Honestly, I'm not sure why it's gotten good reviews.
It's nothing more than one tactical mini-game after the next, where you don't know the rules of the game! What's worse - they've essentially thrown away the tactical element of map movement to (or from) battles.
What do I mean by not knowing the rules of the game?
Well each battle takes place in it's own hex-grid "board" - so yes, you know where you can move, and you can even get a good idea of how your opponents can move (which is usually a product of just how many hex's they can move). But just how much damage can they do to your units - and what kind of units?
Further you would expect that your own units would be similar in effectiveness (if somewhat different) to your opponent. I played through *most* of the first two islands/maps (say 17% of the game) and NEVER found this to be the case.
Your opponents almost always dominate (on "Normal" setting), having either much stronger smaller units or units with far greater numbers than you can field. From there the only determinative factor is your pet dragon and the spells you can cast in a god-like manner. (..I say "god-like" in that your character casting the spells is never on the hex-grid board, nor is your dragon for that matter, so you can never take damage (nor the dragon) - just a simplistic: if you loose the battle, you die - which is LAME "in my book".)
Basically this limits your own units to "survival-mode" (..and picking up incidental treasure), where most of the offensive work is via your dragon and spells (..though some of the spells are about increasing damage for your opponents by your units, or healing your units, etc..).
Honestly, where every single battle has more to do with *survival* than out-right wins or losses, and where there is no option for retreat, and it's the same thing over, and over, and over, and over, and over - again, that's pretty boring!
Don't get me wrong though: turn-based is often good, hex grid on turn-based is also good, but there needs to be a better balance of opponents and you need to know the rules of the game. Here you don't.
Then of course they've thrown away the turn-based structure for everything but combat, AND have removed retreats from combat. Both are incredibly stupid design decisions that essentially "ignore" most aspects but the combat hex-grid mini-game. (..instead it's a pitiful device for limiting your progression in the game - i.e. opponents "guarding" maps or treasure.)
This element *should* have been done like Disciples (or Disciples 2), where each map has it's own turn-based system, and each mini-game has the possibility for retreat (..though with losses). Or perhaps the mini-combat game should have just been expanded out as in Elven Legacy? Even that game is preferable to this system.
Seriously, unless you are glutton for punishment - skip this game.
