With alliances come serious responsibilities.
They also gather bigger armies on higher difficulty, and are more proactive about expansion. It gives the clans a strong sense of personality: they come to you more frequently with offers, but they can be ruthless in their exchanges, and prone to breaking off relations. Even more so on higher difficulty settings, where you'll find the AI working the clans hard, and you even harder, with bullish demands accompanying every overture. A turn-based strategy layer, in which you manage your clan and decisions take seasons to play out, and a real-time battle mode, in which you lead your armies to victory or humiliating defeat.Įarly on, diplomacy is key. From the airy, atmospheric, intrigueheavy string-and-flute music of the campaign map, to the drum-andgong- and-grunting-Samurai martial accompaniment to battles, the sense of atmosphere is palpable.Īs ever, there are two phases of play. You can almost hear the spittle flying when your battle advisor yells, with great emotion: “Our troops are running from the field! A SHAMEFUL DISPLAY!!!” And the music matches pace. The accents and intonations of the campaign and battle advisors are also fantastic, especially when things get heated.
