Divine Will is the second scenario of the Sargon of Akkad campaign in Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition - Return of Rome.
Intro[]
Our soldiers often wondered where Sargon had actually come from. Some believed that he had descended from heaven like the founder of Kish. Others said that he was an orphan who had been found in a basket floating on the Euphrates. I have even heard some townsmen say that he was the son of a priestess who had given birth without having ever lain with a man.
Sargon only smiled at these rumors. He said that it does not matter where a man comes from, only where he goes and that he himself follows the path that Ishtar shows him. That path led to war.
With Kish subdued, Sargon sent his army to conquer the countless city-states of Mesopotamia in Ishtar's name. The masters of these cities scoffed at Sargon's ambitions, yet secretly they all feared him.
In order to match Sargon's army, they joined forces under the leadership of Lugal-Zaggisi, the priest-killer. He was a brutal man feared for his atrocities across the region. He would often desecrate the temples of the cities that he conquered.
Yet, he was a capable tactician and a gifted commander - a suitable challenge for Ishtar's champion.
Scenario instructions[]
Starting conditions[]
- Starting Age:
Bronze Age - Starting resources: 500 food, 450 wood, 325 gold, 125 stone
- Population limit: 75
- Starting units:
- Sargon of Akkad
- 1 Scout
- 3 Chariots
- 4 Chariot Archers
- 13 Villagers
Objectives[]
Main objectives[]
- Bring the Artifact to the flagged areas in Nippur (2, Purple), Susa (3, Green), Isin (4, Cyan), and Larsa (5, Red).
- (upon any three city-states defecting) Defeat Lugal-Zaggisi's army.
Secondary objectives[]
- Build Markets in neutral villages to receive additional resources.
Hints[]
- Sargon is restricted to the Bronze Age and a population limit of 75.
- You do not have to wipe out the opposing city-states. Bringing your sacred artifact to each of them will be enough to convince them to defect from Lugal-Zaggisi.
- You can turn the small settlements dotting the map into tributaries by building Markets in each one. Guard tributary villages with additional soldiers or towers to avoid losing your Markets to enemy attacks.
- Take good care of your artifact! If it is captured, you will not have much time to take it back.
- Do not hesitate to use Sargon in battle. Should he be wounded, he will retreat to your Temple and return to the fight after he has recovered.
Scouts[]
- Having disposed of Ur-Zababa, Sargon (1, Blue) now rules Kish and has set his sights on the city-states that allied with Lugal-Zaggisi.
- In the east, Susa (3, Green) is weakly defended by archery units and could fall to an early assault.
- To the south, Nippur (2, Purple), is guarded by a much stronger force that will also use siege engines.
- To the southwest, Isin (4, Cyan) is similarly strong, but its impulsive leaders engage in ill-advised and futile attacks.
- In the far south, Larsa (5, Red) is the enemy alliance's strongest city-state. Its priests will lead its defense and are difficult to defeat.
- Lugal-Zaggisi (6, Orange) himself has only tasked a few men with patrolling the region's roads and guarding some of the cities, but spies report that he is massing a large army in his capital to deal with Sargon.
Players[]
Player[]
- Player ( Sumerians): The player starts in the Bronze Age controlling an established town and small army in the northern part of the map.
Allies[]
- Neutral Villages ( Sumerians): This player controls four small villages in different parts of the map. They will each pay tribute to the player if a Market is built inside their villages.
Enemies → Allies[]
- Nippur ( Babylonians): This player controls a fortified city in the centre of the map. They are initially an enemy who attack the player with infantry. Allied to Lugal-Zaggisi initially, they will join the player and instead become hostile to Lugal-Zaggisi when the player brings the relic to the flagged area in their city.
- Susa ( Sumerians): Controlling the semi-fortified city in the north east which is initially hostile to the player. They use mainly archers in their military. Initially allies of Lugal-Zaggisi, when the player brings the relic to the flagged area in their city, they will join the player and become hostile to Lugal-Zaggisi instead.
- Isin ( Sumerians): Controlling a fortified city in the south west of the map. Initially they are an enemy who attack the player with bowmen. Starting out as allies of Lugal-Zaggisi, they join the player and instead become hostile to Lugal-Zaggisi after the player brings the relic cart to the flagged area in their city.
- Larsa ( Sumerians): Controlling a fortified city in the south east they are initially hostile to the player. Initially allied to Lugal-Zaggisi, bringing the relic to the flagged area in their city, will cause them to join the player instead and become hostile to Lugal-Zaggisi.
Enemies[]
- Lugal-Zaggisi's Army ( Babylonians): This player controls the army of Babylonians in and around the cities allied to him. Possessing many military units, including garrisons inside Nippur, Susa, Isin and Larsa they have a finite force and no economy.
Strategy[]
Sargon's starting base is easily defensible, the access points at the western shallows and eastern forests need walling off to block enemy raids. Beware when exploring, as Lugal-Zagissi's Camel Riders and Broad Swordsmen lurk in small groups scattered across the map; one of these patrols is close to Sargon's base in the northeast. These patrols can be countered best by Hoplites.
There are four neutral villages around the map which can be turned into tributaries by building a Market in them. The closest neutral village is just to the northeast of the player's starting base, but it must be cleared of one of Lugal-Zagissi's patrols. The next-nearest is to the southwest across the shallows, but the player will need to stick to the river and edge of the map to avoid being spotted by Nippur's farmers.
Neutral villages pay Sargon tribute every 4-and-a-half in-game minutes. The amount of tribute varies with number of tributaries:
| Number of Tributary villages | Resources received every 4-and-a-half in-game minutes |
|---|---|
| 1 | 125 food, 100 wood, 75 gold, 50 stone |
| 2 | 230 food, 200 wood, 100 gold, 75 stone |
| 3 | 350 food, 250 wood, 125 gold, 100 stone |
| 4 | 450 food, 300 wood, 150 gold, 125 stone |
By the time Sargon has acquired all four tributaries, it may be worth deleting Villagers and Fishing Ships if more population space is needed, as so many resources will be coming in. There's never any need to stockpile more than 3,000 gold, this is enough to fill up the entire population cap with Hoplites.
By the time the player's economy is established, enemy city states will be starting to send raids. The various city-states train different kinds of troops. The player's own Camel Riders can be very helpful, as they counter the Cavalry and Chariot Archers of Nippur, Bowmen of Susa and Isin, Stone Throwers of Isin, and can also be used against the Priests of Larsa due to their speed.
Initially it can be difficult to fend off assaults from all four cities, but each of them can be converted to Sargon's side, after which they'll turn against Lugal-Zagissi and the other cities. This is done by bringing the sacred Artifact of the goddess Ishtar to the flagged area in the city center, and eliminating Lugal-Zagissi's guards from the site. (Note, the city's own guards don't need to be eliminated.)
Cities can be stormed in a protracted siege, but each of them has a shortcut.
- Susa, the nearest city to the east, isn't walled off to the north or south, and is the only city not to contain any of Lugal-Zagissi's guards, so the Artifact and its bodyguards can just be wheeled straight in. There's little need to bother fighting Susa's troops or towers, just keep the party moving in a surround formation towards the flagged area. Susa can be conquered quickly with the player's starting units, although it may be advisable to train extra Camel Riders in case the party needs to fight a group of Lugal-Zagissi's camels and swordsmen that patrols outside Susa.
- Nippur, the city across the shallows to the south, can be sneaked into either through the gates or the river. Access the gates by moving the Artifact with a large retinue of tough units to the gate, and attack the gate; Nippur will respond with Cavalry units, which hold the gate open long enough for the player to march the Artifact's squad into the city. Alternatively to sneak in via the river, load up three or four Transports with Hoplites, Sargon and the Artifact, and unload them at the southeast shallows, next to Nippur's Dock.
- Isin, the distant southwest city, is trickier. Sometimes the player can get lucky with the gate trick described for Nippur, but Isin generally fields ranged units so can't be relied on to send units through the gate when Sargon arrives. The city is unwalled at its southernmost corner, but it's a long march past numerous towers, so expect to take some losses. It may be preferable to siege down the northern gate with Stone Throwers and march a force inside that way.
- Larsa, the distant southeast city, is the most powerful opponent. Nippur's gate trick will work, but expect to face a huge swell of Larsa's troops and towers on the way to the flagged area - before even contending with Lugal-Zagissi's guards. A stealthier approach is to bring Transports down and unload them in the shallows near Larsa's Docks, right next to the flagged area. Larsa is more heavily defended than Nippur, so 5 Transports of Hoplites may be needed to get the job done on Hard.
If the player loses control of the Artifact to the enemy, an in-game four minute countdown will start before which it must be recovered, failing which leads to instant defeat. It's important to keep a team of durable units around the Artifact at all times. If it falls under control of an ally though, they will send it back towards the player's starting base.
Lugal-Zagissi's army will launch a large invasion when three of the four cities have defected to the player's side. His army spawns at three points: at the southern corner of the map consisting of Camel Riders and Broad Swordsmen; at the eastern corner of the map consisting of Broad Swordsmen and Chariot Archers; and the biggest contingent at the western corner consisting of all three aforementioned unit types.
Outro[]
After several bloody campaigns, the enemy coalition was crushed. The goddess of war may have enjoyed the slaughter, yet I shuddered at the piles of bodies that we left behind in her name.
Still, our mission was not over. Ishtar had promised Sargon all of the land that lies between the two great rivers, but as long as Lugal-Zaggisi remained at large, Sargon's claim to hegemony would be challenged.
As the tyrant fled southwards, our soldiers pursued him to his well-fortified capital of Uruk. There, holed up behind its walls, he began scheming once more.
Trivia[]
- This is the only scenario of the Sargon of Akkad campaign without a Wonder.
- Historically it was originally Lugal-zage-si who overthrew Urzababa, not Sargon. In the midst of the anarchy of the Sumerian cities, Sargon only received more support from the Sumerian cities against Lugal-zage-si in order to defeat him and create the Akkadian Empire.
Gallery[]
.svg.png "Cities of Sumer (en).svg.png (111 KB)")
