![]() ![]() A Goblin can just as easily be an angelic Theocrat as any other race, and Dwarves don’t have a monopoly on the muskets and steam-driven war machines of the Dreadnought like in many other fantasy settings. Any race can be any class, and there isn’t any real benefit or penalty for choosing a specific combination. There’s the technology-focused Dreadnought, the stealthy and deceitful Rogue, the nature-worshiping Archdruid, the aggressive Warlord, the religious zealotry of the Theocrat, and the more traditional fire and lightning spells of the Sorcerer. There are six classes that all have their own special units and unique spells, upgrades, and enchantments. In any case, the race you choose isn’t quite as important as your main hero’s class. These races cannot be picked at the start of a game though the only way to acquire them is to find and absorb their cities into your empire. Maps will often have dwellings for secondary races that are quite different than the standard five, like Fairies with their multi-elemental Fey Fire ranged attacks or Giants that can serve as massive living siege engines. The High Elves get knights riding flying griffin mounts, while the Orc Shock Troopers are more along the lines of sturdy frontline infantry. Things don’t start to really get different between the races until you reach their Tier 3 unit. Each race has inherent immunities, weaknesses, and terrain preferences that dictate the best places to establish cities. The Goblin Untouchable is roughly the same as a Dwarven Prospector in the sense that they are both Tier 1 Irregular units with a more combined arms focus, but they have subtle differences like how the Prospectors can tunnel through dirt walls and the Untouchables shoot debilitating poisons. No matter the race, each city has the same sort of buildings available to it and somewhat equivalent units with minor variations. ![]() ![]() Some people will be disappointed to learn that each race doesn’t have particularly drastic differences between them their strengths and weaknesses are more subtle and won’t become truly apparent until you’re more familiar with the game’s mechanics. There are five core races in the game, in the usual High Elf, Dwarf, Orc, Human, and Goblin varieties. Maybe you’ll gain a spell that allows you to summon evil dire penguins that steal life with each peck of their beaks. That next tomb you raid could contain anything from a powerful sword to a gold wyvern egg that will hatch into a mount for one of your heroes to ride into battle. The eXplore in this fantasy 4X is one of its strongest features, and the game highly encourages you to check every little nook and cranny in each map to see what crazy items or spells you can find. Maps are littered with resources, independent cities that can be conquered by force or negotiation, roaming parties of bandits and assorted creatures, and various dungeons and tombs that often hide magical items. ![]() Both heavily influenced by Master of Magic in 1994, Age of Wonders and Heroes of Might and Magic did a lot to advance the 4X genre and help fill the void left behind by Master of Magic‘s lack of a follow-up.Īs with the previous games, Age of Wonders III is about starting with a single tiny village and building up a massive empire. Differentiating itself from games like Civilization, Age of Wonders featured turn-based combat, multiple planes like surface and underground levels, and customizable hero units that gained levels and could equip powerful magical items and cast world-changing spells. The Age of Wonders series is often mentioned alongside Heroes of Might and Magic as being one of the most influential franchises that shaped the fantasy subgenre of 4X games. ![]()
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