SpellForce 3: Soul Harvest
Stand-alone expansion adding dwarves, dark elves, and a new campaign.
SpellForce 3: Soul Harvest is a standalone expansion for SpellForce 3, released on 28 May 2019 for Windows. Developed by Grimlore Games and published by THQ Nordic, it runs on the same engine and uses the same assets as the original game, but does not require the base game to play. Critics generally rated it higher than the main game, praising its improvements, attention to detail, and engaging story.
The expansion introduces two new races—dwarves and dark elves—each with their own buildings and units, replacing the elves and orcs from the original. A new campaign follows a different player character, General Aerev, who is joined by a mix of returning and new companions, each with unique backstories and abilities. Players can equip armor, weapons, and jewelry to affect their character's traits. In cooperative play, the secondary player can now create their own character. A free Oktoberfest-themed DLC was released in September 2019.
Players can customize Aerev's gender and appearance, but unlike the main game, they choose only two of nine skill trees, with demonology and druidism added. Each combination grants a synergy skill. Mercenaries—customizable characters—can be created and used in the single-player campaign instead of the provided companions. The campaign lasts 15 to 20 hours and supports up to three players; the host plays Aerev, while others join as their own mercenaries.
The interface was overhauled: skills are now placed on a movable bar (top or bottom) instead of below character portraits, and resource information appears in the lower right corner. The skill-wheel still lets players choose a skill when clicking an enemy, but only shows skills added to the bar. On real-time strategy maps, players choose a race, with dwarves (defensive, using stone) replacing elves, and dark elves (offensive, using many small units) replacing orcs. Dwarves require moonsilver; dark elves need echo, harvested from dead units. Dwarves can build tunnels to connect sectors. Each faction has a titan, and flying units were added for all races, including elves and orcs from the main game. Territory is still conquered sector by sector, but resources now automatically share between neighboring sectors, requiring continuous territory. The main game's races remain playable in multiplayer and skirmish, which now include a ranked system.
Quick Facts
- Title
- SpellForce 3: Soul Harvest
- Developer
- Grimlore Games
- Publisher
- THQ Nordic
- Platforms
- Microsoft Windows
- Released
- 28 May 2019
- Genre
- Real-time strategy, role-playing
- Modes
- Single-player, multiplayer
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Soul Harvest takes place in the kingdom of Northander on the fictional world of Eo, approximately two years after the events of the main game. Tahar, the main game's player character, has been killed during this time, so players take control over General Aerev, a Northandian soldier who was in the kingdom of Empyria during the events of the main game. They are joined by companions including elven warrior Yria from the main game, Raith Skaddar, a dark elf who featured in the main game as a quest giver, and dwarven warrior Rerah. The plot follows Aerev, living in disgrace after being responsible for the death of their company, as the Queen recalls them to Greykeep and orders them to investigate incidents indicating the God of Light is again trying to enter the world. Aerev discovers a masked woman working for a dark elven group called the Crescent has been stealing souls. The story involves a rebellion against a racist dwarven demagogue, Arakys, and the need to find and eliminate three Corrupted souls serving the God of Light. After dealing with the Crescent and the masked woman, Aerev is betrayed by Raith, who struck a deal with the God of Light. Aerev enters the God of Light's domain and is offered a choice: live in a new reality where they never failed, or face the consequences of their mistake.
Reader's Guide
Soul Harvest was first announced via a trailer added to SpellForce 3 in December 2018. The expansion was released on 28 May 2019. While it does not require SpellForce 3 to run, publisher THQ Nordic granted all owners of the main game a 40% rebate on the expansion on Steam. The expansion received 'generally favorable reviews' from critics according to review aggregator Metacritic. Reviewers lauded the graphics and audio, though some noted that the graphics did not allow easy identification of own units in large fights, and some dialogues were described as long-winded. The story was found interesting and compelling despite a common premise. The ability to customize the character was received favorably, though some reviewers bemoaned the limited cosmetic options. The mix of role-playing and real-time strategy elements was again highlighted as the series' strength. Multiple critics, such as PC Games and GameStar, prefaced their reviews with assurances that Soul Harvest did not suffer from the same amount of bugs that crippled the main game. GameStar called Soul Harvest 'compensation' for the buggy main game. Despite itself being an expansion, Soul Harvest received a free Oktoberfest-themed DLC in September 2019.
Did You Know?
- Soul Harvest does not require the player to have purchased or installed the main game to play it.
- The expansion adds two new races: dwarves and dark elves, replacing elves and orcs from the main game.
- Players are restricted to choosing from two out of nine skill trees, with demonology and druidism added in Soul Harvest.
- A free Oktoberfest-themed DLC was released on 26 September 2019, featuring a Bavarian-themed skirmish map.
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