New to Dominions 3 any thoughts

[thorfrog]

I'm thinking of getting into Dominions 3 what is this series like? Any reviews? Any thing like Master of Magic?

[Gandalf Parker]

I think it has many things like Master of Magic.

It has extensive setup in the beginning. In Dom3 you are creating your "pretender god" by picking the image, the magics, etc. That pretender, in combination with the race you choose, gives you alot of variety in how you can play the game.

I loved Master of Magic and kept it alive on my machines for years. Same with Dominions. Dominions is much more involved than MoM but I think its fun for the same reasons that MoM was.

Oh, one big difference. In DOm you dont direct the battles.

Gandalf Parker

[BigJMoney]

You don't direct the battles, but I will add that you can script them. You give your armies orders ahead of time, and the AI does its best to carry them out properly. So the good thing there is that you do have some tactics in this game as well as strategy.

I might actually review this game for a site I have a membership on. To be fair, though, I will have to play it EXTENSIVELY for several weeks. I'll probably link to my review from here. Also, look for the demo coming out possibly next week.

=$= Big J Money =$=

[TheBigBlueBox]

Master of Magic...

A game I still have on my hard drive and I still play... With the improvements in Dom 3 I hope it will finally make me forget about MOM...

What you'll never get in the dominions series though is tactical combat, diplomacy, and civ-style construction/building like you do in MOM. What you do get is a spell and combat system that makes MOM pale in comparison. And now you get deep hero development and magic item system that harkens back to MOM.

[Frostmourne27]

I would have to say that you should really try the Dom2 demo, or wait for the dom3 demo, since it looks like it will show most stuff to. Both of the demos show most core aspects of the game, ie you get a LITTLE bit of everything. For me at least, they showed very clearly what the game was like. Expecially the combat system, which i loathed at first sight, but have learned to love to hate. It can be frustrating at first, but once you finally realise thta it does EXACTLY what you tell it to, 95% of the time, and you can predict when the 5% of the time that it doesn't will be, it actually is kinda neat. And more realistic than perfect controll over troops like in some games. People don't allways do what you tell them. Especially if its attack the dragon with your sticks or something to that efffect.

[B0rsuk]

Please don't forget about Master Of Magic. Stardock is making Master Of Magic 2, and because they're both developer and publisher they say they can afford to do the game right.
MOM2 is currently on hold since Stardock focused on (presumably) Galactic Civilisation 2.

[NTJedi]

thorfrog said:
I'm thinking of getting into Dominions 3 what is this series like? Any reviews? Any thing like Master of Magic?

Yes play the free demo and then decide if this game meets your desires.

[tibbs]

I wish someone would make the sequel to Majesty.

[Taqwus]

Among the more significant differences wrt MoM, I'd say, are --

Designed for heavy multiplayer from the get-go. Means -- many very different sides possible; no direct control in combat (doesn't scale); you organize troops and script orders during your turn. Interleaved strategic order execution rather than IGO/UGO.

More of a serious mega-wargame flavor than a heros-vs-monsters game, with sieges, supply, morale checks, fatigue. Detailed stats and rules, ex. shields provide benefit IF a parry works, long weapons can repel those using shorter ones, et al. Also, more commanders running around -- you NEED them for troops to move between provinces -- less emphasis on crafting mega-items for a few incredibly powerful heroes as you'll need to split magic resources for a few uses.

Dominion concept. Belief spreads. No believers, no nation. You might have the most provinces but be doing badly in dominion if you neglect dominion strength, temples, priest... or if you're Early/Late Mictlan and don't sacrifice enough humans.

More stealth. Stealth, patrols to detect stealth, spys which can cause unrest in enemy provinces, assassins to take out enemy commanders, whole stealth armies led by stealthy commanders attempting to sneak through a warzone to raid deep in enemy territory.

Map design: provinces versus squares. Provinces can hold a -lot- of stuff -- no 9 hero/stack limits here. Provinces have population. Provinces provide local troop types.

No real city development. Buildings are fortress (assorted types), temple, lab.

More complex magic system. More commanders can cast. Items and spells can require two paths of magic, not just one. There's both fatigue AND gem cost, if you're tossing spells in battle. Research is level/area, not individual spell, and spells can be restricted to different nations. Gems need to be used for both spells and items, so resource management matters.

Very, very moddable. Create a new nation if you like. Remake an existing one. Make all spells available at the start. Eliminate "Dispel" (!). Make the 'Luck/Misfortune' scale have far greater effect on random event likelihood. Create multiple identical nations for a bizarre tournament. Create a terrifying flying, mindless, headless monster with 1000 eyes, four life-draining tentacles, immunity to fire and even radiating heat, but with vulnerability to shock and no aptitude for magic, and offer it as a pretender type to a few nations.

[Nerfix]

Taqwus said:Create a terrifying flying, mindless, headless monster with 1000 eyes, four life-draining tentacles, immunity to fire and even radiating heat, but with vulnerability to shock and no aptitude for magic, and offer it as a pretender type to a few nations.

Hmmm...