Item issue needs fix.
 

This is a great game and I love it but I think it's garbage that certain items are random. It gives very little incentive to replay and plan a killer army. You can't say, "alright next game I'll use these troops with these items" because they're random. It takes a HUGE strategic element out of the game. I also hear of some getting ridiculous critical hits and would love to experience that once in a while but I can't due to the items being random.

If they could fix that or if someone could make a mod to fix this it would be a much better game. I've played twice already and have not found the pain skull, thats BS. :evil:

PLEASE someone make a mod. :grin:

Maybe this game isn't for you. The random element is the most fun factor in the game because you never know what you are going to run into. I've completed the game 5 times and believe me or not I never found a single pain skull. So what? its not like you cant pass without a single artifact. Beside pain skull doesnt have any special ability boost for certain unit, just a ridiculously high stat bonus.
For the high crit you can do it easily by using Agna's Ruby (one of the few guaranteed quest rewards in game) and Isara's Firewhip (another guaranteed quest item) with the lake fairy/ sprite? (whatever has the 1-3 dmg) then bless them and land a crit on a stack of thorn. If your stack is 2500+ you should score a 50k crit or so.

I bought it and I've played the original since 92-93 so it's for me alright.

You completely missed my point but it's cool.

I would just like to start a game with certain tactical plans and how to setup an army for most of the game and to minimize casualties. Can't do that if some items that I would need are random.

By the way what's so cool about the Firewhip? Does it have some hidden bonus?

Well my point exactly, the game would be easy even on impossible if you can assemble an army and have all the artifacts the way you want it. The randomness factor is there to spoil that idea and makes the game more challenging. I too have an idea of the perfect army but never get to complete it because either lack of units or artifacts.
About the whip, it has +1 fire damage so your fairy damage is now 2-4 (4 with bless) and the thorns take +100% fire damage.

Thanks for the info. Now that you brought it up, what exactly do the numbers mean..like you described damage "2-4"? Is the first number the normal damage and the second the max the creature can do if blessed?

The damage ranges from 2 - 4. If blessed it always hits with max damage, in this case 4.

I see, thanks.

Just to add to the Lake Fairy/ring/whip thang. If you are lucky and get the poison dagger(+1 dmg), it get's insane how much damage they do. My little ladies do an AVERAGE of about 17k per hit(thats non crit. They crit normal mobs for about 35k.). Remember that this is without a retaliation. So, if I wanted, I could wait on my turn and let a huge stack come to me. Then hit them at the end of the round. Then hit them again at the start of the next round. Use Fit of Energy and hit a third time, all w/out a retaliation. My rage is huge so they crit at least half the time. That's about 75-90k average devastation in, "a single round".....ouch! My sprites do basically the same thing. Add to that my archer elves with my telescopic sight, my dryads that can put half their army to sleep, indefinitely if I wanted (I beat the second fight yourself challenge and didn't lose a single troop and he never even got one spell off!). If you really want to get crazy, do mass bless and mass Precision.....God like!

Elves frign rule! I rush the main plot to get them, then go back and own everything!