Disciples II: Servants of the Dark

Rating:
Summary: Very Good Gameplay, But WAAAAY Too Short
Review: If you've played the original Disciples II, then you definitely want this (and the other) expansion packs. The gameplay is almost exactly the same as with the original game. Outside of a few minor tweaks, this expansion pack is essentially just an additional few scenarios. That, unfortunately, is exactly why I've rated this expansion pack as only three stars when I rated the original game as four stars. Looking solely at the interlinked sagas instead of the stand-alone scenarios, this expansion pack includes only three scenarios within each race's saga. And, as this is "Servants of the Dark" and not "Guardians of the Light," you can only play as the Undead and the Legions. That's much, much, too short for an expansion pack. The original game had seven scenarios per saga (with four playable races). The game also includes a design decision I disagree with: your hero stops getting new abilities from leveling when he reaches level 15. Depending on the scenario, he can still level. But, you don't get to choose another ability. Essentially, up to a point, all he'll get is some additional Hit Points and Damage Points. That sort of takes a lot of the fun out of the game. Especially, since the minimum starting level for your hero is 10. Heck, I imported a level 15 hero from the original game and couldn't even level him at all until the third scenario.

I'd also like to point out that even though you don't need the original Disciples II to play the expansion pack, the game only includes the Undead and Legions side of the original. So, if you want to replay ALL the original game (which I did), you either have to have that original game lying around, or you have to buy this expansion pack PLUS the "Guardians of the Light" expansion pack (which I've done). Because of the shortness of this exansion pack, Strategy First would be wise to not sell it, "Guardians of the Light," and "Rise of the Elves" separately. They should put all of them together and sell the combination as the expansion pack. However, if you played the original game and liked it, I still recommend this game. It's short, but good.