Welcome, Crusader fans. In this guide, I’ll walk you through The Trail of the Lamb campaign step-by-step. This trail is a mix of straightforward fights and deceptive missions where small mistakes can snowball fast. I’ve broken down each mission with clear economy setups, attack patterns, and practical army compositions you can follow even if you’re not a veteran player.
Let’s dive right in — whether you’re aiming for a Prince of Sands rank or just want to finish strong, this walkthrough will keep you on track.
Stronghold Crusader Definitive Edition Trail of Lamb Guide
The Trail of the Lamb serves as a warm-up trail in Stronghold Crusader: Definitive Edition, but don’t let that fool you. Nomads, Kahin, and Pig can still overwhelm you if you don’t prepare early.
The goal here is consistency over speed. I’ll mention tips for a faster clear where possible, but the core focus is surviving comfortably and taking smart fights.
Mission 1 — A Noble Ally
Enemies: 3 Nomads
Ally: The Rat (yes, our “beloved” Rat)
This mission introduces you to The Trail. The Nomads are fast and relentless — they’ll hit your economy before you even think about your first farm if you’re not ready.
Setup & Economy
Destroy your stockpile and rebuild it closer to stone and iron. Saves walking time for workers.
Spend half of your starting gold on wood to jumpstart your economy.
Get two stone quarries, three iron mines, and a few ox tethers right away.
Add a few farms and at least one armory to start producing early weapons.
Defense
Wall the northern side, it’s closer to your keep.
Add a small tower and place around 20 Bowmen. Use Arabian Archers if you can afford them; they’re quicker to train and move faster.
Horse Archers are your bread and butter here — they’ll do double duty in both defense and offense.
Offense
Once you have some gold:
- Train 60–100 Horse Archers and keep them mobile.
- Nomads use mostly melee and Skirmishers, so you can out-range and pick them off.
- When you’re ready to end it, hire 20–30 Assassins or Macemen to storm the keep.
- Drop a few Dancing Bears for +5 Fear Factor — it’s a cheap but effective attack buff.
Quick Tip: The Rat will soak up some of the first Nomad attacks, so use that time to build up — don’t rush early fights.
Mission 2 — The Beach
Enemies: Sultan, Kahin, Rat, Pig
This mission is where you’ll meet Kahin for the first time. She’s not deadly, but she can stall your runs if you underestimate her. The Pig, however, is the main bruiser here.
Opening Build
- There’s a great stone deposit near your castle — immediately place 5–6 quarries.
- Move your stockpile close to the quarries.
- Focus on a strong crossbow production chain: fletchers, armorers, and blacksmiths.
- Wall the northern farmland area to protect it from the Sultan’s troops.
Defending
- Put 10 crossbowmen on your keep.
- Add your Lord into the mix when cleaning up swordmen waves.
- Kahin is slow — you’ll have breathing room between her attacks.
Attacking
- Once your quarries are up, spend leftover gold on 15–20 Horse Archers.
- Hit the Rat’s keep first (easy pickings).
- His barracks are often exposed — take them out early.
- Keep an eye on Pig’s macemen — his slow rushes can still ruin unguarded quarries.
- After Rat falls, recruit 10 Assassins to finish Pig quickly.
- Use your remaining army to deal with Sultan, then Kahin last.
- Kahin likely hasn’t finished her castle yet, so push fast.
Rule of Thumb: Take them down from weakest to strongest — Rat → Pig → Sultan → Kahin.
Mission 3 — River Island
This mission is pure chaos — eight AI lords divided into three factions, all brawling around you.
You’ll fight:
- East: Emir & Caliph
- West: Snake & Richard
- Far West: 2 Nomads + Kahin
Sounds messy, but the trick is simple: ignore the west until you’re ready. Kahin and the Nomads will keep bullying Richard and Snake while you deal with the Arabian lords.
Setup
- Move your stockpile north to the stone deposits.
- Immediately dig a moat in front of your keep — it’s your early insurance.
- Set up a strong economy around stone and iron, then focus on Horse Archer production.
Attacking
- Start by harassing Emir with Horse Archers.
- Once stable, buy Portable Shields to counter Caliph’s fire traps.
- Your target army size:
- 100 Horse Archers
- 50 Portable Shields
- After Emir falls, pivot to Caliph. Take down his northern tower first (watch the fire pits).
- Finish both with Macemen or Assassins to clean up.
- Once both Arabian lords are gone, the rest crumble easily — Richard, Snake, and Kahin will already be weakened.
Don’t overinvest in static defenses; Horse Archers are mobile enough to defend and counterattack.
Mission 4 — Bedouin Lands
This one’s rough. You’re up against four Nomads, and your only ally is Lionheart. Expect him to fold early, so prepare to carry the match yourself.
Setup
- Move your stockpile closer to resources immediately.
- Three Nomads target Lionheart; you’ll face the Purple Nomad solo.
- Dig a moat to the west to funnel enemies — it buys precious time.
- Focus on early Horse Archer training again.
Defense & Offense
- Recruit Horse Archers (50–100) to defend against initial raids.
- Use them to counter-pick Nomads as they chase your ally.
- Once stable, go on offense: burn them down and clean up with 20–40 Assassins.
- Keep moving — stationary defense loses here.
This mission rewards patience. Wait until you have a strong Horse Archer core before committing to attacks.
Mission 5 — Deadly Alliance
Finally, some breathing room. Despite facing Kahin and Pig, this is actually the easiest mission in the Trail. The reason? You can rush them before they build serious defenses.
Fast Kill Strategy
- Start by buying 50 Macemen.
- Drop 10 Dancing Bears for cheap +5 Fear Factor — it massively boosts your melee power.
- Send 25 Macemen straight to Pig’s castle while training the next 25.
- Pig’s economy is exposed early — you can wipe him out before he’s even fortified.
- After Pig falls, march on Kahin. Watch for Eunuchs and fire pits, but with the time advantage, she’ll be far behind.
- If needed, recruit extra Macemen or build a mini siege economy to play it safe.
Fun Fact:
This is currently the only mission in the game where an AI opponent starts with an Outpost.