Dom 4 received an amazing update today. I admit I haven't been following future developments too much, but man is this an awesome surprise.
From the Steam page:
This version has revised costs for all pretenders and the amount of
design points available has been increased by 150 for pretenders and
100 for disciples. There are also a bunch of new pretenders to choose
from and the dominion spread mechanic has been tweaked to make it
easier to play with a low dominion score. There are also various
performance improvements, bug fixes, new mod commands and new random
events.
Game
More varied pretender costs and +150/+100 design points
Pretender cost auto calculation
Dominion spread chance changed to 50% + dom str*5%
Shape changing units can die in one strike if it's powerful enough to kill the next shape too.
Auto kill occurs 20 rounds later to give more time for auto rout.
Rainbow didn't affect allies, fixed
New monster pretenders
Some new pretender titles
Changed the selection of pretenders for some nations
New graphics/sounds for some spells
Adding thrones to .map files automatically adds ascension points too
Independent wizards got more spells researched
Can select players with only 1 nation in era
New throne effect 'Dominion conflict bonus'
Mercenaries no longer drown when unhired
Siren's lure didn't work, fixed
Monolith could blink and use stygian paths
Wish fix
Nicer handling of corrupted turn files
Geoglyph didn't reduce MR properly
Supaya reanimation changes
Print 'defence negates' on those weapons
Void Lord cannot have helmet
Serpent tailed pretenderws can wear armor
Battle performance improvement
Host performance improvement
uw stat, spells and item fixes
Dragons did not use ammo for breath weapon in melee
Slash/Pierce weapons only gets -1 penalty under water
Underwater non pierce penalty fix
Stone beings not affected by plague or disease
New magic item for Nazca
Crumble was way too effective
Send horror resulted in one horror too many
Theft of the Sun now affects resources too
Don't auto summon units when you have fled the field
Max number of commanders increased 9990 -> 20000
Max number of units increased 160000 -> 250000
New option: --maxunits to limit number of units
Disease effect on death blessed arrows didn't work
Ethereal did not offer protection against some non damaging spells
Xibablba UW defence fix
Improved gem cheat detection
Cheat detection fix for mercs
Random map generation speedup
Improved dirt generation on random maps
New switches for random maps: --mapdirt, --mapdirtcol, --mapdirtsize
Minor memory leak fixed
Game info says whether story event are enabled or not
Snow/Rain/Sea graphics performance improvement
Altered snow and rain fall
Site power that kills undead & demons only affected undead
Swamp survival boots didn't help against miasma
Azi and Drakon have 3 head slots
Demonic Locusts
Dementia didn't heal correctly
Gossamer Cloth etc didn't give properly rounded scout reports
Bug fix for shape shifting units starting with magic items
Flying raiders needed 10000 patrollers to get caught
Xibalba dart throwers in towers has dmg value 12 instead of 0
Corpse Eater icon
Pretender discounts can now be set per nation
Stat fixes
Site fixes
Events updated
Typos fixed
AI
AI lab building improvements
AI Mictlan more likely to blood sacrifice
AI gem usage fix
Modding
New poptype mod commands: #defunit1, #defmult1, #defcom1, etc.
New mod commands: #disableoldnations, #clearallevents
New mod commands: #batstartsum6d6 ... sum9d9
New mod commands: #req_targitem, #req_gold, #killpop, #removesite
Event mod command renamed #newsite -> #addsite
New unlimited always event (rarity 5) for modding
Rarity 13 events also happens at low population levels
New nation mod commands: #cheapgod20, #cheapgod40
That is a nice patch list. Good to see there's life in the dev team.
Yeah and as far as I know these games are still just what the devs do in their spare time.
I've been playing Dom4 recently as it happens. It never ceases to amaze me how much there is to it, it really is one of the finest strategy games ever made in my opinion.
I have the non-steam version from Gamersgate. I'll check out the new patch. Thanks.
Quote from: Boggit on February 27, 2015, 05:51:57 AM
I have the non-steam version from Gamersgate. I'll check out the new patch. Thanks.
I believe Gamersgate now provides you with a Steam key, you might want to check it out.
Sexcellent. O0
I love Dominions 3 - in fact I played a couple of hours Wednesday night. Is Dominions 4 enough of an improvement over Dominions 3 to make it worth the investment?
On my phone so, being brief: yes. Absolutely.
Quote from: Skwerl on February 27, 2015, 10:29:05 AM
I love Dominions 3 - in fact I played a couple of hours Wednesday night. Is Dominions 4 enough of an improvement over Dominions 3 to make it worth the investment?
I think it is.
The game is still the same, in general, but there were a huge amount of little tweaks, balancing, and interface improvements along with new factions & such. This patch looks like it made even more tweaks.
Oh I forgot to come back to this. Yeah, what Nefaro said. Countless small improvements that, combined, make it a superior game. Not to mention the interface is a bit nicer too - plus there's even more Stuff(tm)!
I'm think it's worth the upgrade too, if you enjoy the game.
Quote from: Skwerl on February 27, 2015, 10:29:05 AM
I love Dominions 3 - in fact I played a couple of hours Wednesday night. Is Dominions 4 enough of an improvement over Dominions 3 to make it worth the investment?
Disadvantage - fewer nation profiles on play style on the internet compared to Dominions 3. Dominions 3 has a massive internet database of pretender design combos with different nations in different eras.
Biggest Advantage - The combat system is more sophisticated. You can issue more combat commands prior to the start of battles, which opens up yet another set of options on how to play. The usefulness of archers and fast troops are better than in D3, and various combinations of combat commands, troop formations, and spell choices can add even more play elements.
The game is discounted 50% this week on Steam.
Quote from: Tpek on February 27, 2015, 06:03:27 AM
Quote from: Boggit on February 27, 2015, 05:51:57 AM
I have the non-steam version from Gamersgate. I'll check out the new patch. Thanks.
I believe Gamersgate now provides you with a Steam key, you might want to check it out.
I'll go and check. Thanks for the heads up. :)
I just put in the activation code from Gamersgate, and it's downloading now on Steam. Thanks Tpek! One thing I really do like about Steam is the autoupdate facility.
The only downside is restarting my Machaka campaign. Anyone else play them?
Actually, even though I've uninstalled the GG copy, I still have my existing game showing on Steam! Impressive! I also copied over the various guides/manuals in the docs folder over to the Steamapps/common/dominions4 folder for access. Steam doesn't - at first sight - have the same guides, so if anyone else is migrating to Steam don't forget to copy them over before you remove the non-Steam version.
Thanks Tpek. Great advice. :)
Hmmm.....perhaps there might be interest in a MP game at some point...?
If you guys will do one, think of me. I'd love to join. I know how to host on Llamaserver for easy admin of a game, done it before. :smitten:
Quote from: Boggit on March 03, 2015, 12:08:10 PM
The only downside is restarting my Machaka campaign. Anyone else play them?
The ones with the huge spiders? Martok would probably enjoy it.
I was thinking of getting it, but am put off by an articulate steam review that really pans it. The reviewer says the game revolves around combat, but combat in not really controlled by the player. The reviewer also said the strategic game was rather thin.
Some of you seem to really like it. How would you all address those concerns?
There is no question that the game is combat focused. You do and don't have control. You can setup the tactical layout of your army and create a predetermined list of spells and actions your units will take but in the end the AI fights the battles. It sounds boring but there is an incredible depth to the game that I think the reviewer isn't accounting for in terms of spell, item, unit, building development. There is a much broader aspect of the game in how you go about dominating the map. In single player there is NO diplomacy. In MP the diplomacy is only as good as the words and deeds of the players who create their own pacts.
When I first played Dominions it was in the single player campaign game. I enjoyed creating armies, issuing them orders, and watching them fight. The economic model is pretty thin but still very important to the game. By being thin I mean if you're expecting a builder type game with some war sprinkled in forget it. This game is indeed mainly about war, magic spells, creatures, and fighting.
Domions is like a very complex version of chess. Each piece has unique abilities. Add magic to the list. There are hundreds of spells to learn a use for. There are tons of items and weapons you can create for your hero characters but you need to understand what they counter and what they are weak against. Battle is not all sword hitting swords. It's the magic spells you need to learn to make your army devastating. You only need to really memorize and learn a few spells to make the single player campaign enjoyable.
It's when you try playing this game against humans in multiplayer that really left a bad taste in my mouth. There are players out there that literally went to Dominions University and got their P.H.D. in the game. They're the ones who know how to take a single hero, buff him with the right armour and weapons, and have him cast just the right type of magic and use him to destroy a 500 man army in two seconds flat that you spent tons of gold on to create not to mention many turns.
If you intend to play just the single player experience and enjoy the game of chess you'll like this game. In that case buy the game only if it is 10 dollars or less.
If you intend to play multiplayer games with other humans make sure you are the type of person who can figure out extremely complex puzzles in a very short time. If you can't do that and you really have your heart set on multiplayer don't get this game.
I couldn't get into this game. Maybe have to try again.
I'm going to sound like a blinkered fanboy here but...
It's ridiculous to call the strategy part thin, and I wonder why the reviewer did. Take a look at some screenshots and see the variety of options available to you as you play the game. Perhaps he said it was thin because...well, take construction for example. You can only build forts, temples and labs, but where and when you build each of these is crucial. If you place a fort in a territory you will gain a defensive bonus and the fort will generate a load of resources based on the land in which it's situated...but build it too close to another fort and it will suck resources from the other. Also, it takes several turns of precious time to build, not to mention a pile of gold, and with the fort expansion options available you might be adding to it for a long time. You don't just spam these things.
Anyone merely glancing at the game will think "oh, you just build armies and send them out, and you can't even control combat". At a very, very low level that is all you're doing, but there is an absolute ton of stuff that goes on top of that. Everything matters. Your army composition: are they sacred units, how much supply do they consume, how many are wounded or have afflictions, how big are the troops, how's their morale - will they run in fear from the horrors the enemy is fielding, do you have spearmen at the front to fend off the initial cavalry charge, how's their resistance to the lightning that air mages will throw at them, etc. So much is modelled: how good is their armour - can it resist piercing damage or blunt damage, how long are their weapons, if they fire arrows or hurl rocks do they have much ammunition, how fast do they move, etc.
I'm running out of time before work but I could talk for ages. Dominions 4 has an enormous array of data points which are all taken into consideration all the time, and you will quickly find that you can spend hours thinking about what to do just for a single turn, such are the options available to you. Every decision matters, as does every unit, every building, every territory, every spell you script a mage to cast in battle, every global enchantment the players place on the map, every magical gem you find, every item you forge. It's one of the deepest and most complex games I've ever played. My advice would be to read an AAR or two to get an idea of how much goes into each and every game of Dom4 that's played.
If I remember to come back to this after work I will address the multiplayer concerns too.
I only ever play Single Player, but certainly would echo Huw's comments about the depth and thoughtfulness that needs to go into the game. I like it at lot, even if it isn't hands on at the point of battle - everything is about the planning before the battle.
Dominions 3 & 4 are the most complicated games I have ever seen. The combination of different nation types, god designs, the massive number of spells (which require research), and magic items give the game almost unending variety.
You give orders to your troops, mages and set up the formations before every battle if you wish. The combat system is like most ancient battle simulations - you don't have complete command and control and morale is extraordinarily important. Troops almost always rout before there is a showdown to the death. You do have to get your head around the fact that you don't have turn by turn tactical control. But the troop formations, army composition, spell choices, and unit placement are all vital to winning battles.
Dominions is all about choices. You have so many choices that it can become overwhelming. You must have a clear strategy - or you must have a flexible strategy based on a finding spell powering gems and picking magic research opportunistically.
The comment about multiplayer is dead on. The game is so complicated that people who are both bright and study the game to death have a massive advantage over less knowledgeable players. The game is not easily mastered, and your strategy (both battle, spell research, and god design) can all be optimized against specific foes and troop compositions. The game vs. the AI and the game vs. human opponents play out so differently in reality that it is amazing.
Simple example. Some of the nations depend about 100% on fire magic. There is a low level spell that makes it rain. If you know about the rain spell, think through the implications, then you can make it start raining on the first turn of battle and then use other magical effects (like cold or poison) and just crush the "flame on and fireball away" opponent. Some of the spell combos are so complicated to pull off you need a how to manual (don't get me started about commune, enslaved mages, and ramping up to cast high level combat spells).
I like complex 4x games. Dominions 3 & 4 are the best 4x with complex magic systems, combat types, and game choices out there. But this is a game that requires a lot of study to get up the learning curve. The graphics are primitive. The game is far, far deeper than it looks on first review. And the game is not for everyone. I've played Dominions 3 as much as I've ever played anything - and it has never lost interest for me. Of all of the nations against the AI, I probably only have a good understanding of Tien C'hi; Ermor (the undead hordes one), and the biggest fire using nation (Agartha I think). The other 30 or so nations x 3 eras - I don't understand how to make them win consistently against the AI - much less human opponents.
While I have Dominions IV, I haven't played a ton of it. A played quite a bit of 3, and it really is an amazing game. However, the AI simply couldn't keep up with variety of strategies available to the player and I had to hamstring myself with tons of house rules.
Impossible was about that, but simply due to early game unit spam. On lesser difficultly levels the AI couldn't really compete - in general of course, starting location, who you are up against, etc is a huge factor. Simple things like flying troops attacking the rear could easily win battles - the AI had some units guarding the casters/leaders in the rear, but not enough and of low quality. Even like 10 heavy plate guards would make this strat much less effective.
Thugs or whatever the community was calling tough hero units with great EQ would simply stomp entire armies. For example, Father Illearth + some armor piercing dagger w/ 20+ ac (he might have been ethereal too, can't remember), and stamina regeneration, simply unstoppable. Granted he is pretty late game, but with some item forging you can come up with something similar much earlier.
Early game I was playing Man and had my nature spellscasters spamming heal, regeneration, and possibly the group barkskin spell (something that increased AC) and my armies had a cake walk. Barkskin makes you vulnerable to fire, but the AI (of multiple nations) didn't counter with that. Even if it did you could just counter with the battlefield rain spell or whatever, as mentioned above.
I'm hoping Dominions 4 has improved a bit upon this - I do know they have made an even higher difficultly level. Supposedly the old impossible is now the penultimate and the new impossible probably requires hourly sanity checks.
With all due respect, but you make that reviewer sound like he or she didn't spend much time with the game, or he or she just doesn't understand it.
I agree with Huw's points. The game actually has a crapton of things you need to take into consideration!
The fact that once battle kicks off its pretty much a hands off approach seems to be mistaken for shallowness, as are the relatively modest economy things on the map.
But trust us, the game is nothing short of grand on the strategic layer!
Its All about when to do what and on what strategy to focus, depending on your knowledge of the other nations.
To add to the details already mentioned:
-unit age is tracked
-hero's have an inventory
-you can craft items
-on top of the nation economy there is a gem economy used for magic on the one hand and Crafting on the other
-afflictions from battle are tracked and might result in permanent disabilities or diseases.
I fully agree with the statement that Dominions is the most detailed and complex strategy game I have ever played.
There are a couple of additional changes in Dominions 4 compared to Dominions 3 that have a big impact on gameplay.
1] Remote searches for magic gem producing sites have limited range. In D3 you could search anywhere in the game world via spells for magic gem sites. In D4 the limited range of searches mean locating magic sites via spells is a much slower process.
2] Building temples to increase Dominion is much, much slower. In D3 any temple you built could recruit a L1 Priest who could build Temples. In D4 very few temples can spawn a priest. This makes building temples and generating a big dominion a slower process.
As a result of these two seemingly minor changes, nations identify magic sites a lot slower. This in turn makes recruiting troops & leaders via summoning much slower which changes your combat strategy. It is also slower to generate enough gems to build magic items and empower your mages. It is also slower to get a dominion kill strategy via building Temples. Money also seems to be a little tighter, which also makes building temples slower.
Question: can I upgrade regular units with better armor or weapons somehow? I know I can craft for my hero but anyway to improve the line units other than magic?
Quote from: mikeck on March 08, 2015, 01:47:46 PM
Question: can I upgrade regular units with better armor or weapons somehow? I know I can craft for my hero but anyway to improve the line units other than magic?
None that I know of, although I'll always hesitate to give absolute answers with regard to Dominions simply because you never know what niche ability one particular nation might have! You've already mentioned magic so I'm sure you're aware you can confer army-wide buffs via your mages and priests, but when it comes to plain upgrading of equipment, no, I don't think it's possible.
There is a spell that will make one unit a commander which can be upgraded (as in given EQ) from that point. Aside from the above mentioned buffs, units also gain exp which improves a couple stats.
Finished my first D4 game as Early Age C'tis against the AI (4 opponents on a large map). It was a pretty typical win against the AI for me (comparing to D3). Everything came together. I got some world-wide spells to help the nation, coupled with late game Super-Combatants, Coupled with ability to buy high defense levels due to lots of gold when I took enemy provinces, and now coupled with closing in on the Thrones of Ascension. Once you reach a tipping point, you start to steam-roller everything. Used lots of Death and Nature magic. Astral and Earth never became important offensively. Water had just gotten to the point where I could take to the seas and fight it out with Sea Trolls. So it was mostly Death & Nature. When you can start spamming 100s of Pale Riders plus Tartarians every turn you start mauling the AI.
AI Giants have gotten a lot better played. The AI use of flankers and different formations is also better. Could not see any real improvement in the Sea nation. So the AI play is better than in D3 - which makes it worth the purchase price if you are doing a lot of single-player.
I'm guessing that in Multiplayer games the Thrones of Ascension provides another big wild-card on winning.
I'm now playing EA Tien Chi to see how a multi-path magic plan with good scales works out.
Sweet goodness another Dominions 4 patch that was snuck in yesterday.
Aug 25Dominions 4.20
Community Announcements - johan
This update focuses on the underwater part of Dominions. A new underwater nation is available as well as a bunch of new underwater pretenders to choose from. Many of the old underwater nations have also got some new recruitment options. There has also been some work to make the AI better as well as more modding, more random events and the usual bug fixes.
Game
New nation: Therodos
UW resources increased 25%
Press 'r' when designing pretender to get a random design
Dominion less likely to spread across sea-land borders
Horror chances altered
Being dead will make horror marks fade away over time
New summon spells: Flame Jelly, Bishop Fish
Oceanian lore rewritten
Oceania turmoil in coastal provinces, order in land/sea provinces
Haliades replaces Bishop Fish as oceanian priests
Initiates of the Deep, deep seer: lore remake
Witness of the Deep, Soldier of the Deep
Capricorn and Siren coastal recruits and chaos rebate
New unique items for Marignon and R'lyeh
Improved magic item info
UW pretender rebates and nation restrictions
Dagon remade (grab and swallow instead of trample)
New story events
Save and exit also marks turn as unfinished
Pelagian/oceanian name lists
Replaced some iron with meteoritic iron
Starting position improvements
Mummy Nazca Arena fix
Chakram flysprite
Double flysprite bug removed
Academy underneath didn't produce lab
Rainbow enchantment now affected buy own luck effect
Bodyguard mrl bonus bug fixed
Philosopher icon
Fullscreen resolution defaults to desktop resolution instead of highest
Updated tip of the turn
Some new bronze and iron weapons and armors
Some more units got weapons and armors changed
Giants reanimated into correct shape
Berserk bless (war-dance)
Lanka description now mentions blood hunt bonus/malus in turmoil/order
Couldn't cast spells if you had two 'life long protection' items
Send Dream Horror castable at UW provinces
Assassins must be stealthy to be able to assassinate
The four Balams are now unique
EA/MA Pelagia nation descr changes
Pelagian Mystic
Iron armaments rust in the sea
Rust permanent until repaired
Damaged weapons/armors lower dmg/prot
New poptypes: Ichtyid shaman, Bone Tribe barbarians
New mermen/ichtyid sites
Mermage & Pelagian Mermage remake
Pelagian Explorer
Enkidu Headhunter & Bone Tribe Headhunter Club -> Skull Club
EA Pelagia Hero
Turtle Warriors Javelin -> Coral Tipped Javelin
New Pelagian coastal recruits
Mermage/priest sprite remade
New 'rusty armor' icons
UW indeps a bit weaker
Lower throne no longer appears UW
Divine Glyph and Baphomet magic beings
Can't compete in arena while sneaking
Ancient kraken doesn't lose Ink attack if equipped with weapons
Abomination doesn't lose tentacles if equipped with copper arm and weapons
Macaw and Condor got headslots
New switch: --listnations
Some new throne defenders can appear now
Some nations got pretender discounts
Many typo, stat and event fixes
Non-commander communion possible
Theurg Communicant -> not commander
Theurg Communicant rec-limit 1
Theurg Communicant cost 35 -> 50
Option --partamount didn't work properly
Battlefield spell didn't affect everyone in enormous armies
Particles effects didn't look properly in huge battles
Minor memory leak fixed
National underwater PD takes precedence for local UW PD
Faster battle deployment for huge skirmish armies
Murdering Winter less effective vs commanders
Murdering Winter cost 50 -> 40
Flames from the Sky cost 35 -> 30
Thetis Blessing research level 9 -> 7
Therodos got proper names
Music can now start with a rare tune
Sirens are cheaper to recruit when Lure of the Deep is up
Looming Hell slightly harder to defend against
Vengeful Water less effective and cost 50 -> 70
More ability modifiers printed
Shambler base cost 25 -> 20
Cannot try to send more than 32 messages
Friendly Currents didn't affect encumbrance properly
Soul Leech and Consume Soul cannot be repelled
New network option (--maxholdups) to run over serial stallers
New network option (--timeleft) to set nbr of hour to first host
Auto refresh for html statuspage
Auspex could be pathed though the sea, fixed
Looming Hell vs stealthy didn't work properly
Berytian Melqarts reduced blood sacrifice
Land/Water shape recruitment fix
AI
Certain nations more likely to go for good bless effects
Smarter pretender god design
Can make pretenders with high levels of blood magic now
Fixed bug where AI for blood and death nations could waste up to 80 DP
More likely to buy holy units when having a good bless
Army and PD strength evaluation improved
Higher score for scripted spells
Modding
#aigoodbless, #aimusthavemag
#aifirenation, #aiairnation, #aiwaternation, #aiearthnation
#aiastralnation, #aideathnation, #ainaturenation, #aibloodnation
Deserter abilities now work for non commanders too
New unit mod commands: #incscale, #decscale, #reform, #domrec, #haltheretic
New item mod commands: #incscale, #decscale, #reform, #haltheretic
New nation mod command: #noforeignrec
Eventmodding #req_notnation didn't work
#blessbers, #uwheat, #hpoverslow, #poisonskin, #xploss, #enchrebate50
Linux
no multi processes on low memory machines
Awesome.
Another reason to start a new game.
To be honest I don't even know how 90% of the patch will effect the game, but I actually started a game last week that will clearly be restarted now.
There's talk of another Grogheads multiplayer game getting started. (http://grogheads.com/forums/index.php?topic=14544.0)
Quote from: Huw the Poo on August 28, 2015, 04:09:47 PM
There's talk of another Grogheads multiplayer game getting started. (http://grogheads.com/forums/index.php?topic=14544.0)
O rly? ^-^
Jump in, chaps! Let's throw armies and lightning and shit at each other!
Quote from: Huw the Poo on August 28, 2015, 08:11:38 PM
Jump in, chaps! Let's throw armies and lightning and shit at each other!
Shit? Haven't come across that spell yet...I imagine your people worship the porcelain God?
Jarhead, you need two ranks of Air Magic, one rank of Porcelain Magic, and Thaumaturgy to cast that spell. It was released a few patches ago...
Call Shit Lightning?
What spell level is that?
Need a Thunder Golgothan to cast it.
Quote from: Jarhead0331 on August 28, 2015, 08:21:20 PM
Shit? Haven't come across that spell yet...I imagine your people worship the porcelain God?
You know how it goes...glorious battle, huge piss-up late into the night, then a good hour or so the next morning worshipping the porcelain god. :)
How hard is Dom 4 to get into? Interested but I have no Dom 4 exp... Everything I know is from 3 and even that is limited
I'm pretty sure it's no easier than 3 to get into. ;) But the User Interface has been improved somewhat (from what I've seen and heard -- don't own the game yet myself).
If you've played Dom3 you'll have no problem with Dom4. Although the better game, it isn't any more complex and the UI is better. If you've any interest at all, give it a shot.
Quote from: jamus34 on August 29, 2015, 07:04:33 AM
How hard is Dom 4 to get into? Interested but I have no Dom 4 exp... Everything I know is from 3 and even that is limited
Dominions 4 is not a very hard game to get into if you're a veteran TBS gamer. Running your empire and managing your armies is pretty self explanatory. Actually it's quite easy. All you really do is spend money to build troops than organize them into squads which are under the command of a general/mage/creature etc. The center of the game is around this. Building your character(s) and outfitting them with magic and/or non magic gear.
Then as far as building your infrastructure is concerned there is not much to do there, but for good reason. You only need to concern yourself where where you will place one of the following type structures: Fortresses, temples, and laboratories. Fortresses collect bonus income from the surrounding provinces you normally would not get. Temples help spread your 'dominion' throughout the world. High dominion influence in a province you don't own helps you to conquer it easier when you do invade it. Laboratories allow you to build items, distribute gems to your units, and unlock certain recruitable units.
Single player should not take someone too long to get into and do fairly well in at the lower difficulties. Multiplayer is a dangerous place for any newcomer to the game. The reason is the myriad spells and summons you must research and use in appropriate combinations. Those who have done so are unstoppable in multiplayer and get bored playing single player. The researching and understanding how the spells work is the real core of the game. It is also the most complex and the tech tree overview is not easy to read at a glance. You must invest a lot of time doing old fashioned studying of walls of text in order to figure out what spells you need to research. If you can't do that well you will be steam rolled in multiplayer and thrashed about fairly well in single player at normal or above difficulties.
Yep, what W8 says is precisely so. Many multiplayer opponents know the magic system frighteningly well. You can send a strong army against them, and because they know of one simple spell that you happen to be vulnerable to, and have planned for it, they can obliterate the entire army with a small cadre of wizards before you can even get in range. It's frustrating. The only counter is to learn how magic works, thoroughly, or play against eternal noobs like me. :)
yeah I have 4 but just never got around to playing it...I have some experience with 3.
Maybe I'll give MP a shot...only thing that can happen is I embarrass myself ;)
Sign up for the possible multiplayer Grogheads game. There are some experts around here, but there are definitely some noobs too. Could be fun!
I am in too. :) Its been a while since I last played Dominions.
Did this fizzle before we got started? 8) :knuppel2:
Not much you can do about not having enough players. I'd prefer it fizzled now than half way through a game.