Bioware has learned some important lessons from Mass Effect and those lessons make Mass Effect 2 a much better game. While Mass Effect had more role playing player upgrade options than Mass Effect 2, the original game suffered from several key flaws (that few reviews seem to mention).
The biggest of those flaws was at the helm of the ship, the Normandy. You could spend 15 minutes trying to reach a console, locking on to it while too far away and then failing to see it when you were in front of this. You interacted with this console frequently, every time you wanted to go from one planet to another. Now, Bioware allows you to interact with consoles from farther away and the problem has mostly disappeared (you still don't want to get too close to something you'd like to examine, but you should never have to).
The dialog is better, and the software (surprisingly) runs better on my PC, the noob build, which is now underpowered.
Your interactions with planets have changed completely. There's now a mini game for finding elements on planets, instead of just click and you're done, and you walk around planets instead of driving on them in a vehicle that, in Mass Effect 1, was virtually impervious to fire but which could get caught in a ravine, forcing you to reload the game.
The interaction with characters and between them is much, much smoother, and the stories are more believable. It is in the writing and the voice acting that the new game really shines. The old one had some excellent performances from very actors, such as Seth Green as the ship's pilot, but he's even better in Mass Effect 2, where he gets to play some light comedy in addition to serious moments. Mass Effect 2, as the article says, is full of stars.
It is also gorgeous -- without straining my PC -- which makes the game even more enjoyable. Part of the joy of a space romp is visiting strage alien lands that are beautiful. Too many science fiction games take place in dark and narrow spaces or monochromatic wastelands.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Friday, September 17, 2010
Strategy for "Falling Seeds" in Plants vs. Zombies
Plants vs. Zombies is an excellent tower defense game. This strategy guide covers "Falling Seeds", a particularly interesting and replayable mini game.
1) The opening
You will get three seeds before the zombies start coming. Hopefully, they will be shooters. If not, place any lights and magnets farther back than you would usually place them.
If you get lily pads, you can either place them at the back of the water row or forward. Since you know that none of the first wave of zombies will go through the water, if you place a lily pad forward and then get a star, light, or magnet, you can place it on a lily pad.
Which row should you place the shooters in?
There are two top rows (1,2), two water rows (3,4), and two more grass rows (5,6). I like to place shooters in 2 and 5.
Note that you can always see zombies through the fog in row 1, and can often see zombies through the fog in row 6.
If you get a threepeater, place it in 5. If you get a second, place it in 2. If you get two in the opening, you have already covered all six rows with shooters!
2) The first wave
Once the zombies start coming, try to get one shooter in each of 1,2 and 5,6. Initially, if you get an expendable plant, such as a spud bomb, you can place it in a row and consider that row covered by a shooter. I also like placing expendables (and the little puff shrooms) on lily pads as far forward as possible, but at least 3 columns from the end.
If you get spikes, place them on the far right and use their sound to warn you of a zombie attacking that row. If you get spikes later in the round, place them right in front of a nut (this is from the gamefaqs.com strategy guides: http://www.gamefaqs.com/pc/959255-plants-vs-zombies/faqs -- the survival endless guides contain some very creative and powerful strategies).
Besides the spikes, there are only two plants that hit more than one zombie in their row: the watermelon and the big fume shroom. These are very valuable and should be protected. The watermelon can be placed at the back, but the fume shroom has a short range and is best placed 2 spaces behind a barrier or, if necessary, protected by a pumpkin.
Also valuable are the plants that slow down the zombies: the butter and freeze plants. These should be protected. In the early part of a level, they can save you when a zombie gets farther than you'd like.
Also try to place chompers directly behind a barrier (or garlic) or a pumpkin.
Place one shooter in each row before you place a second shooter in any row unless there is a conehead advancing on a valuable plant.
In particularly difficult levels (after you've played the game at least 10 times, they will happen occasionally), you will not get enough shooters to cover even the start of the first wave. If two zombies have progressed far enough down one row, let them get to the end and let them meet your lawn mower.
Once you have placed a large number of lily pads, you desperately want to prevent zombies from reaching the end. Protect the lily pads.
Never place in the back: nuts, single use plants, spikes, marigolds.
Never place far forward: threepeaters, watermelons, and scaredy shrooms.
3) Using garlic
Garlic is a very difficult plant to use correctly. If you ever get two in a row, you can place them adjacent to each other, and the zombies will go back and forth. If you ever have one row poorly defended, or you lose a lawn mower early in the game, you can protect that row with garlic, but then you must take care to place powerful plants in the adjacent row. The row with garlic should have some shooter in it. A freeze or butter plant is preferred.
If you are depending on garlic to protect a row, and you get the garlic early on, you will need to place a second garlic in the same lane after a few waves.
4) Using bombs, chilis, and nukes
If you get these too early, they're useless. Hold them for as long as you can. They are especially valuable in destroying the bungee zombies.
5) Using chompers
The chomp zombies can be used to protect key plants. They will eat a zombie that is attacking the plant in front of them, but then they need time for digestion. If a chomper needs time, an ice shroom can help.
6) Using torchwood
These are the most difficult to place. For best effect, they need to placed forward but they are vulnerable. Chompers and pumpkins can protect them, as can barriers. Note that if you place a split pea to their right, they will protect the plants in the lane against bungees.
Note that torchwood will drive back a very small amount of the fog.
7) Using nuts and pumpkins
These barriers are the key to the survival of your most valuable plants. Early on, you may want to place them in the grass rows, but later on, it's great to also place them in the water rows.
Place them forward so that you can place the following behind them (in order of value): lights, magnets, fume shrooms, stars, and chompers.
Note that if you get another nut of the same type, you can place it directly on top of your existing nut to heal it and make it stop crying.
8) Zombies to fear
The metalheads (football players, pailheads, and screeners) are especially dangerous if you're playing in a level that has no magnets. Otherwise, they (and the jack in the box) are relatively harmless. The metalheads must meet a barrier. Even if you fill a lane with shooters, the football player will get through.
The jack in the box is the most feared zombie. Make sure that by the late first wave, you have enough plants in each row to defeat a jack in the box. Generally, this means 2-3 shooters per row. A jack in the box that explodes can destroy your barrier and completely disrupt your strategy faster than any other zombie (except the bungees, who can do the same).
The newspaper zombie is feared in the early stages of the game, before the barriers are set up. This zombie is particularly likely to get to your short range plants, the puff and fume shrooms. If necessary, place an expendable plant such as a marigold as a barrier.
The bungee zombies can be your most challenging opponent. I find that freeze, bomb, and butter plants do the best to stop them. If you have a large number of stars in a column, they can help fight the bungees.
9) The endgame
Wave four differs from the other waves in that it: a) attacks the water rows more than the grass rows and b) some zombies appear in the water row. Towards the end of wave 3, place more firepower in the water. Also, some of the single use plants will be particularly useful in the end game. If you get a nuke, the end game is over very quickly
Note: You should occasionally look at the bottom right hand corner of the screen. It shows the progress bar. The start of each new wave is marked with a flag.
10) Why "falling seeds"?
My gf pointed out to me that of all the mini games, this one offers the greatest variety precisely because you do not control what plants you get. The fog adds to the variety and uncertainty, but I try very hard to eliminate the fog.
1) The opening
You will get three seeds before the zombies start coming. Hopefully, they will be shooters. If not, place any lights and magnets farther back than you would usually place them.
If you get lily pads, you can either place them at the back of the water row or forward. Since you know that none of the first wave of zombies will go through the water, if you place a lily pad forward and then get a star, light, or magnet, you can place it on a lily pad.
Which row should you place the shooters in?
There are two top rows (1,2), two water rows (3,4), and two more grass rows (5,6). I like to place shooters in 2 and 5.
Note that you can always see zombies through the fog in row 1, and can often see zombies through the fog in row 6.
If you get a threepeater, place it in 5. If you get a second, place it in 2. If you get two in the opening, you have already covered all six rows with shooters!
2) The first wave
Once the zombies start coming, try to get one shooter in each of 1,2 and 5,6. Initially, if you get an expendable plant, such as a spud bomb, you can place it in a row and consider that row covered by a shooter. I also like placing expendables (and the little puff shrooms) on lily pads as far forward as possible, but at least 3 columns from the end.
If you get spikes, place them on the far right and use their sound to warn you of a zombie attacking that row. If you get spikes later in the round, place them right in front of a nut (this is from the gamefaqs.com strategy guides: http://www.gamefaqs.com/pc/959255-plants-vs-zombies/faqs -- the survival endless guides contain some very creative and powerful strategies).
Besides the spikes, there are only two plants that hit more than one zombie in their row: the watermelon and the big fume shroom. These are very valuable and should be protected. The watermelon can be placed at the back, but the fume shroom has a short range and is best placed 2 spaces behind a barrier or, if necessary, protected by a pumpkin.
Also valuable are the plants that slow down the zombies: the butter and freeze plants. These should be protected. In the early part of a level, they can save you when a zombie gets farther than you'd like.
Also try to place chompers directly behind a barrier (or garlic) or a pumpkin.
Place one shooter in each row before you place a second shooter in any row unless there is a conehead advancing on a valuable plant.
In particularly difficult levels (after you've played the game at least 10 times, they will happen occasionally), you will not get enough shooters to cover even the start of the first wave. If two zombies have progressed far enough down one row, let them get to the end and let them meet your lawn mower.
Once you have placed a large number of lily pads, you desperately want to prevent zombies from reaching the end. Protect the lily pads.
Never place in the back: nuts, single use plants, spikes, marigolds.
Never place far forward: threepeaters, watermelons, and scaredy shrooms.
3) Using garlic
Garlic is a very difficult plant to use correctly. If you ever get two in a row, you can place them adjacent to each other, and the zombies will go back and forth. If you ever have one row poorly defended, or you lose a lawn mower early in the game, you can protect that row with garlic, but then you must take care to place powerful plants in the adjacent row. The row with garlic should have some shooter in it. A freeze or butter plant is preferred.
If you are depending on garlic to protect a row, and you get the garlic early on, you will need to place a second garlic in the same lane after a few waves.
4) Using bombs, chilis, and nukes
If you get these too early, they're useless. Hold them for as long as you can. They are especially valuable in destroying the bungee zombies.
5) Using chompers
The chomp zombies can be used to protect key plants. They will eat a zombie that is attacking the plant in front of them, but then they need time for digestion. If a chomper needs time, an ice shroom can help.
6) Using torchwood
These are the most difficult to place. For best effect, they need to placed forward but they are vulnerable. Chompers and pumpkins can protect them, as can barriers. Note that if you place a split pea to their right, they will protect the plants in the lane against bungees.
Note that torchwood will drive back a very small amount of the fog.
7) Using nuts and pumpkins
These barriers are the key to the survival of your most valuable plants. Early on, you may want to place them in the grass rows, but later on, it's great to also place them in the water rows.
Place them forward so that you can place the following behind them (in order of value): lights, magnets, fume shrooms, stars, and chompers.
Note that if you get another nut of the same type, you can place it directly on top of your existing nut to heal it and make it stop crying.
8) Zombies to fear
The metalheads (football players, pailheads, and screeners) are especially dangerous if you're playing in a level that has no magnets. Otherwise, they (and the jack in the box) are relatively harmless. The metalheads must meet a barrier. Even if you fill a lane with shooters, the football player will get through.
The jack in the box is the most feared zombie. Make sure that by the late first wave, you have enough plants in each row to defeat a jack in the box. Generally, this means 2-3 shooters per row. A jack in the box that explodes can destroy your barrier and completely disrupt your strategy faster than any other zombie (except the bungees, who can do the same).
The newspaper zombie is feared in the early stages of the game, before the barriers are set up. This zombie is particularly likely to get to your short range plants, the puff and fume shrooms. If necessary, place an expendable plant such as a marigold as a barrier.
The bungee zombies can be your most challenging opponent. I find that freeze, bomb, and butter plants do the best to stop them. If you have a large number of stars in a column, they can help fight the bungees.
9) The endgame
Wave four differs from the other waves in that it: a) attacks the water rows more than the grass rows and b) some zombies appear in the water row. Towards the end of wave 3, place more firepower in the water. Also, some of the single use plants will be particularly useful in the end game. If you get a nuke, the end game is over very quickly
Note: You should occasionally look at the bottom right hand corner of the screen. It shows the progress bar. The start of each new wave is marked with a flag.
10) Why "falling seeds"?
My gf pointed out to me that of all the mini games, this one offers the greatest variety precisely because you do not control what plants you get. The fog adds to the variety and uncertainty, but I try very hard to eliminate the fog.
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Bethesda RPGs: Morrowind, Oblivion, Fallout 3
These are the best three RPGs from recent years. Each features a massive interactive world that has a small number of Main Quest quests and a large number of Side Quests. The Main Quest is a linear story that you must follow and the Side Quests are all optional.
Each features a world that is beautiful. But that initial beauty is quickly destroyed by the onset of the enemy. Morrowind gets a blight wind, Oblivion gets hell gates, and in Fallout 3, you step out of the womb and into post-nuclear Washington, D.C.
These games are superb, but they would be even more enjoyable if the world itself stayed beautiful.
Also, the wondering monsters mean that you will be attacked regularly as you wonder through the world. This seems unnecessary. At some point, animals should run away when hurt. Wandering monsters are a concept that dates back to D&D, but they are too frequent and in some cases too brutal in these games. Wandering would be more rewarding with fewer wandering monsters.
Some complain that the treasure system in these games is wrong. The treasure you obtain is entirely dependent on your own level, so once you reach the higher levels, opponents will all have high quality weaponry. Thus, in the magical fantasy settings, even the poorest lowlifes will have the most expensive armor. But I think this is a quibble. It makes for good play balance and for an incentive to level up (I have a friend who's trying to play Oblivion through completely at just level 1).
The worlds are all vast and, if you ignore the main quest, you can play through a virtually untouched Morrowind and Oblivion before embarking on the Main Quest to finish the game. I recommend doing it this way.
The worlds are so vast that I strongly recommend purchasing the book about each world, which will allow you to find the secrets of the world and completely explore it.
You'll do a lot of fighting in these worlds, and the combat system in all three is excellent, complex, and rewards level progression. In the fantasy settings, you can fight with hand weapons, ranged weapons, unarmed (not recommended) or magic. In Fallout 3, you can fight with a variety of guns, with hand weapons (or unarmed, also not recommended), or with passive mines and with grenades. Sniper rifles add to the strategic options, with several areas set up to allow a sneaky sniper to eliminate much of the opposition before entering.
There are stories and hints of stories throughout each game which are not part of the Main Quest. In Fallout 3, the location and position of charred skeletons tells part of the story of postwar America, from the couple dying in bed together spooning to the skeleton in the bathtub with a toaster.
In Fallout 3, several of the stories are more like horror than science fiction (especially the rarely visited Dunwich Building), but there are a wide variety of stories, and many are interesting. There is even a detainment camp convoy in which America once again locks up those of its own citizens whose ancestors hailed from a nation we're at war with.
In Oblivion, the stories are particularly inventive. A sleepwalker may expect the first Fighter's Guild quest to be about fighting rats -- and be suprised to hear from a woman how beatiful and delightful her pet rats are. More humor would add much to this game, and most of the stories are deadly serious.
In Morrowind, there are fewer stories, but much to do and see. I particularly like the fact that, with a small donation at a particular temple and a spell that will return you to that temple, you can spend most of the game flying around. Flying may have made the game a little unstable and was eliminated in Oblivion. It's the one thing in Morrowind that I miss in Oblivion. Also, there are too many of a single species of bird that attacks anyone who flies.
Quests are easy to follow in Oblivion and Fallout 3 (the system in Morrowind needed, and received, a significant upgrade). In-game maps are good but not great, and it helps a lot to have the quest book. The quest book cost about $15 at the time the games were released (and is usually now out of print) and contained several hundred pages of information. The Fallout 3 quest book is hardbound and even longer than previous quest books and contains concept art and design comments.
These are 3 of the best RPGs available. I strongly recommend them.
To view the depth of each, check out its wiki:
Morrowind
Oblivion
Fallout 3
Each features a world that is beautiful. But that initial beauty is quickly destroyed by the onset of the enemy. Morrowind gets a blight wind, Oblivion gets hell gates, and in Fallout 3, you step out of the womb and into post-nuclear Washington, D.C.
These games are superb, but they would be even more enjoyable if the world itself stayed beautiful.
Also, the wondering monsters mean that you will be attacked regularly as you wonder through the world. This seems unnecessary. At some point, animals should run away when hurt. Wandering monsters are a concept that dates back to D&D, but they are too frequent and in some cases too brutal in these games. Wandering would be more rewarding with fewer wandering monsters.
Some complain that the treasure system in these games is wrong. The treasure you obtain is entirely dependent on your own level, so once you reach the higher levels, opponents will all have high quality weaponry. Thus, in the magical fantasy settings, even the poorest lowlifes will have the most expensive armor. But I think this is a quibble. It makes for good play balance and for an incentive to level up (I have a friend who's trying to play Oblivion through completely at just level 1).
The worlds are all vast and, if you ignore the main quest, you can play through a virtually untouched Morrowind and Oblivion before embarking on the Main Quest to finish the game. I recommend doing it this way.
The worlds are so vast that I strongly recommend purchasing the book about each world, which will allow you to find the secrets of the world and completely explore it.
You'll do a lot of fighting in these worlds, and the combat system in all three is excellent, complex, and rewards level progression. In the fantasy settings, you can fight with hand weapons, ranged weapons, unarmed (not recommended) or magic. In Fallout 3, you can fight with a variety of guns, with hand weapons (or unarmed, also not recommended), or with passive mines and with grenades. Sniper rifles add to the strategic options, with several areas set up to allow a sneaky sniper to eliminate much of the opposition before entering.
There are stories and hints of stories throughout each game which are not part of the Main Quest. In Fallout 3, the location and position of charred skeletons tells part of the story of postwar America, from the couple dying in bed together spooning to the skeleton in the bathtub with a toaster.
In Fallout 3, several of the stories are more like horror than science fiction (especially the rarely visited Dunwich Building), but there are a wide variety of stories, and many are interesting. There is even a detainment camp convoy in which America once again locks up those of its own citizens whose ancestors hailed from a nation we're at war with.
In Oblivion, the stories are particularly inventive. A sleepwalker may expect the first Fighter's Guild quest to be about fighting rats -- and be suprised to hear from a woman how beatiful and delightful her pet rats are. More humor would add much to this game, and most of the stories are deadly serious.
In Morrowind, there are fewer stories, but much to do and see. I particularly like the fact that, with a small donation at a particular temple and a spell that will return you to that temple, you can spend most of the game flying around. Flying may have made the game a little unstable and was eliminated in Oblivion. It's the one thing in Morrowind that I miss in Oblivion. Also, there are too many of a single species of bird that attacks anyone who flies.
Quests are easy to follow in Oblivion and Fallout 3 (the system in Morrowind needed, and received, a significant upgrade). In-game maps are good but not great, and it helps a lot to have the quest book. The quest book cost about $15 at the time the games were released (and is usually now out of print) and contained several hundred pages of information. The Fallout 3 quest book is hardbound and even longer than previous quest books and contains concept art and design comments.
These are 3 of the best RPGs available. I strongly recommend them.
To view the depth of each, check out its wiki:
Morrowind
Oblivion
Fallout 3
Saturday, May 15, 2010
New Version of Republic of Rome Board Game is Superb
re: Is Conquistador By Avalon Hill The Most Brutal Game Ever?
This blog post list some complaints about the game.
It has the harshest random events table ever designed, from the maker of the RPG Paranoia.
But the solo game is a gem.
It has the harshest random events table ever designed, from the maker of the RPG Paranoia.
But the solo game is a gem.
Sunday, April 4, 2010
Polish Strategy in Third Reich in 1939
The Polish army is unlikely to survive beyond one turn, so strategy involves exacting the highest price possible for defeat. There are two possible strategies.
1) Defend Warsaw
Why do anything else? This is the most basic strategy. Put the strongest troops in Warsaw and then surround the one hex adjacent to Warsaw that is not blocked from Warsaw by a river, forcing the Nazis to attack across the river. They'll still win, but you get to roll more dice against them.
Use one or more French attrition impulses to attack panzers with your weakest infantry. If this succeeds in paralyzing a sufficient quantity of German armor, you might live to turn 2.
2) Ship Goods to France
Again, place the best troops in Warsaw but draw a line of weak units to your Baltic port (want Danzig? come and get it!). Put the air unit in Danzig too. Then put the air unit in the Baltic. If the Germans counter by placing a full strength air unit in the Baltic, your little Polish air force and theirs get to fight 3 rounds instead of one. Odds are that they eliminate you in 2 or 3 rounds, but that you eliminate 0 or 1 points of German air. If, for whatever reason, the Germans don't control the Baltic, you ship half your BRPs to France on turn 1 _and_ the British can raid in the Baltic.
Then the Germans take Warsaw.
3) If the Germans ignore Poland
The Poles might be able to take 2 German cities with a French attrition impulse. Then there's a 1/36 chance of Germany surrendering in 1939!
A German player trying an unorthodox strategy might do this. The reason is that if they can get France to fall before Poland, Poland turns neutral as it is a minor ally of France.
1) Defend Warsaw
Why do anything else? This is the most basic strategy. Put the strongest troops in Warsaw and then surround the one hex adjacent to Warsaw that is not blocked from Warsaw by a river, forcing the Nazis to attack across the river. They'll still win, but you get to roll more dice against them.
Use one or more French attrition impulses to attack panzers with your weakest infantry. If this succeeds in paralyzing a sufficient quantity of German armor, you might live to turn 2.
2) Ship Goods to France
Again, place the best troops in Warsaw but draw a line of weak units to your Baltic port (want Danzig? come and get it!). Put the air unit in Danzig too. Then put the air unit in the Baltic. If the Germans counter by placing a full strength air unit in the Baltic, your little Polish air force and theirs get to fight 3 rounds instead of one. Odds are that they eliminate you in 2 or 3 rounds, but that you eliminate 0 or 1 points of German air. If, for whatever reason, the Germans don't control the Baltic, you ship half your BRPs to France on turn 1 _and_ the British can raid in the Baltic.
Then the Germans take Warsaw.
3) If the Germans ignore Poland
The Poles might be able to take 2 German cities with a French attrition impulse. Then there's a 1/36 chance of Germany surrendering in 1939!
A German player trying an unorthodox strategy might do this. The reason is that if they can get France to fall before Poland, Poland turns neutral as it is a minor ally of France.
Two AARs for John Prados' Third Reich
There's an elementary level AAR (first time player) at boardgamegeek, and a quite sophisticated one in a blog called Just Roll Sixes.
I enjoyed this game when it was given to me in the 80s and I enjoy the re-release more. The bucket of dice combat system is far superior to CRTs, and the impulse system creates a superb level of tension.
My only quibble is that the naval system makes it easier to control sea zones with tactical air than with ships, but that's a minor quibble. I will follow with some notes for solitaire play and strategy in the 1939 scenario.
I enjoyed this game when it was given to me in the 80s and I enjoy the re-release more. The bucket of dice combat system is far superior to CRTs, and the impulse system creates a superb level of tension.
My only quibble is that the naval system makes it easier to control sea zones with tactical air than with ships, but that's a minor quibble. I will follow with some notes for solitaire play and strategy in the 1939 scenario.
Monday, January 11, 2010
Hinterland -- Download the Demo; Here's Some Advice
I strongly recommend playing the Hinterland demo if you like RPGs and city building or like the Caesar series or Children of the Nile.
In Hinterland, you are sent to an outpost in a fantasy world wilderness and will use you sword to earn gold and fame by killing the monsters of the countryside, and use that fame and gold to hire people to staff a small town or estate.
But you may need some advice to get started.
First, you choose a character. Beginners may wish to be the generic character (journeyman) or a swordfighter of some sort, from knight to mercenary to fall hero.
Your first order of business is get hire people to produce food. If you run out of food, people leave, so food is important. Farmers, hunters, and herders will generate food for the town.
Your next order of business is to hire people to generate money, and a craftsman or craftswoman to build you items.
While you can choose a variety of people to make money, you need a hostel.
Now you are focusing on improving town quality. Hire people who improve town quality, and find areas outside of town that, once cleared, provide resources for the town. Clear those areas.
Keep an eye on bandit incursions and rush back to defend the town when they happen. Also keep an eye on King Requests, which are random, but that works in this context (royal requests, generally, should be random and capricious).
Hire an acolyte to go adventuring with you. While you can take anyone with you, a farmer, for example, is likely to get killed. The acolyte will stay behind you and heal you while you do the fighting. I assume an archer might also survive battles, but have not tried this yet.
So there you are. A cheap ($20) game with a great demo. The graphics may date from 5 years ago, but the gameplay, for those who like building and simulation games, is excellent.
The demo is free. Try it!
In Hinterland, you are sent to an outpost in a fantasy world wilderness and will use you sword to earn gold and fame by killing the monsters of the countryside, and use that fame and gold to hire people to staff a small town or estate.
But you may need some advice to get started.
First, you choose a character. Beginners may wish to be the generic character (journeyman) or a swordfighter of some sort, from knight to mercenary to fall hero.
Your first order of business is get hire people to produce food. If you run out of food, people leave, so food is important. Farmers, hunters, and herders will generate food for the town.
Your next order of business is to hire people to generate money, and a craftsman or craftswoman to build you items.
While you can choose a variety of people to make money, you need a hostel.
Now you are focusing on improving town quality. Hire people who improve town quality, and find areas outside of town that, once cleared, provide resources for the town. Clear those areas.
Keep an eye on bandit incursions and rush back to defend the town when they happen. Also keep an eye on King Requests, which are random, but that works in this context (royal requests, generally, should be random and capricious).
Hire an acolyte to go adventuring with you. While you can take anyone with you, a farmer, for example, is likely to get killed. The acolyte will stay behind you and heal you while you do the fighting. I assume an archer might also survive battles, but have not tried this yet.
So there you are. A cheap ($20) game with a great demo. The graphics may date from 5 years ago, but the gameplay, for those who like building and simulation games, is excellent.
The demo is free. Try it!
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