The Horde Rides West

The Horde Rides West is the fourth scenario of the Genghis Khan campaign in Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings.

Both Genghis' and Subotai's forces begin separated by a cliff, and it is only possible to unite them after advancing towards the Persian citadel. Subotai attacks Russia (Goths) while the Khan must first deliver a gift to the Persian Khwarazm shah within 30 minutes - but the presents are actually assassins hidden inside two trade carts, which will attack the Shah until he dies. Then the objective changes defeating the Persians. If you take too long delivering the cart, the Persians will attack you anyway; they will also attack if they spot military forces from your camp. It is best to build the military of Genghis' camp first since the Persians will be much more aggressive than the Russians. The Russians will only send in small waves of infantry which can be easily repulsed. There is also a Merkit camp near Subotai that will immediately surrender when their two cavalry archers are killed, providing several buildings for the player. After building up a sufficient force in the South, assassinate the Shah and sweep the Persians off the map. It's best to build a large anti-cavalry force as the Shah's army consists primarily of Paladins and War Elephants. After the Shah is defeated the combined forces of Subotai and Genghis should then clear the poorly defended Russians with little trouble.

Notes/Trivia

 * After bursting from their trade carts, the assassins will not be attacked by the Persians until they kill the Shah. Take advantage of this by killing all of the Shah's ceremonial troops (who incidentally also comprise most of the Persian Army), then slaughter the Shah without fear of retaliation. The two assassins alone can thus cause serious damage before your troops even arrive.