like it so far :)

[Hard Sarge]

nice opening (I thought Hannabals Dad was a General, not the King ?)

LOL, made a little mistake on the Ambush battle, got everyone into a defend postion, but forgot to tell the leader to stand back

[cdbeck]

Hard Sarge,

My big question about Legion Arena is, why buy it and only get the battle system when you can get Spartan and get the battle system, albeit with a little less control, and an empire building game as well? What are the major differences? I know units can be equipped, get new skills, and customized, but in the end isn't the game simplely the battle system from Legion and Spartan without the other stuff? What is your feeling on this, because the look of this game interests me?

Son of Montfort

[Hard Sarge]

No, it is not the battle system from Spartan and Troy, more control, more options
 
I am enjoying it, but it is a little liner (?) more a history of Rome (and I would say later Gaul)
 
it is fun and it is addictive and you always need just a little more
 
really too early for me to give much about what the game is like, other then that
 
(not to sound instulting, but a little like Rome TW lite, with out the empire building, which so saying, I think if it had that part of the game added, it would be Great, which I liked Troy and Spartan, and Chariots of War, so I may be bias towards it)

[Hard Sarge]

Which I really do not know what I am doing and just playing and enjoying myself, here is my Leader and some of his troops (the number after the troop name is there Exp level)(HARD Horse is my major battle field killer so far, my spearmen have taken it on the jaw so far, but they came in just in time for some of the HARDer battles where they had to stand and take it)

my last battle, I really got hammered HARD, but guess I was hitting back HARDer then they were

[Hard Sarge]

Which, thinking on it now, you see I got weapons and armor Upgrades for me, which if I was smart, I should not be in the middle of the battle to start with, so the money spent on his upgrades should of went where they really could help (like shields and armor for my spearmen)
 
 

[Hertston]

ORIGINAL: Son_of_Montfort

My big question about Legion Arena is, why buy it and only get the battle system when you can get Spartan and get the battle system, albeit with a little less control, and an empire building game as well? What are the major differences? I know units can be equipped, get new skills, and customized, but in the end isn't the game simplely the battle system from Legion and Spartan without the other stuff?

Nope, because it offers far more than a "little" more control. If you want to compare it to anything the battles segment of Rome: Total War is closest. Legion Arena is more 'realistic' than RTW in that it attempts to at least limit god-like command and control and is rather less of a click-fest, but basically it's just a fun RT battles game... albeit a very educational one. It's horrendously addictive as Hard Sarge says. I remember reaching the conclusion after repeated failure at the second 'elephant' map (I forget which battle that is) that the composition of my carefully built up army was all wrong, so sat down and started again to get back there in one session. Starting thinking 'elephant' early guys.. you might not need those specialists now, but you soon will! [:D]

BTW, the game is also on sale under the History Channel label as 'Great Battles of Rome', so fans of the era might want to avoid buying the same thing twice if they have that or will buy this.

[Hard Sarge]

the start of one of my battles, my Heavy Inf is to the right and will try and stand in place, while my Cav on the left smashes the weak enemy left (well, right)

in the end, one of those good idea, bad idea thing, my Cav did a lot of smashing, but my Heavy didn't really stand in place too well, but just long enough for my Cav to reach the battle in time to end it

[Hard Sarge]

I finally dropped two of my early troops, but it was HARD as they were very Exp and skilled, but the longer I held on to them, the HARDer it would be to get rid of them

but even worse, didn't have enough money to replace them, and the next couple of battles were large ones where they could of been of help, but my army is starting to improve

[cdbeck]

Hmm... Well I am glad to be wrong! I always thought that the Spartan battle system was lacking, but I just looked at it as a nice turn based empire building game that happened to have animated battles (like Galactic Civ 2). I'm playing the demo of Legion Arena, and that does seem fun. I am really drawn by the Mithras stuff, cause I am all about fantasy units. I am looking forward to Slitherine's Arcane Legions, so maybe this would be a nice place holder until then.


Son of Montfort

[Terl]

I like it too!  Boy is this fun.  Thank you Matrix and Slitherine.  [:)]

[Titanwarrior89]

Does it have a map editor? Thinking about buying it. Was wondering how the replaying of the game would go.[&:]

[Hertston]

ORIGINAL: Titanwarrior89

Does it have a map editor? Thinking about buying it. Was wondering how the replaying of the game would go.[&:]

No, but in the context of this particular game it wouldn't add much. You couldn't really create anything that isn't already there, or at least anything different enough to make it worth the effort.

As to replayability, you'll get more than your monies worth playing it through a couple of times. There's not far short of 200 scenarios including Mithras, some are very hard to beat on max difficulty and your army's composition (and the whole point of the game is really how you build that up) can make a huge difference depending on the approach you choose.

[Titanwarrior89]

Thanks for the info Hert[:)] I may give it a look. One last question. How does it stack up against the Punic wars from HPS. Seems they cover the same period.

I hear and have read(think I read some where) that legion is played at a role playing level. Is that correct? One last thing- how long are the battles. Is there time to maneuer your units before the battle is decided?

[Terl]

The "role play" aspect I guess is that you can name your units, buy them equipment select skills when they level up and customize uniforms a bit.

I have not played too far into it yet but the battles are not that long. You can maneuver your units and can even pause if you need to take a quick look. There are commands you can give your units during the deployment phase that help it kick off well once you hit the start button. There is an orders delay based on stats of your leader.

I cannot compare it to any HPS games as I've not tried them. I can say this game is quite enjoyable. Oh! There is a tutorial section. Once done this unlocks the next campaign. The story and cut scenes are enjoyable and I have learned a bit from watching.

[Titanwarrior89]

Thanks. Think ill give it go.[:D]

[Hertston]

ORIGINAL: Titanwarrior89

How does it stack up against the Punic wars from HPS.

Totally different style of game. Punic Wars is 'classic' turn based game as usually produced by HPS, although it is a WEGO rather than IGOUGO system. If you have played any HPS game you'll have a good idea what to expect. By contrast Legion Arena is real time. It makes some concessions towards realism that, say, Rome: Total War doesn't but it's still wargaming 'lite-and-fun'. Don't expect to use authentic Roman manipular tactics (as opposed to ancients-generic) in LA, but you can in Punic Wars. PW is an awful lot better regarding realistic use of light troops, too, but that isn't a criticism of LA; such things just aren't in its remit. It's actually a very tactical game but those tactics, while obviously derived from historic ones, are pretty game specific at times. Like dealing with those elephants I was talking about. [:D]

I hear and have read(think I read some where) that legion is played at a role playing level. Is that correct?

I think "RPG elements" is the best phrase or, in other words, not really. Your 'role' is that of the field commander (you and your troops have an implausibly long lifespan!) and the idea is that you build up your army over the course of the campaign by adding units, disbanding some, upgrading equipment and training them in certain specialities. They also gain experience over time which makes them more effective. There's quite a lot to toy with and it really can make a huge difference, some army compositions excel against one opponent while sucking badly against another and finding the right balance isn't easy. Do you concentrate on command and control aspects, giving your general greater influence and the ability to give more orders, or upgrade armour and weapons? Save up for those Praetorians or get more Legionnaries and upgrade them quickly? And so on and so forth. All great fun, but not really "role-playing". No great loss, IMHO.

One last thing- how long are the battles. Is there time to maneuer your units before the battle is decided?

Generally, not very. A few minutes, usually. There is time to manoeuve, though, within reason. You have a free set-up at before battle commences and you have rather more (but far from unlimited) control after that than was historically the case. Don't expect to shift half your army across the field before the issue is decided, though, (you may well end up doing it after it has been)

[Titanwarrior89]

Thanks again Hertston. That was a quick overall review(very good one). It answered all my questions. I am downloading the game now.

I do thank you guys.[;)]

[Terl]

I hope you like it as much as I do [:)] I am getting ready to have another go at it now.

[christof139]

I finally dropped two of my early troops, but it was HARD as they were very Exp and skilled, but the longer I held on to them, the HARDer it would be to get rid of them

but even worse, didn't have enough money to replace them, and the next couple of battles were large ones where they could of been of help, but my army is starting to improve

Ha ha ha!!! Surprise seeing you here!!! [X(] I have all the Slitherine games and still enjoy a game every so often. I remember at the original Legion forum before the patch ws issued to allow Legionaires to throw their pilums, and I ws the first person at the Forum I do believe to get the pre-mini-patch released by Ian to work, then another fellow actually devised a way to get the Legionaires' to throw their pilums by coding in a way that was easier and faster to do, and even the Slitherine designers were a bit amazed that he invented this new soft-coding method.

When Legion Arena came out I enjoyed it, bu went through it fairly quickly, and I had some early troop types such as 1 unit of Peasants and 2 units of Spearmen through the whole game to help represent Roman Allied troops. The Peasants were very experienced and uppgraded and well armed and could break Medium Infantry in woods and even give the Elephants a bit of trouble. When the Peasants manged to flank even Heavy infantry that were engaged frontally, those Peasants would cause a lot of harm. They got creamed a lot, but I kept one unit and they became pretty darn good over time. Keeping some of the early type units made it more challenging.

See ya in the Trans Miss. Theater, the Belles are ringing for me, ding-a-ling, Chris