Hi everyone,
Today we'd like to talk about the new heroes that were added in "Imperium". We'll start with explaining the general idea behind the changes we did.
There's quite a consistent system of classes and their corresponding skills in Eador. Just adding new classes that would be slightly different from the older ones, is a path to nowhere. In the end we'd just end up with 8 pretty similar heroes. So that's why we decided to use "asymmetrical" abilities.
For example, Pilot allows you to land near an enemy capital, build an outpost along with a garrison there, and then fly away. This way you can restrict enemy's actions and attack him from the main front. If you've ever played on a higher difficulty, you may have noticed — some shards can turn into World War I simulator, when both player and AI fill their defense with guards, without any forces to break through the front. Lich serves this purpose, but in another way — it's not really a big deal if he dies.
Lich and his army are dead, and as they say — what is dead may never die. A horde of undead can break through defense, die, then rise and keep going forward again. No more regrets about fallen 7-level paladins, which have been with you for 158 turns. But if those paladins are too important for you, then Legate is your choice. This lady has one big disadvantage — she's not fond of units of the 1st rank. But let's face it, on the later stages of the game these spearmen, bowmen and pikemen aren't even good enough for a human wave attack. On the other hand, having four paladins (or elephants) in your army at once is a big bonus. There's a chance you won't even need anybody else. Just to remind you, high-level Commander can have only two units of the 4th rank, while all other classes can have just one altogether.
Finally, the Sorceress. If you played D&D or at least Baldur's Gate, you'll get what she's all about right away. Why did many players refuse to play with Wizard in Eador? Because before you get access to Mages guild, you need to get ready to play for about 300 turns and spend a million of money. With Sorceress, you can forget about the Magicians Quarter altogether and get access to the spells of all schools — just be sure to gather XP.
These heroes are still going to be tweaked and changed in some ways. For example, hiring them will be a bit different — with some additional conditions and rituals. More on that later!