Fixed saved games with wide character names not saving correctly
  
• Fixed a bug where siege equipment sounds would loop permanently
  
• Added handling for French-Canadian keyboard input
  
• Fixed a crash that could occur when a Warlord kneeled
  

AI Improvements

• Skirmish AI no longer gets stuck when using the West spawn point in Lord’s Peak
  
• Fixed a bug where cavalry and siege weapons in invasions could end up stuck on top of gatehouses if they spawned very close by
  
• Invasions moving to a target now look further ahead to see if there are obstacles in the way
  
• Invasions which spawn close to their form up marker will now immediately move to attack their final target
  
• Fixed some issues with AI armies sometimes not checking for nearby enemies correctly while travelling. We have further improvements in the pipeline here to make the AI more intelligent about how far to scan based on which units it has in its army.
  
• AI troops that are attacking walls will now consider re-targeting to other attack targets
  
• Fixed some issues where blocking walls would not always be picked up by AI armies during combat
  
• Melee troops in AI armies will now consider attacking more kinds of buildings in combat, reducing the likelihood they will have to wait for ranged or siege units to finish attacking. They will also no longer target enemy fire oxen, rocket launchers or any target where there’s a fire close by.
  
• If there are ladders or siege towers in an AI clan which are moving up to enemy walls to dock, foot soldiers will now move up to where they expect the walls to be docked rather than standing still
  
• Invasions with trebuchets are less liable to get stuck waiting for the trebuchet to finish attacking a target while the army is still a long way away from the enemy
  

Map Editor

• Scenario editor events are no longer capped at Day 100
  
• Added a new “Player has Lord” scenario condition
  
• Added a new “Purge Estates” scenario action. This removes all buildings and units belonging to the player, just as if the player had been defeated in a skirmish game.
  

Achievements

• We have set ‘Some Men Just Want to Watch the World Burn’ to hidden for now. This will be reworked and replaced with a different achievement in a future update.