Description[]
The Battle of Waterloo is the eighth and final scenario of the English Campaign in Empire Earth. It is also the most difficult, so good strategy is essential to success. It serves as a reenactment of the battle of the same name, along with the battle of Quatre Bras.
Briefing[]
The Battle of Waterloo: 1815
Following Napoleon's defeat in 1814 and subsequent exile to the island of Elba, the corrupt Bourbon regime was restored to the throne of France. But they didn't hold on to it for long. Escaping from exile, Napoleon returned to Paris and in three short weeks raised an army that forced the Bourbons to flee to Brussels.
Stunned by the rapid turn of events, the other major powers of Europe rallied to form an alliance. Sir Arthur Wellesley, the first Duke of Wellington, was called upon to lead the main thrust of the allied forces against Napoleon. It was the first time the two great generals were to meet on the field of battle.
The Duke of Wellington was eager to assume command, though the irony of the situation was not lost on him. Napoleon believed they were fighting for liberty, fraternity and equality. The Alliance, on the other hand, were fighting ultimately to restore a dying aristocracy to power. But whatever the motives, Sir Arthur had every intention of winning the fight.
Starting Conditions[]
First stage[]
In the first stage of the scenario, you have control over a messenger (an Imperial Cuirassier). You must bring the messenger safely to General Blucher of Prussia. Once found, you will gain control over Prussian forces, and deploy them against a French assault at Wavre. When the French retreat, control over the Prussian forces defaults back to the computer.
Second stage[]
In the second stage of the scenario, you have control of Sir Arthur Wellesley and his forces, situated in the north of Brussels.
You also have the following initial resources:
You also have control of eight engineers (Citizens), who can build Settlements, Towers, Barracks, Stables, Siege Factories, Farms and Hospitals. You cannot populate these units to create new Town Centers, so you cannot create more Citizens. The engineers can also gather resources, but the only resources on the map are Wood, Food (via Farms) and Stone.
Objectives[]
- Join the Duke of Wellington in Brussels to get your briefing on the impending French attack.
- The Duke of Wellington must survive.
- Your messenger must locate General Blucher and the Prussians at all costs. If he fails, the Allies will lose the war.
- General Blucher has been pursued to Wavre by a French detachment. They must be defeated.
- Build up your forces and prepare for the French assault.
- The French attack will come through the area around Monte St. Jean. You would be wise to build Barracks, Stables, and other support buildings there.
- The French are attacking Quatre Bras, and then Brussels. If even one French soldier is seen in Brussels, the Bourbon royalty living in asylum there will panic, and surrender to Napoleon - and you will lose!
- The main French army under Napoleon will attack at dawn. His soldiers must be kept out of Brussels at all costs.
- The French army is attacking. You must keep them from passing through Monte St. Jean and entering Brussels. If even one French soldier is seen in Brussels, the Bourbon royalty living in asylum there will panic, and surrender to Napoleon - and you will lose!
In the first stage of the scenario, your messenger must travel safely from Wellesley in Brussels to Blucher in Wavre. On arriving in Wavre, you have the optional objective of assisting to defeat the French assault at Wavre.
In the second stage of the scenario, your goal is to prevent any French forces from entering Brussels. If any French units enter the central part of the city, you are defeated.
History[]
Although he defeated Napoleon's army in Spain during the campaign of 1808 - 1814, The Duke of Wellington had never encountered the great French general himself on the battlefield.
Instead, the surrender of Napoleon at Fontainebleau, and Wellington's victory over the French troops at Toulouse, propelled the "Iron Duke" into a brief political career. Newly raised into the peerage, Sir Arthur was finally able to return home and be received into the House of Lords. Numerous honors and titles had been bestowed upon him during the campaign in Spain, but he had never had the time to receive them with the proper ceremony.
Then, from August 1814 until March 1815, he served as British Ambassador to the Bourbon court in Paris.
Napoleon, meanwhile, was exiled to the island of Elba, off the coast of Italy. There he bided his time. Although he was penniless, a prisoner, and a general without an army, he knew full well of his countrymen's dreams. All he had to do was to appear in France and call on those who believed in fraternity and equality to gather around his banner, and once more Bonaparte would stand among the greatest men of Europe.
In February 1815, that is exactly what happened.
In less than three weeks, whole divisions of the French army had deserted to join Napoleon, and the French king had fled for his life.
Shocked and alarmed, the European allies who had defeated Napoleon the previous year had hastily re-grouped to form a plan. Russian and Austrian troops would invade France from the east. British, Prussian, and Dutch troops would invade from the north. Together, these forces constituted an overwhelming numerical superiority, Napoleon could not afford to wait until they were drawn up against him en masse.
Instead, he struck first.
Launching a surprise attack on the Anglo-Dutch forces in Belgium, he hoped to wipe them out before the Prussians under General Blucher could arrive. The fateful day had come, as predicted by Tsar Alexander I of Russia when he had said to the Duke of Wellington in Vienna: " It is up to you to save the world again."
Hints & Strategy[]
- If the French are not stopped at Quatre Bras, it will be extremely difficult to keep them out of Brussels. And the appearance of even one French soldier in the city will cause the Bourbons to panic and surrender.
- It would be wise to heavily fortify the hill of Monte St. Jean. The French will have to pass this way to reach Brussels, and you can have the advantage of fighting from the high ground!
- British watchtowers have been placed on the roads leading into Brussels to give you advanced warning of any invading French soldiers.
- You have been given a lot of Gold and Iron with which to defend Brussels, but once they are used up, you won't be able to get anymore.
- Stone can be located at several points around the base of Monte St. Jean.
- To defeat Ney's army at Quatre Bras, eliminate either all his cannon or all his infantry.
- To defeat the main French Army, eliminate all dark blue cavalry and cannons.
- Being prepared to mobilize your troops and move them anywhere should be a higher priority than exploring the map.
For the first stage:
- Improve the messenger's (Imperial Cuirassier's) Speed, as it will help it reach Wavre quicker.
- Several Sharpshooters will ambush the Imperial Cuirassier on the way to Wavre. They cannot do much damage if the unit moves quickly, so set the unit to Scout behavior to ensure it keeps moving.
- This stage of the scenario can take up to ten minutes to complete, so when the French assault at Wavre has been defeated, save the game. The second stage of the scenario is more challenging, and it is better to return to this point than have to restart the entire scenario.
For the second stage:
- Map: There are three main roads by which Brussels can be approached: a southern road, a central road and a northern road. (see map above). There will be two main assaults against Brussels. The first will come via the long southern road. The second, by the more direct central road. It will be necessary to deploy Wellesley and the majority of your forces to defend each of these roads in turn.
- Improvements: You cannot gather Gold or Iron, so it is important to spend your initial budget wisely. Any unit improvements will come at the expense of training extra units, so it may not be a good idea to purchase certain improvements. The best improvements to purchase are Speed (the map is quite large, and you will need move forces around a lot), Attack and Range.
- Unit types: To get the best value from your forces, you should also focus on a small range of unit types. From Barracks, train only British Infantry (Food and Iron), as they are a cheap and effective unit. From the Stable, train Dragoons and Imperial Cuirassier (Food and Gold) in equal numbers. From the Siege Factory, train only Bronze Cannons (Wood and Iron).
- Hospitals: Hospitals will be central to your defense strategy (see Walkthrough below), so be sure to purchase the "Anesthesia" upgrade (Food and Gold), which will increase Hospital Healing Rate and Range.
Walkthrough[]
First stage[]
This stage is quite easy, but it is time consuming. When it is completed, save your game so you don't have to repeat it if you make errors later in the scenario.
When you are given control of the "messenger" (Imperial Cuirassier), select it and click on the visible area of the map at Wavre to send it there. While it is travelling, improve the unit's Speed twice. It should arrive at Wavre within a couple of minutes. When it arrives, it will connect with General Blucher of Prussia, and you will be given control of the Prussian forces at Wavre. With basic strategy, you will easily be able to defeat the French forces. When the French retreat, the Prussian units will revert back to the control of the computer. The messenger unit will also vanish.
Second stage[]
You will be given control of Sir Arthur Wellesley and his forces, including several Infantry, Cavalry and Cannon units, and eight Citizens. Quickly use the Citizens to build Barracks, Stable and Siege Factory. Begin training British Infantry (10+), Dragoon (5+), Imperial Cuirassier (5+) and Bronze Cannons (5+). This will create a force that will withstand both French assaults, and allow for some unit improvements prior to deployment.
Send the Citizens to the township at Monte St. Jean (see map above), just near the opening of the central road to Brussels. This is the site of the second attack by the French. Set the Citizens to build two Towers about 3-4 spaces apart, and a Hospital a few spaces behind. This will be your main defense point when the second attack comes. Make sure you purchase the "Anesthesia" upgrade to extend the Hospital's range and healing rate. When these structures are complete, send six Citizens to the nearest Stone mine, have them build a Settlement adjacent to it, and begin mining.
Send all combat units and the two remaining Citizens to the narrow pass between the trees and water that sits on the southern road into Brussels (at the far right of the map). Set all combat units to Stand Ground behavior. When you have enough Stone, assign the two Citizens to construct a Tower at the southern end of the pass. Place mounted units next to the Tower, infantry behind them, and cannons at the rear. When the Tower is complete, have the Citizens build a Hospital somewhere behind your forces. By this time, a wave of French Cavalry will have reached the pass. They will attack the Tower first, allowing you to pick them off without too many casualties. A second wave of infantry and cannons will then arrive. This wave may require more strategy to overcome, but they will soon retreat.
Send all your forces and the two Citizens back to your defensive position at Monte St. Jean. Assign the Citizens to build more Towers and Hospitals to enlarge your defense line. When the second French attack comes, your forces will be assisted by the Prussian units from the first stage of the scenario. If you focus your strategy on destroying French cannons, you will win the battle with relative ease. Take control of your British infantry units to pick off the French cannons one by one. These units will target them easily without leaving Hospital range, and will sustain minimal casualties.
