Fantasy Tactical Combat Party-Building CRPG?

[Composer99]

Does anyone know of a computer game that meets the following criteria?

- fantasy theme/genre
- tactical turn-based combat
- build a whole party from scratch (sort like what you do in Icewind Dale/IWD 2) or very close to it
- not a Final-Fantasy-Tactics-like
- Not Divinity: Original Sin or its sequel

This has been an itch I've been wanting to scratch in a CRPG for a while now, but haven't quite managed to.

[Batcathat]

I'm currently playing through the Pillars of Eternity games and I think they might fit. I'm using real time with pause, but there is a turn-based mode and while there are pre-generated companions to recruit, you can create custom ones.

[KillianHawkeye]

Either of the Pathfinder games?

[Anarchic Fox]

- not a Final-Fantasy-Tactics-like

Well that narrows it down.

Are you looking for a Strategy RPG like Heroes of Might and Magic, where combat takes place in a separate area from the rest of the game, or one in which combat takes place in the game world? If the latter, then every Spiderweb Software game qualifies. Geneforge or Avernum (the remakes in either case) are good places to start with their catalog, provided you play on a higher-than-Normal difficulty. (Normal is fun too, but I wouldn't call it "tactical.")

[GloatingSwine]

How much do you want it to be an RPG and how much do you want it to be tactical combat?

If you want it more on the tactical combat end then maybe Battle Brothers would hit the spot.

[Composer99]

Well that narrows it down.

Are you looking for a Strategy RPG like Heroes of Might and Magic, where combat takes place in a separate area from the rest of the game, or one in which combat takes place in the game world? If the latter, then every Spiderweb Software game qualifies. Geneforge or Avernum (the remakes in either case) are good places to start with their catalog, provided you play on a higher-than-Normal difficulty. (Normal is fun too, but I wouldn't call it "tactical.")

I'm fine with combat being on a distinct map or on the regular game world map.

[Composer99]

How much do you want it to be an RPG and how much do you want it to be tactical combat?

If you want it more on the tactical combat end then maybe Battle Brothers would hit the spot.

I'm fine with more tactical combat and less RPG. I'll look up Battle Brothers - thanks!

[Zombimode]

Does anyone know of a computer game that meets the following criteria?

- fantasy theme/genre
- tactical turn-based combat
- build a whole party from scratch (sort like what you do in Icewind Dale/IWD 2) or very close to it
- not a Final-Fantasy-Tactics-like
- Not Divinity: Original Sin or its sequel

This has been an itch I've been wanting to scratch in a CRPG for a while now, but haven't quite managed to.

Well, Solasta is fairly recent and checks all those marks.

Somewhat older (and much less budget) would be the Avernum trilogy.

Still in development is Zoria: Age of Shattering which also checks all those marks.


And if you're not afraid of really old games there is a good number fitting the bill
But I will await your greenlight before I start.

[Grod_The_Giant]

Somewhat older (and much less budget) would be the Avernum trilogy.

Came here to recommend just that! Be aware that there are two versions of the series*, one from the early 2000s and one from the 2010s. I haven't played either set very much, but based on my experiences with other Spiderweb games the newer ones are probably better than the originals in every way.




*Three if you count the even older Exile games.

[tonberrian]

I guess the new Tactics Ogre: Reborn game is right out. It's a very good game, and checks every mark except Not a Final Fantasy Tactics-alike. Well, maybe even technically that... Tactics Ogre: March of the Black Queen did come out before Final Fantasy Tactics in Japan - it's much more accurate to say that Final Fantasy Tactics is a Tactics Ogre-alike.

[MetroAlien]

Interestingly enough, your description reminded me of the Barbarian campaign in Heroes of Might and Magic 4.
People usually overlook it in favour of HoMM 3, but in 4 you can control the hero units and have multiple heroes in the same squad.
The barbarian campaign especially focuses on heroes vs mobs combat.

Aside from that,
I'll second Pillars of Eternity.
Also, Pillars of Eternity 2, which is more polished overall and even has an option to load your PoE 1 character and save file to continue the story.

Besides fitting your described criteria fairly closely, it's also just a brilliant game on its own.

In addition to the story-based party, you can also hire mercenaries, who don't have much impact on the plot, but can help you balance your party.

More on the side of strategy, rather than RPG, there's Battle Brothers.
It's basically turn-based Mount&Blade, minus the graphics and plus fantasy setting.

Going even further into strategy, there's Battle for Wesnoth, which is free and open source.
It's essentially a strategy game with "hero units" that are permanent, and a selection of generic units that are replaceable.
All types of units can level up and get promoted to a stronger class.
There are like a dozen or so scenario campaigns, each with unique hero and mob units. The variety is kinda mind-boggling actually...

I guess you can compare the character/unit system in Battle for Wesnoth to the Disgaea series.
Speaking of, Disgaea could also be worth looking into, though it's more of a mix between sci-fi and fantasy.
It also has a humorous tone, which might not be what you're looking for.

[ahyangyi]

Wildermyth definitely has some CRPG feel. Admittedly it gets stale after 7-8 campaigns for me, but that's still some fun times.

Battle for Wesnoth is, like its name implies, about battles. In campaigns it is not rare to control 20-30 units at the same time, and unit death would be frequent, and the customization options of each unit is intentionally simple (usually it's just two branches and two randomly generated traits). That said, the game has lots of mods and many of them has a more RPG-like feel. And a different class of mods provides extra factions and units to choose from.

[Wookieetank]

I'll third Avernum (Escape from the pit, Crystal Souls, and Ruined World are the newest iteration), and throw in Avadon as well for Spiderweb Software (Geneforge is a lot of fun too, but its older and full of crunchy pixels (so tasty)).

NIS has a large number of turn based games of wildly different styles. Disgaea series and La Pucelle falls closer to FFT than others, but have their own unique quirks that give them a very different feel than FFT. Personal favorites of theirs is Phantom Brave and Soul Nomad: and the world eaters.

[danzibr]

Speaking of, Disgaea could also be worth looking into, though it's more of a mix between sci-fi and fantasy.
It also has a humorous tone, which might not be what you're looking for.

Looking at the original post, I’d agree with Disgaea. One of my favorite game series. Indeed not sword and sorcery fiction, but checks all the other boxes. Heads up though, there are unique characters. You CAN create your whole party though (like FFT).

[The Glyphstone]

RE: Spiderweb Software- I actually think the Exile trilogy was better than the Avernum remake. Avernum is prettier, but the change to an isometric camera style and pseudo-3d maps traded out a ton of the details that I loved about Exile, all the secrets and Easter Eggs you could find by poking around the map and using odd niche spells.

The only thing Avernum does better is continue the story in 4-6, but Avernums plot wasn't too deep to begin with.

[Wookieetank]

RE: Spiderweb Software- I actually think the Exile trilogy was better than the Avernum remake. Avernum is prettier, but the change to an isometric camera style and pseudo-3d maps traded out a ton of the details that I loved about Exile, all the secrets and Easter Eggs you could find by poking around the map and using odd niche spells.

I never seemed to run out of things to find in Avernum myself (and haven't ever played Exile), was able to get 56 hours out of Escape from the Pit and 70 from Crystal Souls, so there's a fair bit to do and see. Granted you do only get walk, boat or fly spell as options for transport, and there's a magical barrier removal spell, and a cracked wall removal spell, so there's not a whole lot of variety in that aspect.