In the beginning of 1677 news arrived that the Norwegians defending Trondheim had moved south to reinforce the army of Ulrik Frederick Gyldenløve. This presented an opportunity for advancing across the Norwegian border. The attacking force was to be led by Carl Larsson Sparre, the governor-general of Västernorrland county. He had at his disposal a force of 1,700 men, of which three companies were local men from Jämtland. However, he was unable to feed these troops, and furthermore, the troops, who hadn't received payment in ten months, had dispersed across Norrland to live meagerly off the land, which had been ravaged by famine for several years. Thus, the planned attack had to be abandoned.