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The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II: The Rise of the Witch-king is a real-time strategyvideo game published by Electronic Arts, based on the Lord of the Rings film series based on the book, directed by Peter Jackson. The Rise of the Witch-king is the official expansion to The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II, which was published by the same company and released in 2006, for Microsoft Windows. The Rise of the Witch-king was shipped to stores in the United States on November 28, 2006 and was officially released on November 30, 2006.

The campaign allows the player to command the army of Angmar from its foundation and early attacks against Arnor, to the destruction of Arnor at the battle of Fornost. An epilogue mission allows the player to command the forces of Gondor and the Elves as they invade Angmar in retaliation for destroying Arnor. The story for The Rise of the Witch-king draws a great deal upon the Appendices at the end of the Return of the King to form a basis for the conflict between Arnor and Angmar. Many of the notes that Tolkien made regarding the war are used as missions in the games campaign and epilogue. Although the game closely follows Tolkien's writing, some events are modified to suit the gameplay (such as the palantír of Amon Sûl being destroyed rather than brought to safety at Fornost), or are omitted altogether (such as the flight of King Arvedui from the defeat at Fornost).

According to the Guinness Book of World Records Gamer's Edition, this game has the longest title in expansion packs for video games ever.

Please input captcha to take your serial number. View in text. Similar activation keys. The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-Earth II The Witch King.

Gameplay changes[edit]

The game features a new faction, Angmar, bringing the total number of playable factions to seven. It also comes with a new campaign based on Angmar, consisting of eight missions telling the rise of the Witch-king of Angmar and the fall of the kingdom of Arnor. New units were added to all six existing factions, as well as both new and improved buildings and heroes. Every faction except Angmar also received an elite hero unit. Elite hero units have a small amount of health and deal a large amount of damage, but there are a small number of them in each battalion, and they only replenish their numbers at a healing structure. Major improvements were made to the War of the Ring mode, including army persistence from RTS mode to the World Map, the introduction of an economy to the World Map, and the introduction of siege weapons to the World Map. Fourteen new territories and battle maps were added, as well as a new region, the Forodwaith. Four hero armies were also made available per faction. The Rise of the Witch-king also added two new historical scenarios for the War of the Ring mode, including the Fall of Arnor and the War of the Ring. Create-A-Hero mode added two extra troll races, new weapons and armor customizations. Heroes were given a cost system tied to the number of powers given to them. Due to a license expiration, EA has shut down the online server as of January 2011. Today the community has moved to a new server through the downloadable program 'Game Ranger' where previous EA and new players continue to host & play on the official EA 2.01 patch.

Plot[edit]

The campaign tells the story of the fall of the Kingdom of Arnor at the hands of Angmar and the Witch-king.^[1] For the sake of gameplay, however, many liberties are taken from Tolkien's work and the film trilogy by Peter Jackson. These liberties involve the creation of several characters specifically for the games campaign, such as Morgomir, the lieutenant of Angmar, as well as the naming of an unnamed hill-chief that appeared in Tolkien's writing. Unlike The Battle for Middle Earth II, there is only one campaign which is composed of eight missions which each focus on a distinct battle between Angmar and Arnor, as well as an epilogue which concludes the campaign. The player has the choice of playing each mission on either an easy, medium, or hard difficulty, and narrated cutscenes explain the plot between missions. All of the in-game cutscenes are narrated by Glorfindel, Elf-lord of Rivendell, who partakes in the game's epilogue.

A narrative cinematic at the opening of the campaign tells the story of the kingdom of Arnor in the Third Age of Middle-earth. Even though Middle-earth was at peace for a thousand years following the defeat of Sauron in the War of the Last Alliance, the northern twin of Gondor, Arnor, is split into three realms owing to civil dissension. These three realms are Rhudaur, the smallest and weakest of the Dúnedain realms, Cardolan, the guardian of the ancient Barrow-Downs, and Arthedain, the largest and most populous of the three where the heirs of Isildur still reigned. During this time, the Witch-king appeared in Angmar, and sought the total destruction of the kingdom of Arnor.

The campaign begins in the land of Angmar north of Arnor. Angmar in-game is a frozen, mountainous wasteland, and is home to many troll tribes of the north as well as the Black Númenóreans. The Witch-king realizes that he needs a symbol to unite the denizens of Angmar before he can begin his conquest of Arnor, and sets out to re-construct a citadel at the ruins of Carn Dûm. The Witch-king and his lieutenant Morgomir encounter a warrior troll, Rogash, and convince him to join their cause. The trio proceed to unite the Black Númenórean inhabitants as well as the Snow and Hill trolls, and defeat an army of Black Númenóreans that had been sent to defeat them. This finally unites the inhabitants of Angmar, and the Witch-king proceeds to launch an invasion of the smallest of Arnor's three successor states, Rhudaur. The king of Arnor, Argeleb I, has reclaimed his right to rule the entirety of the kingdom, and has sent his forces into Rhudaur to crush resistance to his rule. Seeing an opportunity in the king's presence, the Witch-king sends his own forces into Rhudaur and manages to save the Hill-chief, Hwaldar, from the men of Arnor. After defeating Arnor's army and slaying King Argeleb, the Witch-king conquers the hillmen of Rhudaur and uses them as troops for his growing armies.

The son of the king, Arveleg I, has maintained a frontier along the Weather Hills for many years following the death of his father. Using the palantír of Amon Sûl, Arveleg has successfully foiled every attack that Angmar has made against Arnor. The Witch-king realizes that to destroy Arnor's defences, he must launch a direct assault on the fortress of Amon Sûl. Diversionary attacks against Arthedain's allies of Cardolan and the Elves draw off their forces, while the main force moves against the watch-tower. After a fierce battle, the tower of Amon Sûl is destroyed and Arnor's bastion lost. The palantír is carried by a retreating Arveleg I, however, and Morgomir is dispatched to retrieve it. The forces of Angmar catch up with the fleeing King on the North Downs, and he decides to sacrifice himself and the palantír so that the Witch-king cannot gain use of it. When another army from Angmar arrives, a battle ensues between a fort of Arnor's and Angmar's reinforcements over control of the shards of the palantír. Angmar is victorious against Arnor's forces, and Morgomir collects the shards for the Witch-king.

The army of Cardolan was not crippled by Angmar's offensive at Amon Sûl, and therefore the Witch-king cannot commit to any further invasions of Arthedain with an enemy free to strike his armies' rear. The Barrow-Downs are chosen as the site of an offensive against the remainder of Cardolan's army, because the Dúnedain revere it as sacred ground that they would not allow a foe to desecrate. This way, Cardolan's forces are drawn into battle on ground of the Witch-king's choosing, and its forces are utterly destroyed. However, before Angmar can press its advantage against Arthedain, an offensive composed of Elves from Lindon, Rivendell, and Lothlórien is sent against its capital of Carn Dûm. Despite taking severe losses, the forces of Angmar manage to defend their fortress against the Elves long enough for reinforcements to arrive to lift the siege. The Elves are defeated, although enough damage has been done to Angmar to allow Arnor enough time to recover from its wounds unless action is taken. To prevent Arnor's resurgence, the Witch-king devises a plan that will inflict grievous harm upon the kingdom so that it does not defeat Angmar in its own weakness. The armies of Angmar once more descend upon the Barrow-Downs, and fell sorcerers of the Black Númenóreans create a plague that ravages Arnor, crippling its already fragile defences.

Many decades after this plague has all but depopulated what was left of Arnor, the only city that still stands in defiance of Angmar is Arnor's capital of Fornost. The Dúnedain are prepared to make a final stand in the face of the Witch-king's onslaught, and gather all of their might and called on their allies, including a band of hobbits from the Shire. The battle is fiercely fought, but in the end the city of Fornost falls to the Witch-king and his army, and the kingdom of Arnor is utterly destroyed, concluding the campaign.

The game's epilogue opens with a cutscene explaining that after the final defeat of Arnor at the hands of the Witch-king, its sister realm of Gondor can not look away any longer. Gondor and the Elves convene a meeting with the son of King Eärnil, Eärnur, representing the men of the south-kingdom. The two forces form an alliance with the intention of eradicating Angmar's forces and destroying its realm, before it dominates the remainder of Eriador. The Elves and Gondor march under one banner, and in the end are victorious against the forces of Angmar. Carn Dûm is destroyed, and the Witch-king himself is driven off from his lands. He is pursued by Eärnur, but the Elf-lord Glorfindel calls out to him, and the game ends with the line:

Critical reception[edit]

The game received favorable reviews from critics. On the review aggregator GameRankings, the game had an average score of 78% based on 25 reviews.^[2] On Metacritic, the game had an average score of 78 out of 100, based on 22 reviews.^[3] NZGamer.com gave the expansion an 8.0 out of 10, crediting the games improvement of many aspects over the original Battle for Middle-Earth, as well as the games campaign for its use of a lesser known part of Middle-earth's history.^[4]

References[edit]

1. ^'The Rise of the Witch-king Campaign Guide'. Gamereplays.org. Retrieved 28 November 2013.
2. ^'The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II: The Rise of the Witch-king Reviews'. GameRankings. Retrieved 2008-03-07.
3. ^'The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II: The Rise of the Witch-king, The (pc: 2006): Reviews'. Metacritic. Retrieved 2008-03-07.
4. ^Clark, Tristan. 'LOTR: Battle For Middle-earth II, The Rise Of The Witch King'. NZGamer.com. Retrieved 28 November 2013.

External links[edit]

Amid chaotic, constantly changing battles of swords and sorcery, players lead their forces in a desperate struggle to save Middle-Earth. Built on EA's Command & Conquer: Generals engine, The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-Earth is a real-time strategy game set in the world of the Peter Jackson trilogy, based on the novels by J.R.R. Tolkien. It focuses on large-scale warfare instead of individual characters or the quest of the Fellowship, and is designed to re-create the epic battles featured in the three films. Familiar hero characters become available, however, and their powerful influences can turn the tide in a close battle. Four different factions are featured -- the riders of Rohan, the armies of Gondor, the forces of Saruman, and the legions of Sauron -- and each relies on a different type of resource to develop and replenish its forces. The game includes two separate single-player campaigns; one has fans leading the forces of good against the orcs and goblins of Mordor, and the other allows them to guide the forces of evil to claim Middle-Earth for their dark master.

Enter The Battle for Middle-earth, touched by the Tolkien license and Peter Jackson's films, and imbued with the personality of the team that created Red Alert 2 and C&C Generals. While veteran RTS players may have some nits to pick with the relatively solid gameplay, those same fans of The Lord of the Rings series should find that the game shines as a playable re-creation of Tolkien's work. The game is a perfect example of a license enhancing the final product.

Battle For Middle Earth Pc

The game was originally billed as a game where Tolkien fans could play without being overwhelmed by the traditional micromanagement or interface of a real-time strategy game. To that end, players can opt to go to Battle School, which is a non-playable tutorial on how to play the game. Veteran RTS players may not need it, but the presentation is user-friendly. If players choose to jump right in to the single-player campaign, they can opt for good or evil, with the good side focusing on Rohan and Gondor and the evil side drawing from Isengard and Mordor (along with their Rhun and Haradrim allies). The player can choose between easy, normal, and hard gameplay, with the only difference being the amount of damage units dole out: on easy, enemy units don't do as much damage, while on hard, they do more damage.

The good campaign pretty much follows the three movies, and this is one of the biggest strengths of the game for Tolkien fans (of which I am one). The battles and key plot points of the movie are so utterly compelling (and at times overwhelming) that the player really feels that they control the destiny of Middle-earth. Throw in the riveting music of Howard Shore and the key voice acting of Christopher Lee, Sir Ian McKellen, Sean Astin and others, and the game becomes as a fairly faithful adaptation of the movies, but with the player tasked with making sure the good side wins.

There are some slight deviations (all of which had to be approved through New Line Cinema), such as the part where Boromir dies. In one mission, you are told to save him, and he will be available as a hero unit throughout the game when Gondor is involved. However, if you do not save him, he still shows up later on. The same applies to heroes that die in battle during the campaign. They are still available for use in later missions. While keeping true to the movies, it does tend to take away from the urgency to protect them.

The evil campaign will easily appeal to those who really wanted to see Sauron conquer Middle-earth. Saruman is the key hero, with Lurtz (the Uruk-hai warrior with a penchant for well-placed arrow shots) also available. This portion of the game is a bit more freeform since there are few times in the movies where the evil side didn't get crushed. But Helms Deep and Minas Tirith take on a whole new appeal when playing here. I particularly enjoyed killing a few of those nasty Hobbitses.

The game mixes in live-action scenes from the movies in subtle places, not as cinematics, but more as highlights, such as on the tally screen after each mission, in the multiplayer window or in the round interface screen in the bottom left corner at key moments in missions. The cutscenes use the in-game engine and look extremely good.

The game is coordinated through a huge map of Middle-earth. This offers another good way for fans to immerse themselves in the game with recognizable landmarks such as Mount Doom, Minas Tirith, and Helms Deep. Players decide which armies they want to use to attack various locales in Middle-earth. While the player does have choices on areas to conquer, the game forces you to key plot points at particular times, be it Sam rescuing Frodo in Shelob's lair, or the Ents taking down the dam at Isengard.

Each area that the player conquers offers one or two special bonuses: an increase in power (which can be used to buy special abilities as simple as heal or as complex as the Army of the Dead or the Balrog), a percentage increase in resources gathered, or command points. Command points basically equate to a unit cap. The more points you have, the more units you can build up to a preset maximum.

This format can get a bit frustrating as the good side tries to build up its army to defend against the evil onslaught. You will have plenty of resources, but can't build units because you are at your command cap. In this respect the game does well in keeping with the spirit of the Tolkien universe in that the good side will always be seriously overwhelmed and the strategy will play more heavily than the swarm mentality of the evil side. But in the late game, if you advance plenty of squads with you from the previous mission, you may find yourself gathering a ton of money with little you can spend it on. This also will affect your buildings because you cannot upgrade certain buildings without building units. At least on the evil side, you can destroy your own units in the slaughterhouses (or have your units kill each other for experience) and build more.

The game plays as a solid RTS with all the flair that the EALA team put into Generals. The sides are fairly distinctive in terms of the buildings they create. Resources are relegated to collecting gold from destroyed neutral structures (such as goblin lairs, warg habitats, or troll homes) or by using farms (on the good side) or lumber mills and slaughterhouses (on the evil side). As for units, Rohan and Gondor have variations on infantry, archers, cavalry and siege units, while the Mordor and Isengard have a much more varied selection, from trolls to battering rams to the huge Mumakill.

The level design and 3D art is great, especially on the recognizable levels from the movie. However, there are some missions where the map was obviously designed for multiplayer map and thrust into the campaign as filler.

The game view is true 3D with the capability to zoom in closer to the battlefield. You don't get the first-person view of being in the battle, but it is pretty darn close. It can be neat to zoom in close on the heroes while they are using some of their special abilities or as Saruman or Gandalf are casting spells.

As with any RTS, players start building up their bases and gathering resources, but when the combat begins, literally all hell breaks loose. The evil side has the ability to send wave after wave of units to assault the good side, with literally hundreds of units on the screen at any one time. Units are created and grouped in squads of five (for the good side) or 10 (for the evil side), except for siege units, trolls, and Mumakill, which are created individually. The unit animations are extremely well done and the emotion system that was created really adds to the game. It is really satisfying to hear your units cheer when they win a skirmish or see them run in fear at the site of Aragorn wielding his sword.

The hero units can be built to a maximum of level 10 and can take an amazing amount of damage. The special abilities and spells are well thought out and extremely well animated and rendered. I did find out the hard way that they do have a penchant for battle and will try to involve themselves in any nearby fray, even when they are low on health.

The evil A.I. can be pretty relentless as all it is really required to do is build, expand, and throw wave after wave of units at you. The good A.I., though, can be a bit dumber. When I was rushing toward the castles or keeps, sometimes it failed to close the gates. It also tends not to focus on the units that can do it the most damage, such as trolls, Mumakill, and siege weapons.

There were a few other noticeable combat quirks that, while they did not detract from the overall enjoyment of the game, did cause a bit of head scratching or frustration. Some units will stand around while units near them (or their base structures) are being attacked. This, however, is an infrequent problem. There are also times when you will catch units 'moonwalking' or gliding across the ground, as if the movement animation had not been activated.

The Battle For Middle Earth 2 Serial Key

Finally, in the Minas Tirith level, there were some height and camera issues. The city is very tall and the camera will try to follow up each level. If an aerial battle is going on with a Nazgul and an eagle over the city, it is very hard to be able to click on the unit and give it a command, as the unit will actually be above the camera angle. You can see the shadows of the battle, but can do nothing to save your unit if it is getting battered. I lost two Nazgul that way. However, this is the only level where this is a problem.

Battle For Middle Earth 2 Rise Of The Witch King Serial Key

The multiplayer aspect of the game offers several different opportunities for players to test their skills against others. Skirmish mode is available to test against an easy, normal, or hard A.I. Reminiscent of Generals is a system to keep track of wins and losses and other statistics. There are 37 multiplayer maps to choose from, which can support anywhere from 2 to 8 players. If you were familiar with the Generals multiplayer, you will notice some similarities.

We were able to test the LAN portion of the game and found it to be a pretty intense slugfest that can last for hours, depending on the quality of the participants. The Middle-earth aura tends to get lost a bit here, though, as it isn't uncommon to have Gandalf preparing a spell, only to run into his mirror image from the opponent's side ready to cast a similar spell. But having Nazgul, Mumakill, a Balrog, and a small Army of the Dead on the screen at the same time, while Saruman, Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas battle in a free-for-all, will provide an intensity that you probably won't see in too many other multiplayer RTS games.

This game was extremely ambitious and carried the burden of an immense license that could have crushed a lesser development team or game. The game has some flaws, but still provides a good solid RTS experience. Throwing in the well-done execution of the Tolkien license makes the game all the more enjoyable for RTS fans who love Tolkien as well. If you like the games that EALA has done in the past, you will really like this one. If not, it is still worth trying to get the epic experience of saving or destroying Middle-earth.

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