“ | My knights will ride you down. Charge! | ” |
— Phillip, taunting before an attack |
King Phillip is an AI player encountered in Stronghold Crusader and Stronghold Crusader Extreme.
Background[]
King Phillip II Augustus was a French ruler between 1180-1223 AD. He controlled France very well and he was a talented general too. He forged strong alliances and was the leader of the French army during the Third Crusade, but eventually returned home after the German Emperor Frederick Barbarossa drowned in a river, leaving the English to fight alone for the Holy Land.
Character and personality[]
The King Phillip in the game is rather like the Sultan in terms of character, being more interested in feasting than planning military strategies. Like him, he shows a range of somewhat exaggerated and outlandish expressions depending on his mood and military situation. However, unlike the Sultan, King Phillip is rather lazy, yawning, often complaining that he loses interest in the war and often not defending his allies or attacking an enemy when requested to. He is however, usually quite generous in giving any excess apples, wood and even iron he has to his allies if he is asked.
Despite his laziness, Phillip is a relatively benevolent lord, and he is kind to his people. He gives them a good food variety to keep them happy, buying in bread and cheese to suppliment the apples he grows. He also provides gardens and statues for his workers to enjoy some free time. The gardens and statues are positioned in the neatest possible manner, this neatness seems to be an obsession with King Phillip, with the neat positioning of his stables at the back and the single linear layer of moat providing a certain symmetry to his castle.
Castles and strategies[]
King Phillip is a lord who is good at raiding but pathetic at besieging a castle. He makes a much better ally than he does an enemy as he will easily disrupt adversaries' economies with his knights, but will rarely pose much of a threat to most human players.
Phillip's economy is a very simple one, relying heavily on iron production and taxation. His iron mines provide him the sole source of his income, as well as to provide weapons for his knights. Phillip supplies his peasants with apples, however he also buys in cheese and bread frequently to provide high variety. The abundance of good things and religious buildings allows for heavy taxes.
Phillip's encampment is unique, as its front is heavily fortified with twin square towers, thick walls and mounted ballistae. The interior is small though and densely packed by buildings, as well as it is entrenched and left exposed by moat in the sides and the back. Most of the troops are kept on the keep for highground advantage.
In terms of Phillip's attacks, the most common form of engagements are small packs of knights, targetting industrial buildings and farms left out in the open. If Phillip has lots of gold he likes to occasionally roll forward catapults into range of enemy bases. For his 'main' attack though, he sends out a big group consisting only of spearmen, which despite their 25% combat bonus through positive fear factor, still ties for one of the least dangerous 'main' attack forces mustered by any computer opponent.
For more details, read here: King Phillip/Strategies
How to deal with[]
For tips on how to beat King Phillip, see: King Phillip/Counter-strategies
Quotes[]
For King Phillip's quotes see: King Phillip/Quotes
Trivia[]
- King Phillip's banner in the background features the fleur-de-lis (lily), a symbol common in French heraldism.
Stronghold Crusader / Stronghold Crusader Extreme Characters | |
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Stronghold Crusader | The Rat • The Snake • The Pig • The Wolf • The Sultan• The Caliph • Saladin • Richard The Lionheart |
Stronghold Crusader Extreme | Emperor Frederick • King Phillip • The Sheriff • The Abbot • The Marshal • The Wazir • The Emir • The Nizar |