Gorgoroth Foundry

* Level 1
* Level 2
* Level 3

"Here in the northward regions were the mines and forges and the musterings of long-planned war; and here the Dark Power, moving its armies like pieces on the board, was gathering them together."
—Return of the King, The Land of Shadow

When choosing a dwelling-place in the Second Age, Sauron decided on the land of Mordor, enclosed within the Mountains of Shadow. The presence of Mount Doom provided a natural supply of heat that Sauron could use for his smith work, chief of which was the One Ring. During his wars, the surrounding lands of Gorgoroth were used to supply his vast armies with equipment.

The Gorgoroth Foundry is Mordor's secondary resource structure. Not only does it provide worked metals as a resource but it allows the player to gain access to various unit upgrades. It is also available to the Adventure: Rhûn subfaction where it provides the same overall purpose and function.

## Upgrades

The Gorgoroth Foundry has no upgrades that can be bought. It will gain experience through earning resources as well as by buying the unit upgrades.

## Function

The Gorgoroth Foundry will periodically produce +25 resources depending on location relative to other resource structures. This will increase as the building levels up. It will also increase the command point limit by 25. At level 3, it will shoot at nearby enemies.

#### Surplus Bonus

Multiple Gorgoroth Foundries will reduce the cost of unit upgrades.

* 2 Gorgoroth Foundries: 5%
* 3 Gorgoroth Foundries: 10%
* 4 Gorgoroth Foundries: 15%
* 5 Gorgoroth Foundries: 20%

#### Unit Upgrades

The Gorgoroth Foundry will allow unit upgrades to be bought for Mordor's units.

**Banners of the Red Eye (W)** - Allows hordes to purchase the Banner Carrier upgrade. Increases a horde to level 2.

**Cruel Blades (E)** - Allows hordes to purchase the Forged Blades upgrade. When equipped, increases the damage done by melee weapons. Will upgrade all patrols once upgrade is purchased. Requires Level 2 Foundry.

**Fire Arrows (R)** - Allows hordes to purchase the Fire Arrows upgrade. When equipped, significantly increases the damage done by Arrows. Will upgrade all patrols and tower archers instantly once upgrade is purchased. Requires Level 2 Foundry. (*Mordor variant only)*

**Barbed Arrows (R)** *-* Allows hordes to purchase the Barbed Arrows upgrade. When equipped, damage done by arrows is increased and arrows deal additional slash damage. Requires Level 2 Foundry. *(Adventure: Rhûn variant only)*

**Jagged Steel Armour (T)** - Allows hordes to purchase the Heavy Armour upgrade. When equipped, significantly reduces the damage taken. Will upgrade all patrols once upgrade is purchased. Requires Level 2 Foundry.

## Strategy

The Gorgoroth Foundry is an essential structure as it grants Mordor access to unit upgrades with which they can equip their elite units to make them even stronger. Different upgrades become available at different Gorgoroth Foundry levels: Banner Carriers can be researched at level 1, while the other upgrades require a level 2 building. This necessitates the defence of the building so that it has sufficient time to level up; it is ideal to build the Foundry within the base during the early game so that it is closer to the player's defenses and levels up by the mid game. Admittedly, the Foundry is more expensive than the Slave Farm but this is compensated for by the low cost of Mordor's early game units. It is recommended to build various Gorgoroth Foundries throughout the game once Mordor's economy can afford them because the Surplus Bonus makes unit upgrades for elite troops more accessible, this also enables players to continue equipping upgrades even if one of their Foundries is destroyed.

The Gorgoroth Foundry is also available to the Adventure: Rhûn subfaction, where it allows for the researching of Barbed Arrows instead of Fire Arrows at level 2.