Disciples II

[LeftEyeNine]

GOG has Disciples II Gold (main game + 3 expansion packs) for $10.

I liked HoMM series. Would I like this ?

[frogbeastegg]

If it's any help I've had it recommended to me a bunch of times in various places because I like HoMM. The caveat seems to be that the AI is a bit below par so you need to play on the hardest difficulty. More of a relaxing game than a challenging one.

It sounded good enough that I was tempted to pick up a copy for a long time. It was very hard to get the full gold edition in the UK so I was perpetually put off, not wanting to buy an incomplete package with no means of picking up the remaining expansions. Then GoG acquired the gold edition and not longer after put it on promotion so I took the plunge. Not got around to playing it yet; too many games and too little time.

[Martok]

I've recommended it in the past. My single biggest gripe is that it's more of a mission-based campaign as opposed to a free-form & open-ended map (ala Master of Magic or Civ). Still, it's a gorgeous game, and it's pretty decent overall.

[LeftEyeNine]

How about items ? Plenty ? Would I care to dig every corner of a map assuming I could encounter something interesting ?

[Ironside]

How about items ? Plenty ? Would I care to dig every corner of a map assuming I could encounter something interesting ?

Yes. Was a while since I played, but if you're item hunting then you'll need to dig around (well rather visit every ruin etc on the map) and IIRC almost all the good stuff is found there. You'll keep a few chosen items through the scenarios (and one hero of choosing) so it's almost always worth to search for improvements.

You basically got a hero squad of 6 units (a most) that you level up. Fairly quickly, losing your experinced group is game breaking (come to think about it, it's about the same with HoMM). I think it's why it has a downside with the AI, as it apply to the opponents aswell. Add in that magic is very powerful (and essential) you can fairly easy cripple the AI with a quick strike. Then again, they're usually not the main target (it's almost impossible to kill off a player because everyone got a nasty guardian in their main cities) to pass the level.

Found it a good game. Nothing game breaking but good on what it does.