Part 3: Defense of Yürsgrad Recap

Previously on Myth III



We defended Yürsgrad from the Myrkridia - something no one has ever done without the aid of overwhelming numbers, or city walls.

Like I said in the video, this mission is hectic as you're surrounded on all sides, and if you lose focus for one second, bad things can happen. Bad things like losing all of the Fighting Villagers in the game, and two male Villagers. For some reason the game groups male and female villagers differently. But hey, if humans are being forced into extinction, it's women that we need more than men.

In future missions, where I get a chance to breathe in them, I'll talk more about the game UI, tactics and units and such. This kind of is a poor level to be doing that kind of thing.

Screenshots:









Myth 3 saves a film of missions in case you want to review them. If you want to watch this mission without any of my commentary, and be in control of the camera yourself, you can use my film from this level, assuming you have Myth 3 installed. For example you can watch the villagers as the Myrkridia approach, while I do nothing to stop them! I've cleverly hidden the film as a rar file inside the following image. Just download the below image, open it in winrar, and put the file you extract in your Myth 3 recordings folder. For me on vista, the default folder is a hidden folder located in "C:\Users\YOURUSERNAME\AppData\Local\VirtualStore\Program Files (x86)\MumboJumbo\Myth III - The Wolf Age ecordings". Got that?



I'll also be keeping a track of the cumulative bodycount. Sometimes the end of mission screen doesn't account for certain things but I'll try to keep on top of it. For example, we killed 25 Myrkridia and have a 5:1 kill ratio, but it only says we lost the three Fighting Villagers. That's because it's not counting the two other villagers lost as real units. If you look carefully, you'll see a Hearth Guardsmen died right at the end of the level, while the units were celebrating. Usually I'm not going to count these deaths since they're a bit out of my control, and try to stick to the in-game kill screen. However half the time that's not correct either...




Of course not every attempt at this mission leads to success under the conditions I've put on myself….




Failure video
YouTube




Whenever we get new units I'll be posting a picture of them here with a description of how they fare in battle, as well as the flavour text so you don't have to squint or pause while watching the videos.

Connacht

Connacht is the man. He hits like a truck, can take a beating himself, and runs at a decent speed. We'll be using him for a large majority of the game, so get used to his face.

Born in a small village on the outskirts of Yürsgrad in Gower, the boy that would become the hero of the age watched the Myrkridia destroy his home village. Knowing only vengeance, the boy would grow strong and skilled living in the wilds. Studying his foes, he began to see their weaknesses and made strategies to defeat them. When Yürsgrad itself is attacked by the Myrkridia, only the man who would be called "The Wolf" has the strength and command to rally his clansmen to combat the creatures of nightmare. Connacht wields a massive axe easily with his powerful arms - laying low scores of foes as if they were saplings.

"…the gathered wood carried upon his back, the boy heard the sounds of screams over the forested hill. Rushing to the overlook, he could only stare at the horror unfolding before him. The devils ran throughout the streets, rending his clansmen, and feeding on his family. Screams were the only defenses they could muster. The young boy could only stare silently and watch…"

"...salivating, the night-furred beast grinned at the thought of an easy meal. The boy, once paralyzed with fear, now gave into burning rage. Hurling himself at the devil, he screamed his clan's battle-cry, and swung his axe at the beast. With a gurgling rush of blood, the Myrkridia fell into the dirt; the axe splitting its head. 'So', he spoke over the corpse, 'they can be killed'..."

Berserks

Berserks are the best melee units in the game, being only slightly worse than Connacht in all regards. But compared to everything else, they run fast, have a lot of health and attack quickly. In a game where attacks can interrupt enemy attacks, a group of Zerks can hack to death a surrounded enemy without taking a hit.

Only the strongest survive the harsh winters of the Northlands - and the constant threat of Myrkridia has weeded out the weak long ago. And the Berserks are the heartiest of even those strong people. The name Berserk is derived from the bearskin loincloths they wear. Wielding massive swords or axes, these brave (or insane) men stride into battle wearing no armor - and fearing nothing.

"…After the massacre of the village of Jordsgrund, blood and signs of battle abound, but there were no bodies remaining…save one. The body of Hothgar was found amongst the bodies of several dead Myrkridia. - all slain by his axe. Even in his death, Hothgar held the crushed throats of two Myrkridia in either hand, bitterly defiant long after his end…"

"…pointing to a jagged scar along his chest, Grulof spoke of a Myrkridian Hunter's clawed fingers. Gesturing to his bent leg, Grulof told a tale of a Ghôl's cleaver swing. Showing his lacerated back, Grulof spoke of a Trow's footprint…"

"...As a rite of passage, Gower youths journey to the glacial Blind Steppes in hunt of the frost bears who make their dens in the blue ice. Armed with only an ax, most Gower youths can muster the skills to slaughter the bear. The real challenge is dragging the bear's carcass two-score miles back to their village..."

Hearth Guardsmen

Hearth Guardsmen are awful units. They're similar in speed and health to archers from the first two Myth games, which is "slow" and "glass cannon" respectively. However instead of firing arrows, they throw spears with maybe half the range that an archer could fire an arrow. On the plus side they have an unlimited number of spears, and can use them in melee combat. You still want to use melee units for melee attacks, but in a pinch Hearth Guardsmen can stab an enemy or two to death.

In the lands of Gower, these ever vigilant guardians of the clans defend their villages and townships from any evil that dares trespass. They are the Hearthguard, and their prowess with their spears is legendary. Not only can they trow their javelins with great distance and precision, but they can strike at any creature that ventures too close. Their wooded shields can turn the claw of any Myrkridia.

"…We are guardians of the Hearth. Our spears deal vengeance; our shields defend our clan. Our eyes are ever vigilant; our hearts know no fear. We are guardians of the Hearth. And the Devils that defile our clans be our enemies…"

"…Leaping from the tree, Ulrik drove his spear down into the head of the Myrkridian Giant. As the beast dropped to the dirt, kicking it's [sic] death throes, Ulrik bellowed his war-cry to the advancing Myrkridian devils. With snarling hisses, the fell creatures retreated back into the darkness. There would be no feeding this night…"

Villagers

Villagers have little health, no speed and no offensively abilities. Okay, the fighting villagers do, but I managed to get all of them killed in a moment of inattention. We'll assume they're terrible melee units.

Farmers and peasants, these men and women make up for their lack of combat skill with the stubbornness learned while living in their harsh land. Carrying only wooden pitchforks and wearing ordinary clothing, these are the last line of defense between the Myrkridia and their families.

"…With vile Myrkridia dwelling to the West, Trow slavers ruling the icy northlands, and the sporadic Ghôl clans raiding from the south, all, but the strongest have been eliminated from their ranks…"

"…bearing the frozen winters and the hot and sticky summers, the clansmen of Gower are stubborn and tenacious. To them, their land is theirs alone, and no force of nature or evil will run them from it…"

Myrkridia

Myrkridian Warriors (grey) match up similarly to Berserks - high health, speed and attack power.

These pack warriors still retain the ferocity and savageness of the original bloodthirsty Myrkridia. They are faster, stronger, and tougher than their peers - a true terror to do battle with. Their shrieking howl can cause even the most steadfast warrior to flee from the battlefield. When a Myrkridian Warrior is wounded in battle, its battle-lust can completely take over, causing the beast to strike wildly and savagely at pack and prey alike.

A Myrkridian Hunter (brown) is somewhere between 50% and 75% as effective as a Myrkridian Warrior as they have noticeably less health. Since the Myrkridia have been feeding off humanity for so long, and the eats have been so good, they're not in as good a shape as they could be. Both Warriors and Hunters come in packs, and it's rare to find a lone Myrkridia.

Over the many years since their arrival, many Myrkridia have become fattened from years of easy hunting. Their speed and strength have become somewhat diminished, as their prey is hardly a challenge to them. They have become cowardly bloats, and will run from any prey that looks to be a challenge. Although weaker than their brethren, they are still exceptionally dangerous in packs.

"…Well fatted by countless years of preying upon defenseless victims, the bulk of the Myrkridian packs became slothful and cowardly…they made up for this weakness by traveling in hunting prides, lead by the strongest male…"

"… The Myrkridia raised their gore-crusted muzzles to listen. The trumpeting horns and the clamor of spears against shields sounded the approach of the Hearthguard. When the first spears fell into the group of Myrkridia, they fled from the village, leaving their partially eaten prey behind in their beds…"




Next time on Myth III
After the first ever successful defense against the Myrkridia, why not try for the first ever successful offense? The Myrkridia attacking Gower are coming from the Dire Marsh where they must have a nest, or lair. We're going to find The Nest and kill everything in it.