Resources

Unlike some RTS games, in which economic management becomes the focus of all strategy, Rise and Fall incorporates a resource system that is streamlined to bring the emphasis on pure warfare back to the player. Whilst the player must still gather basic economic resources, equal weight is also given to the strategic resources which cannot be gathered, but still have a large impact on your civilization’s fate. The result of this is that resource management in Rise and Fall feels uncluttered, and the large unengaging periods that often plague the beginning of RTS games are done away with.

Economic Resources

Wood: Wood is used chiefly to construct buildings and equip various units in Rise and Fall. It holds more importance in the early levels of the game when the player will need to construct a large amount of buildings in a short period of time. Your villagers gather wood by chopping down trees, and gathered wood is brought to the nearest settlement or town centre.

Gold: Gold is the resource used to pay for units. It becomes increasingly important as the player advances through the game, as the scale of the battles will increase and more units will be required. Your villagers gather gold by mining gold mines; there is no trade feature in the game. Gathered gold is brought to the nearest settlement or town centre.

Strategic Resources

Glory: Glory is used to progress your civilization. You can use it to upgrade various units and advance your hero’s level, but also to unlock brand new units and gain various advisors that will provide unique benefits to your civilization. Glory is not gathered, but can be gained by building glory statues that generate glory over time, by expanding your territory and by defeating your enemy.

Morale: From Rick Goodman: “Morale is a measurement of how well you’re doing and how much your people respect you. The higher your morale, the faster your workers will gather resources, the harder your men will fight, and the stronger they’ll become. The bonuses you get from high morale can mean the difference between victory and defeat.” You do not have fixed levels of morale; morale is attributed to each unit as a percentage. Morale is highly influenced by your hero, and can also be bought in the form of various advisors.

Stamina: Stamina is an attribute of your hero, and governs how long he or she can stay in hero mode. Stamina increases gradually in 3rd person mode, and decreases whilst in hero mode. Attacking, swimming and taking damage whilst in hero mode will all lower your hero’s stamina further. Your hero’s maximum stamina will increase along with his or her level, meaning that early-level heroes are fairly weak, but late-level heroes become powerhouses. Stamina is an extremely precious resource, as with enough your hero can turn the tide of a battle, but with too little he or she can become a sitting duck.