Slaughter of Shekelesh Walkthrough

You arrive at the southern edge of Shekelesh with 16 Taros units and no builders: 4 Black Knights, 3 Blade Demons, 3 Executioners, 2 Skeleton Archers, 2 Fire Spouts and 2 Fire Demons. The city holds 109 Aramon units. The walled square at its centre has 4 Strongholds and 6 Watch Towers, and 99 soldiers fill the streets, most of them on patrol. You win when every one of them is dead, Lordling Dernhest included.

The fight comes to you at once. At 0:05, 20 Swordsmen set off towards your start, and more runners follow at 1:30 and 2:30 to hunt your Blade Demons. Win that battle, catch the patrols as they pass, and then use the Fire Demons, the only units you have that out-range a Stronghold, to open the square. The briefing promises reinforcements from time to time. They come from the mission's script, which the guide cannot read, so this plan counts only your first 16. The mission sets the same forces at every difficulty.

The Battlefield

Shekelesh fills almost the whole map, 5120 pixels square, and its streets run between high walls. At its heart is a walled square with a Stronghold in each corner and 2 lines of 3 Watch Towers. Lordling Dernhest waits in the middle. A corridor runs along the south and east sides of the square, between its wall and an outer wall. The only gate into the square is in the middle of its south wall. You start in the open street along the southern edge of the city.

Map of Slaughter of Shekelesh 1234567ABCDEFGH
The planEnemy positionsYour unitsEnemy unitsHover a dot to see the unit and its orders. · Map 5,120 × 5,120 pixels · Scroll or pinch on the map to zoom; drag to move. Hover over a feature or a resource for its details.
  • 1Your start. Fight the first battle here.
  • 2The first Fire Demon post. The Stronghold at E is 738 away.
  • 3The street turns north here, the way the city's own patrols go.
  • 4Turn west here, into the corridor beside the square.
  • 5The east end of the corridor.
  • 6The main siege post, in front of the gate. The Stronghold at D and 4 Watch Towers are in the Fire Demons' reach, and none of them can reply.
  • 7The middle of the square. From here both northern Strongholds and the last 2 Watch Towers are in reach.
  • A20 Swordsmen in 4 columns. From 0:05 they patrol down to your start and back.
  • B4 Barbarians. At 1:30 they attack your Blade Demons.
  • C3 Knights. At 2:30 they attack your Blade Demons.
  • DThe south-west Stronghold.
  • EThe south-east Stronghold.
  • FThe north-west Stronghold.
  • GThe north-east Stronghold.
  • H6 Archers, 5 Swordsmen and 2 Barbarians. They patrol a long loop round the city from the start.

The Aramon Timetable

Time What happens
From the start The group at H patrols east to (3856,3056), north to (3392,1136), west to (1408,1152) and round again. 4 Mage Archers and 4 Barbarians patrol a loop round the outside of the square. 2 Barbarians walk back and forth between (3776,1984) and (4336,1984).
0:05 The 20 Swordsmen at A march south to your start. 2 Horsemen and 1 Swordsman start long patrols through the north and east.
0:20 3 Mage Archers patrol inside the square.
0:30 5 Swordsmen start a patrol round the east side. 3 Mage Archers at (2944,2032 to 2432) are ordered to attack your Sky Knights.
0:45 4 Mage Archers start a patrol out to the north-west corner.
1:00 to 2:00 3 Barbarians, one at a time, walk to (2368,2576), just inside the gate, and patrol to (2816,2544).
1:30 4 Barbarians from B attack your Blade Demons.
2:00 4 Barbarians start a patrol that passes (2256,4064) and (1248,4032), west of your start.
2:30 3 Knights from C attack your Blade Demons.
3:00 2 Barbarians start a patrol that ends at (2848,4848), on your start.
3:20 3 Archers start a patrol round the city. 3 more start the same patrol at 6:00.
5:00 9 Archers are ordered to attack your Sky Knights. 5 stand in the east at (4240 to 4400, 2288 to 2464) and 4 in the west at (1312 to 1536, 2096 to 2288).
60:00 The waits end for Lordling Dernhest, 2 Titans, 2 Knights and 2 Mage Archers in the square. The data gives them no further orders.

The Plan

Win the First Battle (0:00 to 4:00)

  1. Stay at 1. The 20 Swordsmen from A come down the street in 4 columns, and their patrol ends right among your units. Put the Blade Demons and Executioners in front. Keep the Fire Demons, Skeleton Archers and Fire Spouts close behind them, and the Black Knights on the wings.
  2. A Swordsman has 2500 hit points and must stand next to its target to strike. A Blade Demon has 6500 hit points and kills a Swordsman in 5 blows. An Executioner's sword hits an area 36 wide, which suits the tight columns.
  3. Start the Fire Demons early. Their fireballs reach 900 and burst 50 wide, but a Fire Demon sees only 156. Put a Black Knight (sight 200) in front of them so that they have targets.
  4. At 1:30, 4 Barbarians from B come for your Blade Demons, and at 2:30, 3 Knights from C do the same. Keep the Blade Demons in the middle of your army so that these runners meet everything at once. A Knight has 5911 hit points and hits for 750.
  5. Stay together until 3:00, while 2 Barbarian patrols pass close by: one to the west through (2256,4064), and one that ends on your start at (2848,4848).

Clear the Streets

  1. Patrols circle the city all the time. Do not chase them through the maze. Wait in the open street until each group comes past, and meet it with your whole army.
  2. Use the Fire Spouts to strike first. A Fire Spout hides by cloaking, and its fire does 610 damage at a range of 255.

Open the Square

  1. Move the Fire Demons, with an escort, to 2. The Stronghold at E is 738 away: inside their range of 900 and outside its own 600. A Stronghold has 18,500 hit points, so it takes 31 fireballs.
  2. Follow the street east to 3 and north to 4, then go west into the corridor at 5. The city's own patrols use this way to reach the square.
  3. Move along the corridor to 6. From here the Fire Demons reach the Stronghold at D (651 away) and 4 of the 6 Watch Towers, and none of them can reach you. Destroy them all.
  4. Before you go through the gate, clear what is waiting inside. Just inside it, 3 Barbarians patrol back and forth. Further in, 3 Mage Archers patrol the square, and 2 Titans, 2 Knights, 2 Mage Archers and Lordling Dernhest stand in the middle. A Titan's hammer does 500 damage every 1.2 seconds, so keep it off the Fire Demons.
  5. Move to 7. The northern Strongholds at F and G are 883 and 862 away, and the last 2 Watch Towers 530 and 532. The Fire Demons reach all 4, and none of them can fire back.

Hunt Down the Rest

  1. Every unit must die. The 9 Archers in the east and west have orders only to attack Sky Knights, so they are likely to stand where they are. Near B, 2 Barbarians walk back and forth. Finish the patrol groups one by one as you meet them.

Which Units Beat Theirs

Aramon unit Its threat Your answer
Stronghold Cannon, 1125 damage every 4 seconds, range 600. It cannot hit anything closer than 180. Fire Demons, range 900
Watch Tower 2 bows, 225 damage each, range 500 Fire Demons: 8 fireballs destroy one
Swordsman 2500 hit points, sword for 360 damage Blade Demons (570 damage) and Executioners (420 damage, 36 wide)
Knight 5911 hit points, 750 damage, speed 3.3 All 3 Blade Demons together, with the Fire Spouts (610 damage)
Barbarian 3471 hit points, sword for 640 damage Executioners in front, Skeleton Archers behind (range 450)
Mage Archer Arrows for 476 damage at range 550 Black Knights close in fast (speed 2.9 against its 1.4). Fire Demons out-range it.
Titan 3999 hit points, hammer for 500 damage every 1.2 seconds Keep it busy with Blade Demons while the archers shoot

Mana

There are no sacred sites on this map, and none of your units can build. Mana plays no part here: you fight with the 16 units you bring and whatever reinforcements the script sends. The Dark Mason, the Taros builder on your list, comes only from a Cabal, an Abyss or a Temple, and you have none of these.

Traps

  • There is no quiet opening. The 20 Swordsmen set off for your start at 0:05.
  • 7 Aramon units are ordered to hunt your Blade Demons: 4 Barbarians at 1:30 and 3 Knights at 2:30.
  • 12 archers are ordered to hunt Sky Knights: 3 Mage Archers from 0:30 and 9 Archers from 5:00. If the script sends you Sky Knights, expect those archers to come for them.
  • Barbarians, Titans and Knights wait behind the gate into the square. Clear the towers from 6 first, then fight what comes out.
  • A Stronghold cannot hit anything within 180 of it, but the towers around it can.
  • You have no way to replace losses. Keep your army together, and pull badly hurt units back behind the rest.
  • You lose when every unit you own is destroyed.

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