DCI: Last Alliance is a submod for Third Age: Total War, focused on the War of the Last Alliance in the Second Age of Middle-earth.
![[Settlements] Minas ithil](https://media.moddb.com/cache/images/mods/1/25/24491/thumb_620x2000/MinasIthil4.jpg "[Settlements] Minas ithil")
Minas Ithil, the Tower of the Rising Moon, is a fort that was founded by Isildur upon a shoulder of the Mountains of Shadow as a threat to Mordor and to guard the capital of Osgiliath.
White it is with walls of marble, and the White Tree, memorial of the Eldar and of the light of Valinor, was planted in Minas Ithil before the house of Isildur, since he it was that had saved the fruit from destruction in Númenor.
In 3429 Sauron, who hated the Númenóreans in Exile, deemed himself ready to eradicate them. He came with great force against the new realm of Gondor, and he took Minas Ithil, and he destroyed the White Tree.
But Isildur escaped, and taking with him a seedling of the Tree he sailed from the mouths of Anduin seeking Elendil in Arnor, to ask for aid.
To recapture the Tower of the Rising Moon will be a significant sign to the Free Peoples that the tide is turning in the war against the Dark Lord!
[Minas Ithil begin in the hands of Mordor.
It will not be called Minas Morgul when held by Mordor, that name was created first ca 2000 years later in the Third Age when the Nazgûl captured it once more.
The settlement is from TATW, with reskinned white textures by Emperor of Hell and green nature by Withwnar]
Neato
Great concept, really :)
I'm gradually letting myself be caught by the 'Magic' and the atmosphere of the Second Age :)
I expect updates of Lothlórien too :)
That's the spirit ;)
Lothlorien presumably will return to a generic settlement, as the custom settlement from TATW is reported beautiful, but impractical or even crippled for tactical purposes, while there's no alternative to it and there's no battle map modder in the team.
8D Oh hell yeees ! This is just perfect !
Although it still looks like a fortress of some kind, and not like the City of the White Tree it was supposed to be in its first years ^^
Just for the sake of arguing, I would've loved if there were some white houses inside of the walls, like on the vanilla Minas Tirith model :P
I did always find that a bit dissappointing from the movies, Minas Tirith and Minas Morgul hardly looked like the massive cities that they should have been. Minas Tirith looked like it could hold no more than 1500 inhabitants, and Minas Morgul was even smaller, while the 2 should have been about equal in size.
Minas Ithil was a fortress, the was founded to protect the eastern border and the passage into Mordor:
"The chief city of this southern realm was Osgiliath, through the midst of which the Great River flowed; and the Númenóreans built there a great bridge, upon which there were towers and houses of stone wonderful to behold, and tall ships came up out of the sea to the quays of the city. Other strong places they built also upon either hand: Minas Ithil, the Tower of the Rising Moon, eastward upon a shoulder of the Mountains of Shadow as a threat to Mordor; and to the westward Minas Anor, the Tower of the Setting Sun, at the feet of Mount Mindolluin, as a shield against the wild men of the dales. "
- Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age
"11 All three had fought in the War of the Alliance, but Aratan an Ciryon had not been in the invasion of Mordor and the siege of Barad-dûr, for Isildur had sent them to man his fortress of Minas Ithil, lest Sauron should escape Gil-galad and Elendil and seek to force away through Cirith Dúath (later called Cirith Ungol) and take vengeance on the Dúnedain before he was overcome."
- Unfinished Tales; The diasaster of the Gladden Fields; note 11
That it obviously developed into a city is something that is quite natural - in historical terms, no less strange than that a city raise great walls to protect itself.
Minas Anor we have no real sign it was a citified until further into the Third Age (in that case especially after Osgiliath gradually depopulated), and it's my belief that Minas Ithil became a city first in the Third Age, when the threat of Mordor that it bordered seemed a thing of the past.
Thus for this mod the apperance is in good order. :)
Will Osgiliath be there (maybe capital)? They built it at the end of Second Age I think :)
From which year of SA this campaign starts actually ?
Sorry for late reply Aweluk :)
Osgiliath is there, and not in ruins, indeed. It start as the capital of the Númenorean Kingdoms-faction (which we failt fair as the faction leader Elendil start up in Annuminas in "Arnor").
The campaign begin in 3429 Second Age when the war has just started, as a result of Sauron capturing Minas Ithil.