Battle Realms
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| Battle Realms | |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | Liquid Entertainment |
| Publisher(s) | Ubisoft |
| Distributor(s) | Ubisoft |
| Release date(s) | 2001 |
| Genre(s) | Real-time strategy |
| Mode(s) | Single-player and Multiplayer |
| Rating(s) | ESRB: Teen (T) |
| Platform(s) | Microsoft Windows |
| Media | 1 CDs |
| Input | Keyboard and Mouse |
Battle Realms, released by Ubisoft in 2001, is a real-time strategy computer game and is the first game created by relatively new Liquid Entertainment. Ubisoft released the stand alone expansion pack Battle Realms: Winter of the Wolf in 2002.
Contents |
[edit] Overview
Battle Realms follows the basic formula for many real-time strategy games. All of its factions have similar buildings, with similar uses, and worker drones. However, this is where Battle Realms differentiates itself from the rest. Whereas worker drones in other games simply do tedious labor (such as resource-gathering and building), worker drones in Battle Realms do another important thing: they can be trained into advanced units.
The basic worker drone units are called peasants in Battle Realms. Peasants gather the two resources in the game: rice and water. They also round up horses, which can be used by most other units in the game and can provide additional payload for peasants. Peasants can build all of the buildings in the games.
Peasants are the only units the player can produce outright. Most of the buildings available are schools where peasants are trained into a variety of other units. For example: sending a Dragon peasant to a dojo will train it into a Spearman; an archery range will train it into an Archer; an alchemist hut to train it into an Alchemist. These can be trained further into advanced units by sending them into the remaining schools. For example, sending a spearman to an archery range or an alchemist hut will produce a Dragon Warrior or Kabuki Warrior, respectively. Peasants can have a maximum of three levels of learning; one clan has four.
Also, certain buildings can teach special techniques (called Battle Gears) for a price, giving new abilities to aid the said units. They can also allow units to defeat higher tier units they normally would have a problem (or be slaughtered) from.
Another key element in Battle Realms is Yin and Yang. Yin and Yang are only obtained in battle. Yang is for the Dragon and the Wolf clan while the Yin is for the Serpent and the Lotus clan. They are used to summon heroes, upgrade units, and strengthen Battle Gears. The farther units are from their base, the faster Yin/Yang can be harvested.
[edit] Story
The story begins with a young traveller, Kenji, narrating the events that lead to today's world. The Horde was destroying everything in its path. Tarrant the Elder, his ancestor was forced to use the Dragon Clan's most sacred and powerful treasure, the Serpent's Orb. It was given to them by the clan's totem, the Dragon itself. With it, he destroyed the Horde, but at a terrible price. The continent was cut in half, and various other clans were affected. The Wolf Clan on their island experienced destructive storms due to the Dragon's Fury, and were forced to use their clan's treasure, the White Wolf's Skull, given to them by their totem, the White Wolf. The Lotus Clan, living peacefully on their island, away from the troubles of other clans, suddenly found no seas and their land besieged by the Horde. In desperation, some of them embraced the Forbidden Path, the dark side of the Lotus, and acquired tremendous power. With the little magic they had learned, they fled their island. The Dragon's people, traumatized at the events, reawoke as the Serpent Clan.
Suddenly, Kenji witnesses Serpent bandits butchering a peasant village. Should Kenji join his clansmen and teach the peasants their place? Or he could save the peasants and slay the bandits? Either way opens up the two paths to the story. Kenji could rejoin the Serpent Clan and become its master. Or he could reawaken the Dragon Clan, a clan long dead.
[edit] Play Details
One of the most important things in Battle Realms is that all units have a melee attack, even missile units (with one exception). Missile units' melee attacks are weaker than their missile attacks. This puts missile units in a dangerous position: if a melee unit comes in close, they will be forced to engage in melee, usually with disastrous results. However, there are some exceptions (see below)..
A unit's attack has a property - either cutting, piercing, blunt, magic, explosive, or fire. The property of a unit's missile attack may also differ from their melee attack. Each unit has resistances to particular properties and weaknesses to others. For example, the Dragon Samurai has excellent resistance against cutting, but a poor resistance to explosive. This means that a Serpent Swordsman's cutting attack would hardly dent the Samurai's health, but the Wolf Pitch Slinger's explosive attack would drastically reduce it. This also means that although a melee unit can usually defeat a missile unit, the melee unit may fail; the property of the missile unit's melee attack is the weakness of the melee unit's.
Most units have an innate ability, whether it be the Spearman's immunization of height advantages or the Infested One's area of effect attack. These could be supportive, such as the Kabuki Warrior's idle animation which regenerates peasants' stamina, or offensive, such as the Blade Acolyte's idle animation, which sharpens his blade and increases its damage.
Every unit has two status bars: a green health bar and a blue stamina bar. Stamina is used for most Battle Gears, as well as running, increasing a unit's speed until all stamina has been depleted. A unit can also regenerate (albeit slowly) they're health until it reaches the green zone; the Wolf Clan can regenerate theirs full. Healing in this game takes a different approach to other games. In Battle Realms, healers automatically heal a unit when its health reaches the yellow zone (50%) or red zone (20%). They then restore the unit to 100% hit points immediately. However, they can be ordered to heal units near full health. Healers in Battle Realms become a very powerful unit because they heal to full hit points in one charge. Dragon and Serpent geisha use 1/2 to 1/4 of their stamina while Lotus channelers sacrifice a raven. The Wolf Clan uses no healers because of their speedy regeneration.
In Battle Realms, the player is limited to four watch towers. Furthermore, each watch tower doesn't have an attack, they act as scout towers. To give them an attack, one must place units inside them. The unit then attacks using their range attack, if they have any. A unit inside a watch tower has longer range. Towers also have special abilities depending on the clan that depletes their stamina.
Battle Realms' environments are not simply for eye candy. Trees are not impassable, and there are advantages to passing through trees, such as restricting enemy units' vision. Furthermore, the trees of a forest may block missile attacks until they get destroyed by them. However, traveling through forest will reduce a unit's speed, and certain trees have birds in them that automatically take flight if any unit passes underneath them, alerting the other clans to your unit's presence.
[edit] The Four Clans
| Clan | Description |
|---|---|
| Dragon Clan | The ancient Dragon Clan prize honor above all rest. They scorn the use of firearms, preferring to fight honorably. Their warriors seek to become one with their weapons, becoming specialized with them. In spite of this, only three units do not have range; the Spearman, the Geisha, and Peasant. Although they may seem to be the beginner's clan, they do have their own advanced strategies that make them dangerous. |
| Serpent Clan | Descendants of the Dragon Clan, the Serpent have forgotten their honorable ways and have resorted to thievery and deceit. Unlike their Dragon ancestors, they do not scorn the use of firearms; instead they have learned to employ its use in many of their fighting arts. Even though the Dragon knew how to use gunpowder, it was the Serpent who uncovered its secrets. Many newbies say that the Dragon and Serpent Clans are not much different from one another, but that is not the case; for instance, Serpent units tend to be faster. |
| Wolf Clan | The wild Wolf Clan prize freedom above all else. Unlike the other clans, they have no cavalry, nor do they have healers. They feed the horses to their wolves, which accompany them and partake in their battles. Their wounds knit amazingly fast, faster even with the use of herbs. They prefer melee combat; even their ranged fighters pack a punch. They know a little magic, and much of it tied to nature. The Wolf Clan is perfect for newbies, though they have enough secrets for experts as well. |
| Lotus Clan | The Lotus Clan is the remnant of a Yang Clan of old, but now a Yin Clan. They follow the Forbidden Path, which centralizes around death and decay. Their religion centralizes around three ancient brothers, now long gone, who tend to the Yin side of the Tree of Life, the Tree of Corruption. The Lotus Clan’s strategy centralizes to their immense understanding of magic, which translates to unit abilities and Battle Gears. They have some of the most powerful Battle Gears in the realm. Their clan too alone has a fourth level of learning for its peasants. Their Warlocks and Master Warlocks have three sets of Battle Gears, whereas the other clans have two. A side note is that, to become a Warlock, you must conquer Death and Decay, the principles of the Forbidden Path. Mastering this, Lotus Warlocks and Master Warlocks are nearly immortal. |
[edit] Zen Masters
Zen Masters take the role of heroes in this game. Zen Masters are the lords of the clan; who make certain each clans' survival. They are summoned at a cost of Yin/Yang, as well as rice and water. Their Battle Gears are unique, and can turn the tide of a battle in an instant. Usually assuming the role of lords, demons or powerful warriors, they are summoned from Keeps.
- Dragon Clan
- Otomo
- Garrin
- Arah
- Kazan
- Tao
- Teppo
- Serpent Clan
- Shinja
- Budo
- Utara
- Vetkin
- Taro
- The Necromancer
- Wolf Clan
- Grayback
- Longtooth
- Shale Lord
- Gaihla
- Wildeye
- Lotus Clan
- Zymeth
- Koril
- Issyl
- Soban
- Yvaine
- The Three Brothers
[edit] Units
Here are the units and their quotes.
Dragon Clan
Peasant, Spearman, Archer, Chemist, Dragon Warrior, Kabuki Warrior, Powder Keg Canonneer, Samurai, Geisha, Battle Maiden, Guardian
Serpent Clan
Peasant, Swordsman, Crossbowman, Musketeer, Bandit, Raider, Canonneer, Ronin, Fan Geisha, Witch, Enforcer
Lotus Clan
Peasant, Blade Acolyte, Leaf Disciple, Staff Adept, Infested One, Diseased One, Unclean One, Warlock, Master Warlock, Channeler, Overseer, Reaper
Wolf Clan
Peasant, Brawler, Hurler, Mauler, Sledger, Ballistaman, Pitch slinger, Berserker, Werewolf, Pack Master, Druidess, Dryad, Digger
