Quote Originally Posted by gollum View Post
This sounds like a nice feature if only the AI can use it well. In previous games there was an influence zone but it was so small as to be inconsequential.
When you look at the screenshots that accompany that preview, there's one on the second page where you can see an army and a yellow coloured circle around it. It's not overly large but much better than the one square we had in the previous games. That one army there could well seal off the northern border, by positioning itself half-way between the mountains and the sea.

Quote Originally Posted by gollum View Post
One of the things that sounded not-so-good though was that you can receive new units with out grouping them and moving them on the strat map anywhere. It is mentioned that you can get reinforcements irrespective if you are away from barracks or in enemy territory. I hope this is implemented with appropriate travel times, otherwise it might ruin the game significantly.
Yeah I wondered about that too. It sounded a bit strange and different from what I've heard so far. It was mentioned several times that this recruiting is just a convenience thing and the troops still have to travel to your position physically. No mention in this preview though, maybe he just got it wrong or explained it a little weird.