• Aktualisierte Forenregeln

    Eine kleine Änderung hat es im Bereich Forenregeln unter Abschnitt 2 gegeben, wo wir nun explizit darauf verweisen, dass Forenkommentare in unserer Heftrubrik Leserbriefe landen können.

    Forenregeln


    Vielen Dank

Divinity: Dragon Commander

Joschi1980

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Mir ist aufgefallen, dass es hier noch garkeinen Thread zu dem bald erscheinenden "Divinity: Dragon Commander" gibt, sieht bis jetzt ganz cool aus und ist eine Mischung aus RTS, RPG, TCG mit Action Elementen wenn ich das in den Videos richtig gesehen habe, wobei der Fokus auf RTS zu liegen scheint. Was an dem Spiel cool ist, ist, dass man sich in einen Drachen verwandeln kann um in den RTS Schlachten seinen Truppen zu helfen, erinnert mich ein wenig an das Einheiten steuern damals bei Dungeon Keeper und war schon damals nen super cooles Feature. Hab gesehen, dass man hier Beta Keys kriegt (solange der Vorrat reich schätz ich mal).

Gibts zufällig hier jemanden der das Spiel schon mal angespielt hat und seine Erfahrungen teilen kann? Komme dank meinem Steinzeit Internet wahrscheinlich nicht dazu die Beta selber zu spielen.

Grüße, Joschi
 
Meine Meinung dürfest du ja schon gelesen haben. ;)

Hier mal ein paar Videos:

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Und zum Schluss noch ein fast zweistündiges Multiplayermatch zwischen zwei Entwicklern mit lustigem Livekommentar, das sowohl die taktische Kampagnenkarte als auch den strategischen RTS Part abdeckt. Da es sich um erfahrene Spieler handelt (im Gegensatz zu "neuen" Testern) sieht man hier auch deutlich mehr vom RTS Gameplay, vor allem gegen menschliche Gegner. Sehr empfehlenswert! :)

larianstudios - Divinity - Dragon Commander Multiplayer Battle: Master vs Apprentice

(das Video ist bisher leider nur als Aufnahme des Twitch-Livestreams verfügbar, wird aber evtl. noch auf youtube hochgeladen)
 
Oh ja, danke für die vielen Videos, was ich mir bis jetzt angesehen habe sieht einfach nur klasse aus, freue mich drauf mal wieder nen richtig schönes Strategie Spiel zu haben. Besonders weil es echt so scheint als hätte man extrem viel strategische Tiefe + die ganzen Entscheidungen die man treffen kann mit den Fraktionen usw.
 
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Einfach klasse, sieht nach 'ner Menge Micro-Management aus das man machen kann :)
Und Morwenth, es sind nicht nur Drachen, es sind Drachen mit Jetpacks! :-D
Im allgemeinen scheint der Humor des Spiels (und teilw. der Entwickler in den Videos) echt klasse zu sein. Freue mich schon wie nen Schnitzel auf das Spiel.
 
spaßig, ja
aber es sieht auch fordernd aus

bin schon sehr gespannt auf die ganze taktische planung vorher und den fliegenden wechsel zwischen dem drachen auf dem feld und dem "god mode" über dem feld
und wie wichtig, ein schlauer einsatz der karten ist
das wichtigste ist dann, dass man auch das gefühl bekommt, man sei der größte kriegsherr der welt, wenn alles nach plan aufgeht 8)
 
Scaliness is godliness

Does slapping a jetpack onto a dragon sound ridiculous to you? Are you incredulous at such a prospect? You shouldn't be. How the hell does such a beast fly without mechanical assistance? Dragons are big, buff enough to make one wonder if they are all on steroids, and -- according to Skyrim -- their bones are the heaviest things in the world. They'd need wings the size of a town to even get them an inch off the ground.

So, perhaps Larian Studios was being rather reasonable when they decided to develop a steampunk RTS with jetpack-wearing dragons. There's probably a dragon physiology expert on the team. After making so many dragon-focused titles, there certainly should be.

This is not to say that Dragon Commander isn't a little bit silly -- there's a snooty lizard man who keeps insulting you and the dwarves wear bowler hats and bling, after all. Yet, for every gag, there's something underneath it that's inventive and surprising, and most surprising of all is that flying through the skies as a technologically-augmented magical lizard was not the most entertaining aspect.

War is happening! It's all terrible and such, because wars usually are. The old emperor is dead, his unlikeable spawn are in charge, and it's up to his illegitimate half-dragon offspring to unite the disparate fantasy races and save the Empire. Units must be constructed, buildings must be selected to augment the many regions under the half-dragon Prince's control, gay marriage bills must be pondered.

Wait. What?

As I said, Dragon Commander is full of surprises. While the great war is ostensibly the focus of the fantasy romp, the needs and desires of Rivellon's population cannot go ignored. Onboard the Raven -- the prince's ostentatious flying ship and mobile headquarters -- representatives from the colorful races that inhabit the realm have gathered, and they all come with their own political points of view and agendas.

There's the frightfully anaemic undead ambassador, a religious zealot; a dwarf in a bowler hat and fox fur scarf, representing capitalist ideals; the lizard spokeswoman, haughty and arcane; the devilish imp representative, who just wants to blow things up; and finally, the elven ambassador, who is liberal and green. Unsurprisingly, it's the latter who proposed the gay marriage bill.

These politicians might be caricatures, but their motivations, prejudices, and desires run parallel to those of their real-world counterparts. It was ultimately up to me to decide whether or not to pass these bills and make them laws, and I found myself juggling the pragmatism one might expect from a war-time leader and my own political leanings.

All the stuff that happens between the battles should be fluff, right? This is a real-time strategy game, don't you know? Surely I shouldn't be having this much fun chatting with a one-eyed, one-armed grouchy general in a bar, or listening to the political rhetoric of a god-fearing skeleton -- but there I sat, giggling as I hung around the Raven, not killing anyone or blowing anything up. I did inspire my lizard general to beat up an elderly imp, however; I suppose that counts as violence.

As important as all of this is, from the politics, to the hint of role-playing dialogue, and two separate research paths -- the imp's technology and the magic of my Gandalf-like mentor -- it's the strategy and tactics that undeniably make up the meat of this unexpectedly delicious digital sandwich.

Surprise is really becoming a theme here, because the battles were not at all what I was anticipating. I start off by selecting the battle map, which is a real map, situated on the bridge of the Raven, and I can move little pawns around this map, or place cute wee buildings on my provinces. I'm playing a board game, and it's delightful. I can even select cards from my deck, more of which are generated depending on what buildings I've erected, and these can give boons to my provinces or even give me an edge in battle.

Right-o, my half brother has invaded my territory -- as nasty siblings are wont to do -- so it's time to leave the board games behind and dive into some real conflict.

Have Larian bugged my home? I fear that they might have. How else would they know that what I always really want from my RTS games is something akin to Total Annihilation or its younger cousin, Supreme Commander. There's that constant stream of mechanized units, pouring out of bases and onto the battlefield. A never-ending torrent of explosive, aggressive vehicles that can be blown to smithereens in the blink of an eye, but recruited very quickly.

There's no time for me to sit back and soak it all in, because by the time I've finished sipping my margarita, comfortably put my feet up on my desk, and cracked my knuckles, I will have lost the bloody battle. What I'm trying to say, poorly, is that Dragon Commander is a very fast game. And yet there's quite a bit of management going on.

Not to fret, though. As all of this management is tailor made for the balls-to-the-wall pace of the explosive extravaganza. Turret and building nodes, for example, are captured by proximity. My mechanized assault force of giant zepplins, magical airships, and speedy little land vehicles that sort of loosely resemble tanks arrive at their destination, fight their little steel hearts out, and while they are doing that I'm immediately putting down anti-air guns right next to them to give them some support.

And then I turn into a giant bloody dragon. Maybe I was too hasty when I previously suggested that being a dragon wasn't the most entertaining aspect of Dragon Commander, because it really is ridiculously fun. At the touch of a button, I go from commanding my legion to flying around the battlefield, casting spells, raining down fire and projectiles, rapidly dodging enemy rockets -- it's exhilarating, especially given the pretty, brightly-colored battlefields that make up the dragon's playground.

The dragon isn't simply a powerful unit, as the game's mechanics immediately shift from typical strategy fare to an airborne shooter. The joy is short lived, however, as the limited control I have over my units in dragon form necessitates switching back lest I forget that I actually have an army to command. And despite the raw power of the oversized flying lizard, a few AA units can rapidly shoot it out of the sky. The dragon can be respawned, but at a cost -- specifically the sacrifice of units -- shrinking the all important reinforcement pool. It's risky, but dragons.

In the single-player campaign there is the sense that you might have a rather unfair advantage over the AI, considering the fact that they don't have a dragon. An overwhelmingly powerful force can be decimated in seconds with dragon fire, and from what I've experienced, the AI simply doesn't have anything that can compare. Multiplayer, however, is a very different story. Dragon-on-dragon warfare? It's what videogames were designed for.

I'm not sure what anyone else expected from Dragon Commander. It's a spin-off being developed by a studio known for its RPGs, so I'm guessing not a lot. And yet it's shaping out to be really rather splendid. I still have questions, though. I've yet to really pay much mind to the multiplayer, what with the lack of other players -- my peers are apparently too busy writing words to get beat up by me in a dragon scrap.

There are also a few niggling issues. If I have to hear the units spew their annoying, extremely loud stock phrases one more time I will kill someone. And research is, to put it bluntly, a wee bit boring. But I'm eager for more. The gags elicit guffaws, the strategy is compelling, and dragons are awesome. I wait with baited breath to see if I continue to enjoy myself when it comes out next month.


Quelle: A day in the life of a jetpack-wearing dragon monarch - Destructoid
 
Vielen dank für das posten dieses großartigen Reviews, musste schon arg schmunzeln als ich es gelesen habe :) Destructoid ist eh klasse!
 
Hahahahaha..... :-D

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:-D:-D:-Dsehr geil
vor allem die grafik kommt in dieser review besonders gut zur geltung :-D

wisst ihr schon wie ihr euren drachen nennen werdet?
man kann ihm doch wohl hoffentlich ein namen geben:confused: (und ja, ich weiß das es eigentlich ein drachenritter ist)
 
Wenn ich meine Spielfigur selbst benennen darf, heißt diese in jedem Spiel LordCrash..... :P
 
Das Video ist genial, habe mich köstlich amüsiert, erinnert stark an den Humor von Pyrion Flax ^^

Konnte mittlerweile auch selber mal Hand an das Spiel anlegen und muss sagen: Es ist alles was ich mir erhofft habe! Ich hatte ja vorher noch Angst, dass man in den RTS Schlachten wenn man den Drachen kontrolliert Probleme haben wird die anderen Truppen zu koodinieren, aber das habe ich (für meine Verhältnisse) echt super hingekriegt. Ich freue mich schon tierisch darauf aus vielen coolen Fähigkeiten für meinen Drachen aussuchen zu können und hoffe ich finde wieder eine gute Community für Multiplayer-Runden, denn das Spiel macht auf mich echt den Eindruck als könnte es eine echte Multiplayer-Perle werden. Wer bei dem Spiel noch skeptisch ist, unbedingt die Beta probieren!
 
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crawl, the warrior, king
das ist der einzig würdige name für meinen drachen :B

@Joschi1980:
kllingt schon sehr gut. vor allem sagst was sehr wichtiges: der wechsel zwischen drachen und karte klappt ohne die überfordert zu werden
gibt es denn noch betakeys?

p.s.: finde nur ich, dass der weißgebärtigte aussieht wie der zeus aus GoW? ^^
 
crawl, the warrior, king
das ist der einzig würdige name für meinen drachen :B

@Joschi1980:
kllingt schon sehr gut. vor allem sagst was sehr wichtiges: der wechsel zwischen drachen und karte klappt ohne die überfordert zu werden
gibt es denn noch betakeys?

p.s.: finde nur ich, dass der weißgebärtigte aussieht wie der zeus aus GoW? ^^

Ein paar wenige Beta-Keys gibts noch hier bei Alienware.... ;)

Dragon Commander Closed Beta Key Giveaway | Alienware Arena
 
Why Dragon Commander Isn’t All About Blobs – All the Units, Skills, and Abilities

By Michael Cromwell | Thursday,18th July 2013

DC_Artwork002.jpg

Yep. It’s another Dragon Commander article. Why? Well, we’re independent press, and they’re an independent developer. The fascinating thing about Dragon Commander is that it’s a game that would never in a thousand years be greenlit by a major publisher. Why is that fascinating? Because despite that, it’s looking to be a huge success, and, more importantly: it’s bloody good. That’s really why we’re giving it so much coverage. We see it as something of a revolution. It’s privately funded by the money of the developer, and built from the imaginations of them. No creditors, no marketing meetings, and, probably, no suits. That’s cool, right?

This article contains most of the resources availiable to you in battle, explaining what they are, and their weaknesses and strengths. Take small tokes, friend, because you’re likely to whiteout.

What is a blob?

Before we start the “your mother” jokes, we’re talking tactics. There’s something of a trend in the reception of content we’ve been providing, such as this video, which states that before fully understanding the esoteric title, thanks to coverage from media all over, they thought it was a silly idea. It is a silly idea, isn’t it? Having said that, if it works, it isn’t stupid.

A fellow named Ole Herbjornsen from Matsuko Development, filled with ex-EA and ex-Ubisoft employees, said “I just saw a link at www.rpgcodex.com to your preview for Dragon Commander. I previously thought the basic premise for the game sounded rather daft, but after watching the video preview, and then reading your written review from back in February I decided to buy a copy of the game on Steam. Three cheers for my soon-to-be resurrected undead bride!” A little understanding goes a long way, and whilst I feel we’ve done a good job at covering the RPG mechanics, I thought I’d leave it up to other people to discuss the RTS ones. Not any more.

Dragon Commander still remains too esoteric for some, although others at Destructoid and Rock Paper Shotgun are having no problems understanding the intricacies of combat; combat that is, to some people, about putting all your units into a blob, and sending them to the enemy base.

DC_Artwork013-591x333.jpg

This view is generally from people concerned with the AI, or single player campaign. It’s possible to beat the campaign by doing this to some extent, but at the same time, it’s actually not. The press beta covers the first, introductory section of the campaign, where you rise to fame as an accepted commander, from a lowly “bastard”. It’s difficult, but only because it has a learning curve. Once you master that, good use of upgrades and the Dragon will take you a long way. Deriving your opinion on the tactical RTS elements from the single player press beta is a bad idea, partly because it doesn’t have all the upgrades, cards, and units (as far as I can see), and partly because in no RTS game does the AI play the same as multiplayer opponents.

Imagine judging Eugen Systems’ Wargame: AirLand Battle on the AI in the single player campaigns? European Escalation launched without a skirmish mode for that reason: it is of no educational value as to the viability of tactics in the multiplayer. That’s one of the reasons why single player coverage for this RTS, and any RTS, isn’t indicative of the multiplayer experience. But I don’t expect that to convince you.

A blob, as it pertains to the RTS genre, is a clump of units – usually one clump – sent into battle to meet another clump. A mix of units, left to their own devices. Is it possible to be victorious in Dragon Commander using only this tactic? Well, not really, so here’s why:

Skills, unit types, Dragon abilities, and countering your opponents cards

Firstly, there are a number of things you’ve to take into consideration in Dragon Commander: the ability to upgrade your units, giving them active and passive skills, the unit types themselves (some have low armour, but act as glass cannons, so keep them back), and a need to avoid certain units if the enemy is using a debuff card which affects them.

Now, this applies later in the campaign, but at the start, your Dragon can overcome most obstacles which would reduce the number of units you lose. But RTS tactics really come into play in the multiplayer, so let’s look at the skills you’ve got at your disposal there.

When I played Dragon Commander against the developers in February, I sucked. They made the game, and I was picking it up for the first time. That’s to be expected. The dev bopped and weaved his units around the map, flanking and surprising me. I was able to launch a bomb type ability from my Dragon, which took town a cluster of Shamans he was using to mass-heal his units in a blob. A small victory, I remember, because since he had blobbed his units together, I was able to take advantage and blow them all up in a single hit. After that, he reduced the amount of units he had together, and began to dart and weave with much smaller battlegroups. He recognised that I had a certain ability, and he adapted to it. That’s the fundamentals of RTS combat: adapt to your opponents arsenal, and tactics.

So what does affect combat? We need look no further than the manual.

Cards

DragonCommander-cards.jpg
Strategic Cards: These cards range in capability from destroying buildings, to boosting economy, to stopping an enemy from attacking you. Strategy Cards, as the name implies, are played solely on the Strategy Map and aim to give you an
edge before going into battle.
Mercenary Cards: Mercenaries are hired guns that are activated during the deployment phase before actual combat. These cards may range in capability from a group of Troopers to a heavy Juggernaut flagship. Use these cards to catch your opponent off-guard, or to increase your army’s potency in a big battle. Mercenary Cards are solely played during the deployment phase before combat.
Dragon Skill Cards: The deployment of these type of cards give your dragon the ability to equip a skill that you otherwise may not have in possession. This way, your dragon may wield a very powerful skill that can cause havoc during battle without having completed the necessary research. Dragon Skill Cards are solely played during the deployment phase before combat, and these skills will disappear after the real-time combat is over.
Unit Buff Cards: These cards are a one-time use buff on a specific unit type in real-time battle. They affect the statistics of a specific unit type in a beneficial way, giving your troops more power in combat. For example, Troopers may get an increase in attack speed or damage during the entire real-time battle. They are solely played during the deployment phase before combat. Unit Debuff Cards: These cards are a one-time use debuff on a specific unit type in real-time battle. They affect the statistics of a specific unit type deployed by the enemy in a detrimental way, reducing their power in combat. For example, enemy Hunters may get a decrease in movement speed or in damage done during the entire real-time battle. They are solely played during the deployment phase before combat.
Real-time Strategy Buildings

As I mentioned before, it’s important to understand what each building can produce, and how to use that unit. The follow buildings are available in the game, but be careful, because you only have a finite number of locations on which to build them. Choose wisely, and strategically. Putting a War Factory in your main base might seem strategically logical, since it has the strongest units, but they cost much more, and you might find yourself too poor to produce them in time, relying on a Battle Forge farther back.

  • Battle Forge: This is your standard production facility for Infantry-based units. Troopers, Grenadiers, Warlocks and Shamans are all produced from this building.
  • War Factory: With advanced tech comes a new facility, and you’ll need a Factory to produce machinery-based units. Hunters, Armours and Devastators will make their way to the battlefield from this building.
  • Aerofactory: The Airport is the production facility of Air-based units such as Imp Fighters, Bombers and Zeppelins.
  • Shipyard: A Harbour functions as the production facility of your fleet. Transports, Cruisers and Juggernauts are all produced in the Harbour.
  • Ground Turret: Basic ground-to-ground base defence that fires at a single enemy unit.
  • Air Turret: Base defence that is only able to shoot Air units with great efficiency.
  • Mortar Turret: Long-range splash damage base defence, meant to destroy clusters of enemy units.
An extensive look at the units availaible, and their upgrades

Trooper
Trooper: The basic, most standard unit fit for all-around ground combat; strength in numbers.
Strong against: Infantry-type units; in large groups can be quite effective against any ground-based units.
Weak against: Higher tech units; splash damage units such as Bomber Balloons and Devastators; Air units.
Upgrades:

  • Troopers Enhanced Engines: Increases the movement speed of your Troopers.
  • Spoils of War: Allows Troopers to fully capture enemy buildings. The building, once captured, will be under your full control for the remainder of the battle.
  • For the Empire!: Your Trooper’s core overloads, disabling his main attack and making him explode upon contact with enemy units or buildings, dealing significant damage but destroying him in the process.
Grenadier
Grenadier: The first unit with anti-air capabilities; has a long attack range and is an excellent choice against heavy armoured units.
Strong against: Armours, player dragons and Air units (when in sizeable numbers)
Weak against: Hunters; splash damage units such as Bomber Balloons and Devastators
Upgrades:

  • Imp Binoculars: This increases the attack range of your Grenadiers.
  • Enhanced Explosives: Your Grenadiers will gain a significant increase to their area-of-effect damage impact.
  • Chemical Warfare: The Grenadiers will fire off a hazardous projectile that diseases enemy units upon impact, dealing damage over time; activated ability.
Shaman
Shaman: Functions as a field medic; capable of healing others in and out of battle; very fragile and cannot defend himself; has multiple skills at his disposal.
Strong when mixed into armies as support, but weak when left alone as he has no attack and is easily taken down without allied units to cover him.
Upgrades:

  • Cripple: Casts a spell upon the enemy to paralyze and root them in fear. Enemy units will be held in place and unable to
  • retaliate for the duration of the spell.
  • Immunity: Casts a protective shield around the target friendly unit, increasing its defense significantly.
  • Charm: Allows your Shamans to take full control over mind and body of an enemy unit, enabling you to use that unit against its own master for the duration of the spell.
Warlock
Warlock: Slow, but dangerously disruptive unit capable of casting several offensive spells. Can defend himself, but is not meant to fight for an extended duration as the unit is slow and unable to take out the heavier units by itself. Meant to be used as an offensive spell caster,
not a direct combat unit.
Upgrades:

  • Cloak: Casts a spell that shifts your Warlocks into hiding in the shadows for a limited amount of time, where they may escape to live another fight.
  • Meet the Beetles: Turns an enemy unit into a harmless ladybird, disabling its attack and usage of spells for a limited amount of time.
  • Death From Above: Summons fire and brimstone from the sky to rain down upon your enemies, dealing massive area-of-effect damage over the target area.
Hunter
Hunter: Fast moving, guerrilla-type fighting unit.
Strong against: Infantry type units, Air units and player dragon (when Hunter has ‘A Bird in the Hand’ researched)
Weak against: Devastators, Armours, Juggernauts, Air units and player dragon (when Hunter has ‘A Bird in the Hand researched)
Upgrades:

  • Revelation: Enables your Hunters to detect cloaked units in an area around them; passive ability.
  • Teleportation: Hunters are able to teleport to a distant friendly unit, enabling for fast travel across the map.
  • A Bird in the Hand: Equips your Hunters with rockets, enabling them to effectively fire at air units.
Armour
Armour: Good all-round offensive and defensive unit; can take a lot of punishment before biting the dust.
Strong against: Infantry type units apart from Grenadiers, Hunters, Devastators
Weak against: Grenadiers, Air units, player dragon, Juggernauts
Upgrades:

  • Public Transportation: Armours gain the capacity to load and unload Troopers and Grenadiers, transporting them over the battlefield.
  • You’re Mine: Allows your Armours to drop ground mines into the field, which will explode upon contact with enemy units.
  • Short Sharp Shock: Your Armours will release a powerful shockwave, dealing massive damage to nearby enemy units in contact with them.
Devastator
Devastator: Siege-type unit, strong in assaulting fortified positions and holding the line.
Strong against: All ground-based units in general, especially when clustered together
Weak against: Armours, Air units and player dragon
Upgrades:

  • Devastator Enhanced Engines: Increases the movement speed of your Devastators.
  • On the Double: Allows your Devastators to fire their cannons twice in rapid succession, reducing single-shot damage but significantly increasing overall damage done; passive ability.
  • Besiege: Enables siege-mode, which allows Devastators to fortify their position in place, giving up mobility for increased attack range. Devastators are able to go freely in and out of siege-mode on command.
Imp
Imp Fighter: Dedicated anti-Air unit, has a limited attack on ground units with research unlocked.
Strong against: Air units, if wielding the ‘Bombs Away’ upgrade; Armours, Devastators, Juggernauts, Infantry type units apart from Grenadiers
Weak against: Grenadiers, Hunters with ‘A Bird in the Hand’ researched, Ironclads
Upgrades:

  • Bombs Away: Equips your Imp Fighters with bombs, which allows your Imp Fighters— who are otherwise dedicated anti-Air units— to attack ground units.
  • War of Attrition: Imp Fighters’ attacks will slow down their enemies’ attack speed.
  • Iron Plating: Gives a significant health boost to Imp Fighters by upgrading their materials.
Bomber
Bomber Balloon: Dangerous against clumped-up units; very powerful antiground attack but susceptible to Anti-Air. Strong against: All ground-based units in general apart from large groups of Grenadiers; even more effective when enemy units are clustered together Weak against: Large groups of Grenadiers; Hunters with ‘A Bird in the Hand’ researched; Imp Fighters, Ironclads
Upgrades:

  • Mine High Club: Bombers gain the capacity to lay air mines, which will explode upon contact with enemy units.
  • Revelation: Enables your Bombers to detect cloaked units in an area around them; passive ability.
  • Enhanced Explosives: Gives a significant increase to Bombers’ area-ofeffect damage.
Zeppelin
Zeppelin: Utility unit that can cloak entire groups of friendly units, as well as increase their attack range significantly when flying within vicinity.
Strong when mixed into armies as support, but weak when left alone as they have no attack and are easily taken down
without friendly units to cover them.
Upgrades:

  • Fly, My Flaming Pretties!: Allows Zeppelins to unleash multiple fire-bats on an enemy air unit, dealing massive damage.
  • Fog of War: Enables Zeppelins to cloak themselves and a group of units in the area for a limited amount of time.
  • Mustard Gas: Zeppelins cast down a smoky cloud of poisonous gas upon their enemies, dealing consistent damage over time in an area of effect that persists for a limited duration.
Transport
Transport: Meant to transport your units across the map; can cloak and even self-destruct when all else fails.
Weak in general combat but can defend itself. Has approximately the same killing power as a Trooper and, as such, should not be brought for its firepower alone.
Upgrades:

  • Cloak: Activates the Transport’s cloaking device, enabling it to hide from the enemy for a limited amount of time.
  • Minesweeper: Enables your Transports to sweep mines from the water, rendering them useless.
  • For the Empire!: Causes your Transports to activate their self-destruct mechanism, disabling their primary attack and allowing them to explode on contact with enemy units, but destroying them in the process.
Ironclad
Ironclad: Dedicated naval and anti-air fighting unit; can intercept enemy projectiles and detect mines or cloaked units.
Strong against: Air units, Naval units, player dragon
Weak against: Ground-based units
Upgrades:

  • Revelation: Enables your Ironclads to detect cloaked units in an area around them; passive ability.
  • On Guard: Your Ironclads may activate an improved defensive targeting mechanism, targeting and shooting down incoming enemy projectiles in an area near them for the duration of the skill.
  • Sea Mine-Maids: Allows your Ironclads to deploy sea mines that will
  • explode upon contact with enemy units.
Juggernaut
Juggernaut: The flagships at sea; extremely strong both in offense and defence; can launch tactical warheads and may create back-up Imp Fighters when being assailed from the air.
Strong against: Ground-based units
Weak against: Ironclads; Fighters with ‘A Bird in the Hand’ upgrade; Bomber Balloons, Devastators
Upgrades:

  • Imp Binoculars: Increases the attack range of your Juggernauts.
  • Imp Backup: Allows your Juggernauts to deploy Imp Fighters from their position, providing air support when needed; each Fighter costs the regular amount of Recruits otherwise required.
  • Imp Bunker Buster: Your Juggernauts can launch an extremely potent tactical warhead that deals an enormous amount of area-of-effect damage in a target area. Due to the strength of this attack, the warhead is targetable and can be destroyed before it reaches its point of impact.
As you can see, the relatively humble number of 14 units have a wide variety of uses, strengths, and weaknesses. They have passive and active upgrades, and each of these passive and active upgrades can either help your ally units, or hinder the enemy. Some units, too, are weaker against the players Dragon than others. There are mines, stealth abilities, AOE, DOT’s, and other abilities useful in the field of combat. Allowing them to clump together, and merely fire on the enemy, is not a good idea in multiplayer – since your opponent will be using the abilities and strategies at his disposal to full effect.

Dragon skills

If you’re of a more naturalistic disposition, you could use the Dragon as a nice, free-moving camera to look over the rolling hills of Rivellon. If that’s you, then stop reading, because you’re mad. The Dragon has its own set of skills, so let’s look at all of them.

Dragon-Skills.jpg

Passive Skills:

  • Rejuvenation: Permanently and drastically increases the Dragon’s health generation when out of combat.
  • Aura of Restoration: The Dragon emits an aura that increases health generation to nearby allied units.
  • Aura of Annihilation: The Dragon emits an aura that increases the damage done by nearby allied units.
  • Aura of Frailty: The Dragon emits an aura that reduces enemy units’ attack range significantly.
  • Blood Leech: Gives the Dragon a vampiric embrace, allowing it to permanently replenish a portion of its own life with each attack that deals damage.
  • Devastation: Permanently increases.
  • Soar: Permanently increases the Dragon’s flight speed during normal and jetpack flight.
  • Scales of Steel: The Dragon’s natural armour gets reinforced with an increased layer of scales and muscle, significantly increasing defence against attacks.
Active Skills:

  • Breaching Fire: The Dragon overheats its breath, dealing increased damage to medium and heavy units, such as Devastators or Armours.
  • Salvation: The Dragon heals a portion of its health over a small period of time.
  • Dread Roar: The Dragon strikes fear into the hearts of many, paralyzing them in place and stopping them from acting for a limited amount of time.
  • Aegis: The Dragon casts a protective spell around an allied unit, significantly increasing its defence for a set amount of time.
  • Bastion: The Dragon casts a defensive shield around itself, increasing the amount of punishment it can take for a limited amount of time.
  • Chameleon Hide: The dragon almost completely disappears from sight for a limited amount of time.
  • Unveil: Allows the Dragon to see through enemies’ disguises, revealing cloaked units in an area around it.
  • Cleansing Charge: Cleanses friendly units within the Dragon’s area of effect from negative effects such as Fear, Sabotage, etc.
  • Mass Restoration: The Dragon replenishes the health of target allied units and all friendly units in its vicinity.
  • Sabotage: The Dragon fires a burst of energy that disables the primary function of an enemy building or unit. This will stop the building from being able to construct or research for a limited amount of time. It will also stop enemy units from being able to attack or use skills.
  • Pillar of Restoration: The Dragon casts a pillar of restoring energy that reaches skyward and heals all the units in its vicinity for its duration.
  • Pillar of Flame: The Dragon casts a column of consuming fire that deals damage to units within its vicinity for its duration.
  • Charm: The Dragon casts a domination spell upon an enemy unit, gaining total control over it for a limited amount of time.
  • Acid Blaze: The Dragon’s glands add acid to its fireballs, which deal both damage on impact and damage over time.
  • Purifying Flames: The Dragon invokes a healing breath, infusing its fireballs with a restorative power capable of mending the wounds of friendly units.
  • Eye of the Patriarch: Unleashes a single, massive fireball dealing extreme punishment in an area of effect.
  • Friends with Benefits: The Dragon casts a protective shield on a friendly unit, which reduces damage taken and, in turn, the Dragon receives healing whenever the unit deals damage.
  • Ray of Power: A ray is created between the Dragon and an allied unit, giving the unit a huge damage increase as long as the link between both remains.
  • Inspire: The Dragon inspires a friendly unit to increase its attack speed and movement speed significantly.
  • Advance!: The Dragon invigorates those around him, significantly increasing all friendly units’ movement speed.
  • Berserker Roar: The Dragon roars ferociously in an area around him, causing all friendly units to gain a huge increase to attack speed, but taking increased damage in return.
  • Crippling Roar: The Dragon roars powerfully in an area around him, rendering all enemies incapable of attacking or using skills for a limited amount of time.
  • Call of Valour: The Dragon roars defiantly around him, causing all friendly units to gain an increase in damage output and armour fora limited amount of time.
Each of these skills, and the skills of the units, offer (in my experience, anyway) rich and varied strategic opportunity to out-wit your opponent. I’ve deliberately left out the different card types, and upgrades, because I don’t want you losing your perfect 20:20 vision, but the buff and debuff cards of course mean that you’ve to work around certain units weakened, or strengthened, by cards played.

AoE skills, and why blobbing your units is generally a bad idea

Crippling Roar is an example of a skill that might be used against you, if you clump your units together. This skills effectively stops you from attacking for a certain amount of time, giving the enemies Dragon, and his units, ample opportunity to wipe you out simply because you had too many units in one spot. Pillar of Flame is another damaging AoE, and Eye of the Patriarch is the aforementioned skill I used at the tech demo. Units, too, have abilities and skills that’ll damage large clumps of other units. For instance, bombers can destroy a whole battalion if they’re all clumped together, and artillery from Armour or Juggernauts will likely wipe them out, too. Mustard gas from the Zeppelins will cloud groups of enemies, Chemical Warfare from the Grenadiers can do a similar amount of damage.

It’s simply not true that, in multiplayer and the later single player campaign, bombarding your enemies with blobs of units is a good idea, and if you thought that there wasn’t much to Dragon Commander’s RTS component – the majority of the game – think again.

Quelle: Why Dragon Commander Isn’t All About Blobs – All the Units, Skills, and Abilities - PCGMedia
 
Das ist echt ein richtig gutes Review, gerade das mit dem turtlen/blobben/bunkern ist mir auch aufgefallen und ich muss echt sagen, ich hab lieber nen Spiel wo ich mir überlegen muss was ich mit meinen Einheiten mache, als einfach alles auf einen Haufen zu ziehen und rum zu zergen.
 
Neue Infos:

Für Käufer der Retailversion von Dragon Commander (gibt extra eine deutsche Box-Version!) ist ein Day-One Patch zum downloaden obligatorisch. Das liegt einfach daran, dass im Laufe der Closed Beta praktisch täglich Dinge verbessert und angepasst werden und das Spiel aber irgendwann ins Presswerk muss, was schon geschehen ist.

Wer mehr zu den Hintergründen wissen will, dem empfehle ich (mal wieder) Swen Vinckes Blog, dort beschreibt er die Gründe dafür im Detail. Der Blog ist überhaupt eine der besten Informationsquellen über Spieleentwicklung, die es im Netz zu finden gibt. ;)

On last minute changes & media | Swen Vincke @ Larian Studios
 
oh cool
danke für die info :)
hört sich ja sehr gut an, dass sie wirklich feedback ernstgenommen und einiges verbessert haben

hört man gern, auch wenn solche day-one patches natürlich immer fluch und segen zugleich sind ^^
 
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