Recap pages are Spoilers Off by default, so in all these pages all spoilers are unmarked. Proceed with caution. You Have Been Warned
The 14th Century was an uncertain time for the last pagan kingdom in Europe, with Lithuania grappling with domestic turmoil and the encroachment of crusading Teutonic Knights. Prince Algirdas and his brother Kestutis seek to reverse the fortunes, not only fending off the Crusaders but preparing themselves for the formidable Golden Horde invasion.The player is in control of the Lithuanians, bearing the color Green.
Scenarios
1. Family Affairs
The forests and marshlands of Lithuania are being coveted by invaders from the west and south: the greedy crusaders of the Teutonic Order, under pretense of spreading Christianity in Lithuania, invade the countryside and attack the villages. What's more, the recently appointed king Jaunitus sympathize with the Teutonic cause and is ready to strike a bargain with the invaders... but his brothers Algirdas and Kestusis won't have nothing of that and are ready to march against their own family to keep out the invaders.2. No Man's Land
Following the conquest of the Lithuanian capital and the exile of Jaunitus and his brother Narimantas, the two brothers have taken control of Lithuania and, in spite of many predictions, agreed to work together to bring prosperity and peace to their land. When cities in the east begin to revolt, the Teutonic Order sees this moment as the perfect chance to invade, but Kestusis is ready to intercept their advance as Algirdas marches east to submit the rebellious cities.3. The Tatar Yoke
With the Teutonic Order forced to withdraw in Prussia, the two brothers can concentrate on another great event to the south: the Golden Horde is weakening day by day, as its components fight against each other and the cities they once occupied are beginning to revolt. Algirdas plans to ride south to take the city of Kiev with brute force and challenge the Tatars in combat. Will the two brothers and their armies be able to defeat the dreaded riders of the Horde?4. A Worthy Opponent
The humiliating defeat suffered by the Golden Horde hasn't gone unnoticed, and now Algirdas and Kestusis are in the sights of a new dreaded opponent, prince Dmitry of Moscow. As the cities of Rus fight against each other, Algirdas decides to take the opportunity to support Dmitry' rival to ride against the Muscovite Rus and take Moscow. However, the opponent is strong and the city enormous: will the Lithuanian be able to overcome this obstacle and take over the mighty Kremlin fortress?5. In the Shadow of the Throne
Algirdas has passed away peacefully, and his son Jogaila is supposed to take the throne... however, Kestusis, the other formidable half of the duo which turned Lithuania into a great power, still remain, and the loss of his brother has turned him from determinator to downright stubborn. When Jogaila reaches an agreement with the Teutonic Order, Kestusis has him imprisoned. However, the young prince has his followers: will they be able to rescue him and save Lithuania from Kestutis' mismanagement?This Campaign contains examples of:
- All for Nothing: Downplayed, though the brother's fight to maintain the paganism of Lithuania and keep it independent ends up in nothing when Jogaila becomes Grand Duke who will go on to convert the country to Catholicism and merge it with Poland.
- Arch-Enemy: The Teutonic Order for the Lithuanians. Deconstructed when Kestusis' hatred for them makes him turn on his own nephew for merely reaching a diplomatic agreement with them, which can result in Jogaila siding with the Teutons and killing Kestusis.
- Book Ends: The first and last scenarios have the player fighting a family member for the control of Lithuania. Both scenarios also features the gray Teutonic Order and Shrines.
- Break the Haughty: Algirdas and Kestusis inflicts crushing defeats on both the Crusaders and the Golden Horde, which both were thought to be nigh invincible.
- Call-Back: After Lords of the West, we once again see Tatars, Kipchaks and Bulgars, as well as Rus.
- Climax Boss: Prince Dmitry of Moscow, the only enemy who manages to survive the Lithuanian armies as the Kremlin proves too strong to be take.
- Cosmetic Award:
- "Bond of Brothers" for completing the campaign.
- There's also "Tolerant Piety"note , "Scattered Horde"note and "Mint Condition"note .
- Dies Differently in Adaptation: Kestusis. In real life he avoided open war with Jogaila, was invited to a castle to discuss matters and died under mysterious circumstances. In game, he's openly killed by Jogaila and his troops.
- Enemy Mine: In the final scenario you can either listen to the Lithuanian pagan nobility and stick to the old ways... or form an alliance with the Teutonic Order and fight with them against Kestusis.
- Foreshadowing: In the final scenario, one of your opponents is Vytautas the Great, son of Kestusis. Upon being evicted from his castle he spouts a We Will Meet Again warning... and indeed he appears as an opponent (then ally) in the following campaign.
- Gameplay and Story Segregation:
- In the first scenario, great emphasis is made on the pagan people of Lithuania fighting the oppressive Christian invaders. Yet you can still build Christian churches to gain bonuses from local villages alongside pagan shrines.
- Averted in the fourth scenario: the Scouts mentions that the Kremlin is too difficult to conquer "at first", implying that a siege may be required... instead you never get to siege the place and the scenario notes that while Algirdas and Kestusis were able to enter Moscow twice they were unable to conquer that keep.
- Keystone Army: In the third scenario you can find and kill three leaders of the various branches of the Horde to weaken their respective armies.
- Mutually Exclusive Party Members: In the final scenario, you can get support of either Teutonic Knights or the Lithuanian pagan lords, but not both; you have to pick the ones you want to ally with, and attack the others on their request.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: Deconstructed with Algirdas and Kestusis: yes, thanks to their different traits and personalities they form a terrific combination when working together... but as soon as Algirdas dies, Kestusis' personality on his own leads to him making several bad decisions and turning against his own nephew.
- Savage Wolves: The animal motif of the campaign, as it's symbolized by a wolf and Jogaila compares the enemies of Lithuania to starving wolves. In the fourth scenario you can even find packs of wolves roaming the Russian countryside.
- Sequel Hook: The final mission ends with Jogaila saying that he has a feeling it's not the last time you'll hear of him. He's the surprise Deuteragonist of the next campaign, Jadwiga.
- Sibling Team: Algirdas and Kestusis are brothers who work together to annihilate enemies of Lithuania and expand their domain.
- Timed Mission:
- In "A Worthy Opponent" scenario, city of Ryazan would request you to help them rebuild the damaged walls, as they're about to get attacked by the Golden Horde forces. Wait too long, and they would get attacked by the Golden Horde forces, who would easily massacre them; just before that happens, you would be condemned for abandoning them to their doom. If rescued, the city would cover your eastern flank, letting you concentrate on the main objective.
- In the last scenario, you start with only a few minutes available to send the carriage with the ransom money to Kestusis' fortress.
- Unique Enemy: The second scenario has the Editor-only Crusader Knights in the Teutonic armies. If you side with them in the final scenario, they will gift you with 24 of them.
