Codex Combatfag Compendium

[Deuce Traveler]

Would you guys consider the original Exile trilogy by Spiderweb Software? I felt that they were challenging, but fair with each game having a 6-man party comprised of people with different equipment and abilities. They played like a poor man's version of the Gold Box games.

Yes, but what are the actual party-based tactics like?

It's a 2D, from a top-down perspective CRPG. It is also skill-based, so you can create pure rogues, fighters, clerics, and mages, or you can mix and match for hybrid classes. With a party of six, you can get away with a melee fighter or two, roguish archer, cleric, and 2-3 mages. Some creatures have immunities and vulnerabilities to fire, acid, cold, physical, or holy magic. It is also turn-based and uses a square grid system. Unlike the Gold Box games, it has an extra player advantage of showing an area of effect for fireball spells and so on before you actually execute your magic spells. Combat is very tough and the game rewards you for leaving tougher areas and exploring areas that you might actually be able to take at whatever level you are at. The game also doesn't hold you hand, so you have to explore and make a judgement on what areas you can take on and what you should do to complete quest objectives.

 

[Darth Canoli]

grimer
By the way, my other recommendations would be:

• Temple of Elemental Evil (with Temple+)
• Knights of the Chalice (KotC )
  
• KotC 2 once it's out
• KotC 2: Hearkenwold module by Dorateen
• Colony Ship
• And while waiting for Colony Ship, you could play Dungeon Rats
• Urtuk was just released and it has great combat, it's a pure tactical "RPG" though, not a real cRPG
• HoMM V has great combat and the necromancer campaign is just great (Strategy/tactics with RPG elements)
• UFO: Enemy Unknown (Strategy/Management/Tactics with RPG elements) or OpenXCOM because it's just amazing.
• Battle Brothers eventually, even if there is no encounter design, unfortunately.
• Warbanners is really good too (Tactics/light management with RPG elements)
• Blackguards (Tactical RPG)
  
• ... (I probably forgot a lot of great titles)

When you play Wizardry 8, search for wizfast and fastanim or ask around for the links and then install them once you put them in the game directory, you'll thank me later.

 

[Taka-Haradin puolipeikko]

Warbanners is really good too (Tactics/light management with RPG elements)

Drums of War is even better, but its only available at Matrix/Slitherine store.

 

[Lilura]

By the way, my other recommendations would be

Second recommendations post from you ITT, yet still no mention of Jagged Alliance 2.

That alone cements you as an utter disgrace in the eyes of genuine combat connoisseurs.

But on top of that, you also didn't mention Silent Storm or X-COM Apocalypse.

lmao

 

[rusty_shackleford]

ja2 would be a great recommendation if this wasn't the grpg forum

 

[Darth Canoli]

Drums of War is even better, but its only available at Matrix/Slitherine store.

Can i get a link, i only found a tabletop RPG and a weird VR game from steam?

Edit: Found Drums of War finally, adding slitherine to the search.

 

[Lilura]

It's a 2D, from a top-down perspective CRPG. It is also skill-based, so you can create pure rogues, fighters, clerics, and mages, or you can mix and match for hybrid classes. With a party of six, you can get away with a melee fighter or two, roguish archer, cleric, and 2-3 mages. Some creatures have immunities and vulnerabilities to fire, acid, cold, physical, or holy magic. It is also turn-based and uses a square grid system. Unlike the Gold Box games, it has an extra player advantage of showing an area of effect for fireball spells and so on before you actually execute your magic spells. Combat is very tough and the game rewards you for leaving tougher areas and exploring areas that you might actually be able to take at whatever level you are at. The game also doesn't hold you hand, so you have to explore and make a judgement on what areas you can take on and what you should do to complete quest objectives.

Thanks for taking the time to post this. I may give the games another look in the future.

 

[Taka-Haradin puolipeikko]

Drums of War is even better, but its only available at Matrix/Slitherine store.

Can i get a link, i only found a tabletop RPG and a weird VR game from steam?

https://www.slitherine.com/game/drums-of-war
There's demo there too.
Game itself is pretty similar to Warbanners, but you start with orc campaign and there's more siege assault scenarios, opposed to "party gets ambushed, archers will be ganked" -cases of which WB is little bit too fond of.

 

[Darth Canoli]

https://www.slitherine.com/game/drums-of-war
There's demo there too.
Game itself is pretty similar to Warbanners, but you start with orc campaign and there's more siege assault scenarios, opposed to "party gets ambushed, archers will be ganked" -cases of which WB is little bit too fond of.

To be fair, there might be more but i only remember 2 ambush from the main campaign, the shadows when camping (or was there another one with skeletons and a lich?) and the one when vampires flank you and if you send someone to tank them and fight them in the shadows, he gets wrecked), i think it's alright to have ambush missions every once in a while, it breaks the routine.

I've a lot of games on my plate right now; playing multiple ones or at least didn't admit to myself i dropped some of them; but i'll buy it i i find a "friendly" platform.
What do you think of Matrix and Slitherine?

 

[JarlFrank]

Would you guys consider the original Exile trilogy by Spiderweb Software? I felt that they were challenging, but fair with each game having a 6-man party comprised of people with different equipment and abilities. They played like a poor man's version of the Gold Box games.

Yes, but what are the actual party-based tactics like?

It's ok. Not great not terrible.

Since you're familiar with the Gold Box games I assume, it's kinda like that except the spells aren't as interesting as in D&D. Jeff Vogel made his own RPG system but instead of making a more awesome D&D, he made a less awesome one with a smaller and more generic spell selection.

 

[grimer]

When you play Wizardry 8, search for wizfast and fastanim or ask around for the links and then install them once you put them in the game directory, you'll thank me later.

i already have those installed as i played wizardry 8 before but didnt finish the game because i got burnt out on rapax castle. i also encountered a bug which prevented me from completing the final t'rang quest where you destroy the umpani mothership. i think i entered the code before severing the latch cord (when it should be the other way around) and nothing happened.

Particularly those with a strong focus on character development and somewhat tactical combat

i just want to remind everyone that im looking for rpgs with good character development and good combat. otherwise ill just play strategy/tactics games instead of rpgs

 

[Darth Canoli]

i just want to remind everyone that im looking for rpgs with good character development and good combat. otherwise ill just play strategy/tactics games instead of rpgs

In this case, the first 7 i posted and Blackguards are valid, the others have decent character dev.
I kind of like UFO character dev though, simplistic increase the skills you use, it worked quite well for that game.

 

[Doctor Sbaitso]

Dark Sun: Shattered Lands has good combat as well. It probably the earliest modern party based isometric D&D combat.

 

[grimer]

Dark Sun: Shattered Lands has good combat as well. It probably the earliest modern party based isometric D&D combat.

im kinda hesitant to play that game even though i like some aspects such as the tactical combat, rest restrictions and unique setting because ive read that it is really easy (especially with a half-giant gladiator) which would invalidate much of the tactical complexity in combat. i think you can also reroll individual stats in character creation until you have 20+ in all of them.

 

[Butter]

You can avoid gladiators and triple classing in order to keep Dark Sun's difficulty up.

 

[curds]

i think you can also reroll individual stats in character creation until you have 20+ in all of them.

Never understood this being a complaint that some people have. If you don't like it, don't do it.

 

[grimer]

any other self-imposed restrictions i need to keep in mind to artificially increase the challenge in the game? sry but i do NOT want to play another super easy game like morrowind where you need extensive house ruling, 50 difficulty/balance mods, a weak build, max difficulty, ironman just to have some semblance of challenge in the game (and yes ive completed morrowind under those conditions as a monk and the game was still too easy).

 

[Pink Eye]

>ive read that it is really easy
Shattered Lands has a bunch of difficult fights. What you mean. Arena fights, the first encounters you do after creating your party, can be quite difficult for a level one party, as the enemies get increasingly hard. Dagolar's boss fight can range in difficulty, depending on how you dealt with him and his apprentice during your exploration of his lair. The Ruins before the final fight against the Sorcerer King's horde, can be burdensome on first playthrough. Final Fight itself can range from ridiculously hard to impossible if you don't know what you're doing.

 

[jungl]

I been playing tear ring saga for ps1. Its a fun game every map has a gimmick to it. Game is hard and requires lot of restarts but fair if you understand the games all about learning and respecting what map you are on. Some of the maps feel epic like where you have to rush to kill a summoner unit before you get overwhelmed. Its refreshing compared to fire emblem three houses cause the maps in that game are garbage and never make you think.

Most wrpgs suck to scratch that combat fag itch especially newer ones like pathfinder where there is no ai and battles devolve to beelining the closest enemy.

 

[curds]

any other self-imposed restrictions i need to keep in mind to artificially increase the challenge in the game?

Choosing to not spend ages re-rolling stats until you get perfect scores is not what I would call extensive house-ruling.

 

[Doctor Sbaitso]

In Shattered Lands, dominate person and charm spells can be abused. Use them but don't abuse them.

KoTC is arguably the very best example of TB combat, but it can be cheesed by abusing wand crafting. The ability to cheese a game doesn't mean it's fatally flawed. Games don't have to save you from yourself.

 

[Darth Canoli]

im kinda hesitant to play that game even though i like some aspects such as the tactical combat, rest restrictions and unique setting because ive read that it is really easy (especially with a half-giant gladiator) which would invalidate much of the tactical complexity in combat. i think you can also reroll individual stats in character creation until you have 20+ in all of them.

Another restriction, don't run/reload your previous save when you encounter Wyverns...
Do Dagolar's Lair before evading the Sewers under the Arena...
No triple classed chars, only 1-3 dual classed.
Roll a bit but no max stats at character creation.

Still, the more restrictions, the more important min-maxing will be, don't forget to bring a psionicist along.

 

[Doctor Sbaitso]

Is that the optional section through a portal from the sewers? That was great fun and quite challenging.