Comparison with Warcraft III and Starcraft

## Major differences

* Underground mode
* Unit leveling
* Control supergroups

#### Underground mode

Essentially each map has an underground portion to it, which can be entered through specific entry points like caves and abandoned towers. The underground can be cave-like or dungeon-like. Some units can help with drilling a passageway into the underground (Miners).

## Gameplay differences

* Game can be described as Starcraft in a fantasy setting.
* The three races are as follows: Empire are your humans (with some elven additions), Fallen are a zerg-undead hybrid and Beastmen are kind of like orcs.
* Starcraft-like gameplay: max supply is 200, ladder maps don't have neutral creeps, and even ramps leading up to the base can be blocked with buildings.
* There are 3 main resource types (gold, wood, gems) in Armies of Exigo as opposed to 2 in Warcraft III and Starcraft.
* Hero units are only available in the campaign; they are not resurrectable and do not level up.
* Units generally move slower (and there are several upgrades to speed them up).
* More nuanced damage/armor system with lots of damage types (swing, bash, pike, pierce, fire, etc).
* No passive healing, with the only exception of Fallen units when they are on "corrupted" ground.
* You need only a few workers on wood (2-4), while in regards to gems it depends on the "techiness" of units you aim to produce. So gems are like vespene gas.
* The supply taken by a unit is similar to Warcraft III, however the supply cap is twice as large (200 > 100). Therefore, the number of units involved in battles is higher than in Warcraft III but lower than in Starcraft.
* High-tier units are considerably more expensive than in Warcraft III.
* Most units generally take longer build times compared to their counterparts from Warcraft III.
* In many respects Exigo is the middleground between Starcraft and Warcraft gameplay (eg. unit HP/unit numbers).
* Factions are likely not that well balanced due to the limited support the game has received after launch.

### Some specific features of the three races

* The only faction to have tier upgrades (t1/t2/t3) is the Empire (as is the Zerg in Starcraft).
* Relatively cheap and fast tier upgrades for Empire (Town Hall --> Stone Keep --> Castle)
* Human barracks can be upgraded to produce 2 units at once (or even research two upgrades at the same time).
* Empire have the best healing options - the Priest unit with heal and resurrect spells.
* Empire units get auras upon reaching level 3 and level 5.
* Human temple acts as a scaled down "healing fountain" for units stationed nearby.
* Some human buildings can house units - for example Peasants can take shelter in a Town Hall when attacked.
* Some spells - such as Litany for Priests - affect all of allied units on the map. Litany requires to be sustained by 3 Priests and slowly drains their mana.
* The deformed ground (the "blight" on which Fallen buildings may be summoned) is spread by a special structure called a Deformer, not so much by the Fallen buildings themselves.
* Fallen workers are beefier and more productive than their undead counterparts (Acolytes), and can even grab and immobilize small enemy units. However, they are more expensive and take a whopping 32 seconds to build.
* Similar to Warcraft III, the Fallen have 2 "worker" units - grubs and summoners, with the latter used to construct buildings and provide supply.
* Beastmen can resurrect their units in Revive Altar, which is useful to bring the high-level units lost in battle.
* Beastmen can heal their units by sacrificing one of their own with the help of witches.

### Miscellaneous

* Forests are not as dense as in Warcraft III and are sometimes even traversible, although this may not be obvious.

### Controlling units

* Can't add units to a control group with *Shift+<group\_number>*, such as *Shift+1* (this might be an annoyance to Warcraft veterans)
* Tab does not switch between different unit types within a selection of multiple units (instead it switches to the underground portion of the map)

## Improvements over Warcraft III

* Pathfinding is slightly better -- when you order a unit to go through the ranks of your other units, they will disperse slightly to give that unit space to move (useful to withdraw wounded units from battle)
* Can have 15 units in a control group (with only 12 in Warcraft III), and virtually unlimited numbers in supergroups
* Can move camera around by holding down the mouse wheel
* Neutral buildings can be garrisoned to gain specific bonuses, such as additional income, map vision or powerful spells
* Units that are healed by a Priest within a selection are highlighted by flashing a unit's portrait
* Double clicking workers yields different selections depending on what the worker's "occupation" is (collecting wood/building/being idle/etc)

## Comparison data

### Unit comparison

#### Grunt - Warrior

[gold/wood/gems]
 Warrior (Exigo)

Wyvern - Wind Rider

[gold/wood/gems]
 Wyvern (Exigo)

Tauren - Ogre

Crypt Fiend - Hive Spitter

[gold/wood/gems]
 Hive Spitter (Exigo)

Archer - Elf Ranger

[gold/wood/gems]
 Elf Ranger (Exigo)