| “ | Is there no one, who will rid me of your irritating presence? | ” |
| — The Wolf, after a failed attack |
Duc Volpe, also known as The Wolf, is the main antagonist of Stronghold and Stronghold 3, appearing also as an AI enemy in Stronghold Crusader, Extreme and Stronghold Crusader 2.
History
The Wolf's past is shrouded with mystery, and what is known of his history is mainly patched together from stories and unreliable rumours alone. This aside, it is believed that both of his parents died from natural causes in close succession shortly after his eighteenth birthday.
After receiving his dukedom, the Wolf took it upon himself to go traveling, stating he needed some time to think things through, leaving his loyal servants to manage the lands for him. Nobody knows for certain where he went, but he returned a year later with a new companion, Duc Truffe known as The Pig. After a visit to the king of the homeland himself, he began to instigate his invasion plans of Britain with the Pig in tow as his right hand man. There have also been wild accusations flying around the King's Court that the Wolf had somehow become involved with the "Order of Black Knights". However, there was only unsubstantiated and anecdotal evidence to support these claims.
A force led by The Wolf overthrew and captured the King, and divided the land among the four dukes (The Wolf, The Pig, The Snake and The Rat), with few southern counties remaining neutral. A rebellion of soldiers loyal to the King, led by Sir Longarm and The Boy, began reclaiming the country. The dukes were eventually defeated, and in the final battle, The Boy impaled the Wolf's chest with his sword, and the latter fell down his castle's tower.
He was found to be alive by a few of his surviving men, and was carried to be healed in The East. He returned in Stronghold 3, ten years older, and more bitter than ever, driven more by revenge than conquest (despite his aforementioned skill). He invaded the land again, accompanied by his new ally, The Jackal. While initially successful, The Wolf lost the war, but managed to capture "The Boy" who caused his downfall, though neither of their fates are revealed further.
Appearance
The Wolf's face almost constantly sported a grimace similar to that of a grinning wolf, while his stare never evaded the eyes of the people who surrounded him. He weared his armour at all times. When enraged, he curled up one side of his top lip and let out a low growl.
In Stronghold 3, set ten years after Stronghold, The Wolf returned with a more grizzled look than before, donning a greying beard and a scar over his left eye (presumably from his injuries sustained at the end of Stronghold), and bushier eyebrows, again, due to his age.
Personality
The Wolf is a cold, calculating and aggressive mastermind. He is the most efficient, but also the cruelest of leaders, rumoured to kill even his most loyal staff if they stepped out of line, causing people under his rule to respect him through sheer terror. His voice is always emotionless and serious in tone. He likes pacing up and down, as a canine would do.
As a military leader, The Wolf never lets himself being controlled by neither his enemies, nor his allies. His first task is always building up his castle, defenses and economy, and only then does take his allies into account. He mainly views his comrades as unreliable partners, speaking to them with disdain, constraint and snarl. However, when the Wolf is about to show his military might and skills, he becomes confident and energetic, putting his negativity aside and showing signs of happiness, such as smiling and winking, even at his enemies.
Castles and strategies
The Wolf is one of the strongest AI opponents in Stronghold,Crusader,Stronghold 3 and Crusader 2.
In Stronghold Crusader
He likes to build massive castles with thick walls and large towers. All of his castles are surrounded by killing pits and plenty of pitch. Some of the Wolf's more complex castle designs can hold out against even the largest of siege forces if given enough time to establish them.
The Wolf is adept at managing his castle and economy. He relies on huge stone and Iron Production backed up with a bare minimal food production and stable Ale Production. He builds plenty of workshops and spends most of his time to establish his position in the early phases of the game. He has been known to reach over 900 troops in total if he is in an excellent economic position and having been given enough time.
The Wolf is a master of castle building. He uses complex designs, which consist heavily fortified chokepoints. He uses Square Towers or defense turrets manned by crossbowmen, archers and mangonels, while he deploys numerous fire ballistae and trebuckets on the ground. He also likes to defend his walls with moat, pitch ditch and killing pits in abundance.
The Wolf concentrates less on harassment, restraining himself to small groups of horse archers and catapults. However, he conducts well-organized sieges with large armies, containing pikemen, swordsmen and crossbowmen. He constructs additional catapults, fire ballistae and trebuchets to destroy enemy properties.
For more details, see: The Wolf/Strategies (SHC)
In Stronghold Crusader 2
Duc Volpe's war prowess is as effective as ever, however he is more aggressive and fearsome in his own way. He loves to push more and focuses a lot more on sieges, while he builds simpler, yet heavily fortified castles.
The Wolf builds square-shaped castles with grand towers on the corners and he gradually extends them with several lookout towers along the walls. He places several ballistae and mangonels above the walls and garrisons them with crossbowmen, archers, Arabian bowmen and the occasional pikemen. In the very late-game, he surrounds his walls with killing pits.
The Wolf uses a steamroll technique that is unseen among other AI lords. Although he leads siege camp attacks, he uses heavy harassment groups of swordsmen and crossbowmen that are slow but can grow to a huge size over time, consisting 50 troops a time. His siege armies also have various units along with the two types of units above, namely archers, sergeants-at-arms, unmounted templar knights and whirling dervishes. In the siege camp war wolves, mantlets and trebuchets are made.
Dealing with the Wolf
For tips on how to beat the Wolf, see The Wolf/Counter-strategies (SHC)
Castles
Quotes
Note: the Wolf will command his servant to carry messages, when he is the player's ally.
For the Wolf's quotes see: Quotes:The Wolf
For the servant's messages see: Quotes:Servant
| Stronghold Crusader / Stronghold Crusader Extreme Characters | |
|---|---|
| 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 |
| Stronghold Crusader 2 | The Rat • The Wolf • Saladin • The Caliph • Richard The Lionheart • The Shah • The Slave King • The Sultana |
| DLC | The Princess • The Pig • The Templar • The Duke • The Emperor • The Hermit • The Jackal • The Khan |