Diosgyor Castle

The Diósgyőr [dio:ʃɟøːr] Castle is a castle located in Miskolc, Hungary, which appears in the Historic Siege mode of Stronghold 2.
==Brief History==
Diósgyőr was first fortified in the 9-10th century, being a hill fort at its time. The history of it is unknown, possibly it was razed by the invading Tatars in 1241-1242.
Diósgyőr's castle was constructed in the 13th century under the reign of Béla IV. It was constructed in order to defend the region and the city after the Tataric Invasions. In The 14th century Louis I the Great (Nagy Lajos) ordered a big expansion and reconstruction on the castle, as he made Diósgyőr one of his biggest royal hubs. The castle got multiple defense rings, a moat and several towers as a result. After the disintegration of the Hungarian-Polish union in 1382, the castle served as a residence for Hungarian queens.
In the 16th century, the Turkish Empire invaded Hungary. After the 1598 fall of nearby castle Eger, the castle of Diósgyőr fell quickly and got under Turkish control. In the 17th century it was retaken and poorly re-fortified, but with the series of victories of Austria and Hungary and the Turk's withdrawal it lost its military importance as a castle. The castle was renovated in late 20th century. Today, the castle serves as a museum and tourist attraction, with the event of Diósgyőr Castle Games held twice a year.
==In Game==
The in-game castle resembles the real one quite well, having two or three rings of walls and towers. It has no defense engines or traps at all and few men, but so you start with an even smaller army. There is moat surrounding the castle and there is a small town area located in the east. It has more wall lines, but in the west Pictish boat warriors wait to ambush troops. The Lord awaits in the middle with a modest guard of swordsmen, spearmen and a lonely knight.
This castle is a matter of luck to conquer. Since the enemy outnumbers your army and your soldiers will become under permanent fire once you attack, it is crucial to plan your attack beforehand. The most vulnerable site seems to be the southwestern one, with a batch of Pictish boatmen and some defenders. Order your lonely catapult to target the boatmen first, then inch it forward and gradually open a hole there. You want to keep it away from archer fire: there is no replacement of siege engines and you want to storm the Lord with as many units as possible. Be patient with the siege.
After the hole is created, order your swordsmen to fill in the moat. They will take quite a punishment over time from arrows and thus it is advised to choose a very thin moat section. When the way is clear in, withdraw your swordsmen and order your catapult to bombard some hostile swordsmen appearing in the place of the hole. If they do not come out, order your horse archers to fire at them and quickly run back to safety. Your catapult should kill them relatively easily.
After that, bring half of your laddermen and have them set their ladders up against the first gatehouse. Simultaneously rush in all your men and storm the Lord. The other half of your laddermen should stand on the southern, inner gatehouse so they will pull their ladders down and you will have a clear way to the Lord. Watch out for the knight and the oil engineer, but you will overwhelm the Lord and kill it if your troops do not fight with the defenders around.
Category:Stronghold 2 Historic Castles