PC/CD Gamer UK 43/PCGAMER43.bin/walkthru/dlegions.txt

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Dark Legions - Player's Guide

CHARACTERS

Da Boyz
The basis of mastering Dark Legions lies in fully understanding the game's
characters. All 16 of them have their own strengths and weaknesses, and their own
specific uses, both on the strategic map and in combat. Over the next four pages
we tell you what these qualities are as well as advise you which characters are best
in which situations, taking into account whether you're playing against the
computer or another human opponent. So without  further ado, meet...

Berserker
The humble Berserker is the weakest character in Dark Legions, with no special
strategic powers and just simple sword attacks in combat. However, a Berserker is
far from useless, for one simple reason - it's cheap. The Berserker's low cost
means that even the smallest army can afford several of them, and their loss in
combat is far from crippling. However, the rule book's suggestion that you should
use them as 'trap-finders' should be ignored - with sensible use of Seers, this is
unnecessary. Instead, use a screen of Berserkers as your front line, to slow down
and weaken enemy attackers.
In combat, Berserkers should avoid characters with ranged attacks, as they'll often
get killed before they even get a swing in. However, a large enough number of
Berserkers can wear down, and even kill, the toughest of opponents by attacking
in a wave. This is particularly effective against the computer. When controlling a
character without a ranged attack, the Dark Legion's artificial intelligence will
charge straight at you. Stand still, facing the approaching enemy, and when the
character is still just out of range, begin a Killing Blow move. If you get the
timing right, the opponent will be hit just as it gets within attacking range,
ensuring that you do the maximum amount of damage, even if it then proceeds to
rip your Berserker to pieces.

Conjurer
The Conjurer is the most expensive character in the game, but it's a good
investment nonetheless. Its ability to summon new troops gives your army great
strategic flexibility, allowing you to temporarily replace lost forces, bolster a
weak area of your defences or deal with a particular type of enemy, by
summoning the right kind of character to deal with the situation.
Bear in mind, however, that a summoned creature will survive for only ten turns
at the most, and it'll grow gradually weaker as time goes by. This means that
ideally you should not summon a creature until enemy troops are within sight of
the Conjurer, and preferably not until the summoned character can immediately
attack its target, while it's at its strongest. This poses a problem, because
Conjurers should be protected from combat at all times - even the lowly Berserker
can be a serious threat. Because of this weakness you should always hide your
Conjurers behind a screen of real bodyguards (the stronger the better) and save
enough life-force so that if an enemy does get close, you can summon a last ditch
defender.
In keeping with all the magicians in the game, Conjurers work well in
combination with other character types, and should always have a Templar right
next to them. Rings of Life and Rejuvenation increase their usefulness, and a Ring
of Speed allows them to move up the map faster, bringing their considerable
power to bear.

Demon
This is the most powerful fighter available to you - it's difficult to do anything
wrong with a Demon. Against human players their sheer psychological effect is a
useful device, and even the computer knows enough to be wary of them. Their
huge combat ability means that they are very flexible, serving equally well as
assault troops or as a virtually impenetrable wall of defence. A group of Demons
is one of the only forces capable of smashing through the enemy's line on its own.
In addition, their very strength makes them capable of defeating just about every
other character in the game. The only opponents they should be wary of are: Fire
Elementals, due to their ranged attack and partial immunity to the Demon's breath
weapon; Trolls, due to their great strength (a Troll won't find it easy to kill a
Demon, but it can certainly weaken one severely); and, of course, other Demons.
However, the biggest danger when using Demons is over-confidence - because of
their seeming invulnerability there's a strong temptation to just charge in and duke
it out toe to toe with everything. But remember, Demons can be worn down just
like any other character. The Demon's Sonic Scream, while useful, should only
ever be used when a Demon is right in the thick of it and likely to die, otherwise
you should save its life-force for what it does best - fighting.

Fire Elemental
Other than the brute power of the Demon, the Fire Elemental is arguably the most
dangerous fighter available to you in Dark Legions. Its use in combat requires a
bit more skill, but with practice it's more than a match for any other character in
the game (including the big four-armed red guys with the horns and serious
halitosis problems). Due to their speed and ability to fly over chasms and water,
Fire Elementals also make ideal scouts and roving troublemakers.
The key to using Fire Elementals in combat is range - stay away from your
opponent and pepper him with Fireballs, using the Mini-Nova attack only as a last
resort. Against a slow-moving enemy without a ranged attack, this is easy, but
tougher baddies take a little more skill. Against a fast-moving adversary, terrain
can be your best friend. Hide on the other side of a tree (or whatever) and wait
until the other character comes around it, then blast them and run away.
 When fighting something that can fire back, things get a lot harder, although the
computer AI has problems controlling these characters. Stand still, facing the
computer's character, and when it gets in line with you it'll fire. Immediately let
loose your own Fireball and dodge to one side. The computer will tend to sit there
and get hit. As soon as its missile has passed you, move back into the line of fire
and repeat the process. This can take a while to get the hang of, but it means that
you can often come out of such a fight without a scratch.
The same rules apply to the Nova as to the Demon's Scream, but remember, it
kills the Elemental.

Illusionist
The Illusionist is one of those characters whose usefulness is very dependant on
whether you're playing against the computer or another player. Against another
human player, who has no way of telling what is an illusion and what isn't,
Illusionists can be a powerful force. Mixing Illusionists in with real characters can
make a group seem far more powerful than it is, and this tactic can be used to
divert your opponent's attention from a real threat, or scare him into backing off.
In these instances you can afford to create illusory Demons and Trolls, as their
appearance is more important than their combat ability.
Against the computer, which is immune to psychology, Illusionists are less useful
and you should concentrate on creating characters with ranged attacks - remember
that a single hit in combat destroys an illusion.
The greatest enemy to the Illusionist, though, is the Seer. If your opponent (real or
computer) uses these characters well, your Illusionist will be all but powerless. It's
this weakness that really limits Illusionists, and makes them of dubious use.
Unless you're confident in your ability to pick off opposing Seers, it's probably
best to avoid using them.
However, if you do decide to have an illusionist in your army, keep it close to a
Templar or two, give it Rings of Life and Rejuvenation if at all possible (a Ring
of Speed might not go amiss either), and keep it out of combat at all costs.

Orc
In many ways the Orc is just a slightly more powerful Berserker, and much of the
same advice applies - use Orcs in great numbers as a screen for your main line
and in groups to intimidate a human opponent or wear down a tough character.
The key difference between the Berserker and the Orc is in combat. The Orc's
Charge Attack, as well as causing a decent amount of damage, allows him to close
the distance between himself and the enemy quickly (or run away quickly - you
don't have to charge at the opponent, after all). Against computer-controlled
characters without a ranged attack, the Orc can use the same technique as the
Berserker, charging at its opponent as it approaches. In addition to this, though,
the Charge Attack gives an Orc a slightly better chance against characters with
ranged attacks - hopefully getting close enough to do some damage, at any rate.
Finally, the Charge is of great use against human players, who can often be forced
to panic by using it.
When you do get close, avoid the Head Butt - it's too slow to be of much use.
Instead, go for Side Swings with the Orc's Cestii, which are quick and can easily
cause a lot of damage. The ideal attack from an Orc is a Charge followed by two
or three Swings - this'll seriously damage even the toughest of characters before
the Orc dies.

Phantom
The Phantom is a character dominated by its special ability - everything else is
secondary to the fact that the enemy can't see it. And that's the key to using it
effectively. Without its invisibility it's a very average character, slow moving and
of limited use in combat.
The Phantom is ideally suited to being a scout, sneaking past the enemy's front
lines to locate its Orb Holder and other weaker characters. Bear in mind, however,
that if an enemy moves on to the unseen Phantom, combat will still occur, giving
away not just its existence, but its position as well. To avoid this you should be
careful when moving your Phantom - stick to the edges of the map when possible,
but if that's not possible, hide behind obstacles and in awkward spaces - most
people (including the computer) will just move across and down to avoid an
obstacle, so hiding right behind one is a good idea. The real problem with using a
Phantom in this way is its speed - a scout is no good if the rest of your army
outruns it, so Rings of Speed are a must. A Ring of Power or two can also turn it
into a good assassin.
As with Illusionists, the Phantom's biggest enemy is the Seer, who can negate its
special ability. Again, only use Phantoms if you're confident of dealing with
enemy Seers before they cause too much trouble.

Seer
A Seer is one of the most strategically important characters in the game. All your
enemy's cleverly placed traps, sneaky Phantoms and confusing Illusionists are
useless when one of these characters is about. However, Seers do suffer from the
same problem as all the strategically strong characters - they're horribly weak in
combat but need to be close to your front line to do their jobs, making them prime
targets for your opponent. As such, always protect them with some big, tough
bodyguards, preferably Demons.
In spite of what the manual says, Seers are all but useless in a fight, especially
against higher level computer opponents, against which their befuddled attack is
worthless, so if they get attacked, they're as good as dead. Seers really must be
protected as well as possible.
Beyond that, there's little else to say about them. Their powers are always active,
requiring no input from you. Just be careful not to let your front line stray beyond
the Seer's range of sight, or you negate the point of having the character in the
first place.

Troll
Despite being second only to the Demon, in sheer destructive ability, these
characters appear far more useful than they really are. The problem with Trolls is
their slow speed, which makes them virtually useless as an offensive force - it
takes them too long to get into the action. You can negate this with a couple of
Rings of Speed, but then you're paying more per Troll than you would for the far
tougher Demon.
Where the Troll does come into its own, however, is in a defensive role. Leave
your Orb Holder at the back of the map, scatter a few Trolls around it and turn
them into rocks on your first turn. Then, even if the enemy does break through
your line, there'll be a nasty surprise waiting for it.
In combat the Troll is suitably tough, able to deal out a satisfying amount of
damage as well as soak up a fair amount. When playing against the computer and
faced with an enemy without a ranged attack, you can use a similar technique to
that of the Berserker, but with the Troll's devastating Overhead Smash Attack.
However, ranged attacks can cause the slow-moving Troll a lot of trouble,
especially the pesky Fire and Water Elementals.

Shape Shifter
The Shape Shifter is a very flexible character, which offers you a number of
options, and makes a good Orb Holder. Its shape-changing ability is completely
free of charge, so you can change from one form to another as many times as you
like without weakening the character, and it gains all of the combat abilities of its
current form.
As stated in the game manual, deception is the Shape Shifter's forte, and you
should make the most of  its ability to confuse and surprise an opponent. Because
of this ability, the character is far more useful against human players than the
unperturbable computer opponent, which won't suffer from the same shock when
a Demon appears 'out of nowhere' and rips up its flank.
Note: You should be careful when following the advice in the manual. Pretending
to be a weak character in order to lure the enemy close and then changing into a
Demon or Fire Elemental and frying them is a good tactic, but you've got to be
very careful ╨ if the enemy can reach you and attack in one turn, you won╒t have
a chance to change forms, and you'll be stuck as a Seer or something else equally
pathetic in combat, effectively throwing your Shape Shifter away.   Be sure to
look closely at the ranges of the opposing characters when trying this trick.

Templar
The Templar is another character of great strategic importance. It can not only
heal adjacent characters at a cost to their own life-force, but by merely standing
close to them it can give them a bonus to their revitalisation every turn.
Unfortunately, while they're not as helpless as some characters in  combat, they
aren't particularly strong either, and should be protected if  at all possible.
Templars are particularly useful to have around the magician characters (Wizard,
Conjurer and Illusionist), as their special powers burn life-force at an alarming
rate. You should aim to have at least one Templar in your force for every two
magicians, and move them as a group, so that the magicians receive the Templars'
bonuses at all times.
The other role that a Templar can fulfil is as an 'undead killer'. By loading a
Templar down with suitable rings (Life, Power, Stamina, Protection and so on) it
can become a powerful force in its own right. Combine this with the Templar's
natural bonuses when fighting undead (Vampires, Phantoms, Wraiths and
Zombies) and you have a potent force, especially if you time your attacks to occur
during the day!

Thief
Although on the face of it the Thief might seem quite a handy character, to be
honest it's not much use. Provided you make good use of your Seers, you╒ll be
able to avoid enemy traps, and by doing so avoid the need for the Thief. Your
opponent can't move over his own traps, so you'll rarely, if ever, be cut off from
an area of the map.
The other problem with Thieves is that disarming traps is dangerous, and often
gets the character killed. You have to ask yourself whether it's worth paying the
points for a character whose only real use is to disarm traps that could just as
easily be avoided.
These problems are only compounded by the Thief's lack of combat ability - it's
just not very tough at all. It's a shame, because it has some neat moves, but the
only way a Thief will ever become a force in combat is with a lot of skill and a lot
of rings.
If you do decide to use a Thief, it's best to manually disarm traps. When doing
this, remember to look at any symbols following the one you have to guess, not
just the one before. For example, if you've been given the symbol in the top-left
corner, a blank and then the symbol in the middle-right, then the blank can't be the
top-left symbol, or the bottom-left symbol.

Vampire
The Vampire takes a fair amount of skill to use to its fullest potential, but if you
take the time to practise with it, this character can turn the tide of a battle. The key
to success with a Vampire is to create as many zombies as quickly as possible.
Not only does this mean that the Vampire will lose less life-force per turn (and
will eventually start to gain some, if you create enough zombies), but it also
means that you can get the Vampire's life-force up to a good level.
The zombies themselves are also very useful. Not only do they provide you with
'free' cannon fodder with which to wear down your opponent, but they also serve
as an excellent distraction, forcing your opponent to divert troops away from the
front line in order to deal with them.
Because of this, the Vampire shouldn't be used as part of a formation, but sent off
ahead of the rest of your army, hopefully sneaking around the edges of the enemy
and attacking weak targets to start off with. Rings of Speed are useful - remember,
every turn that goes by the Vampire grows weaker - and a Ring of Stamina helps
in combat.
The trick to using the Vampire in combat is to get a feel for how long the enemy
will remain paralysed and withdraw before it 'snaps out of it', then run away until
your stamina has returned.

Wizard
Wizards have all the same drawbacks as the other magician characters - they're
weak in combat, but need to be near the front to be useful, thus requiring
bodyguards, and their strategic power burns off life-force. However, like the other
magicians, they're very useful guys to have around, despite these problems.
More than any of the other 'strategic' characters, Wizards work best in a group.
Two or three of them together with a screen of bodyguards to hide behind and a
like number of Templars to boost their revitalisation rate can be a powerful force
on the battlefield. Their special ability to freeze opponents in place is very
flexible in this situation. Each Wizard can 'hold up' a nasty monster until you're
ready to deal with it, or all can target the same enemy, usually killing it in a turn
or two.
Although they are weak in combat, Wizards at least have a half-decent couple of
ranged attacks that give them a better chance of surviving a fight. Use the first
attack to freeze your opponent and then let loose with the other - even the
strongest of enemies will have trouble defending themselves against this
onslaught.
As with all the magicians in Dark Legions, Rings of Life and Rejuvenation are
almost a prerequisite for the Wizard, and a single Ring of Speed will help it keep
up with the rest of your forces.

Water Elemental
They may not be quite as tough as their arch enemies the Fire Elementals, but
Water Elementals have an incredibly useful strategic power - provided that there's
water on the map. By teleporting to an area of water on the enemy's side of the
map you can get instant scouting information and, unless the enemy has some
nearby Water Elementals of its own, you can just sit in the middle of the water
and recover your life energy. This 'hiding in the water' technique is also useful
when you get badly wounded in a fight, allowing you the time to recuperate.
In combat, the Water Elemental's ranged attack isn't very powerful, but is one of
the most rapid in the game, making for an effective close attack as well. However,
the Tidal Wave Charge can do some real damage, and can be used in just the
same way as the Orc's Charge. Because the Water Elemental has a ranged attack
as well, it's often useful to use the Tidal Wave to get away from an opponent
who's dangerous at close range.
Water Elementals are good all-round characters, useful both in combat and on the
strategic map. As such, they benefit from virtually any ring you can give them,
although Life and/or Rejuvenation are particularly useful if you want to teleport a
lot. Bear in mind, however, that a Water Elemental is far less useful on a map
without any water.

Wraith
As the manual says, the Wraith's teleporting ability makes it an ideal assassin,
which is very useful for picking off those pesky characters that are weak in
combat but powerful on the strategic map, and happen to be inconveniently
hidden behind other enemies. Unfortunately, their low starting life-force means
that they are virtually incapable of doing this at the start of the game. What's
worse, unless your opponent is nice enough to provide you with a few weak
targets to build up your energy, the Wraith will end up either being killed early or
wandering around in a useless fashion.
To prevent this, always equip a Wraith with as many Rings of Rejuvenation as
possible, and (unless there are a couple of weak characters on offer) keep them
well back until their life-force has risen to a decent level. When teleporting into
combat, take the time to think of the consequences - is the Wraith going to be able
to survive the inevitable counter-attacks, and if not, is it worth sacrificing it? With
these characters it's best to wait for a good opportunity when the Wraith will be
able to do the most damage, rather than throw it away early and wish you still had
it later. Of course, if you wait too long, that's just as bad. But no-one ever said that
strategy was going to be easy!


STRATEGY

The first thing to realise about Dark Legions is that playing against the computer
is very different to playing against a friend, and so requires different approaches
and strategies. The following guide is split into two sections (Computer Challenge
and Friendly Fun), one for each kind of opponent. Both sections assume that you
are playing with a moderately-sized army (2500 points or more) - much smaller
than  this and the game stops being as much fun.

Computer Challenge
The computer opponent in Dark Legions is far from the toughest in a modern
strategy game, but the huge advantage it gains in points on the higher levels,
combined with its considerable skill in combat with certain characters, can still
make it a formidable challenge. To beat it, and to beat it convincingly, it's
important to understand its weaknesses. And here they are:

The computer is not very good at fighting with or against certain characters (see
last month's issue for more details on this).
It has only a very basic grasp of overall strategy. It tends to spread all its
characters across the map and charge them down to meet you. It will keep the
various magicians in groups, back from the action, and keep its orb carrier at its
end of the map, but that's about it.
It tends to give its orb to a 'weak' character, often a magician. Even with the extra
power granted by the orb, these characters are far from hard to kill.
It has very little ability with breaking through your lines, or any other coherent
plan.
It seems to pick its army on a semi-random basis, just having as many of every
character as it can afford. It does tend to pick a lot of Seers, and push them
towards the   front. Likewise it tends to spend a fair number of points on traps,
which it scatters around liberally.

Taking Your Pick
Your strategy in Dark Legions begins with the choosing of your army, and when
playing against the computer there are several points to bear in mind. The first
thing to realise is that it's not worth using traps as a destructive weapon. The
computer tends to saturate its forward lines with Seers, making it unlikely that
your traps will escape notice. Although killing off the Seers is possible, it does
mean that you have to divert characters from more important targets (a Seer is no
military threat on his own) and it's pointless once the traps have been spotted
anyway - the computer doesn't seem to forget the location of traps, even if the
spotting Seer is killed or moves away. You can, however, use traps to block off
certain areas. In this case you want your opponent to see them, and thus the
computer's mass of Seers doesn't matter - the enemy characters won't be able to
move through the line of traps, and that's the point of them in the first place. By
using this technique you can channel the computer's forces into the area of the
map where you want them, and cut down on the number of areas that you have to
defend.
On a similar note, Phantoms and Illusionists are of very limited use against the
computer for exactly the same reasons as traps, so it's best not to bother with them
unless you have a specific love of either of these characters. Phantoms are a bit
weedy anyway, and for the extra points it's better to buy a Conjurer and have
some solid help at your beck and call.
Do remember to include at least one Seer on your side, though. The computer
really does love traps, especially at the higher difficulty levels, where it has points
to burn and strews them around liberally. There's nothing quite as annoying as
losing a valuable character without so much as a fight, so it's vital for you to be
able to spot traps early.
The other types of character to avoid when playing against the computer are
weaklings, like Orcs and Berserkers. The computer isn't intimidated by huge
gangs of these guys, so it's more efficient to have a smaller number of tough
characters. For the price of four Berserkers you can get a Demon, and normally
it'll take a lot more than four boneheads with swords to bring down one of the big
red guys.

Getting Down To It
The key to beating the computer is to use characters in concert, building a central
formation and advancing it up the battlefield under the cover of skirmishing
groups. Group some Wizards, Conjurers, Templars and Seers together, then  put a
solid line of Demons in front of them and slightly to either side. Give all the
magicians Rings of Speed (so they can keep up with the rest of the formation),
Life and Regeneration.
Put a couple of Vampires right at either edge of the board, with Rings of Speed
and Stamina, then a couple of groups of Demons, with whatever rings you fancy,
to either side of the main formation. Scatter some Fire Elementals around, as well
as whatever other characters you fancy. Finally, put a Demon or a Shape Shifter
right at the bottom of the map, and give him the Orb. When the game begins, you
just advance the central group steadily up the map - the Demons will easily
protect the magicians, who should be used as and when needed. Use the smaller
group or groups of Demons as skirmishers, taking out the enemy as they find
them, and use the Fire Elementals to clear the way for the main advance, dealing
with anything nasty or dangerous that might threaten one of the bodyguard
Demons. Advance the Vampires up the flanks at full speed, trying to slip past the
front lines and circle around to the weaker characters at the back. Creating a few
zombies behind the main line confuses the computer no end.
Follow this plan and you should be able to defeat even the hardest difficulty
levels. Just keep your Orb Carrier where he started, and advance slowly with the
rest of your forces, grinding the enemy down. If you're playing on a larger map,
with more points, keep to the basic idea, just form multiple central formations.

Friendly Fun
Mixing it up with the computer is fun, but the ultimate test of your skill with Dark
Legions comes from fighting another player. Human players are capable of far
more intelligent plans and strategies than the computer, and can be far better in
the combat sections of the game. The problem is that it's harder to give definite
guidelines telling you what to do, as every player will use slightly different ideas,
and have their own strengths and weaknesses. Still, there is some general advice
that applies to most situations.
For a start, ignore most of what you've learnt about playing the computer. You
can no longer count on your opponent making glaring errors and simple mistakes.
Many of the hints above are based on the fact that the computer is relatively
immune to deception and psychology. This isn't true of a human opponent.
Illusions, Phantoms, big gangs of Orcs and traps are all far more useful against
another player, for example. The formation idea still works, but you'll need to
more adequately protect its sides and rear from sneaky attacks by and intelligent
player. Most importantly, you can't just leave your Orb Holder at the back of the
map, unprotected. A human player will normally assume that any character near
the back is a potential Orb Carrier and go for them with a vengeance.
However, some things still work. Demons have an even higher intimidation
factor, Fire Elementals are just as effective at clearing the way for your
formations, and sending Vampires up each flank to circle in behind is even more
effective (in fact, Vampires can be one of the most powerful groups of characters
in a two-player game).
The real key to playing against another person is to remain flexible, and keep an
eye on what's going on. Try to maintain the initiative by attacking in several areas
at once, confusing your enemy, and try to predict what he or she is likely to try
next. Most of all, play around, and try new things whenever you can ╨ you never
know what's going to work, so it's best to try everything.