REDISCOVERING THE MAGIC

Time has moved forward, many games have come and gone, but Disciples 2: Dark Prophecy released in January 2002 is still fondly remembered. It continues to flourish as an excellent example of a turn-based strategy game with RPG elements. Join with me now as we go back into the world of Nevandaar and rediscover the magic that captivated gamers over a year ago and still does to this day!

ENTER THE WORLD OF NEVANDAAR

You play in the world of Nevendaar, home to four races that dwell upon its surface, two good races: The Empire and the Mountain Clans and two evil races: The Legions of the Damned and the Undead Hordes. The First Great Wars that ravaged and almost destroyed the world ten years ago left much tragedy and strife upon the good races. The Empire lies on the verge of collapse as the King suffers from the wars that claimed the Queen and only heir, his son Uther. The Dwarven Mountain Clans lie battered and weakened themselves from the heavy casualties they suffered in the First Great Wars.

Now ten years after the First Great Wars while the Empire and Mountain Clans remain shattered, the two evil races move forward with their dark desires. The demonic Legions of the Damned work to perform the ritual that will release their vile master Bethrezen upon the world. Mortis, goddess of death who commands the Undead Hordes, has her own agendas in the chaos, as she plots to revive her beloved husband Gallean by any means necessary. Then whispers upon the wind bring news that Uther, heir to the Empire has been sighted, but what is his purpose in all this madness, in a world threatened by a sinister dark prophecy?

GORGEOUS VISUALS

The art in Disciples 2 still remains as impressive today as it was over a year ago. Each unit you use in the game has a corresponding portrait that illustrates the units in stunning and vibrant detail. These are no ordinary portraits but look like oil paintings that have been created by a master artist. You notice this attention to detail not just in the character portraits but in other facets of the game, such as in the terrains, spell effects and unit renderings.

Even in the menu select screen you will admire beautiful scenery in the background as you watch the gentle flowing waters of a river nearby. The battle backgrounds your characters fight in will also delight your eyes with the intense amount of detail evident within them. If you were able to obtain the collector’s edition of Disciples 2 last year you were also treated to the inclusion of the card game titled, Disciples 2: Blades of War, which contains 180 original cards. It is a 2 to 4 player strategic card game set in the Disciples 2 world. It is an interesting card game to play with friends but even more impressive because the cards are illustrated with the game's beautiful artwork. Simply put, Disciples 2 will sweep you away in its gorgeous visuals, all thanks to a commendable job by the talented artists!

EXCITING GAMEPLAY

You are probably wondering if there is more to the game than its visuals. A game can’t stand on its visuals alone but must provide exciting gameplay to complement it. Disciples 2: Dark Prophecy does an excellent job here as well and playing it again recently has brought back all those memories. In this game you can play the included 15 quests, which are single scenarios or the included four campaigns referred to as sagas. After choosing your desired race and portrait for your character, you must decide which lord type you will play as; a Warrior Lord, Mage Lord, or Guildmaster Lord.

Choosing the Warrior Lord grants you the ability to regenerate 15% of the damage you and your units suffer per day but you can only research up to the fourth level of spells. The Mage Lord has all the spells available to them and can cast two of them per day. The Guildmaster Lord gives your thief units more abilities to use against your enemies as well as lowering the cost to advance your cities. The Guildmaster Lord can only use up to the fourth level of spells as well. Once you have chosen your lord type, difficulty level and character portrait, the fun begins!

You will always have a capital city base from which you will start each game. Your capital is the source of your power and where you will make many important decisions. This is where you will research magic, construct buildings, hire units and leaders. Each race has 5 different leaders with their own unique abilities. Leaders are important because they are the only ones that can use the units that you will hire in the game. Leaders also have a Paperdoll interface in which you can equip any special artifacts, banners, magical tomes and other items that you will find while playing. Some leaders will not be able to equip certain items unless you have the proper skill. Each race has two units that are similar and have specialized tasks.

There is one unit that goes around planting rods to gain control of valuable resources. Then there is the thief unit that goes around spying on your enemies, poisoning your party and many other unique strategies that only the thief can employ. When you approach an enemy you initiate combat and are taken to the battlefield. Combat occurs in turns and the order you attack in is based on the specific abilities of your party members. Your units will not be able to move across the battlefield but you will be able to attack your enemies through your weapons and spells. There are also two slots available on your leader which items such as health potions can be equipped for use in battle.

Each of the four races has their own units you will use in battle. The Empire has units such as Knights and Wizards while the Mountain Clans have Rock Giants and Flame Casters. The Undead Hordes have vile creatures such as Ghosts and Werewolves while the Legions of the Damned command Demons and Witches into their service. Expect about 200 units as you play each of the four races in this intriguing game. There are some 100 spells to be found in the game as well, from ones that summon creatures to aid you, ones that heal and strengthen to some that send lightning and fire attacks upon your enemies.

I was impressed by the way the story flowed in the campaigns through the finely crafted cutscenes before each quest or through events in the game. As you play the Empire campaign you will eventually discover that the Emperor has been poisoned as well as other political intrigues that threaten to destroy the Human Empire from within. Some quests will have you finding a specific person that is crucial in forming an alliance, to ones where you must vanquish the leader of a death cult. Other mysteries and surprises surface as you play the campaigns from the other races. The story kept me interested in playing the game which is testament to the excellent effort put forth by the writers on the Disciples 2 team.

I also liked how units upgraded once they gained enough experience in battle. When units upgraded they not only got stronger but vast changes in how they looked occurred as well. Watch as a Squire becomes a Knight clad in armor riding a horse when enough experience is gained. The game gives you many exciting variations of paths that your units can take so your Squire can become a Witch Hunter instead of a Knight should you choose this path. I liked caring for my units as they gained experience and became better as they were not expendable units as in other games. You must work at keeping your units alive and well because that is the only way you will be able to create the strong armies that your enemies will fear. Completing the visuals and the gaming experience is the use of some excellent music, sound and environmental effects that add to the atmosphere and charm of this game.

THE FUTURE OF THE DISCIPLES 2 WORLD

Disciples 2: Dark Prophecy may have been released over a year ago but playing the game today it still remains an enjoyable and memorable experience. All of the many special details that can be found within this game speak very highly of the efforts put forward by the Strategy First Disciples 2 team. Even now the team is working on something very interesting for Disciples 2 with the release of two upcoming expansion packs, Disciples 2: Guardians of the Light coming in May 2003 and Disciples 2: Servants of the Dark coming in June 2003. To learn more about them, read our fascinating interview with the developers by clicking on the appropriate link below.

There are a few areas that could have been done better in Disciples 2. Sometimes units and items may be difficult to spot, such as on forest terrain, as they tend to blend in with the environment. There are banners that you can equip on your units that will help with this problem, although this should not have been necessary. There should have also been many more areas on the terrain for your units to interact with beyond the few magical shops and others that you can find. I often came upon areas on the terrain that I thought I could interact with but they were simply there for visual reasons and served no other purpose. Even with those few minor flaws, this is an intriguing turned-based strategy game that you should play if you have not had the opportunity or you can wait for the upcoming expansion packs. They are stand-alone expansion packs so it will not be required to have the original game to play. Disciples 2: Dark Prophecy’s gorgeous visuals will amaze the eyes as the gameplay excites the spirit and the finely composed music and sounds stir the soul!

Final Grade: 92%
Just RPG Recommended Game

Official Disciples 2 Website

Disciples 2 Expansion Packs Interview

System Requirements:

• Windows 95/98/ 2000/ XP
• Pentium II 233 Mhz
• 32 Mb RAM
• 200 MB hard disk space
• DirectX 7.1 or higher
• 16-bit sound card
• CD-ROM drive quad speed or more
• Video card with 8 MB RAM