This guide has been updated to incorporate all in-game balance changes which have been added by Shiro Games up to January 11, 2024. In late 2023, I beat Northgard Rig's Saga 6: Intervention on Extreme for the first time. Since all of the clan mechanics have been rebuilt by the developers in the past year, the way that the clans behave in the Story mode has been altered as well. I have since repeated the mission victory on Extreme numerous times to test and refine this guide. Here are the steps I followed to be consistently successful. General Tips and Instructions This was a rather difficult mission, and I made numerous save files as I worked my way through it to a successful victory. I felt that I had achieved something that was worthy of sharing with others. So I decided to write this guide in order to record and share my methods for beating the mission with others. I am not saying that my method is the best, or the fastest. However, I repeated the steps by beating the mission on extreme a few times so that I could refine and write out my method. Therefore, I feel that my method can be reliable and repeatable, without too much difficulty. I completed the mission in the middle of year 6. I never missed a Svarn Request and I worked out this build order / method without looking at or following any guides beforehand. This guide gives step-by-step instructions for most of the mission. While it may seem tedious to read through a very long checklist, if you follow the steps, you should be able to follow along and (aside from a surprise wolf attack here or there) achieve victory in this Extreme difficulty mission. -In this mission, Svarn's requests always progress in order: 100 Food -> 100 Wood -> 100 Krowns -> add 100 & repeat. And each new request appears 5 months after the previous request appears, starting in July of Year 1. I feel that Svarn is more hardy and survives the attacks from Hvedrung better if you fulfill Svarn's requests ASAP (usually clicking the "give" button as soon as it appears, or as soon as you can possibly pay it). Try to make an effort to stock up enough resources so that you are able to pay off Svarn's request IMMEDIATELY each time it appears. You do receive a happiness bonus after each successful Svarn payment, and losing this happiness bonus (by delaying when you are able to pay) can certainly put a drag on your income. Unhappy workers have reduced production! -Save often. Wild animals can attack your territory at unpredictable times (and the zone they attack may change after you reload a save file). So if a certain situation ends up unfavorably for you, with frequent saves, you will usually not have to backtrack too far to try again. For myself, I have found that it is useful to save immediately after paying each Svarn request. If you like, you may create saves even more often than that, so you have multiple steps that you may backtrack to if needed. -If any of your units (military or civilian) die to wild animals, clearing zones or die of starvation, you messed up. Or if you are unable to pay a Svarn request by the deadline, you messed up. Reload a save file and retry. -If civilians get injured, click on your healer's hut and always make sure the resource-producing civilian workers are healed first, before Liv or your military units are healed (healing Liv first is default/auto). Military units do not need to ever be converted back into civilians, as long as you do not make too many military too early. My guide should explain when and how many military you need. During Summer only, -Liv at 100% Health can kill 3 wolves easily. -Liv at 100% Health and 1 Axe Thrower can kill 4 wolves easily. -Liv at 100% Health + 2 Axe Throwers can kill 5 wolves OR 3 Wolves + 1 Bear (kill wolves first) OR 2 Bears (some micro required). Here's my guide of how I completed the mission: Step 1. Play the entire mission on lower difficulty and learn the layout of zones and resources nearby your starting position. I will call out zones to be scouted in the guide below and you will need to know precisely which area I am referring to so that you do not waste time in the early game. Or you can save immediately after the pre-mission dialogue ends, scout all the areas nearby where you start to learn the layout, and then reload the game at the start of the mission and proceed. Rig's Saga 6: Extreme difficulty - Year 1 Year 1 -In March (mission start) - Build a Scout Camp immediately. -@ 100% completion of Scout Camp - Assign 1 Scout. Explore the Forest Tile. -Build a House in your starting tile. -@ 100% exploration of Forest - Send Liv to kill 3 Wolves on Forest Tile. As the scout completes exploration of each tile, command the scout to run to explore the next tile in this order: 1. Forest (already completed in instructions above) 2. Scout Deer. 3. Scout Wolf Den on the coastline. 4. Scout Fertile Land/Farm tile. 5. Scout coastline tile with 2 Sheep. 6. Scout coastline tile with Shipwreck and Lore Stone. 7. Scout Fish Pond tile. 8. Scout Circle of Stones tile nearby Kobolds (next to the Fish Pond tile.) Your scout should be able to finish scouting all of these zones before Winter arrives in December of Year 1. When they have completed this list, return the Scout to your Town Hall and turn them into a Villager. -Anyway, right after Liv kills the 3 wolves on the Forest tile, colonize the Forest with 10 coins. -Build a Healer Hut right away on the forest tile. When it completes, turn the builder into 1 Healer. -After your first house has been completed on your starting tile, build a Woodcutter Lodge in the Forest. Use a different builder from the one on the Healer Hut. When the Woodcutter building completes, turn that builder into 1 Woodcutter. -When you reach 6/11 supply, assign a second Healer. -When Liv is back at 100% health, send both Healers to be villagers again. Send Liv into the Deer Tile to kill the 3 Wolves there. Colonize the Deer tile with 20 coins. July of Year 1 -SVARN Requests 100 Food. -You should be able to pay it right away. (Good place to make a save file.) -@80 Wood in your stockpile, build a Hunter's Lodge on the Deer tile. -Assign a total of 2 workers to the Woodcutter Lodge and assign 1 Healer. -Assign 2 Hunters when the Hunter's Lodge is completed. -Choose "Sharp Axes" from the Lore Tree. -@50 Wood in your stockpile, build an Axe Thrower Camp in the Forest. -@100% completion of Axe Thrower Camp, assign 1 Axe Thrower. Liv should be back at 100% health. -There should be 4 wolves on the Wolf Den by the coastline. Kill them and colonize the Wolf Den with 80 Food. (Special Note: depending on the random spawning of wolves after the start of the "Intervention" mission, there MIGHT be 5 or even 6 wolves on this wolf den at this point in time. You CAN kill 5 wolves, but it is challenging. It is extremely difficult to kill 6 wolves without losing any of your units. If you are not able to kill the 5 or 6 wolves on the wolf den and keep all of your units alive, then restart the mission and hope for 4 wolves next time. You haven't been playing as long as a full Northgard summer by this point and you can quickly reach the same step again after restarting.) -After you colonize the Wolf Den by the coastline, send one villager to build a House and then a Woodcutter Lodge on that tile. -After the 2nd Woodcutter Lodge is complete, assign a total of 4 woodcutters on your two Woodcutter Lodges. December of Year 1 -SVARN Requests 100 Wood. -You should be able to pay it rapidly. (Good place to make a save file.) -Call your scout back to the Town Hall and turn them into a villager. @80 Wood in your stockpile, build a Food Silo on the Deer Tile. @70 Wood in your stockpile, build a Harbor by your Town Hall. @100% Completion of Harbor, assign 2 sailors. When you achieve a new Lore technology unlock, select "Rangers". IF YOUR FOOD REACHES 0 stockpile during the Winter, assign 1 woodcutter from the wolf den back into a villager. Winter ends and Year 2 begins in March. Year 2 March of Year 2 -Build a 2nd Harbor on the Deer tile. -Send 2 Woodcutters by the Wolf Den to become Scouts. Send one Scout to explore the Forest tile to the west, nearby the Kobolds. Send one Scout to explore the un-colonized Wolf Den north of your colonized Forest tile. Now you can ignore your Scouts until Spring of Year 3. -@100% completion of 2nd Harbor, assign 4 sailors on your two harbors. May of Year 2 -SVARN Requests 100 Coins. -You should be able to pay it off rapidly. (Good place to make a save file.) -@36 Coins in stockpile, assign a 2nd Axe Thrower. -Kill the 5 wolves on the Fields tile. -Select "Journeyman" Lore when the Lore Tree unlock is available. -Wait for 60 Coins and colonize the Fields tile with 60 Coins. -Then "Stop Raid" on both Harbors. -Assign a total of 2 Healers on your Healer's Lodge. -With 1 villager build a Farm, and then a House, and then a Food Silo on the Fields tile. -When your sailors all return to being villagers, assign 1 villager back into a Harbor to keep your coin income rate positive. -@100% completion of Farm, assign 2 Farmers right away (while the builder keeps working on the House and then the Silo.) -Assign one of your last two woodcutters to be a villager, leaving just one Woodcutter on the Forest tile. -Kill the 2 Bears on the Fish Pond. Try to keep your injured units on the Fish Pond until after you have accumulated 200 Food in your stockpile. October of Year 2 -SVARN Requests 200 Food. Pay it off immediately. -Assign Villagers to be 4 Woodcutters and 4 Sailors. Bring Liv and other injured units back inside friendly territory to heal them up. -Choose "Hearthstone" Lore when the Lore Tree unlock is available. -@ 80 Coins in Stockpile, Colonize the Fish Pond with 80 Coins. -"Stop Raid" on the Harbor on the Deer Tile. -IF YOUR FOOD REACHES 0 in the stockpile change 2 Woodcutters on the Wolf Den tile into Villagers. -Build a Fisherman's Hut and a Food Silo on the Fish Pond tile. -After you have assigned 2 Fishermen, re-assign villagers into Woodcutters until you have 4 Woodcutters. Year 3 March of Year 3 -SVARN Requests 200 Wood. Pay it off quickly. -Assign 2 Villagers on Deer Tile as Sailors. (4 Sailors total) -Choose "Mining Efficiency" Lore when the Lore Tree unlock is available. -@70 Wood in stockpile, Assign one Woodcutter from Wolf Den tile to be a Villager and then build a 3rd Harbor on the Wolf Den tile. -Kill the 3 Wolves and Bear on the Coast Tile with the Sheep. -Begin checking whether your Ranger scouts have no work left to do (they will have a clock icon over their heads). When your Rangers are idle, order them to return to your Town Hall to become villagers. -@100% Completion of 3rd Harbor Assign 1 Villager and 1 Woodcutter on Wolf Den tile to be Sailors. -Then assign all remaining Woodcutters as Villagers. -Heal any injured military units, then Kill the 3 Wolves on the coastline tile with the Shipwreck. -@200 Food in stockpile, colonize the coastline tile with the 2 sheep. -Assign 2 Villagers as Woodcutters on the Forest tile. -Build a House on the Coast/Sheep Tile. August of Year 3 -SVARN Requests 200 Coins. Pay it off immediately. -"Stop Raid" on the Harbor on the Deer tile and the Harbor on the Wolf Den. -Then build a Brewery on the Coast/Sheep tile. Assign 2 Brewers when the Brewery is complete. -And then build a Mine on the Coast/Sheep tile. Assign 1 Miner (stone) when the Mine is complete. -After your Food stockpile climbs above 350, Assign 2 villagers on the Deer tile to become Sailors. -@125 Coins in stockpile, colonize the Shipwreck tile with 125 coins. -Assign 1 Scout and use them to Scavenge the Shipwreck. JANUARY - SVARN Requests 300 Food. Pay it off immediately. (Good place to make a save file.) -Build 1 House on the Shipwreck tile and after it is complete, turn the builder into a Loremaster on the Lore Stone there. When the scout is done scavenging, turn them back into a Villager. -Choose "Exotic Goods" Lore when the Lore Tree unlock is available. Also choose FREYA'S BLESSING. Year 4 March of Year 4 -Assign a total of 6 Sailors. -Build a Shield Bearer Camp on the Coast/Sheep tile. Assign one Shield Bearer when the camp is complete. -Kill the Valkyrie and 3 Draugar on the tile with the ruins by the coast. Colonize it with 165 Coins. -Assign a Scout and Explore the Ruins. When they are done, turn the scout back into a villager. -Heal up your Military and then kill all the Wolves on the Circle of Stones and the Forest tiles near the Kobolds. June of Year 4 -SVARN Requests 300 Wood. Pay it immediately. (Good place to make a save file.) -After you have 400 Coins in your stockpile, "Stop Raid" on the harbor by the Wolf Den. -Assign a total of 4 Woodcutters. -Choose "Eradication" Lore when the Lore Tree unlock is available. -@100 Wood in stockpile Upgrade your Town Hall. -@50 Wood in stockpile upgrade a Food Silo (Note: ONLY upgrade Food Silos AFTER getting "Eradication" Lore). Repeat 2 more times to upgrade all 3 food Silos. November of Year 4 -SVARN Requests 300 Coins. Pay it immediately. (Good place to make a save file.) -@50 Wood and 50 Coins in stockpile, upgrade your Scout Camp. Assign 2 Scouts. Send 1 Scout to explore the black territory west of Svarn's base. Send the other scout to explore the Farm tile next to Hvedrung's Town Hall. -Assign the 2 Woodcutters on the Wolf Den Tile to be Villagers. -When the Stone Deposit on the Coast/Sheep tile is exhausted, assign the miner to be a Villager and demolish the Mine. -@50 Wood and 100 Coins in stockpile, build a Lighthouse on your Harbor by your Town Hall. (if you have less than 50 Wood, you can assign Villagers to be Woodcutters until you have enough wood for the Lighthouse, and then turn them back into Villagers.) Year 5 March of Year 5 -Assign 4 Woodcutters and 7 Sailors (5 Sailors at Town Hall, 2 Sailors on Deer Tile) -Kill the 2 Bears on the Ruins tile next to the un-colonized Wolf Den. April of Year 5 -SVARN Requests 400 Food. You should be able to pay it immediately. (Good place to make a save file.) Begin checking whether your Scouts have completely explored the entire map. If they have, bring them home and turn them into Villagers. -Choose "Gear Upgrade" Lore when the Lore Tree unlock is available. -Build a House on the Ruins tile which is next to the Shipwreck. -Assign a 2nd Shield Bearer. -When your Military is at 100% Health, attack the Stone tile with 3 Valkyries and kill just ONE of them before retreating. -Upgrade 1 House. -Heal back up to 100% Health and then kill the remaining 2 Valkyries. September of Year 5 -SVARN Requests 400 Wood. Pay it off quickly. -Heal back up to 100% Health and then send your military to fight their way all the way to Svarn's base. YOU WILL KEEP YOUR MILITARY AT SVARN'S TOWN HALL TO DEFEND HIM. -@50 Wood in stockpile, Build a Defense Tower on your Forest tile. -After your Coin stockpile is more than 500 Coins, "Stop Raid" on all your Harbors. -Build any three military camps in the Shipwreck tile and in the Ruins tile next to the Shipwreck tile. February of Year 6 -SVARN Requests 400 Coins. Pay it off immediately. -Assign 5 Sailors to the Harbor by your Town Hall. -Choose "Fur Coats" Lore when the Lore Tree unlock is available. Choose JORD'S BLESSING. Year 6 (awaiting revision) March of Year 6 -Assign 2 Villagers on Deer Tile as 2 Sailors. -Upgrade a 2nd House. -Turn all Woodcutters into Axe Throwers. Turn Loremaster into a Shield Bearer. Send all your Military to rally together at Svarn's Base. (Special Note: Very rarely, wild animals may have blocked your safe highway to Svarn's base. You may need to re-open the safe pathway by killing the wild animals so that your military is able to gather and rally at Svarn's Base. JULY of Year 6 -SVARN Requests 500 Food. (Author's Note: I NEED TO REWORK THIS. I had to stop raid temporarily on all my Harbors, and I was able to pay off the 500 food request after a delay.) -Pay off the 500 Food Request. -Get 9/10 Military (6 Axe Throwers, 3 Shield Bearers). -Upgrade Axe Thrower Camp. -Make sure you have at least 5 Sailors assigned. -ATTACK Hvedrung's Base. Micro if necessary while attacking Hvedrung's Town Hall (there could be 15-20 villagers). -Win Victory. "Those tough devils have finally yielded." Thank you for following my guide! I hope that it was helpful to you. A Note About Mercenary Raids My guide does not use Mercenaries or Deploy Mercenary Raids. It was simply a personal choice and it helped simplify my guide a little bit. You are welcome to try adding some deployed raids into your strategy, but keep in mind that deployed raids will cost Coins, and you have to keep an eye on what Svarn's next request will be and save up resources to be able to pay it. With slight variation to the instructions in this guide, it is possible to use deployed mercenaries to begin raiding Hvedrung's Farm tile or Forest tile after the beginning of Year 5. You can use these raids to gather extra Food or extra Wood and aid in stockpiling enough for what you need to meet Svarn's biggest Food and Wood requests. It is best to use your Harbor with the Lighthouse to Deploy a raid while 5 sailors are assigned to that Harbor. When 5 sailors are assigned, then 5 mercenaries will arrive when you deploy a raid. More mercenaries will result in a larger reward of resources when you raid either the farm tile (for food reward) or forest tile (for wood reward). However, deploying a raid with more mercenaries also comes at a higher cost. You must pay 20 Coins for each Mercenary that you want to deploy on a raid. The cost to deploy a raid from your Harbor with 5 Sailors in it is 100 Coins. You are also limited by a cooldown after each raid which prevents you from targeting the same tile (or tiles) that you have just recently raided. Sending a raid of 5 mercenaries to arrive at Hvedrung's Town Hall at the same time that you invade his Town Hall with your ground army can be a very effective way to overcome Hvedrung's final defenses in this mission. Challenges that occurred due to recent patching Just adding a bit of commentary about my efforts while the game underwent some balance changes the past few months. Before December 7, 2023: The old version of my guide WORKED. Raven scouts (and rangers) produced an incremental Lore reward whenever a new zone was successfully explored. It would be +5 Lore, +10 Lore (and possibly higher) for each explored zone, with increasing rewards for zones that were increasingly distant from your Town Hall. This Lore production by scouts was critical in Year 2 and beyond to maintain the timeline of the build order that I had successfully documented towards achieving victory. My guide was reliable and I could follow it to achieve victory consistently by Year 6. After December 7, 2023: My guide no longer worked. Lore income/production was too slow to follow my original guide. I could still achieve victory in the Extreme difficulty "Intervention" in most of the attempts I made, but my method was much more challenging to follow, and I always felt like I was hanging by a thread... winning by the skin of my teeth. I tried changing several steps of my guide and cutting corners to attempt to increase the efficiency of my build, but nothing ever felt like a confident success. Why December 7 patch broke my guide: Lore production by Raven scouts was re-worked by the December 7 patch. Instead of an incremental Lore reward when a new zone was revealed, Raven scouts produced an "income rate of +1.5 Lore" each while they were actively exploring a new zone. "Rangers" explore zones 50% faster, cannot be injured, and do not consume food. However, even though rangers reveal new zones 50% faster, they still only produce an "income rate of +1.5 Lore" each while actively exploring a black zone (no Lore produced while scouts/rangers are walking or running). So rangers actually produce LESS LORE overall when they explore the same amount of black territory as "non-ranger" Raven scouts. On the other hand, if you skip the "Ranger" technology selection in the Lore tree, your scouts will still consume food (making it harder to feed your population and meet Svarn's Food Requests), take longer overall to reveal the map (Lore income rate is still too slow for the old guide to be useful. The Lore income by scouts just extends over a longer period of time), and the scouts can get injured and die (in a mission where keeping everyone alive really counts). January 11: New Balance Change: RANGERS now produce 50% more Lore than scouts while exploring. (a correction from the December 7 patch for rangers.) For example, now: 2 scouts exploring at the same time produce "+3 Lore income rate" 2 rangers exploring at the same time produce "+4.5 Lore income rate" While this patch provides a much better Lore income, it is still slightly slower than the pre-December 7 Lore income for this mission. My old guide nearly works as well as it used to, and I will be writing more precise instructions and incorporating some of the improved efficiency steps that I found while trying to improve my guide since December 7. When I have completed writing my guide revisions, it should be as consistent and repeatable as the guide was before December.