Warrior Kings Preview

Shogun: Total War appeared on the RTS market a couple of months ago. Being a computer rendition of a board game, it managed combining all the fun of playing board games with modern 3D technology. The result was more than impressive: hundreds of soldiers charging on the battlefield and rendered in real time. Even before it appeared, all the previews and announcements made it clear it was going to become very popular. After it appeared, it was obvious that it would get "successors".

Warrior Kings was first announced at this year's ECTS as a game that will follow the successful path of Shogun. Even the first screenshots make this apparent. Still, the world of Warrior Kings will primarily be a fantasy setting, which will break many boundaries imposed by Shogun. This isn't just another fantasy world with nice ladies in distress and courageous heroes who save them from dragons and alike... No, the world of Warrior Kings is truly a dark one, and you will barely be able to distinguish the hero from the villain. All that, wrapped in a fantastic 3D design of the aforementioned shady characters and their hosts.

The game takes place in a middle age fantasy setting, where armies of chaos and magic collide. Most of the realms are in constant wars with each other, and what's more, some awkward creatures from other dimensions and worlds that subdue and enslave the natives and their dead decide to join them. Being a regent of a small kingdom, the player has to unite the rest o the kingdoms using either force or diplomacy. The ultimate goal is creating a powerful empire that would take up the entire map.

As for how the empire would come to be, that's entirely up to you. First, you can choose to align with the light or with the dark side. On one side you can embark on a crusade with strong religious support and with some politically correct metaphysical entities by your side (i.e. angels, cherubs, etc.). On the other hand, you can research demonology and summon unholy chimeras to aid you in your bloody carnage. If you do decide to become a cruel, bloodthirsty tyrant, your neighbors will respond to that by sword rather than diplomacy, and it will influence your soldiers' and subjects' devotion. Army generals will give their troops various bonuses in combat skill and morale as an army without a good leader is like a skilful warrior without a weapon.

The game will feature five different resources vital for your army. All resources will be equally important, but the main resource will be - food. Everyone knows that a hungry soldier is not much of a soldier; hence, all troops will have an additional characteristic - hunger - showing if they are well fed or not. If your troops get hungry, you will face rebellions, theft, betrayal, and desertion. As you can see, the provisions will strategically be very important. This is why the game will feature several buildings meant for creating and delivering food like cornfields, mills, bakeries, and delivery caravans. Of course, you'll also have to arm your troops in order to make them fight. This is what the next two resources are good for - iron and gold. The gold will be there to lure men into your forces, and iron will be used to forge buildings, swords, crossbows, spears, and guns for harquebus -warriors. The last two resources are wood and stone, and they are used for building structures (Isn't this the same type of resources as in AoE -Ed). You won't use resources only to build your troops; you will also have to use them in order to maintain your troops in functional condition. The soldiers have to eat before the battle, and this introduces a great new strategic element - supply trains. These well-defended wooden cars were used as a means of transport before men invented plains and choppers. If a troop gets cut off of its supplies, it gets completely demoralized.

Armies containing dozens of units and thousands of warriors should really be a spectacular sight. Black Cactus says that Warrior Kings uses the same gameplay principles as Shogun. That means that each soldier has his own AI, and that the fights will take place between individual soldiers rather than entire armies. That is why the overall moral of your units may prove crucial for the outcome of the battle. There will be notable differences between types of units: Mounted Knights will easily overpower common infantry, but they would stand no chance against infantry armed with spears. The terrain will also have great strategic influence, and proper use of terrain features could ensure victory just as a well-devised attack strategy.

No contemporary RTS could function without technology trees and upgrades, and Warrior Kings is certainly no exception there. It will feature a detailed tech-tree, specific for each race. During tech-tree advance you will at some points have to choose the direction of your race's development, and you better choose wisely, for once you choose, there's no going back and researching obsolete technologies. Each technology upgrade will influence your strategy, especially inventions like Greek fire, gunpowder, priests, ships, siege engines and other useful tools. The way you advance will depend on the side you choose: if you choose to play on the dark side, you receive upgrades for sacrifices you make to the evil Gods, and if you choose to play the good guys, your development relies on how much faith your subjects have in their local gods. Both AI and human players always start from null, and it is up to them to choose their development path, which promises really great playability.

One of the main novelties in Warrior Kings should be the Castle Siege (Yeah, anybody remember Defender of Crown - Ed). Ok, so ballistae and battering rams did appear in earlier games, but they were never properly used to tear down castle defenses in full 3D. Imagine the soldiers trying to break through the main gates as the defenders pour boiling oil over their comrades who do their best to climb the battlements. Ahh, the beauties of medieval warfare...

There's still a lot of time left since the game actually appears. I suppose the developers intend to introduce a great number of novelties until it does. Still, for the time being, they do look lovely and worth the wait.