For the programmers working on Disciples II, this year's E3 is not the usual nightmare. Ordinarily, the programming team is the hardest hit, and there are many nights where four hours of sleep is a hell of a lot of rest, but this year, history is not repeating itself. One of these features is alpha blending. Sacred Lands and was something that the entire art department was clamoring for. Since the programmers were way ahead of schedule, they found a quick and effective way to implement alpha and other related features into the game.
Alpha blending is used to show transparency in objects.
When alpha is set to 50 percent, the object is semitransparent, so this means that you can see the object and can also see what's under it. The major use of alpha blending in Disciples II is for spell effects. Sacred Lands, and when spells were cast on an object, the object was covered by the spell. By introducing alpha into the game, the artists now have the ability to make the kinds of effects that will make gamers stop and reload the game to see the spell again.