I just beat this game today. I've been waiting for this moment since I was 11. Hot damn does it feel good.

Alright, so way back when I was a wee tadpole, my mom got me a Sierra Strategy Triple Pack for Christmas. Cyberstorm, Caesar II, and Rise of Rule of Empires was on it. It also had a demo for LoM and I wound up playing that far more than the other games. Problem was, I was 11 and couldn't just go out and buy my own games. My mom wasn't any help either. And thus, for all these years past, I was never able to sit down and give LoM a real try. So thank you Steam for giving me this.

LoM is a strategy game where the goal is to defeat Balkoth, the evil Lord of Death who is attempting at sinking the land of Urak into the dark clutches of a death god. To do this you must build your army, liberate your Great Temple from enemy clutches, and forge various alliances with the other elemental factions in the game (Air, Water, Order, Chaos, Fire, Light, Earth, and Death.) Each faction has its own strengths and weaknesses so there's a ton of replayability depending on which you choose. Do you begin with a sturdy Warrior based Earth faction, strong in melee offense or do you start with a Thief based Light faction, excelling in ranged archery?

LoM seems a little overwhelming at first but it's actually quite simple as there are only so many variables to pay attention to. Your resources are limited to Crystals, Ale, Gold, and Fame, with each Faction having their own dependencies on one more than the other. These resources are used to fuel upkeep costs of units and for creating them. Liberating various locations such as gold mines, crystal mines, and breweries provide these resources each round. It's that simple. Once you learn the pacing for each faction, playing through the game is largely up to you. LoM can be incredibly short or incredibly long, depending on how effective you are and how much RNG loves you during your attempts. This is a game that is meant to be played many, many times so never feel like you're enbroiling yourself into a 100 hour campaign every time you start.

The downsides to the game lie mostly with the RNG: some attempts the AI takes a more even pace; others its on the juice, plowing straight through you. Nothing felt better than having Balkoth roll up into my capital within the first 30 turns. I died very quickly. Sometimes enemy units move in a logical fashion; another time, Balkoth sat over the ocean, mere pixels out of my range, for nearly 20 rounds just to spite me, unmoving. If the AI is feeling cruel, you can get steamrolled very quickly in this game. Just gotta hit New Game and start again...

I cannot express how happy I am that this game has held up after all of these years. A chapter of my life has finally been completed. If you're a fan of classic strategy, you'll find an immense amount of fun with LoM.

I just beat this game today. I've been waiting for this moment since I was 11. Hot damn does it feel good. Alright, so way back when I was a wee tadpole, my mom got me a Sierra Strategy Triple Pack for Christmas. Cyberstorm, Caesar II, and Rise of Rule of Empires was on it. It also had a demo for LoM and I wound up playing that far more than the other games. Problem was, I was 11 and couldn't just go out and buy my own games. My mom wasn't any help either. And thus, for all these years past, I was never able to sit down and give LoM a real try. So thank you Steam for giving me this. LoM is a strategy game where the goal is to defeat Balkoth, the evil Lord of Death who is attempting at sinking the land of Urak into the dark clutches of a death god. To do this you must build your army, liberate your Great Temple from enemy clutches, and forge various alliances with the other elemental factions in the game (Air, Water, Order, Chaos, Fire, Light, Earth, and Death.) Each faction has its own strengths and weaknesses so there's a ton of replayability depending on which you choose. Do you begin with a sturdy Warrior based Earth faction, strong in melee offense or do you start with a Thief based Light faction, excelling in ranged archery? LoM seems a little overwhelming at first but it's actually quite simple as there are only so many variables to pay attention to. Your resources are limited to Crystals, Ale, Gold, and Fame, with each Faction having their own dependencies on one more than the other. These resources are used to fuel upkeep costs of units and for creating them. Liberating various locations such as gold mines, crystal mines, and breweries provide these resources each round. It's that simple. Once you learn the pacing for each faction, playing through the game is largely up to you. LoM can be incredibly short or incredibly long, depending on how effective you are and how much RNG loves you during your attempts. This is a game that is meant to be played many, many times so never feel like you're enbroiling yourself into a 100 hour campaign every time you start. The downsides to the game lie mostly with the RNG: some attempts the AI takes a more even pace; others its on the juice, plowing straight through you. Nothing felt better than having Balkoth roll up into my capital within the first 30 turns. I died very quickly. Sometimes enemy units move in a logical fashion; another time, Balkoth sat over the ocean, mere pixels out of my range, for nearly 20 rounds just to spite me, unmoving. If the AI is feeling cruel, you can get steamrolled very quickly in this game. Just gotta hit New Game and start again... I cannot express how happy I am that this game has held up after all of these years. A chapter of my life has finally been completed. If you're a fan of classic strategy, you'll find an immense amount of fun with LoM.