Stronghold-crusader-2-installment-tutorial -

Use Archers for range and Pikemen for defense. Stronghold Wiki notes that Pikemen are the best defensive units due to their high durability.

Introduces iron mining and weapon production (swords and bows). stronghold-crusader-2-installment-tutorial

Place your stockpile near grass and stone patches. Build a granary quickly, but you can actually delay food production for the first ~10 minutes if you focus on popularity elsewhere. Use Archers for range and Pikemen for defense