Derived map dimensions. The map source contains 40 terrain rows, each with 42 hex entries.
Story & dialogue
The shared first panel again closes the Stormvale chapter. The route-specific panel presents the Midlands as formerly prosperous hill-and-forest kingdoms—the Green Isle’s breadbasket and a supplier of lumber and gemstones—now being destroyed by the orc invasion.
The opening dialogue is immediate and public rather than eerie: smoke is visible, Haldric condemns the sack, and the orc leaders joke about unexpectedly finding action behind the front. At victory, Sir Ladoc reports that the party has encountered only the orc rear guard and that the main army is moving on Southbay. As in the river route, the road ahead is too dangerous and Haldric turns toward Oldwood.
Dialogue phase
Function
Shared exile panel
Maintains continuity with the alternate route.
Midlands prosperity panel
Shows material and civilian consequences of invasion.
Opening confrontation
Begins with mutual detection and clear battle lines.
Reserve-leader lines
Give scripted reinforcement waves named commanders.
Leader-death exchanges
Show rivalry and trigger reserve funding.
Ladoc’s warning
Converges the story on Oldwood and Clearwater Port.
Map description
The 42 × 40 map is broader and more open than the swamp. It mixes grassland, dry grass, hills, deciduous and mixed forest, roads, villages, shallow water, swamp pockets, and burned/ruined settlement terrain. Haldric’s keep lies in the upper-right half, while the three orc leaders occupy separated keeps toward the left and lower portions. Two signposts point toward Southbay and Oldwood.
Spatial system
Design function
Wide map with three keeps
Supports simultaneous fronts and flexible attack order.
Road network
Creates visible strategic lanes through otherwise mixed terrain.
Burned and ruined terrain
Turns the story’s devastation into map presentation.
Two signposts
Locates Southbay and Oldwood within the strategic geography.
Reserve entries from bottom edges
Threaten forces already committed against the distant chiefs.
Objectives and sides
Type
Condition
Victory
Defeat all three enemy leaders.
Defeat
Death of Prince Haldric; turns expire.
Side
Leader / roster
Gold / income
Notes
1 — Refugees
Haldric, Noble Commander; Lady Outlaw and Burin recalled
160 / 140 / 120
Campaign recruit state carried forward
2 — Orcs
Tan-Vrodis, Orcish Warrior
80 / 100 / 120
Nearest and intentionally softer leader
3 — Orcs
Tan-Bok, Orcish Warlord
100 / 140 / 180; income 1 / 2 / 3
Night aggression and attack-triggered cavalry reserve
4 — Orcs
Tan-Hogar, Orcish Warlord
100 / 140 / 180; income 1 / 2 / 3
Night aggression and attack-triggered assassin reserve
All enemy sides use NO_SCOUTS and a role pattern of scout,fighter,fighter,mixed fighter,archer. Sides 3 and 4 gain broader, higher-tier recruit lists on Normal and Hard.
Special events
Trigger
Behavior
prestart
Places two signposts, recalls Lady Outlaw and Burin, and sets objectives.
start
Runs the devastated-Midlands opening exchange.
Move to signposts
Displays directions to Oldwood or Southbay and permits undo.
First attack against Tan-Bok
Registers a new turn reserve event for side 3.
First attack against Tan-Hogar
Registers a new turn reserve event for side 4.
Tan-Bok dies
Tan-Hogar receives 60 / 70 / 80 reserve gold.
Tan-Hogar dies
Tan-Bok receives 60 / 70 / 80 reserve gold.
Enemies defeated
Ends with victory and 40% carryover.
victory
Creates Sir Ladoc, redirects the party through Oldwood, and sets last_done="Midlands".
Attack-triggered reserve waves
The two distant chiefs receive different scripted response forces after they are first attacked:
Chief attacked
Named commander
Base reserve
Hard addition
Tan-Bok
Grilg, Goblin Knight
Two Wolf Riders
Goblin Pillager
Tan-Hogar
Vrogar, Orcish Slayer
Two Orcish Assassins
Orcish Crossbowman
The reserve event occurs on the next turn, not instantly during the attack. This gives the player a readable cause-and-effect beat while preventing reinforcements from interrupting combat resolution.
AI and reinforcement economy
Technique
Effect
Night aggression .75, caution 0, no grouping
Makes the two warlords surge aggressively during first and second watch.
Passive absence not specified
Unlike earlier scenarios, leaders are not explicitly anchored by a passive-leader macro.
Attack-triggered fixed reserves
Guarantees a thematic counterforce independent of recruitment luck.
Surviving-chief gold injection
Compensates the remaining front when one major leader falls.
Difficulty-expanded rosters
Adds Crossbowmen, Warriors, and Impalers on harder settings.
Difficulty scaling
Element
Easy
Normal
Hard
Turns
36
33
30
Player gold
160
140
120
Major chiefs’ gold
100
140
180
Major chiefs’ income
1
2
3
Reserve wave
Named leader + two supporting units
Same
Adds one advanced unit
Survivor gold
60
70
80
Units and assets
Resource
Origin
Use
trow_story_04-Fall_of_Eldaric.jpg
Campaign
Shared branch-opening panel
trow_story_04b-The_Midlands.webp
Campaign
Route-specific Midlands panel
Haldric and Burin portrait variants; Ladoc portrait
Design interpretation. The Midlands route is a pressure-and-response scenario. The player sees the enemies and chooses fronts openly, while scripted reserves and survivor funding prevent success on one front from making the rest trivial.
Pattern
Reuse lesson
Reinforcement triggered by attacking a leader
Make a boss feel defended without spawning units before they matter.
Different reserve compositions per front
Give geographically similar objectives distinct tactical identities.
Reinforce the surviving enemy
Maintain difficulty after a multi-leader battle begins to collapse.
Map art tells civilian history
Ruins and burned terrain can carry exposition silently.
Alternate branch with same convergence
Offer meaningful variety without doubling the entire later campaign.