Celtic Kings
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Contents |
[edit] Story
Introduction
Celtic Kings is a real time game that blends strategy, role-playing and adventure elements. There are two modes of playing the game that complement each other - adventure mode and strategic mode.
In strategic mode, you play against computer opponents or other players on the Internet exercising your strategic and tactical skills to achieve objective victory. You train and command many units, hire and develop heroes, acquire powerful artefacts and conquer strongholds and villages. Launch large-scale military campaigns against your foes to bring them to their knees. The game-play in this mode is similar to the traditional RTS gameplay.
In adventure mode, you control a party of heroes and explore the world as the struggle between Caesar and the Gaul chieftain Vercingetorix evolves. Which side you will support? Will you betray your allies of yesterday? Will you follow the mysterious druids as they request your assistance? Command strongholds and large armies; take risky missions behind the enemy lines. Find powerful artefacts to support you. Make friends and foes as you try to reveal who you are and who you want to be.
The beginning
At the day of the spring equinox, a swarm of riders flooded the land. Help was neither wanted nor given, and each of the proud tribes stood for itself.
One by one, many strongholds fell to the Dogs of Death and paid their toll of blood. Where the force was not enough, treachery was used. And thus fell Kormaris.
Children were screaming and women were killed before their beloved.
In a moment of deep grieving a desperate man swore an oath at a sacred place - “She of the War, I adjure you to give me revenge! Every life I shall take I devote to you! Give me the power I need!“ And in his outburst of anger, he wove his destiny.
And the destiny of many others.
Setting
The adventure takes place in the Gaul lands during Caesar's conquest of Gaul. Four main forces have strong and conflicting interests in the area. The struggle between them defines the world of Celtic Kings.
First, there are the Gauls. They are numerous and brave but separated tribes. They fight in their own lands but often among themselves. Their pride and religion often gets in the way to victory. The lack of unity makes them weak as never before.
Rome is a mighty state with progressive social order and advanced military knowledge. Its social structure requires constant expansion wars. Julius Caesar's brilliant leadership, however, makes Rome a deadly enemy. He seeks to conquer Gaul for glory and fortune in his quest to become the sole leader of Rome.
The Teutons represent the united German tribes. They cross the river Rhein every year, seeking to expand their influence or simply to plunder. They are a fearsome and numerous force, but they do not have long-term plans for conquest and expansion. They seek fortune and glory through victory and self- gratification.
The mysterious Druids wield horrifying and ancient powers. A few of them are enough to stop a full-scale army. They weave the patterns that make nations prosper and states decay. Hidden are their goals as they often seem contradictory.
[edit] Gameplay
Introduction
There are two nations you can play with - Gaul and Roman.
Gaul people are romantic visionaries. They are a hardly controllable crowd of brave and fierce warriors. They do not have good weapons or military education but they have one thing more than anything else - spirit. They fight as children play - with eager but playful enthusiasm. They have many hidden abilities and the mysterious druids on their side, which makes them dangerous enemies.
Romans are a symbol of order and prosperity. They are ambitious professionals focused on their goals and prepared for anything. Making up for their lack of passion with persistence, they methodically follow their goals and never give up. They are aware that they are a power that soon will dominate half of the known world. Although they acknowledge their gods, they praise their freedom even more and obey the laws. Their society, however, decays due to the greed for more wealth, entertainment and pleasure.
Experience
Military units become more practiced with each killing. As their experience accumulates, the units eventually advance to the next level. As they encounter higher levels, more ability is required to move forward.
Units receive attack, defense and health bonuses at each level they reach
Heroes
There have always been outstanding people that can achieve alone what hundreds cannot achieve together. These people are widely recognized and called heroes.
A hero is capable of commanding an army of his own. The player can attach units to a hero. When a hero receives an order, he issues commands to the units under his control.
Only the heroes can order the units in a formation and preserve it during battle in order to receive the bonus of the selected formation.
The most important benefit of the heroes is that through their leadership they give a portion of their experience to the units they command. Thus, an inexperienced group of units commanded by a great hero is much stronger than the same group of units left on their own.
Formations
Several different formations are available in the game. Each formation has four areas - the front line, left wing, right wing and main body - and may assign different unit types to its specific parts. For instance, the horse wing formation puts all horse units at the wings, where they can enter the battle faster without foot units getting in the way.
The "stand ground" command holds all units in place, keeping the formation continuously intact. Depending on the formation, the units receive various bonuses for the duration of the command. For example, the block formation doubles the unit defenses and is exceptionally useful for protecting narrow passages.
Feeding
All human units regularly consume food. The larger the army you have, the more food you will need to support it. You may often find yourself storing food before launching large military campaigns.
When no food is available, your units slowly lose health until they are almost exhausted. When food is available, units restore themselves with the same speed.
Magic
For centuries, the Roman priests and Gaul druids have kept their most precious secret: the language of their gods. Only through a lifetime dedication one can join their ranks. The power they posses is awesome for they can ask their gods for miracles... for a price in their own blood.
All magic is done through self-sacrifice. The more blood is shed, the more powerful the magic effect. Once a sacrifice is started, other initiated can join for a greater or longer effect. The sacrifice is stopped just before the last drop of blood flows from the veins of the priest. Barely alive, he must be healed before making another sacrifice.
The magic of the priests and druids is as different as the gods they serve.
For example, the druids are able to summon an invulnerable ghost that instills deadly fear in the hearts even of the bravest warriors. Although it doesn't kill, the ghost will leave only a sparkle of life in those who sense its presence. The ghost disappears when the sacrifice is over.
The Roman priests conjure a poisonous mist, which engulfs the enemy warriors and slowly drains the life away from them. After the priest stops the sacrifice, the deadly wisps quickly dissolve.
Legends say that another, more ancient and more powerful kind of magic once existed. By sacrificing his life and soul, rather than just a few drops of blood, they say, a servant of the gods can change the world. This knowledge seems to be long forgotten ... or is it?
Sailing
The most beautiful water you have ever seen in a game is not just a pretty sight in Celtic Kings. The warm waters of the Mediterranean can transport the lifeblood of your economy - or deliver hundreds of enemy warriors right at your doorstep.
There are two kinds of vessels in the game. The smaller trade boats deliver resources between settlements on the shore faster than any ground transport, but they are fragile and vulnerable to enemy attacks. The large battle ships can transport entire armies as well as attack other ships or units on the shore, allowing you to organize massive surprise attacks or harass the enemy's naval trade routes.
Specials
The special unit abilities in Celtic Kings introduce differences between the units beyond their stats. They emphasize the strengths and weaknesses of each unit and can be freely combined with each other to create wide variety of behavior.
The "specials" do not require the player to order their use - they are in effect all the time.
Here are some of the units' specials abilities:
- attack skill - the unit receives temporary attack bonus with every successful attack on one and the same enemy
- charge - the charged attack of the unit does six time more damage; the charge is restored after short period without fighting
- death blow - kills the wounded enemies with one attack
- defense skill - the attackers of the unit suffer temporary attack penalty with every consequential attack
- defensive stand - evades the first attack of any unit without taking any damage
- freedom - the unit cannot be attached to heroes
- spike armor - returns part of the received damage back to the attacking unit
- spread damage - the more healthy targets receive full damage while the wounded targets are almost unharmed
[edit] Features
Single player
- Large world consisting of many maps that the player can navigate at will
- Integration of character development and major battles
- Combined RTS and RPG experience
- Numerous characters and conversations
- High-quality pre-rendered movies
- 40-60 hours of game time in one large-scale adventure
Multiplayer
- Two sides to play with - Roman and Gaul
- LAN and Internet games with up to 8 players
- GameSpy Arcade support
- Random map generation
- In-game scenario/adventure editor
- Off-line ranking system
Technology
- Large maps with up to 32000x32000 pixels
- Support for 5000 units on the map
- Intelligent unit behavior controlled by scripting language
- Human-like AI opponents with different personalities
- Exceptionally detailed mini-map
Graphics
- Support for 1024x768 or 1280x1024 with thousands of colors
- Textured 3D terrain with lighting that allows landscape views of unique quality
- Three different seasons selectable for any map
- Total of 45 different units with many animations
- Numerous buildings and objects to enrich the world
[edit] Requirements
Minimum
- IBM PC or 100% compatible
- MS Windows 98/ME/2000/XP
- A 400 MHz Pentium II processor
- 64MB of system memory
- Video board capable of displaying 1024x768 with thousands of colors
- 4x or faster CD-ROM
- DirectX 8.1 or newer
Recommended
- IBM PC or 100% compatible
- MS Windows 98/ME/2000/XP
- A 600 MHz Pentium II processor
- 128MB of system memory
- Video board capable of displaying 1024x768 with thousands of colors
- 4x or faster CD-ROM
- DirectX 8.1 or newer
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