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This game was approximately 20% of my entire childhood.

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>>56291692
Forgot the soundtrack!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TbRlIHfZ7Xs&list=PLB816812DAFD41430

>>56291640
Oh god, it's been ages since Age of Wonders. Although, I got it because it was billed as "The Next Master of Magic", and while it was good, it wasn't that good.


I still have a glowing little memory about summoning zephyr falcons or whatever they're called to protect the allied mages in that last level. Slows them down enormously, since those Lords have no anti-air abilities.

>>56291684
That dragon is ripped

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remember this picture in an old tolkien art book we had. one of the main things that got me interested in fantasy

very evocative

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aEqDtbC3bL8

>>56291692
Yes!!! I love this game!

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>>56291752
I still play Shadow Magic to this day. I just remember buying it randomly from one of those street CD sellers (3rd world shit) as a pirate game and I was completely fascinated by it. This was AoW 2. Then I found about Shadow Magic. I was also ver HYPE'd over the AoW 3 that came out a few years ago and I also play that but the artwork and the spirit of the AoW 2 is really special to me. I love everything in that game from portraits to units to map to songs.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-QO3WJqe0E

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0:34 - 1:20

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6KiMclu8fqY

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>>56291792
Justin Sweet's work for IWD series impressed me lots back in the day...

>>56291640
This and Heroes of Might and Magic 2 and 3 were approximately my entire childhood.

>>56291872
oh man

age of wonders

that was something special.

Campaign path Keepers->Lizardmen->High Men best most bittersweet path.

>>56291740
Loved this graphic novel of the Hobbit

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>>56291640
It's a shame Disciples series doesn't get mention more often

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jgIJgBFocY

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>>56292079
I WAS JUST ABOUT TO BRING IT UP

I mean, less for 'comfiness' but more for nostalgia. Had gorgeous art.

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>>56292060

>>56291812
I was so thrilled to see a redux on steam.

>>56291692
I"M MELTIIIIIING

>>56292079
First Disciples was better. Sequel was just way too fucking grimdark to care at all. No matter what you did, world was fucked, so why even bother?

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>>56291931

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LyjpuAGaF4
boys...

>>56292297
and then there was the third game...

>>56291872
That picture feels good

>>56292419
Too buggy to even try. It gives you blue-screen once per 2-5 turns, not worth it.

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This one always takes me back

>>56292466
Even outside of the bugs, it just was lame.

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>>56291684

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v_f8UFv_Ytc

>IM ALIVEE
>ZUG ZUG
>FLOOR DOOK
>WE'RE READY
>.. I'M NOT READY!

>>56293164
And nobody gives a single fuck about ripped naked lizardman storming battle babes' tower or giant and dragon right in front of the palace

>>56291872
just downloaded the game and played this map. I am this guy >>56291828

but played the aow 1 for the first time. damn its even MORE comfy. the music is awesome. sieges are so hard. I love it!

>>56293669
Age of Wonders 1 is so...I don't know. Fairy tale? Classic generic fantasy? I love it. It's just a nice soothing simple battle of good vs evil with all the beautiful art and wonderful music. It's a treat.

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>>56291931
LotR is probably the only reason I gave a shit about fantasy as a kid.

The next closest thing would probably be watching my dad playing the Might and Magic series on our shitty old PC.

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>>56293382
>>56293164
>Just another day in this fuckville. Somebody kill me already.

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>>56291692
Keep it comin'

>>56291747
The best part? There are only four tracks to it!

>>56292021
You were not the fuck taking up an hour to take your turn because you refused to do anything before checking every single unit and artefact you had, were you?

>>56291640
Age of Wonders 1 was my favorite.
That and HoM&M3 defined fantasy for me more than Tolkein

>>56291768
It was one of the Book of Unfinished tales, the centenary edition art on all the books was absolutely mindblowing to me

>>56291872
Your post is pure /C O M F Y/ and nostalgia to me.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9o-7rPnZhXo
Title and Clouds and Feuds are my favorite.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y77SeeHT0jM&t=257s

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>Go onto /tg/ after a long day of playing AoW
>Se this:
>>56291872
>>56292045
>>56293669
>>56293888
>>56294715
This is a good thread.
Although, as nice as AoW is, Heroes II will always be The comfy fantasy for me:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRcprUCjwDc

i want it back bros

i want to be lost in those young days again

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>>56295830
Don't we all.

>>56295946
That's a real diverse cast of portraits there.

Anyone else remembers warlords?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xKgPmfApdeI

>>56296073
Hell yeah motherfucker. Minotaurs for life.

>>56295975
And it was totally unremarkable in its day.

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>>56295794
>>56295946
>>56292297

My Nubian comrades-in-arms.

>>56291640

> there are people on this board who weren't alive when you first delved into Durlag's Tower, conquered the land of Urak, brought the Highfather glory in Nevendaar, or restored Erathia to greatness.

Let me tell you of the days of high adventure.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gbU5zl0nnXM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZP7vWiaxw7Y
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYGA_bk6P0I

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I never actually played this game. I just remember watching it over my brothers shoulders a lot when I was really, really young.
A few years back I found a copy at a thrift store. A complete Big Box, as video games used to be sold, with instruction manual, map and all. I don't even have a functioning CD-player, but I just had to get it anyway.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMaYDMrkGgg

>>56296252
>not linking the real daggerfall theme
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jM8EaL1Zm6w

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Eddings books played a large role in defining fantasy for me when. No idea how they hold up, haven't picked one up in... a decade?

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>>56296485
this reminds me an important question to ask

>recommend me a comfy fantasy novel/series. bonus if its non-shared world and original work.

from the d&d FR novels I would say Azure Bonds series and darkwalker on moonshae kind of old stuff are really comfy books.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gz98MWnvyM0

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>Aww, fuck; nostalgia thread got me.

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Old Lego catalogs were very comfy.

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>>56291640 here. these cards were super comfy.

I should continue my HP quest soon.

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>>56296770
I agree.

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Gorram it.

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>>56296150
Minotaurs from Enroth says hi.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J50uD0CE7JI

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>>56296341

The Might and Magic series is one of the shining gems of my childhood and it completely set the tone for fantasy and adventure in my mind. Every adventure I've ever tried to run ends up being like MM in some (usually obvious) way.

Might and Magic III: Isles of Terra was the first real video game I ever played. As a small child, my parents got it for me as part of a discount bundle of games. Me being an idiot kid in the pre-internet era with no clue what I was doing, I spent months trying to work out all the puzzles and secrets before I finally beat it. I still remember the feeling of accomplishment.

It wasn't until years later that I found out there were other games in the series. I saw 6 in the game store and got all light headed. I shortly thereafter found out about the other games in the series went about gradually played through the entire thing.

The one thing that I remember most vividly is the maps. The maps for these games were out of this world. I didn't have the physical ones for the earlier games so I actually printed them out out on my shitty black and white printer over the course of several pages and then taped them together so I could stick them on my wall.

I've always been disappointed that more people apparently haven't played the core games. I always see people talking about the HoMM series, and man, HoMM is great, but in my mind none of them ever stood a candle to, say, World of Xeen.

>>56296935
So if I wanted to play one of these, with very limited time, what's the best one?

I like pretty graphics and fewer numbers.

>>56294081
>>56293164
The two guards just standing there on the hill like "We're not paid for this shit"

>>56294081
Is that a computer in the background?

>>56297202
So it is!

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>>56297077
That's a tricky question. They're older games so they're not super pretty, and they're usually anything but short, especially the first time you play them. That said, they're great games.

The best game in the classic series is World of Xeen, which is generally just considered one game these days. It was a product of an era with good 2D graphics, so it has some lovely art, especially in its stills, but the resolution is... well... not great. Its not as number happy as 1-3, but there's still some occasionally tedious inventory management while you work out which sword does the most damage. The first half - Clouds of Xeen - also happens to be one of the shorter installments of that era.

If you're looking for something that's pretty by contemporary standards (and relatively light on math), you could also look into Might and Magic X, which was published quite recently. Its not really a true Might and Magic game since it was made by none of the same people and is only tangentially part of the same setting, but it actively tries to evokes nostalgia for the earlier games and does quite well in that regard. Consider it a Might and Magic-style experience for people who prefer Steam to Dosbox.

>>56296639
>tfw you will never play a DnD campaign with these guys
>tfw you will never hear them break out into song during the final battle

>>56291692

Someday I'll lose a fight, but not today.

>>56291747

Ah, fuckin classic. I didn't find the sequel as fun nor colorful.

>>56291961
Dude, the portraits for IWD1 and 2 were flat-out amazing. Makes me sad that they didn't put the same amount of care into the BG1 and 2 portraits, they're just not as slick looking. The BG games are still my entire childhood in a nutshell though, absolutely my favorite games even unto today.

>>56296752
These knight Legos are so much better than the new ones they have rolling now.

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>>56291640

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>>56292297
I played Disciples 2 mostly for atmosphere. Gameplay was bearable but nothing fantastic. Graphics, small touches and details, music is what I loved about it.

>>56293164
>>56293382
Part and parcel of living in an MMO

>>56291640
Age of Wonders II's artstyle still looks so damn good. All I want to do is grab a boat and chill out on that lake, as long as the dragon didn't mind.

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>>56299783
Yeah, Lego pretty much peaked 1990-1995, and I've held fast to this opinion since I was twelve. What I really liked about older lego sets (other than hugely preferring the older aesthetic) was how little it gave you to work with, plot wise. There were a bunch of factions in an mostly unspecified conflict, and named characters didn't really exist outside "The Wizard", "The King", "The Ghost", or similar.
Nowadays Lego have a heavy tendency towards clearly coded Good and Evil factions, with with color-coded hero characters cast as the protagonists for you. With something as creativity-focused as Lego, this hurts the product in my opinion.

That said, some of the new Creator sets are pretty cool

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>>56291640
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FBuxs6oxZ4

>>56293382
>ripped naked lizardman storming battle babes' tower
Think they're compensating for something?

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Did any of you guys play Moonstone? To me it's the definitive questing knights game.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mP0vmLm4nGI

>>56302398
Jeremy Soule can do no wrong.

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Oh man why did they stop painting like that, everything's so bland, streamlined, boring and homogenic now.

>>56293900
https://youtu.be/jQxOTh6sX9w?t=3m43s

>The Sphinxes are quite one of the biggest embarassments of the film. They are full bosomed strippers who sit there in the desert.

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>>56302398
There will never be anything quite as special to me as the Pre-Searing was.
>That comfy scenery
>That god tier music
>That self contained economy
>That sense of adventure as you found new skills
>That feeling of loss when those furry dindus toasted the entire landscape

>>56296935
oh those age of sigmar maps are SHIT!
nothing like the creative maps of old!

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https://youtu.be/Yis2SN4okbA

>>56293382
I give a fuck.

I need more of it.

>pirate marketing
Please purchase an ad if you like the site!

>>56302852
dat thicc dark elf

>>56297543
Got it, but I don't think the manual bothers to explain what the difference is between Adventurer and Warrior modes. Do you remember?

Also, really pretty art in the manual!

I can't link to it right now but the Rampart theme from Heroes of Might and Magic III. Really, any theme from that game - what an absolute fucking classic, I must have sunk hundreds of hours playing that game, hot seating with friends... There's never been another quiet like it unfortunately.

If I'm ever millionaire rich I'll pay to have it remade.

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>>56303246
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3HbHhedmTU

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>>56291640
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Kik4j6GWrI

>>56292297
Play as undead. They're the only ones making true gains.

>>56303104
Warrior mode is the standard mode around which the game was balanced. Adventure mode makes combat easier by making all the enemies have less hit points.

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Obtuse, unbalanced, and riddled with unexplained mechanics. I feel like for all its faults it actually kept a sense of wonder that modern games miss by spoon feeding the player everything.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gbU5zl0nnXM

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Warcraft will always hold a special place in my heart

>>56304794
Not mine. Warcraft was always a hack's tool for getting onto the bandwagon, and then people who subscribed to their pay-us-every-month-to-keep-playing-our-game model got salty when the nostalgia started to wear off to reveal the lazy game mechanics and hack writing underneath it all.

>>56304828
You sound upset.

>>56304874
I am.

>>56304659
Thanks. You never know with those games.

>>56304828
>warcraft
>subscription
wut

>>56305001
>56304828 is underage and thinks we mean World of Warcraft

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>>56304794
Warcraft and pic related took up way too much of my childhood.

>>56302912
dafuq

>>56296485
I always liked the book about the knightly orders better. The Elenium and the Tamuli.

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>>56295794
Heroes 2 is the only heroes game I have nostalgia for. The graphics do a lot for it.

putting my hat in the ring
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pP3D8bkLfAI

>>56304692
Got this on GOG a couple of days ago after remembering playing the demo back when the demo was still new.

I think I had to restart within the first 12 turns about 8 times before I worked out what the fuck was going on. Helped when I forced a shit-ton of AA via external settings so the text was actually readable, and found I needed a patch because Pegasus-riding things were not supposed to be appearing in low-level dwellings.

Enjoying it though.

>>56291872
This fucking UI is one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen.

>>56305921

Avoid losing units, them leveling up makes them massively more powerful. This should be easy for the squaded guys since if at least one survives the others can be regenerated.

Once you get a few levels on a hero park them in their associated unit generation building, they can add XP to the building so newly generated units start with free levels. Increasing the buildings level increasing how much XP a hero can impart.

Mages ramp up to be be stupid powerful with high level spells and equipment. It takes them forever to research new spells at low levels though.

Watch your upkeep costs, building too many weak units instead of cultivating fewer more powerful ones can be a trap. Mercenaries eat way to much to be worth it, only build them if you plan on using them as suicide fodder to soften something up quickly.

Do not underestimate the value of Fame, more followers early in the game makes everything easier.

>>56301479
>mfw I still remember that I had the Lake Stronghold, the Prison Wagon, the Haunted Tower and the Tree Hideaway from that as a kid.

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>>56306142
forgot image

>>56291640
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gb133m_AEnY&list=PL581CF27B3C9520D6

>>56302692
Just got of OG guild wars just now, was good to go back to have a visit

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>>56305059
LBA/TO was the shit! Man I need to replay th-
>remember the controls
You know what, nevermind.

>>56301479
>Yeah, Lego pretty much peaked 1990-1995, and I've held fast to this opinion since I was twelve
>It has nothing to do with the fact that it was the time when I first played with those!
Well same here I would still extand to some themes of the late 1990's which were nice but even though it feels like some sort of obvious nostalgia, I still think that "objectively", the sets of my childhood are the best.

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>>56291640
My nostalgia is painting everything pink here I am sure of it but fuck cares...

...also this thread makes me I feel like belong to the old folks home.

>>56304794
Remember when ogres were completely naked?

Holy hell, thanks for this trip down the memory-lane of my childhood /tg/

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>>56291640
Apart from Larry Elmore's art I liked this game. It also had cool ost: https://soundcloud.com/barryleitch/du-dub-mp3

>>56305059
That shit was good, really good. TO and Time Commando came with my first PC, played the heck of them.

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This is what got me get into fantasy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLXp1gCeMrg

>>56307050
Sure thing, any time fann.

>>56307050
anytime famalam

>>56307222
Why's Lara Croft riding a dragon?

>>56296752

Man I love classic Lego knights. Idk what it is.

Also, I've been playing the Stronghold games lately. They're a lot of fun.

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>>56305059
Never got into the first one because of the save system, but LBA2 was childhood-defining for me.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3YMfaqvWBg

>>56305967
And it was fully customizable too, you could grab the corners of of the windows and resize and move them around.

>>56306434
I'd like to point out that I was born in 1992, so this peak I mentioned was pretty much over by the time I started to get my own lego sets. Nostalgia goggles are a thing, but sometimes people genuinely like old things because they do things new things don't.

>>56302692

I loved old GW. 2 feels very stripped. It's kinda pretty in some places but lacks the feeling

>>56305182
Ohhhh I loved the elenkum when I was younger, my English teacher got me into them because I basically has no friends at the time. Still have the books in my shelf, haven't read them in so long though.

>>56306473
Is that fucking dungeon keeper?

I loved DK2 and wish they made a new one desu, iconic and under rated game.

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>>56309578
you still play?

>>56309841
Have you heard of War for the Overworld?

>>56309865

My brother strictly plays GW2 and nothing else. After the expac came out I decided to give it another go.

It lasted like two nights and I kinda wish I knew how to get a refund lmao.

>>56310074
my friend im not on about GW2, the only GW what matters is prophecies

>>56309578
that and the plot gets pretty hamfisted pretty quick.

Fucking saladbowl.

>>56310152

Agreed. And no I don't play. I would but I cannot find my account info for the fucking life of me.

>>56310173
Fucking this.

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>>56310234
dam shame, need some others to play with really. If anyone is bothered enough my name in game is Ok Assassin.

>>56310418

beautiful.

This reminds me, Jeremy Soule is one of my fav vidya composers

>>56309218
http://drakan.wikia.com/wiki/Order_of_the_Flame

>>56309895
No, is it good?

>>56291640
I still play the dominions series, which captures the feel of these gems.

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Got a collection of Larry Elmore's art for free from a locally-owned parcel delivery place; package had no name on it other than the business's name (no "care of" like people are instructed to do) and the package sat for over a year before the owner (my aunt) finally opened it. Even included a Kickstarter Exclusive black and white sketchbook that was 95% thicc 2nd edition looking women.

>>56315505
wow thats lucky

>>56291692

LIterally opened this thread to post this, 2nd reply in the thread. I am proud.

>>56312662
Its not quite Dungeon Keeper 2, but its a solid game and it captures a lot of the same feel, right down to having the same guy do the narration. Its as close as we will ever come to having a proper sequel and is totally worth playing if your a fan of the original.

>>56304692
It's been donkeys since I've played that. Might have to download it again.

>>56317604
Will have a look into it then, I really loved DK 2 and still play it from time to time, despite how the graphics have ages it's just such a fun concept. I really miss RTS games and base building games and it seems they just don't make them anymore. Even Warcraft is dead thanks to online WoW, and StarCraft II had a heavier focus on competitive play than solo or casual gaming... I wonder if we'll ever see good RTS again. No more age of mythology... No more Warcraft... Even the new dawn of war pales in comparison to the original. Such a shame. Instead we just get 6 versions of call of duty.

>>56296367
Hmm....that doesn't sound right.
Somewhere around the 29-second mark, whatever note's playing should just keep playing continuously as the game crashes again.
You know, the authentic Daggerfall experience.

>>56293334
Glorious midi sounds.

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>>56302692

I started with Factions then went back to OG. Pre-Searing is special but for me the nostalgia hit is being puked out into the sprawling mutant infested city and getting my head kicked in by afflicted all the time.

GW2 just didn't click with me at all, meanwhile I played probably 1000 hours of the original.

That said the concept art for 2 was still just as beautiful as 1.

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Not as good as the original but it was the one I had as a kid. I was terrible at the game cause I was so young but holy shit that box art.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A0lteK-l7YQ

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This shit right here.

>>56322405
That's Aribeth from Neverwinter Nights.

>>56322405
Those spikes on the shoulderpad are dumb as hell

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Never did play it, but dat art...

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This was my favorite rpg as a kid.

>>56334497
I think that was the first spiderweb software game I actually completed. Probably due to lacking some bullshit dungeon of awful, like in Blades of Exile and the fucking golem spawning factory.

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>>56312662
After about 5 levels, it plays like DK with a layer of modern game design on it. Quality of life and control improvements, some units seem to have been merged while retaining roles (trolls and bile demons turned into chunders, for instance), there's a tech tree you control (with points gained from not-warlocks working in the not-library).

Lacks that touch of weirdness and uniqueness DK had, though. The aforementioned chunders are probably the highlight for me so far. Pic related is not-mistress. On the other hand, there is more voice acting, which can be amusing.

Again, this is roughly 5 or 6 levels into the campaign, and I don't remember much of DK2, other than I didn't like it for some reason.

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>>56336116
One thing in particular I forgot to mention: no unique torture animations for each creature. Those were a nice touch.

And since I'm making two posts, anyway, have a chunder.

>>56305256
pure comfort holy fuck, still listen to it about once a month.

>>56296637
>Azure Bonds
Hell yeah.

>>56296935
The only M&M game I remember playing is 9. I hated it.

>>56291692
my negro, same here

I'll be honest, I kind of want to make some PCs based on some of the Majesty classes. A Solarus would be really fun as a fluffed cleric.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=55RsoF7dK04

also if you mean comfy as in 20% comfy, and 80% creepy, play this one. I played again recently and felt as good as the first day.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9SsR5fPjGu4

>>56291872
>go and redownload because this thread reminded me of how much I loved it
>It launches!! to loading screen and the intro video + title screen music is just 300% COMFY
>Crashes every two or three turns
HELP

>>56338489
http://steamcommunity.com/app/61500/discussions/0/215439774855125498/

>>56292079
>Disciples
That shit was wonderful, I always thought it would translate into a boardgame nicely.

>>56297797
this is pretty great

>>56300890
It's a gold dragon; they're dedicated to good, so he should be chill with you as long as you're just minding your own business.

>>56304692
Hooooly shit I just nostalgia'd all over my room. That order music was so damn comfy, even if I was a massive fruit who played Life nine times out of ten.

Never will there be a comfier base building game
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Hba44D9kRc

>>56291872
I need to play this. What is the best Age of Wonders?

https://youtu.be/PMU_sacP-LM

Spending so much time in the map maker as a kid.

>>56296853
>Wormy
Fuck yes.
It's a goddamn shame what happened to Tramp.

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Man now you guys have me wanting to play Simon the Sorcerer 1 & 2 and Discworld 1 & 2 again.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qxkuZx85E9c

>>56306383
LBA2 is still easily replayable even with the controls thanks to less timed action stuff and save anywhere.
LBA1 had way too much "don't fail this or go back however far your save is" stuff combined with the tank controls.

>>56341069
1>2>3

All are playable

>>56341069
From what I hear it's Shadow Magic.

>>56341069
Personal ranking based roughly on hours sunk into said games:
3, 1, Shadow Magic, 2

The only thing I can really confirm as not just opinion is that 2 is definitely the weakest due to lacking in certain mechanics and elements that 1 had or Shadow Magic threw in.
1 SM and 3 all have their own fairly distinct style though in terms of how things operate, with 3 feeling somewhere between SM and 1 but also a bit of its own.

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I wish I could still play this game, sadly it was for mac os 8 or something and i haven't been able to get it to work on an emulator.

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If you don't think breath of fire 3 is the best JRPG ever, you're factually wrong.

>literally turn into a dragon.
>dragon form can be modified, powered up, mutated, fused with party members, and altered with 39 unique properties that have their own unique properties in response to what other dragon powers you throw in the mix.
>battle formations.
>literally too hard for most people to beat.
>the desert section.
>going from a defenseless, worthless child, to the lord of dragons, with the stats to match.
>impress the best warrior of an ur race that was genetically engineered to become your bitch.
>later earn his life debt.
>every attack, spell, transformation, and even damage stats are animated and painstakingly elaborate.
>change your party on demand, at a dedicated camp, with a campfire.
>learn useful and game changing enemy skills, back in the era of memetic enemy skill blue wizard abilities in final fantasy.
>permanent, shocking character deaths, years before any other game beside phantasy star 4.
>the main character is literally the best character because he's the best warrior in the most powerful species.
>main character literally only becomes the best character after he becomes a man and decides that he knows what he's fighting for.
>weapon and armor weight matter. In a JRPG.
>literally no item outside basic bitch shit like 'sword,' 'dagger,' and 'leather helmet' that doesn't have effects, weight, or abilities that can change your battles.
>literally the only game where you'll wear practical armor over specialized and heavy magical shit by choice.
>literally the best 2D sprites on the PS1.
>literally the longest JRPG from the PS1 era.
>without disc swaps.
>it accomplishes all of this with a mature and serious tone towards life, death, crime, religion, and virtually everything else.
>no FMVs.

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>dragon sprites literally have more detail than macross zero veritechs.
>the game mercilessly punishes stupidity on the player's part.
>virtually everything you do after the game gives its single warning that bad deeds have bad outcomes has late game consequences.
>post apocalyptic setting.
>with dragons.
>your waifu is no one, because a true warrior doesn't need a waifu. He's too busy getting shit done.
>literally slaughter a desert boss simply to feed your party and save the wizard from dying a painful death from thirst and exposure.
>your enemy is literally considered god by everybody in the world.
>two continents.
>robots.
>different party setups actually yield different battle tactics and much of the game's dialogue.
>if you're stuck, you can simply ask your party what they think you should be focusing on at any time when you make camp.
>can swap out characters on the fly.
>status effects work.
>status effects are dangerous.
>there's literally a spell exclusive to the main character that can only be learned once he's the most badass person on the planet, has an 8 hour time limit between usages, and pretty kills any enemy instantly.
>the main character is literally so powerful, any battle can be won without any effort.
>using his abilities is costly, and proper usage of his dragon power takes a lot of actual time to figure out.
>train characters under tutors to give them even more specialized powers.
>the main character is the most powerful force in the whole game, and the rest of the party somehow doesn't come of as worthless.
>no shitty party members.
>no dump stats. Sacrificing stats is risky.
>literal moves that bring you to 1 HP, that literally work when the enemies use them on you.
>you can literally use similar moves on the enemies.
>they work on bosses.
>double turn for really fucking fast characters.
>fast characters with abilities that aren't 'steal,' and 'heal party.'

>>56338521
It doesn't help. Nothing helps. Draw error. Draw errors everywhere. Tuck me in. Let me die.

I wish I got to play Shadow Magic.
I always want to but my friends aren't into anything like it at all and when I rarely find people that are into it every couple of years they've played so much and so regularly that I just get crushed and can't get into it.

I guess I also like Frostlings too much.

>tfw Age of Wonders is too complicated for me

>>56345020
Try the shitty third one they made, it's more millennial-friendly.

>>56291684
>>56291768

Is there a name for this kind of art?

>>56345103
The first one is literally 90s videogame boxart.

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>>56345144
What I mean fantasy art that uses this kind of soft colours and stuff?

>>56345239
You could look into romantic art like Kaspar David Friedrich's work.

>>56345239
Photo-Idealism or something.

>>56345268
>Kaspar David Friedrich

Thank you.

I wonder if you can set up a modern game to look like that, or at the very least, get the same emotional reaction.

>>56345572
It actually reminds me of Pre-Raphaelite art, except those all have people as the central figure of the paintings as opposed to landscapes. But it still fits, except there's less idealised lighting conditions.

>>56345572
Sure. Depends on your post processing settings mostly.
Color grading, bloom and things like that are a staple. Even distance fog can give you bit of that if you are working in an older engine.

>>56338521
>>56338489
http://aow.heavengames.com/cgi-bin/forums/display.cgi?action=ct&f=1,4694,,150
Works.

>>56344544
>>56344521
Well I guess I gotta find that then. I watched my brother play Breath of Fire 1 as a shitty kid, so I barely remember anything of the series other than thinking it was really cool. So I guess I'll take a dive in 3.

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>>56336347
Oh god, Might and Magic 9 was a fiasco. It was rushed out half finished before the company went under and is basically an unplayable mess without a story or an excuse. A total embarrassment in an otherwise sterling series. It should never have been released and no one should be forced to play it.

I'd encourage you not to judge the series based upon it. The other games in the series are all fantastic, though the best ones are probably 4-7, and maybe 10 if you like the more contemporary stuff.

>>56346620
I'd say 7 is the peak just because of actual "pick a race, pick a class" and no "only make the main character" or "races are classes" nonsense.

While 10/X does have that, it also has grid-movement unfortunately, and is also in the Ubiverse.

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>>56346796
>>56346796

Yeah, 6 and 7 are certainly much better than 8. I think 6 has a little more heart than 7, but I'll admit 7 went a step further with its mechanics and I really liked how it handled the light/dark faction thing influencing promotions towards the end. They're both great games though.

Its so hard for me to compare the earlier games to the later games since they're so different, so its always tricky to say which is the best game in the series, or if 6/7 were better than 4/5. I think its hard not to love World of Xeen as one of the best though. It really took everything that made Western CRPGs good at the time and just nailed it.

I guess I'd say 4+5 = 7 = 6 > 10 > 3 > 1 = 2 > 8 ? But that doesn't really sound right cause even though 8 is my least favorite of the series (I'm just going to pretend 9 doesn't exist) it's still a good game.

>>56347187
I just really couldn't get into 10. The grid based movement. The extremely restrictive, linear nature it keeps up and just... so many things about it felt off, not to mention a lot of the combat/abilities felt very unrewarding. Though the whole grid stuff rather than free movement promoting abilities that help in that context certainly contributes to that.

6/7 definitely had the strong interaction with the Heroes series working for them aswell, even if the more Sci-Fi oriented faction was actually dropped from Heroes because people ignorant of the main series' background premise wrote angry letters saying how it didn't fit into their fantasy game. 6/7 definitely where the big pay-off to that whole SHELTEM business finally getting around to the Kreegan and the actual conflict with the Ancients.

>>56303719
yes ! this game, this fucking game! it was the best, I spend an incredible amount of time on it.

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>>56296485
I still love'em, same here for defining fantasy in my youth. Something to remember while reading them is Eddings wrote with the intention of using every cliched character or trope that had come to define bland fantasy and still make them 3 dimensional and interesting. IMO he succeed, Belgarath the Sorceror prequel book is still my favourite in the series.

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>>56346335

The first game is a very mediocre JRPG that tries hard to conceal the fact that it's a western RPG.

The third game knows it's dungeons and dragons with blue hair, and embraces it. Ryu, the dragon main character, is the most powerful party member by far, but he carries all the most important spells and abilities, some of which he's the only character that you'd actually want to use said spells with, since he has incredible natural durability, and about a 90% chance to resurrect himself the first time he gets killed in every battle. Your other healer, Momo, is slow and too fragile to stand at the front of the formation without dying, so she's gonna be doing her revives typically as the second last action in the turn, which is terrible in a game where common enemies are actually dangerous. He also gets every single healing, buff, and life spell very early, which is fair since his dragon bloodline mastered life itself. He's the only legit source of holy attacks, which makes sense based on his background as the progeny of a very accomplished, royal bloodline, but if you don't want to churn mana to put holy elemental on whatever dragon you're creating, he's got a serious, almost insulting monopoly on weapons that have demonbane and holy elemental. The best, and most overall useful items, armor, accessories, and weapons in the game, are all brood relics, or too magical for the rest of the party to actually use, so you have to pick his gear carefully, and specialize as heal/buff slave, classic party leader with his command abilities, or go all out offense with huge speed, damage, and reserves of mana for dragon splicing (the system has an upfront cost, then an upkeep of 50% its upfront every turn afterwards. The more potent genes, and genes total you use, the more expensive a transformation will be.) The game tells you very early that while he's totally a prodigy, being good at everything means you'll be great at nothing, and they mean it.

>>56347860
Ryu being at this most powerful in 3 is also nice because he actually is the current dragon deity in that one and can exclusively apprentice to the remains of the previous deity as a Master while no one else can. You can actually access Dragon God as a transformation form, but the translation in english (and only english) doesn't call it that.

He also starts out as a kid and gets to grow to an adult, as do other party members, and we get a bit more shading on Myria and her purge of the brood, aswell as perspective from those that actually perpetrated it.

>>56296073
Rest in peace, Warlords.

>>56347860

The rest of the party is there to augment Ryu, and he can use gene splicing to merge their racial attributes and features with his superior dragon ones, or alter their genetic material into something almost dragonlike, which gives you a gigantic meatshield dragon form unique to BOF 3's Ryu, called Behemoth. Later, you can get a super hybrid splice, which combines both party members with Ryu and gives you endless utility spells, but doesn't really have much effect on stats (the most accomplished members of the free races are orders of magnitude weaker than the most pathetic and uneducated dragons. The game likes to remind you of this if you forget, allowing Ryu to solo important fights.

>>56348183
Or like any reasonable person you use Warrior Forms, of which Dragon God also happens to be one, and have 3 active characters.

>>56304692
I loved the king arthur map in that game.

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>>56291640
Man all of the Age of Wonders were great. I only regret that they got rid of the lizards.

>>56348635
Agreed. Draconians or whatever they're fucking called are a poor substitute for my flood the world idgaf all my units have swimming faction.

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>>56347860

2/4

The most important dragon form is warrior, which is the dragon equivalent to an AK47. Rather than becoming a mythical dragon that casts magic and loves gold, he changes to his natural fighting form, which is a powerfully built humanoid with horns, scales, wings, human facial features, and claws. Don't let his smaller size fool you, though, as this form greatly boosts all his relevant combat stats by incredible amounts for the low cost. If he has been built for speed, warrior alone is usually enough to give him EX. You only pay the upkeep once a turn, so with EX, you get twice the bang for your buck, and your first attack is guaranteed.

Warrior has two significant weaknesses: 1) Most of the special attributes that adorn his weapons and armor are ignored when he's in this form. The lack of armor attributes is the primary problem, as it's already a bit of a glass cannon. 2) unless you spliced eldridge, warrior only ever does one thing, and that's fat DPS.

You also get some of the most powerful moves in the game, that are normally limited to a single skillbook entry, that can only be held by one party member at a time, and you get them all when you find the force gene. Aura is the most powerful holy attack bar none, ignores defense, and has guaranteed critical hits. It's a physical strike, which is important because...warrior also gets focus. One turn of focus sets your attack to 150% of normal. Two turns sets it to 200%. If you do focus, you can only follow it with a second focus or a physical strike of any kind. If you don't, or you try to do a third turn, you lose all your focus stocks.

>>56293888
I'm glad that people feel this too. It's a really beautiful game. I feel like it really understood what I needed in that kind of game.

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>>56348635
>>56348705
Thirded.

I also miss the high men. They were an interesting twist on things. But I do like the changed up Frostlings.

>>56349071

3/4

So for the cost of 20 mana, and 3 turns, you have a guaranteed shot at killing pretty much any normal enemy, and many minibosses, right then, right there, regardless of what they are, as long as they don't resist or absorb holy (very uncommon, essentially never encountered). 20 mana is expensive, but it's the price you pay to win instantly, and 20 mana for a swift end is less than spending 24 to 48 to finish the fight properly. You can further minmax this by splicing thorn for 60% more damage, and an elemental gene the enemy's weak to. This means you don't have to pay 20 for aura, but you get the same result, although only against the element you've actually powered up to kill, and while you're not burning 20 mana on aura, the initial splicing is way more expensive since it has 3 genes, and so is the upkeep. Both approaches are very valid, and in fights with many high HP targets (the miniboss sea monsters on the boat), going for the proper element and thorn makes the battle easier, while aura is too expensive, and you probably don't want to devote 6 whole turns to being the damage magnet, then use 40 mana on two attacks.

Warrior also has bigger crit chance, and due to the speed, it can potentially use defender to go into 'I kill all enemies automatically with 100% accuracy if they attack me-'mode. If he can survive the attacks he eats, which he won't. That's the myth.

Splicing force, defender, and reverse exchanges all his silly attack buffs for equally silly HP and defense buffs, and because of his speed, he'll counter all incoming attacks, and they might in turn also be met with the built in reprisal. Ryu normally attacks back every 3rd hit or so, so if you get hit 3 times, that's 3 big counters with Mike Tyson tier knockout power, and a reprisal, and now you have no enemies left. Note that this is completely worthless if the enemy actually has more speed than you, which should be rare, but it does happen.

>>56341069
Shadow Magic

OP here, who wants to get a shadow magic match going sometime? we can make a discord room.

Can someone explain to me why Age of Wonders 3 is so boring?

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>>56349415

4/4

Other underrated things the warrior can do that makes him better at his job is splicing shadow. With shadow, he's immune to death spells, shadow magic, and instant death effects, which you'd normally be anyway because of Ryu's armor. This is not simply a bandaid, as it essentially changes your type to undead, so normal attacks hurt less, but holy and life KILL YOU. It also comes with two of the most useful spells available through splicing. Chlorine hits every enemy, always, and inflicts poison and lowers defense by about a fourth. The tiny damage is merely to make the mooks remember that they're currently alive, but with a quarter of their defense gone, that will change very soon. Shadowbreath also costs 0, and instantly kills anything that's not a machine with about a 25% success rate. Warrior should get EX, so you get two shots at this. For 0 mana, two tries at 25% instant death is kinda good. It's worth noting, from a lore and writing perspective, that Ryu has as much control over death as he does life, while normally, only of them can be mastered. He's the only dragon in the series that can do this.

Uniquely, all warrior splices take a 20% HP decrease if they add thorn. I theorize this was for obvious balance reasons, so while you're a cheap as fuck god of war, you'll die like a bitch, and few of your item buffs are counted for the type. Other than the above, there's not a lot more to the AK of dragons, with the exception of eldritch, which gives him access to some powerful healing spells by default, top tier elemental attacks if he's got an element, and about doubles his magic defense AND magic damage. Most notably, this splicing gives you access to the remedy spell, which negates all status effects and debuffs for 7 mana, and the presence of eldritch doesn't negatively change any of your stats. EX lets him do powerful heals, then he can hit for warrior damage. Very useful and nice. Now I'll talk about his signature form.

>>56349258
That's true. Frostlings were changed for a lot better. Rather than just being a peripheral barely even mentioned bunch of cold dudes.

Tigrans are a fair substitute for Azracs too.

>>56349516
for me the 3d graphics style feels boring but the 2d art style of aow2 feels more magical and comfy. I also dont like the fact that units are not one character but instead well...a unit. the cities look all same in the combat map.

I still like aow3 though. its not like there are a lot of alternatives. I find their undeads to be interesting and I like the new mount system.

>>56349622
>its not like there are a lot of alternatives.

This is too true. And yet thankfully it was successful even with it being a somewhat archaic genre in market terms. I hope we get an AoW 4.

>>56349622

I like Age of Wonders 3 myself. I do, however, wish your choice of leader did more with your race. Most race/class interactions give almost the exact same units (Looking at you Sorcerer/Dreadnaught/Necromancer/Druid/Endgame rogue).

I'd have really liked to have seen more stuff like how the Manticore Rider for Warlord works, where each race dramatically changes how that unit plays. Or how Frostlings get Ice Tanks rather than Flame Tanks.

>>56295075

Oh man I love that one, i still have the original CD, but never play the expansion.

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>>56350008
>>56295075

Ah yeah, reinstalling this gem.

>>56349258
>But I do like the changed up Frostlings.
How were they changed?

I liked Azarcs original desu.

The most memorable thing about AoW to me- aside from literally everything and the way that fucking manual defined fantasy for me for literally a decade after- was the campaign. The branching motherfucking campaign. They let you make choices and the ending- the same map regardless of how you get there- actually changes based on it.

They let you make choices, and they let you FUCK THINGS UP.
You can win and everyone can live happily ever after.
You can 'win' but be left broken hearted in a world that has moved on and will never return to what you knew.
You can be damned to live eternal as (effectively) Cain, enemy of mankind in perpetuity.
You can be captured by a lich and his undead minions and made undead at swordpoint.
Or my favorite, you can do everything for your dark lord as commanded until he.... vanishes? And suddenly, favored servant of the missing dark lord, literally everyone is your enemy, but in your pride and hatred you damn them all and refuse to step down.

Goddamn I loved those endings.

>>56349788
It's the same units but they do get different abilities at least, even class units work a bit differently like dwarf phalanx is a better unit than a goblin one but more expensive and so on.
At least there is actually some fairly notable differences if you get into the stats. Would have been a lot easier for there to be none.

>>56349622
>>56349726
>>56349788
I don't know if I missed the golden age or if the older games were just as shit, but I've played Age of Wonders 3, Elemental: War of Magic I was a fucking preorder buyer and it was so shit I could only run it in 2d map mode on a laptop that had no issues playing DoW2 at high gfx settings and got a free copy of Fallen Enchantress from Stardock because of it, Warlock: Master of the Arcane and Warlock 2, Eador: Shards of the Fallen, Endless Legend, and Dominions 3 and 4, and none of them ever hooked up. Endless Legend probably did the best job of creating this feeling of actually building a fantasy empire in a magical world, but it still didn't really make my leader choice feel like a character who actually did anything. None of the armies felt unique, the combat felt like bad turn-based RPG combat on a big scale, and all the cities felt samey no matter what I built in them, except for Endless Legend.

Making alliances with or assimilating other races didn't feel like it had much point in any of them. Diplomacy was always kind of weak because there were so few win conditions, except EL again. And EL still frustrated me in the combat and diplomacy. Diplomacy always felt like a pointless minigame when played with the AI.

Dominions with the AI was really boring. I feel like the systems in that were too obtuse for me to really manipulate without overcoming a steep learning curve, and this is coming from a guy who loves EvE Online. There was also the issue of the game feeling much more like a wargame rather than a 4x, and "leading" your nation didn't really feel like building a nation in CKII or other Paradox games.

What am I doing wrong?

>>56350871

Oh yeah, there are still some (I was overstating it a bit) but Sorcerer, Druid and Dreadnaught are big ones for having really samey units (Since race doesn't affect summons and even piloted vehicles inherit nothing from their race).

I'd have liked for more on the scale of the Manticore rider though, where they are a dramatic shift up rather than some slight stat differences/rarely an ability change.

>>56350868
AoW?

>>56349583
>>56349415
>>56349071
>>56347860
Lol @ this guy who typed all this up when no one gives a single fuck. Sorry bro.

>>56349788
there are some good mods on steam workshop for racial different units shits

>>56351009
All the ones you listed are inferior sequels to the golden age of "Near-Apotheosis-state Wizard simulator" games.

AoW Shadow Magic honestly was my favorite with shits like the various spirits, your sphere allotment, the sorta diplomatic and geopolitical beats of global spells and disjunctions, etc.

>>56351511
But why are they so shit then? Modern space 4X had a tremendous renaissance and rebirth after Sins of a Solar Empire and GalCiv2. Even traditional historical 4X games revived after Total War Shogun 2 and Civilization V.

>>56344586
dgVoodoo2 solves pretty much all old DirectX related faults. I managed to get Hyperblade working with it, and that uses DX2.

>>56351581
Did you forget that after GalCiv 2 came GalCiv 3 which was just as shit as the Fantasy games you're talking about?

Did you forget the blunder Civ 5 was at release and the continued blunder that is Civ 6?

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>>56291640
>this pic was my first

imagine living in the old country, and reading a book where you had no preconceived fantasy notions. often in the dark before bed.
this is the only image you have, that and real-world experience with being in the wolds, seeing animals, killing large bugs.

indeed, when i discovered how everyone else saw fantasy, i found it dry and repetitive.
sad, actually.

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>ctrl f
>Only one mention of Age of Mythology
The music alone has stayed with me since childhood. The game itself was what got me looking into ancient mythology.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gMOLrTNdTlU&index=2&list=PL5149F2CAD2F42910

>>56351781
Civ V on launch was actually fun, unlike Civ VI.

GalCiv3 launched in an incomplete state and it's no worse than GalCiv2. It's just not better in any way than Galciv2.

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>>56298737
I wish I got to grow up playing those games. Funny enough NWN1 is the one close to my own heart, but I did replay BG2 this year and I think the series of BG more lovely as a whole in comparison.

Contributing.

>>56352004
I enjoyed it at the time, but on reflection the game was really bad at turtling. Towers and walls were total crap.

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My grandpa read me norse myths when I was little. When I got a little older and got into tabletop I stole so much of that shit verbatim, and my friends had no clue.

>>56352004
to this day from its release I still play this game on a regular basis. one of the best games ever in the history of video games. I still remember how blown away I was at the graphics of the sea waves in 2002. what a campaign! still got the soundtrack as a playlist on my phone

>>56351080
Age of Wonders, silly.

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This ain't quite as old, and might be more /v/ than the rest, but how about Magicka? I think it's an absolutely treasure, hilarious, surprisingly deep, and the wonderful "everything is broken, nothing is balanced, all this means it that we don't have to give any kind of fuck for difficulty when designing levels" design philosophy is beautiful.

>>56350406
Favorite faction?

>>56339692
settlers 2 is superior, but i agree that 3 and 4 aesthetics are comfy as fuck

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6FXeupOp04

>>56353686
Aramon or Zhon, but I really like each faction and how different they feel. The campaign does a great job in that sense, one scenario you are playing Veruna with Greek warriors, amazons and berserkers trying to push into the jungle the next you are playing Zhon throwing those same soldiers back into the sea with a horde of orcs and giants.

>>56354259
Thirsha was my first waifu for sure. This game had incredible music, incredible story, incredible art, unique looking graphics. I have always been surprised that it never got much attention. Oh well I guess there's something kind of nice about it being obscure though.

https://youtu.be/cCiuXRTGqBE
https://youtu.be/2QpqsiAmcao

>>56322405
Aribeth's armor is in that weird space that's somewhere between practical-looking armor and bikini armor. The in-between stuff is actually what bothers me the most. I prefer when they just commit to one style or the other.

>>56331586
go download a snes emulator and secret of mana and get it done mang

its comfy

>>56330088
They also don't make sense for a paladin in terms of aesthetics.

>>56351511
agreed

>>56297543
>but it actively tries to evokes nostalgia for the earlier games and does quite well in that regard
To be honest, the only thing I liked in it was voice lines for PCs.

>>56296639
Fuck yes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8f6doWqWvSo

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https://youtu.be/0IQY_js0DkM?t=276

Even very nearly 20 years later, some people still play; really makes me happy to know this game's weird aesthetic never died. Did anyone else play Myth II/TFL?

>>56349583
I always kind of hated that humanoid form. It was novel at first, but basically overtook all the cooler forms in future games.

>>56353217
Its main problem is that you need friends to play it with. Much of the fun comes from the ways in which the various attacks interact and bounce off each other. Like shooting high-energy lasers at extremely reflective discoballs.

>>56354471
I wish I could find its art assets online.

>>56358808
Doesn't seem like having to have some m80s to get the most out of it should be too much for a traditional games board.
But I sure wish their netcode was better.

Ultima 9. My best friend's dad was (most likely still is) a massive nerd. Video games, Star Trek, Lord of the Rings, D&D, Paranoia, he taught us all that shit. I remember us as 8 year olds. I'd go to sleep over at his place and his dad would secretly let us stay up all night watching him play some games. I remember Red Alert 2 and some Sierra quests but Ultima 9 was the one we got super absorbed in.

>>56291828
>AoW
how is aow shadowmagic campaign?

>>56361098
IDK, I think it's crazy broken because you can take as long as you want on each mission and finish up the spellbooks/craft crazy items/etc before moving on.

>>56349472
>discord
no interest?

>>56351392

Yeah, I'm running one of them. It's purely visual but it's such an improvement to change up the look of the units to match the faction look better. Stuff like giving elven musketmen the elven helmets or making their berserkers swordancer guys with two swords rather than a single huge axe does wonders.

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>>56296637
At first i thought the woman on the bottom had a black shotgun. Just about to put some nice 12-gauge buck into whoever the archer is aiming at.

Then i realised it is just her other leg. Damn.

HoMM II was damn comfy. Still remember playing it on my first pc. Floppy. Those were the days.

Icewind dale and Baldur's gate were the tightest shit. Getting my fighter to high level and sniping hostile mages with poison bolts before they could cast stone skin was sweet. Roleplaying him as a crusader somehow getting stuck in fantasyland proceeding to DEUS VULT evil witches was neat as well.

>>56292045
>Campaign path Keepers->Lizardmen->High Men best most bittersweet path.
Starting as Cult of Storms was better IMO. Makes it a more a path of redemption kind of story.

Lizardmen route is best route either way.

>>56351009
>Dominions with the AI was really boring. I feel like the systems in that were too obtuse for me to really manipulate without overcoming a steep learning curve, and this is coming from a guy who loves EvE Online.
>There was also the issue of the game feeling much more like a wargame rather than a 4x, and "leading" your nation didn't really feel like building a nation in CKII or other Paradox games.
You're right on both counts. That doesn't make it a bad game, just not what you're looking for.

Dominions AI is notoriously shitty. It's noticeably better in Dom5 (release version end of this month!), but still nothing that'll challenge a decent player. Single player is good for exploring the game's many options in a safe environment or for general fucking around, but if you want to get serious your only option is multiplayer.

Dominions is also a wargame as you say, and not a real 4X gane. The focus is entirely on military conquest and army vs army battles, while economy and diplomacy only really serve as a limiting factor to how quickly you can build your armies and not a fleshed out gameplay element on their own. Ironically, the lack of diplomacy options means that diplomacy in multiplayer games can get hilariously complex and convoluted since it all takes place outside the actual game, with players secretly negotiating treaties and alliances behind the scenes, while backstabbing is a way of life since there's nothing holding you to your deals apart from your own sense of loyalty.

>>56366375
There's no redemption through the cult though, what the fuck.

>>56366597
Not if you go full Cult, but I'm talking about doing Cult->Lizards->Highmen.

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>>56366615
What the fuck anon.
Didn't you read the ending or anything? Your character ends up hating the highman and humans and vows to manipulate them as much as he can to have his revenge.

>>56366273
I tought the same about the shotgun

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I know it's a controversial entry in the series, but HoMM IV was "my" HoMM. Me and my friends wasted so many hours waiting for our turns in LAN mode.

Plus, the soundtrack was fucking GOAT. The game stands tall on it alone.
>https://youtu.be/KByla_uGhro

>>56366375
goblins->orcs->delves is best.

>>56357305
>2/4
casualty

>>56366690
It didn't sit right with me that you couldn't "win" with the cult. Your fellow cult members turn on you at the end or you get executed and turn into an undead by the necromancers. But I guess its foreshadow since the cult was already showing signs of tearing itself apart even before reaching the Valley of Wonders. Only you and Meander are the only ones pulling their weight.

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Oh yes, please post more retro fantasy art

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>>56291640
You are a man of superior tastes.

>>56291692
Fuck man I loved that game.

I remember building mad amounts of temples to krypta on levels with dragons since skeletons had a high chance to dodge missile attacks.

Too bad Majesty 2 felt so lifeless

>>56367194
Yeah, ost was awesome. And some of the campaigns, like Elwin & Shaera / Pirate's Daughter. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hkDXNSWJLuo

>>56296912
mmm love that logistics

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>>56302707
This shit hits me right in the fantasy dreams feels. Thank you.

We cant make this kind of fantasy anymore, the weird mix of Conan and Tolkien.