It’s my first time playing any Age of Wonders game, but playing within the 4X genre is largely learning how to apply the same titular principles: explore, expand, exploit, exterminate. Like its predecessors, Age of Wonders 4 has a story-focused single-player campaign, tactical turn-based combat, and a global spellcasting system.

This is the first Age of Wonders game since 2019’s Planetfall, and a return to the series’ original high-fantasy theme after nearly a decade. Unfortunately, there is great hubris in getting too creative before learning a game’s systems and synergies, and as a result, the proud mole-folk of Holemind paid a dear price. I could have just as easily made a race of feudal toadkin or poisonous halflings, but as a selective isolationist when it comes to 4X strategy games, the idea of building my empire underground and popping up like a horde of gophers sounded irresistible.

Immediately after starting Age of Wonders 4, I decided to make a custom race of molekin for the tutorial realm - a swarming, mana-channeling people ruled by High Matriarch Enam’ru Onimole.

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