$5.99Eador: Genesis Rule the shards your way
Turn-based strategy with real RPG depth: outfit heroes, cast spells and bargain with neighbours across a broken world, one more run at a time.
Is Eador: Genesis worth it?
Eador: Genesis is worth it if…
- you like old-school fantasy strategy that trusts you to learn its systems on your own
- you enjoy slow, careful planning over quick half-hour sessions
- you want a strategy game with real RPG depth, from hero builds to diplomacy
- you do not mind plain 2D visuals when the systems underneath run deep
Screenshots
Rule the provinces, answer to the peasants
Each hex of the map is a whole province, not just a tile. You explore it, claim it, then govern it: build it up, defend it, and keep the populace in line, because unhappy provinces rebel. The world does not wait politely for you to finish. Bandits rob your tax collectors, goblins and harpies raid your settlements, and a dragon may show up demanding a fortune in gold as ransom for a province. You also get a stream of offers, from treasure maps to a temple for the old gods, and some of the visitors are honest adventurers while others are swindlers. Deciding who to trust, what to build and when to crack down is the everyday work of ruling, and it keeps every turn busy.
Heroes, armies and tactical battles
You recruit heroes and outfit them from thousands of items: swords, spells, armor and more, matched to whatever challenge is coming. Keep them alive and they gain experience from battle, growing into the backbone of your forces. Battles are turn-based and tactical, with little random luck in the results, and every soldier counts as an individual with his own progression, so even two cheap spearmen can be trained for different tasks. Later you can take the fight beyond the land itself, into the astral plane, where the fate of Eador is really decided. The game does not hold your hand: early mistakes can cost you a whole party, and learning what not to do is part of the fun.
What should you know before playing?
How long does a campaign take?
Long. This is a game for evenings over months, not one sitting: the campaign is vast, and a single shard can swallow hours before you notice. The upside is that it holds up to returning again and again, since runs play out differently each time and there is a lot to unlock and try. If you want something to finish in a weekend, look elsewhere; if you want a world to live in for a long while, this fits.
Is it hard to learn?
Yes, the entry barrier is real. The game explains little and expects you to experiment, plan and accept the consequences of bad calls, and early on it is easy to feel lost. It rewards patience: once the systems click, the planning and slow mastery become the point. Give it a few sessions before judging it.
Can you play as evil or good?
You can. The roleplaying side lets you play a benevolent ruler or a destructive one, with several endings to the story, so your choices as a Master shape more than just the map. It also matters who you gather around you, since beings of very different worldviews can serve you.
How much content is there?
A lot: over 170 buildings, 80 spells and 70 units, usable in any combination, plus diplomacy, trade agreements and war against shared enemies. The fan-made New Horizons mod adds whole new allied races, new schools of magic with hundreds of spells and many new units, if the base game ever runs dry.
Is there anything besides the campaign?
Yes. Besides the story campaign there are single battles against the computer on a generated map, and multiplayer against other players. The campaign is the heart of the game, but the skirmish mode works well for a shorter session when you do not want to commit to a long run.
