What New Features, or Improvements, do you REALLY LIKE, in Beta 3 ?

not full of new features, but I do like make faction more meanful and some new monster, but otherwise, they do remove and limited spell gameplay and way city build and level up. I like more of war of magic spell gameplay, more of opitan, more open, more way to win than limited game here, same as building city and level up, It's seem they remove and set more limited than war of magic, basic removed some cool features, some improved features, some make features less like no longer respwan monster and hero, ect..

I wanted to provide one quick example, myself, of a new element (a Magic Item) that both surprised me, and really added some NEW fun to FE!  (BTW, Full Disclosure: I have mentioned this previously, in another thread.)  On an early quest, in my first game with v0.90, I was able to secure a new Magic Item called:  Restoration Potion .  To my surprise, this item was described as immediately restoring up to 100 points of hit points to an injured champion, or sovereign, AND being able to "remove all injuries champions have from escaping combat". 

Like a lot of players, I had often seen a champion (or my sovereign!) who had acquired one, or several, debilitating injuries, as a result of losing combat actions.  With enough damage, such a champion could become almost useless.  But with this potion, PRESTO(!), problem solved!  Of course, this is a random event; and therefore not a guaranteed solution, to the vexing problem of gradually having an important champion rendered worthless.  But some chance (of finding such a Potion) is better than no chance!  And since it could be kept until needed to repair MULTIPLE injuries, in one champion; it really was a great find!  Incidently, the quest that provided it was an early, surprisingly easy one; so I had more latitude (early in the game) to use my sovereign, to fight some really serious battles, that I might otherwise not have engaged ...  

Nice Feature ... Major Fun(!) ... what other things/features/aspects are you really liking in the Beta 3 ?  

I really like the way tactical battles work. Sure, there might be some things to balance in there. But the mechanics are now very good.

That's been around for a while, they are just pretty rare, could be they changed the drop rate on those though.

Whoa!  Thanks for the feedback, Leo.  That really does come as a surprise to me ... especially, since I have read so many replies (to other Discussion threads), in which folks complained about accumulated injuries to sovereigns, which could (presumably)  NEVER  be healed or removed, by any means!   Well, I suppose that's because (as you say) it is rare.  In that case, I suppose I would only hope that Stardock would fix it, so that it is considerably more common (but not more than once a game). 

Oops, but there I go, asking for a change; and I really wanted this Discussion thread to only highlight the things we REALLY LIKE, right now -- as opposed to things that we still want changed/fixed/amended or improved.    

I like that:
1; Weapons play out more differently, thats really nice to actually "have to choose" from different weapons instead of just a damage stat.
2; Cities level up and gain unique buffs, makes my cities much more interesting.
3; You have to gather Horses and Wargs before having the ability to train up Mounted Units.
4; Units take they're turn separately on the Initiative count, instead of it being "Team 1's Turn", "Team 2's Turn".
5; The small Caravan's having to go back and forth to simulate trade, and giving an object to plunder, more of this!.
6; There is more than just other players to combat.
7; Cities sprawl out and look big and powerful on the overland map.

While I do like these things, that is meaning it could not be changed, though I would be sad if too much was removed entirely.
Of course I stayed off the new patch only, because that didn't do a lot to me personally.

Sincerely
~ Kongdej

Great List, Kongdej!  Thanks for the feedback.  I pretty much agree with all of your points.

Thanks, also, Horemheb, for your observation concerning the improved mechanics of Tactical Battles.  IMO, tactical battles are  so much improved  as to be pretty much "fixed" now.  I haven't had a single game Crash during a tactical battle under v0.90.  That is a vast improvement over my experiences during the Beta 2 phase.  Also, everything moves much more  smoothly  on the tactical battlefield than it used to do.  I think the overall  appearance  of the tactical battlefield has also improved, albeit in subtle ways.  To be fair, I am not one of the folks who is obsessed with tactical battles.  I know there are some folks who want more details, more complexity, and more refinements (often based on some other battlefield game that they played some time in the last 10 years.)  But for me, the tactical mechanics are just about right, right now.  They may not be perfect, but they are good enough for me ... 

Beta 3 has one-handed spears and Impulsive has been prereqed by Path of the Assassin. Those are the best things IMHO.

1. I like the faction differentiation that is taking place.  So far I loved my game as Gilden (i'm drawing a blank here, I think that's the name; the faction with the unique hammers and plate).  Had a blast playing them.

2. I like the change to champions "decreasing" the xp received if there are multiple heroes in an army.  

3. I love the changes to the weapons (I actually have to make a decision as to what type of fighter I want to be (one who counters, one who ignores armor, one who does large amounts of straight up damage via hammers etc.  Not to mention the fact that a certain race or creature (due to armor) may be strong against a certain type of damage causing me to have to switch weapons before a battle.

4. I like some of the changes being made to the city buildings (although to be honest I haven't developed a good city specialization strategy yet).

5. I like the increase in diplomacy (and I know that more is going to be tweaked and added in this regard).

these are just some of the things I'm enjoying so far.

For me, the stability of the build is its best 'feature"... not a crash yet!

Also, I like the various unique weapons I am finding (and I am trying to mod my game to make exp easier, so I can use them sooner).  Overall, the details are filling in and this is becoming an addictive game.  I can see that I will like this as much as GalCiv2 once it is completed.

I only really started playing in Beta 3. I really enjoyed playing WoM. I honestly thought that was an amazing game.

Regardless, I don't know all the big changes made from the other Beta's. The changes that have been made since I have started playing I feel have been moving towards the right direction.

1. The way the cities work I feel is amazing. Being able to specialize each city and it took me a few games before I found out about outposts but I feel those could use like an ability to station troops inside the outpost similar to the Cities or have the ability to defend the outposts with a static defense. I know you can place troop on top of the outpost but it would be nice to station troops there.

2. The challenging monsters and Special areas with world quests is also great but I find myself constantly having to start a new game because my sovereign starts out next to a very powerful creature and I am destroyed within the first few seasons or I am unable to really expand past my initial city. I also like the fact that they appear to get stronger as the seasons go on. This has made the game very challenging.

3. The tactical combat with the initiative is a great improvement from just having teams move at a time. That and the way weapons change everything rather than just a number of damage. I also felt bows where made more useful in FE. while playing WoM i felt the bows came to late and the armor reduced the damage of bows so much that they where made useless once you got better armor. So that has been a great improvement too.

4. The research system, I have tried to finish a game going up on of the trees like I have wanted to win the game diplomatically and it seems that after a while I am required to climb either the warfare or magic tree in the later tiers to keep up and not get destroyed. but then I also fee it is almost mandatory to go deep in the civ tree to keep up with production. Was this the intent to not just focus on a tree or should I be researching each tree equally?

Overall I have been very satisfied with this game in its beta stages and I look forward to future patches and updates. 

Thanks for your observation, Ensais (Reply # 10).  I agree completely ... and this is an important point!  In my experience (and I know there are a few contrary experiences, among the members of the Beta testing community) the Stability was significantly improved, in moving from the Beta 2, to the Beta 3.    (I have noticed a small improvement, even, in going to v0.913, from v0.912 --I can't tell yet if v.0914 is better still -- it may be -- jury still out on that one.) 

But the point is, I would be seriously concerned if the Game's Stability were only being treated as an after-thought by Stardock.  You can't leave all Stability issues to the end-point; any more than you can postpone adding Quality (or Polish) to a product only at the end.  I think Stardock is showing the right attitude in constantly addressing Stability issues, through-out the upgrade process.  Stability  IS  getting the right amount of emphasis and attention.

Thanks for your extended comments, Fathertouchy.  With regard to the three-division technology tree, I think Stardock has done a very good job.  They have very nearly got it, just right, already.  I have read several comments (in other threads) where folks have nit-picked some aspects of it.  However, I think it's relatively original (as much as it can be); just complex enough to be interesting and challenging; and it actually does foster (or at least does not prohibit) mutiple paths (through it) toward victory.  As with tactical combat (see my reply #7, above), I think Stardock has got this feature just about right -- not quite perfect, perhaps, but close enough for me.   

1 - The streamlining of stats.  I feel like I actually know what types of bonuses I'm getting now.

2 - Strategic Terrain Altering.  Using "Lower Terrain" to create a new path to victory (quite literally) is the best.

And most importantly,

3 - Diverse playstyles supported.  I've used ranged sovs, magic sovs, fighter sovs, defender sovs... I've focused each of the different tech trees... And all of the different combinations have their strengths and weaknesses, and all are tenable.  I really do feel that there are lots of ways to play this game.  I have my preferences, sure, but if you find yourself lacking a certain resource or a certain hero type or what have you, there are lots of ways to adapt, and this is ONE HELL OF AN ACCOMPLISHMENT.  A little extra balancing and perhaps some diversity (with goodie huts and quest rewards, I end up with 5 heroes and 100000 pieces of equipment to distribute between them... how about some spells, city bonuses, heroes,units, resources as rewards instead?) then I can see this aspect getting even better.

The game is jammed packed with all sorts of different stuff that I love, a lot of them are those little things.

One thing that does stand out for me is being able to design and rename your Sov, heroes and units, it sort of gives the game that personal touch.

Things I would like. To be able to play for 2 million turns without crashes, slowdowns or bugs.

I like the increased faction differentiation.

I like that (some) monster lairs upgrade over time and become more dangerous if you don't deal with them.

Thanks for your comments, Hubichakakov.  I love the "Strategic Terrain Altering" that is available in Elemental: Fallen Enchantress!  I really can't think of any solid 4x game, since Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri, that has managed to use (what is essentially) terraforming in such an effective and Fun way.  I have used it: (1) to broaden paths (where, for example, a Serious Monster blocked the only passage through an area with mountains on one side, and sea on the other); (2) to cross bodies of water, as an effective, major, shortcut; and (3) to raise up obstacles to a continuing stream of wandering monsters, or AI forces.  I think this magical terraforming adds a significant play feature to the game!  

BTW, I am also in pretty strong agreement with your point #3, regarding the Diversity of Play Styles that Stardock is trying to achieve.  As you suggest, this is ambitious; and potentially a very positive accomplishment.

Thanks also for your observations, Tattyhat and Heavenfall.  I also have to agree that Faction Differentiation has gotten some serious improvement (and I expect more) which is a strong plus for the game.   Stardock clearly has the right orientation in this area.