Wildermyth is Hero Building Fun

After finishing up my outlaw adventure in Red Dead Redemption 2, I decided it was time for a vacation from the triple A titles.  My summer has been filled with Cyberpunk and cowboys and I need something decidedly different.  It was time to take a gander at the ol' Steam wishlist and try to pick my next excursion into an electronic fantasyland.  I landed on Wildermyth, a turn-based, procedurally generated, RPG that has glowing reviews.  I've gotta admit, those reviews are spot-on too!

Pros:

+ A number of different campaigns to choose from.  There are five story campaigns (which have a set storyline that you play through) or players can choose to play a procedurally generated campaign.  Campaigns are made up of chapters--basically a certain set of objectives that must be completed (in story campaigns this means the story missions) before you move on to the next part of the story.  Each campaign plays out on a procedurally generated map and involves facing off against a different type of enemies.

Zyndolf--one of my legacy heroes.  Check out the pet!

+Freedom to craft your characters (or not).  The campaigns start with you choosing your squad--the first campaign has you pick three random characters (the number of characters varies by campaign for story reasons).  You can create custom characters and handpick their appearances and traits or you can use the randomizer.  The traits you choose for your characters can impact how they react to different events that happen throughout the story and each character has a short description of their personality (for example, my character Zyndolf is a "cowardly peacemaker").  At first, your characters are generic,  but the first time they level up you can choose which class they will be.  There are currently three classes--warrior, hunter, and mystic.  Once you pick a class, you can choose a single class ability.  Each subsequent time a character levels up (you earn points for defeating enemies to complete map objectives) you are presented with a menu of 4 abilities (which are randomized)--you can choose to improve an ability they already have or pick a new, additional ability.  Some abilities are specifically tied to a class and some are general improvements like more health.  Since everything is randomized, there's also the chance that there might be some abilities that suck (like getting a ranged bonus for a melee character).  In that case, you can opt to use special "legacy points" to re-roll your options (I will explain Legacy Points later).  This system might sound a little wonky, but it means that no two heroes are exactly the same.

You can also choose certain other traits that can have an impact on the story.  Some characters (generally those with a "romantic" personality) will fall in love with other characters--you can choose who they're attracted to (there's a handy "attracted to men/women" box that you can check/uncheck).  Characters can also form rivalries with other characters.  This doesn't have an impact on the story, but it does have some impact on combat because the characters will sometimes try to one-up each other (there's some sort of buff that I still haven't figured out).  You can also choose whether or not they will form rivalries.

Characters can have children (or not--it's something that can be toggled on/off--it also doesn't mean that they ALL have children) and when a hero retires, their child will join your party.

My tier 2 legacy heroes.

+ The Legacy Hero system is a unique way to save all your favorite characters.  One interesting aspect of campaigns is the fact that your heroes age and will eventually retire (the age at which they retire is actually a stat that can vary based on factors like in-game events or injuries).  This means that you need to keep recruiting to bring in younger heroes to fill the void.  The nice part is that your heroes are added to your "Legacy" and can be brought back in other campaigns (at a younger age and at a lower level--basically they will level up through the new campaign).  When you complete Legacy campaigns (a procedurally generated, non-story campaign), you also have the option to promote 1-2 heroes (or more depending on the number of Legacy points you accrue) to the next Legacy tier.

A half-explored map itches to be uncovered.

+ Procedural generation offers almost infinite replayability.  If you decide to replay a campaign, the map and events that you encounter (other than the main story missions) will be different.  There are also various difficulty levels to choose from as well as the option to choose "calamities" which mean that enemies start with a certain number of buffs. 

+ Ton's o' strategizing.  Combat is turn-based, so of course you'll be picking and choosing the best ways to fend off all the baddies, but you'll also need to make decisions about how and when to attack, taking time to explore various character related "opportunities" that periodically appear, whether to take time to explore or build outposts (building outposts gives you resources that can be used at the end of the chapter to improve your gear), whether you should take chances in certain special encounters....there's a lot to think about.  The enemy gets stronger the longer you take...but so does your party...so it's a balancing act.

Molelle is sporting some Morthagi legs.

+ Writing is solid and offers up great stories and nice moments throughout the campaigns.  Every time you move your party to a new tile and scout it you get a new event.  The events are illustrated with a series of comic-like panels.  Most events offer some sort of choice for the player than can have an impact on the characters--you never know exactly what will happen or what the outcome will be, but they're lots of fun.  Some events result in your character undergoing some kind of visible, physical transformation.  (For example, Molelle encountered a strange statue that turned half her face into stone.  She also lost a leg due to an injury, but through a chance encounter found a machine that offered to "fix" her pegleg by installing a Morthagi--a species of strange necro-robot hybrids--leg.)  The nice part about the transformations is that you can choose how much they progress (sometimes they can be beneficial, but other times they can impede a character's abilities).

There are also unique, character specific opportunities that will present themselves at random and play out through a short mission.  It's another one of those tactical decisions you have to make--to divert the group for awhile, but the rewards are worthwhile (they add +10 years to retirement age, usually result in gaining a level, and possibly could involve some gear).  Or, you might get lucky and find a pet--cute critters will join your group if you choose.  These critters are mostly just for fun, but if you find the right one, it grants a special combat ability (plus, your pets show up with their chosen characters on the legacy screen).

The overarching stories in the story campaigns are fun and well written.

+ Combat is relatively simple, but can be challenging.  Warrior and hunter skills are pretty standard--melee combat and shooting stuff.  Playing as a mythic (the spellcasting class) takes some getting used to.  You don't simply fling spells, but instead must "interfuse" with different objects in the area.  The type of object that you interfuse with determines the type of spell that you can cast.  For example, if you interfuse with a tree stump, you can explode it using splinterblast--a sort of AoE attack that does low damage, but is good for shredding enemy armor.  Once you get mythic abilities figured out, things get much easier.

There are several different types of enemies (and you can face most of them throughout the campaigns even though there is generally a specific type of enemy tied up in the story)--Gorgons are a race of corrupted animals (and actual snakey-petrifier types); Morthagi are a sort of necro-robot hybrid; Thrixl are insect-like; Deepists are tunnel-dwelling cultists; Drauven are a race of giant, intelligent lizards.  Part of the enjoyment of combat is learning the abilities of the various enemies and effectively strategizing.

Combat itself is turn-based and has an almost tabletop game sort of look and feel.  Occasionally, combat can feel a bit repetitive, but then you look up at the clock and realize how long you've been playing--it has a way of sucking you in.

+ Includes editing tools and workshop support for all the creative types out there who want to design their own stories and campaigns.  I don't fully understand how any of it works because I have none of the requisite skills when it comes to programming/doing game-designey type stuff, but it looks kind of awesome.  You can make your own comic panels, design the combat missions, and create unique characters.  There's a very helpful how-to Wiki to get people started and the devs even made a YouTube video explaining how to use some of the tools.

+ Very family friendly.  There's minimal bad language (there might be a "hell" of "ass" in there somewhere), the violence is low, and there's no sexual content. It's definitely something that would be safe for older kids to play (mechanics might be a bit complex though).

+Legacy points system.  For completing certain story tasks you earn special points.  These points can be used to fill in the gaps if you're short on materials (at the end of each chapter you have an opportunity to use the materials you've accumulated from assaulting and fortifying map tiles to upgrade your gear), they're used to recruit new characters, and they can also be used to remove calamities (special cards that get added to the the enemy deck--it can be a new type of enemy that will appear or buffs to the enemies you're already facing).  The system offers another strategic way to aid your heroes.

Cons:

- Only 3 playable classes.  Even though the randomization of abilities does help give each character a unique feel it would be nice to have a bit more variety.  Hopefully future plans include adding more classes.

I've been very pleasantly surprised by Wildermyth--a game that I hadn't heard anything about, but has turned out to be absolutely great.  If you like turn-based RPG's, the randomness of procedural generation, and the ability to watch your heroes grow and evolve, you should grab it.  I paid full price and am glad I did--I would gladly support the devs of this great, gem of a game.