Saga

In many respects the game resembles an older RTS called Rome: Total War. Most squads consist of multiple units and sending in troops in the right formation against the appropriate targets is vital to achieving victory. In Saga each players nation is not geographically connected but is instead an instance which can be freely raided and plundered. New players must rely on quests since they lack a force capable of participating in PvP. The quests are mostly tedious and involve destroying several AI controlled Squads. Luckily these quests yield experience for the nation and the individual squads that participate. Aside from experience, the quests also offer resources as rewards which are required to build additional buildings such as farms, lumber mills, and mines. Almost every quest is repeatable on four difficulty levels: Copper, Silver, Gold, and Heroic. A major drawback to Saga is that it takes hours for most buildings to be constructed which means new players will be stuck doing repetitive quests or logging out and doing something else as they wait for their nation to develop. It is only once your nation is established that the real fun begins. 

In order to protect your self from raids, it will become essential to join a guild, powerful guilds can then supplement their income by raiding weaker targets. Saga was designed so that PvP would be the main source of income and resources which was a smart move since the single player aspects and the quests are tiring and should only be played if there is nothing else to do. The level of customization in Saga is surprising for a RTS. There are over a hundred squad types which can each be given custom gear acquired through quests or purchased on the market. Dozens of spells can be learned and cast by consuming a resource called favor of the Gods which is gained through combat. While Saga it self is free, much of the content must be purchased in the form of "booster packs." These function as they do in collectible card games. Playing with the free squad types is possible but if you want fancier units, you'll have to cough up some cash. Saga is a one of a kind game that every RTS buff should check out.

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