Taming of Sméagol

* Loading Screen
* Map Layout

"We will swear to do what he wants, yes, yes," said Gollum, still twisting and grabbling at his ankle. "It hurts us."
"Swear?" said Frodo.
"Sméagol," said Gollum suddenly and clearly, opening his eyes wide and staring at Frodo with a strange light. "Sméagol will swear on the Precious."
Frodo drew himself up, and again Sam was startled by his words and his stern voice. "On the Precious? How dare you? " he said. "Think! One Ring to rule them all and in the Darkness bind them. Would you commit your promise to that, Sméagol? It will hold you. But it is more treacherous than you are. It may twist your words. Beware!"
Gollum cowered. "On the Precious, on the Precious!" he repeated."
—The Two Towers, The Taming of Sméagol

The Fellowship has broken. Frodo and Sam continue their perilous journey into Mordor and find themselves lost in the rocky labyrinth of Emyn Muil. It soon becomes apparent that the creature Gollum continues to track them in desperate pursuit for his Precious; the Hobbits subdue him and demand that he guides them to the Black Gate of Mordor. Gollum leads his new master through the Dead Marches, a treacherous swamp where the spirits of long-dead warriors roam.

Taming of Sméagol is the twelfth mission of the Lord of the Rings Campaign. The player initially controls Frodo and Sam before gaining control of Sméagol and a mysterious Sinda Spirit as the mission progresses. If any of these heroes die, the mission is failed.

## Guide

**New Objective - Find a path through Emyn Muil**

The mission begins with Frodo and Sam lost within the hills of Emyn Muil. The player must navigate the Hobbits south to complete the objective. The path is randomised in each playthrough: pillars of rock may collapse to block the path so that the player is forced to find another route. Although the path itself is randomised, the destination is always south; the player can orientate themselves and not become too lost by keeping the camera in its default position and continuing to move towards the bottom of the screen. As the player gets close to the destination, Frodo will state that the Hobbits are not alone, this can be used as a prompt that the player is going in the correct direction.

Once the objective is complete, a cinematic plays in which Gollum tries to attack the Hobbits in the night but is caught by their trap. The player must now defeat Gollum.

**New Objective - Defeat Gollum**

Gollum deals heavy damage against both Hobbits and so the cycling between heroes to tank damage is essential in this boss battle, it only takes 3 attacks to kill Frodo or Sam. Sam can activate **That's For My Old Gaffer** to temporarily gain additional armour and damage so that he is more durable against Gollum's attacks; if the player has purchased **Elven Waybread**, they can refresh the Hobbits' ability cooldown timers so that Sam's ability can be used twice in the encounter. **This Day We Fight** increases both heroes' damage and armour significantly so that the fight becomes considerably easier. The boss fight consists of three phases: at the end of each phase, Gollum retreats and emerges at a different side of the arena - this delay before re-emerging can be used to allow Frodo and Sam to heal. Once Gollum reaches approximately 10% health, he is defeated and the next cinematic is triggered. Gollum swears to serve Frodo and Sam and lead them to the Black Gate.

**New Objective - Find a way out of Emyn Muil**

The player now has control of Sméagol in addition to the Hobbits. Continue travelling south and east to leave Emyn Muil to reach the Dead Marshes (the camera is rotated to face south after the cinematic post-boss fight, but can be returned to default to avoid confusion as to which direction to go).

**New Objective - Cross the Dead Marshes**

The Dead Marshes are a maze filled with hazards, such as poisonous fumes that deal damage over time and mists which slow and reduce vision range; there is a linear path to the end of the mission but this can be difficult to find as there are several paths leading to dead ends. In general, the player should try to continue moving east to progress through the Marshes.

**New Objective - Find six bundles of firewood to make camp**

Shortly after entering the Marshes, the player is prompted to find six pieces of firewood to set up camp for the night. The centre of this segment's area is a small hill, the six bundles of firewood are scattered around this hill, particularly south of the hill - the Hobbits do not need to travel too far to find the bundles. Once the six bundles are found, a cinematic plays before the player regains control of the Hobbits. As the player progresses, they will encounter a barrow guarded by skeletal spirits. A Sinda Spirit appears before the Hobbits and warns them of the wandering spirits of warriors once under the Sinda Spirit's command, he pledges himself to protect the Hobbits as they travel through the Marshes so that he can lay his warriors to rest and atone for his past mistakes. The Sinda Spirit is now controllable.

The barrows and the spirits protecting them must be destroyed to remove the spell blocking the Dead Marshes' path: the Sinda Spirit is the strongest in combat out of the player's heroes and can sustain the greatest amount of damage before dying - the Spirit can be used to hold off the defending spirits whilst the Hobbits flank around and attack the barrow. The Spirit can cast **Elvenking's Lament** to temporarily stun enemy units, this can be used to prevent enemy spirits attacking the Hobbits whilst they destroy the barrow.

Shortly after the first barrow is destroyed, a new mechanic is introduced to the mission: a winged Nazgûl patrols the Marshes and will attack the Hobbits if they are not hidden, there are hiding spots positioned throughout the map which the Hobbits can garrison. Once garrisoned, the Nazgûl will fly overhead briefly before continuing its patrol off-screen, the player will be notified of the Nazgûl's approach by a sound cue: either a screech or hiss from the Nazgûl. The Sinda Spirit will not be targeted by the Nazgûl and so can continue attacking a barrow as the Nazgûl flies overhead. The Sinda Spirit can be used to scout ahead to find the next hiding spot available - knowing the closest hiding spot's location is imperative as the Hobbits cannot take many hits from the Nazgûl before dying. The Hobbits can be assigned to a command group (press control and a number whilst the Hobbits are selected, you can then simply press the number to reselect all the Hobbits) to quickly select and move them to a hiding spot. Whilst it is essential to hide the Hobbits, it is also important to keep them moving with the Sinda Spirit because the mission cannot be completed until all four heroes exit the Dead Marshes.

There are several barrows to destroy throughout the Dead Marshes and undead soldiers will periodically reanimate to attack the player as they move across the Marshes. Be wary of map hazards, especially the slowing mists, as these significantly slow the Hobbits and may prevent them from reaching a hiding spot in time; sometimes it is better to wait for the Nazgûl's approach and hide at a familiar hiding spot instead of trying to move through the mist to another hiding spot. Don't follow the lights - there are fouler things lying in wait than just the dead, do not be tempted by greed.

Towards the end of the mission, the player's path will be blocked by a host of Silvan spirits bound to a great barrow cursed by Sauron. The player must destroy this great barrow to free the spirits of these warriors and clear a path to the outskirts of the Dead Marshes.

**New Objective - Find six bundles of firewood to burn the great barrow**

Unlike the regular barrows, the great barrow cannot be destroyed directly by the heroes. Instead, the player must find another six bundles of firewood as they did earlier in the mission. This time, however, they are attacked by Unburied Wights and other undead units which will continually spawn until the six bundles are collected. Therefore, it is recommended to split the heroes up, with the Hobbits collecting the bundles located around the barrow whilst the Sinda Spirit fights off the attackers and keeps them in place with **Elvenking's Lament**. Once the six bundles are collected, the player is prompted to stand on a spotlight to ignite the great barrow and set the Sinda Spirit's kinsmen free from their curse of undeath.

With the great barrow destroyed, the passage to the Dead Marshes' exit, found in the northeast corner of the map, is clear. The Nazgûl still patrols and so it is important to not be complacent when travelling to the exit. Upon reaching the exit, the Sinda Spirit thanks the Hobbits for their help in releasing his warriors before fading into the utter West at peace. The mission is now complete.