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Consolidation and Subjugation is the second scenario of the Tariq ibn Ziyad campaign in Age of Empires II HD: The African Kingdoms. After capturing the city of Cordoba in the southern part of the Iberian Peninsula, the Umayyad Caliphate ventured further north and has reached Toledo, the center of the Visigoth Kingdom. From here, they must prove their dominance by capturing three of the four neighboring cities of Seville, Merida, Talavera, and Guadalajara.

Intro[]

712 AD, year 90 of the Hegira...

Banners billow in the wind and the tips of spears glisten in the sun as hundreds of soldiers ride by. A horn sounds as the front of the column approaches a promontory overlooking a large, glorious city.

We have reached Toledo, the center of the Visigoth Kingdom. I can hardly believe my eyes at her beauty... a city worthy of a king. Tariq is determined that we capture Toledo quickly, before the neighboring cities have the chance to react.

The Visigoth heartland will be difficult to subdue. Opposing us, in addition to Toledo, are the cities of Seville, Merida, Talavera, and Guadalajara. Many of these cities date back to a time when the Romans still ruled these lands.

We are not alone, however. Tariq's former master, Musa ibn Nusayr, has landed in the south with a large army. If we can capture Toledo and hold it until Musa's soldiers arrive, we will crush the Visigoths with a two-pronged attack!

712 AD, year 90 of the Hegira...

Banners billow in the wind and the tips of spears glisten in the sun as hundreds of soldiers ride by. A horn sounds as the front of the column approaches a promontory overlooking a large, glorious city.

We have reached Toledo, the center of the Visigoth Kingdom. I can hardly believe my eyes at her beauty... a city worthy of a king. Tariq is determined that we capture Toledo quickly, before the neighboring cities have the chance to react.

The Visigoth heartland will be difficult to subdue. Opposing us, in addition to Toledo, are the cities of Seville, Merida, Talavera, and Guadalajara. Many of these cities date back to a time when the Romans still ruled these lands.

We are not alone, however. Tariq's former master, Musa ibn Nusayr, has landed in the south with a large army. If we can capture Toledo and hold out until Musa's soldiers arrive, we will crush the Visigoths with a two-pronged attack!

Scenario instructions[]

Starting conditions[]

Differences between difficulty levels[]

Objectives[]

Main objectives[]

  • Capture Toledo.
  • Destroy 3 of the 4 enemy towns.

Secondary objectives[]

  • Wait for Musa's army to arrive.
  • Tribute 500 gold to Cordoba to buy the Chemistry technology.

Hints[]

  1. Strike quickly at Toledo - the Visigoth garrison is weak, but messengers have been sent out to the surrounding towns and will return with reinforcements if you wait too long.
  2. Mountainous regions are rich in mineral resources. Additionally, if you run low on gold, you can trade with the city of Cordoba or a local trade post east of Toledo.
  3. Talk to (click on) the locals on the countryside - they may have interesting information to share.
  4. The enemy towns are preparing to build Wonders as a mark of their dominance - do not allow them to do so.
  5. The army of Tariq ibn Ziyad cannot yet reach the Imperial Age. Additionally, Tariq's shipbuilders did not travel with him on this expedition, so building docks or ships is impossible.

Scouts[]

  • The army of Tariq ibn Ziyad (Yellow) has gathered on a promontory just southeast of the city of Toledo (Grey), the Visigoth capital, which lies in the center of the map. Toledo must be captured quickly in order to establish a foothold in the region and resupply the troops.
  • The Visigoth garrison of Toledo (Green) represents only a token defense of the city, and is comprised of infantry, archers, and a few scorpions. They have also erected several makeshift towers guarding the main gates and the bridge across the river Tagus.
  • The city of Cordoba and several local settlements (Orange) are situated in the east of the map. They will serve as a valuable trade partners should your gold supply run low.

Four of the surrounding fortified towns pose significant threats:

  • Seville (Blue) lies far to the south, and will field armies of Crossbowmen, Light Cavalry, Pikemen, and a few siege units.
  • Merida (Red) is situated in the southwest, and its formidable fortress complex is guarded primarily by Huskarls, Pikemen, Long Swordsmen, and Cavalry Archers.
  • Talavera (Purple) controls the far west of the map, and trains Knights, Light Cavalry, Skirmishers, siege units, and will also build ships to harass you from the river.
  • Guadalajara (Cyan) lies far to the north. Their army is composed of Huskarls, Long Swordsmen, Skirmishers, and siege units. A small military camp also guards the mines in the mountains east of Toledo.

Players[]

Player[]

  • Player (Berbers AoE2 Berbers): Tariq's forces are arrayed before Toledo, set on conquering the city. After defeating the garrisoned Gothic forces, he'll use the city as a base from which to conquer the rest of the cities of Visigothic Spain.

Allies[]

  • Toledo (Byzantines AoE2 Byzantines): The town of Toledo lies in the center of the map, occupied by the Visigoth Garrison. They have a few economic and military buildings, a Town Center, a Castle and several Guard Towers part of the wall perimeter. Upon defeating every soldier of the Visigoth Garrison and destroying all of their Watch Towers, the buildings and walls of Toledo will convert to the player's control and Toledo will resign.
  • Cordoba (Saracens AoE2 Saracens): They are present at the south-eastern side of the map and have a well-fortified base, with a Castle and a few Keeps. Musa ibn Nusayr, a governor and general of the Umayyad Caliphate is also part of Cordoba and has a large army including Siege Rams, Trebuchets, and lots of fully upgraded Elite Mamelukes, Heavy Camel Riders, Hussars, and Heavy Cavalry Archers. He will send this army to help the player after 30 minutes of in-game time have passed after the Visigoth Garrison was defeated. After the player receives his army, Cordoba will construct a Trebuchet for the player every 10 minutes at their Castle, which will be a valuable siege weapon since the player cannot advance to the Imperial Age in this scenario.

Enemies[]

  • Visigoth Garrison (Goths AoE2 Goths): They have captured the city of Toledo and have a large number of infantry, along with Scorpions and Archers waiting in the city. They also have five Watch Towers spread across the city. To recapture the city of Toledo, the player must defeat every soldier of the Visigoth Garrison and destroy all the Watch Towers. They will resign after they lose all of their towers and military units.
  • Seville (Italians AoE2 Italians): Their city is located near the southern edge of the map, and will be the first to start constructing a Wonder, after 40 minutes. However, their base is pretty weak, with only one Castle at the center and a few Watch Towers to defend it. Their Wonder is highly exposed so it is possible to aim at it with Trebuchets without having to breach the walls first. However, they will train Pikemen, Crossbowmen, Light Cavalry, Battering Rams, and Scorpions to counter the player's forces.
  • Merida (Goths AoE2 Goths): They are located on the southwestern edge of the map. Merida is the most fortified of all the four enemy cities with a large number of Watch Towers, two layers of walls and four Castles. They will be the second enemy to start constructing a Wonder, after 65 minutes. They will send small raiding parties to the south-western part of the player's base, comprising mainly of infantry along with Cavalry Archers, Light Cavalry, Battering Rams, and Scorpions.
  • Talavera (Spanish AoE2 Spanish): They are located directly west of the player's base in Toledo. Their base is also quite well fortified, and they are the only enemy city to possess a navy, which they will use periodically to attack the player's base along the river. They will be the third enemy to start constructing a Wonder, after 90 minutes. They will be the most frequent out of all four enemy cities to send raiding parties, comprising of Pikemen, Crossbowmen, Knights, Mangonels, Scorpions, and War Galleys. The player should have soldiers stationed at the western side of the city at all times to counter these frequent attacks.
  • Guadalajara (Goths AoE2 Goths): They are located at the northern corner of the map, with the smallest base and least fortified out of the four towns, and they do not have a Town Center. They will be the last enemy to start constructing a Wonder, after 115 minutes. Their Castle is very exposed and can be taken down by a few shots by some Trebuchets. Their starting army will comprise of Huskarls, Long Swordsmen, Crossbowmen, Light Cavalry, and Scorpions. They will train Elite Skirmishers, Light Cavalry, Scorpions, and Huskarls. They will send small factions to raid the northern part of the player's city, but not as frequently as the other three. They also have a small military camp directly east of the player's base and attacking it will give the player access to the huge stockpile of gold and stone mines hidden in the mountains.

Strategy[]

To win, the player must defeat three of four neighboring Visigoth towns, which are Seville (Blue), Merida (Red), Guadalajara (Cyan), and Talavera (Purple). In the HD Edition, the player will lose if both heroes die. This requirement was removed in the Definitive Edition. In this scenario, the player cannot advance to the Imperial Age, and cannot build Docks or Wonders.

There are four Relics on the map. One is on the hill directly east of Toledo. One is in the far east corner of the map, surrounded by three Dire Wolves. One is in the far west corner of the map, across the water from a Gaia Transport Ship near the coast. One is in an inaccessible spot in the cliffs east of Cordoba's Castle.

The player starts with a large army that has gathered over a promontory just south-east of the captured city of Toledo. The objective is to defeat all the soldiers of the Visigoth Garrison and destroy all five of their towers. This will give control of the city of Toledo to the player.

The Visigoth Garrison has a lot of soldiers so the best strategy to defeat them with the least amount of casualty is this: The player should gather the entire army and keep them right outside the city walls, not in range of towers. Then, take any one of the ranged cavalry (Camel Archer, Genitour, or Cavalry Archer), go into the base and attack a unit, lure the soldiers in that area and bring them closer towards the stationed army and use the rest of the army to defeat them. Repeat this from all sides of the city. If done correctly, the player will have a considerable amount of soldiers still left. Then use the two Siege Rams to destroy the five Watch Towers. After this, Toledo will come under the player's control.

Note: the enemy cities will become active after 15 minutes, regardless of whether the player has captured Toledo or not.

Once Toledo is captured, the player should start making Palisade Walls on all sides except Talavera. This will funnel all enemy units though Talavera's town and the player's sides are protected. After that, task half of the Villagers to build another Town Center and the rest to stone. The aim is to get three Castles up facing Talavera. After that, focus on wood and gold and fill up the Castles with Camel Archers. Once all three Castles are up and full of ranged units, the player can survive indefinitely until the Wonders are built.

Scout out Cordoba's northernmost Market to the northeast as well, as the trader there will sell the player Chemistry for 500 gold.

During that time, gather as much gold and stone as possible; the player will need it for 3 or 4 more Castles. Most mines around the map do not get attacked, and if they do get attacked, it's better to let the Villagers die and send more later. It will cost the player a lot more to defend a mine than a few villagers. It's also advisable to 'castle crawl' as well as focusing on taking down production buildings. The AI has infinite resources, so the player can't outproduce them or outboom them.

Seville[]

Seville should be the first target. There is a cliff near Seville's base. Drop a Castle there and block off the left entrance with Gates. This will make the AI take the long way around.

30 minutes after defeating the Visigoth Garrison, Musa ibn Nusayr will give the player his large army of siege and cavalry. After 40 minutes of in-game time has passed, Seville will start building their Wonder. It is very hard to protect Capped Rams, so stick to Trebuchets. Place them near the Castle and protect them with Knights. Slowly move forward and destroy Seville's production buildings.

Talavera[]

At this point, Mareda will start building the Wonder. However, they spam Huskarls, which are very difficult to kill with Castles and Camel Archers, so the focus should be on Talavera.

Build a forward Castle and fill it with Camel Archers. Place Trebuchets near the Castle and start bringing down production buildings. Talavera should not put up too much of a fight.

The player can decide whether to aim for Merida or Guadalajara next.

Guadalajara[]

Guadalajara's Castle is very exposed, so a few Trebuchets will make quick work of it, before the Berber army strikes the softer parts in the city.

Merida[]

If the player took too long in attacking Seville or Talavera, Merida's Wonder should be completed by now. Merida is by far the most formidable city, especially when their Wonder is defended by four Castles around it. Therefore, the player needs a lot more siege weapons like Trebuchets for a efficient attack. Another Castle drop here would definitely do good in assisting the attack. The Castles and Wonder should be the main target of the Trebuchets.

Once Talavera, Seville, and Guadalajara/Merida are down, the player is victorious.

Outro[]

The Visigoth cities did not fall easily. These people truly fight like lions!

To breach the walls of Toledo, Tariq ordered the construction of two large armored rams with iron heads. These engines are indeed fearsome to behold... the gates of city after city crumbled before their might.

A cloud of dust could be seen from miles away as Musa's army approached, laden down with the spoils of war after having breached the cities of Seville and Merida. Both armies celebrated their success with much revelry.

The Visigoth cities did not fall easily. These people truly fight like lions!

To breach the walls of Toledo, Tariq ordered the construction of two large armored rams with iron heads. These engines are indeed fearsome to behold... the gates of city after city crumbled before their might.

A cloud of dust could be seen from miles away as Musa's army approached. After having breached the cities of Seville and Merida, they were laden down with the spoils of war. Both armies rejoiced at their success with much revelry.

Trivia[]

  • The city of Seville being represented as Italians is most likely a reference to the Hispano-Romans, which still populated Iberia during the Visigothic rule.
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