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After battles, you'll be rewarded with large sums of experience points and gold according to your performance, which allows you to raise the various abilities of your troops, allowing you to switch them to new, more powerful jobs, and buy them various equipment that'll boost their stats even further, including special bonuses like +15% EXP. With the ability to demote a unit at any time to recoup their EXP value, there's quite a bit of depth and freedom in the customization of your own personal army, and while there are some missions where a certain unit type will give you a big advantage, there's never a situation where you can't strike the enemy how you choose to.
Spanning four characters all working on different sides, Crusaders presented an intricate storyline of war, betrayal, and the lust for power. Though there were a few gaps that were never quite explained, such as what Rupert did in the time he was sent off as an emissary to the dwarves, or who actually burned the village that got the whole war started. Heroes exists to fill in those gaps. Its seven shorter campaigns, mostly told through the eyes of the subordinates to the main characters of the original, cover events taking place before, during, and even a bit after Crusaders' storyline. This makes it feel more like a collection of short stories rather than the epic novel the first game presented. One minor problem is the number of "filler" missions to keep these from being too short, offering random battles not part of the storyline, but these are always optional and can be covered quickly by an experienced general.
Seven New Heroes; Quite Magnificent
Seven new campaigns means seven new main characters, each with their own unique fighting styles and even more distinctive personalities, everything from the deadly half-vampire Morene to the "devout to the point of blindness" paladin Walter. An interesting quirk is there's an entirely new voice cast for the English dub, which will sound odd at first to anyone who spent any serious time with Crusaders. Both casts are a bit mixed so it's hard to say which comes off as better, though I preferred the more gruff Gerald from the first while enjoying the drunken lout version of Rupert from the second. At least the heavy metal style music from the first that gets the blood pumping in battle has returned. An interesting addition is that when you complete a campaign you can create a cleared save, which will allow you to progress through the campaign once more with all the exp and gold you've accumulated, even with a different main character, such as tackling Ellen's missions with Walter at the forefront.
What other new baubles does Heroes have to offer? First off, there are four new unit types to buff up your private army. Based on the four elemental forms of magic, the earth golems, thunder rhinos, ice maidens, and flame wraiths are not only magical powerhouses, but they barely take any damage from normal attacks. Hit them with the opposing element or an aerial barrage, however, and they crumble like cheap masonry. Also, if you miss the heroes from Crusaders or want to give the new characters a swing but haven't unlocked their campaigns, there's custom mode. Here you're given a million EXP to make your own dream army, and put it to the test against the forces of your choice, along with a long list of maps to choose from. More of a diversion than anything else, it's a good place to train yourself if you plan on taking your game online.
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