Time of day plays a tactical role in Warcraft III. Night and Day times bring with them certain advantages and disadvantages. Orc and Human units regenerate during the day and night while the Night Elf units only regenerate during the night. Certain Night Elf units can become invisible at night. In addition, during nighttime, some Creeps go to sleep, and the sight range of your units decreases. Day/Night IndicatorAt the top of your screen, you will see a small orb that will transition from a sun to a crescent moon. This timer notes the passage of time from day to night in Warcraft III. There are 8 circles which indicate the time ticks for either day or night. Once all of these circles fill up, the time will change from either day to night or night to day. There will be a bluish glow for night, and a yellowish glow for daytime as well. When the day turns to night, you will hear a wolf howl and immediately notice that your field of vision is smaller on the minimap and screen. Sight RangeThe Day/Night Cycle affects the sight range of units and buildings. Units and buildings see more during the day and less at night. This makes scouting during the day and troop movement during the night ideal. The Night Elves can research Ultravision which allows them to see just as well during the Night. Health RegenerationHeroes always regenerate during night and day. The Day/Night Cycle affects the health regeneration for normal non-Hero units. Orcs and Humans units regenerate during the day or night while the Night Elf units only regenerate during the night. Undead units regenerate during both day and night, but only while on the Blight. SpellsSome spells are connected to the Day/Night Cycle: Shadow Meld – Many Night Elf units are invisible at Nighttime. A Shadow Melding unit is only invisible when she is not moving/attacking. A Hero Item exists which gives a Hero the Shadow Meld ability at Night. Night Elf players can also use the Moonstone item available at their Ancient of Wonders to turn the day into night for a short period of time. This will allow them to regenerate health and allow the Moon Wells to regenerate besides giving Shadow Meld to most female units. During that period of time, the Day/Night Indicator will have a purplish glow indicating that it is modified.
unkeep
The armies that wage war on the battlefield exact a heavy toll on the economies that support them. Even the lowliest of fighters has living expenses that must be met. Their armor must be oiled, their bows strung, and their weapons kept in clean condition. In short, these armies require Upkeep. In Warcraft III, Upkeep takes the form of a tax on your Gold mining that is automatically deducted from all Gold you gather. As you produce more units, the tax on your Gold income increases. There are three levels of Upkeep: No Upkeep (0-50 Food: 100% income)No Upkeep occurs when you have an army consuming 50 food or less. At this level, there is no tax on your Gold mining, so your workers bring in 100 percent of their Gold. Low Upkeep (51-80 Food: 70% income)Low Upkeep arises when your army consumes between 51 and 80 food. The tax on your economy is modest, draining a small percentage of Gold from everything you mine. High Upkeep (81-100 Food: 40% income)High Upkeep is reached when your army grows beyond 80 food. Your Upkeep needs are so great that the tax levied on your Gold mining is enormous. A large percentage of Gold is taken from your workers before they ever deliver it into your coffers. Upkeep has been included to improve tactical management for players while fostering a more aggressive style of gameplay. Players are more aggressive and turtle far less in their bases, and it gives players real strategic decisions to make about how many units they wish to control with pros and cons to each. Upkeep is also instituted to focus the game on smaller numbers of units. The more units that are allowed in the game, the less powerful Heroes will be relative to your army. This is simple math. High Upkeep is MEANT to be very punishing. Players should not be in it for long, but we didn’t want to set the harsh unit cap at 80. During play, it is wise to stay in Low Upkeep, and just jump to the High Upkeep tier before a major attack. Try not to enter High Upkeep unless you have 2-3+ Expansions. If you find you are not collecting enough Gold, try to drop to a lower level of Upkeep or gain control of additional Gold Mines to counter the reduced income.
economy
Production is importantSometimes Hero control, spell casting, and luck can determine a winner. However, quite often the more resources you harvest and mine and the higher level units you produce or the upgrades you research will determine who wins the game. You need to secure additional Gold Mines and make sure you harvest enough Lumber. Get your Economy GoingIt is important at the beginning of a game to get your economy rolling. This means training workers to harvest Lumber and build buildings. Continually train workers in a steady succession from the beginning. Once you have enough workers, stop training. You will find that you may need additional workers if you need to build several buildings at once, you start building units or researching upgrades that require a lot of Lumber or when you expand to another Gold Mine. Keep your Economy GoingBuild Expansion Towns. Watch your Gold Mine and make sure you get additional Gold Mines before it runs out. Try not to be placed in a situation where you have to look for another Gold Mine and are not currently mining Gold. Workers on GoldNight Elves and Undead only need 5 workers on each Gold Mine. Any more units placed on the Gold Mine will be wasted. Orcs and Humans may need more than 5 workers when the Town Hall (or Great Hall) is placed too far away from the Gold Mine. LumberBe careful not to harvest too much Lumber. If you are limited on food and find yourself with too much Lumber, kill off some harvesting workers to free up food. Some units require Lumber to produce. If you build a lot of these units you may find you need to place additional workers on harvesting Lumber. Whenever possible purchase a Goblin Shredder. One Goblin Shredder can replace all of your workers that are harvesting Lumber. You can then kill them off to free up food or use them to clear away the trees blocking Gold mines for making expansions Keep Your Resources SpentDo not save up Gold and Lumber. Warcraft III is not won by accumulating wealth, but rather instead by crushing your enemy. If you find you have too much Gold and Lumber, spend it on more units, unit producing buildings, and upgrades. In team games, ask other players if they need any resources and distribute them to your team. You cannot always keep your money spent but keeping money spent is a good overall plan. It is often very embarrassing to lose a game when you have plenty of resources but just did not bother to use them properly. Resource Upgrades (Humans)Get the Lumber resource Upgrades so that you can Harvest Lumber faster. Borrow and ShareUse the resource trading options in Multiplayer game to give resources to your allies when they need them and to ask for resources when you need it yourself. UpkeepPay attention to Upkeep and how it affects your economy. You may need to reduce the number of units to drop a level in Upkeep to generate additional resources. Another option is to take over more Gold Mines to balance the higher Upkeep. Out of Gold?If you find yourself in a situation where your Gold Mine has ran out, you’re out of Gold, and you don’t have an additional expansion there are some options: All RacesUse your army to kill some Creeps. The Creeps will generate Gold which you can use to build a new Town Hall. Players of all races can – if they dearly need gold ASAP (e.g. for haunting a mine) – have their Heroes sell some/all of their items to shops (owned/allied/neutral). Though this can make the Heroes at least temporarily weaker, it often proves worthy, because it’s better to have a new gold mine being harvested, than to have a strong Hero without an army to lead. If you sell items that are available in shops, you can buy them back once you have the gold stream reestablished again. This is most useful in longer solo games and perhaps some FFA. Orcs and HumansYou will need to “long distance mine”. Instruct your Peons and Peasants to travel to the next closest Gold Mine. Gather some Gold and walk it all the way back to your Town Hall. Continue this until you have enough to build a Town Hall at a new Gold Mine. [ Click t
Gold
Mined from the rich earth of Azeroth and Lordaeron, this precious metal is commonly used in exchange for goods and services. As a rare substance that is always in short supply, Gold must be dug out from the rock and soil within the established Gold Mines. Many of these Mines were abandoned when the Orc raids began and the workers fled for their lives. Since the beginning of the War, these sites have frequently been operated while under the protection of military forces. Gold is the main resource in Warcraft III. Gold is required to create new buildings, train units, and research upgrades. Gold is also required at Neutral Buildings to hire mercenaries, buy items, or activate special Neutral Building features. Players need to collect a steady stream of Gold to ensure their success. Whenever money is tight, expand to additional Gold Mines. Gold is mined in different ways depending on the player’s race. Humans and Orcs use work units to carry Gold from the Mine to their “Town Halls.” The Night Elves’ Tree of Life entangles the Gold Mine and drains the Gold out of a Mine with the use of Wisp workers. The Undead uses Acolytes to mine Gold. Five Acolytes surround a Gold Mine and extract Gold automatically using magic. There is a “Gold tax” in place, known as Upkeep which is activated as players create more units. As players create more units, less Gold is recovered from the Gold Mine. Try to gain additional Gold by taking over additional Gold Mines to help balance this tax out. Creeps or other players often guard Gold Mines. Players must decide whether risk of battle is worth the gain of the additional mine. If another player attacks while your forces are engaged or dying to Neutral Units, you may not have the forces to defend yourself. It’s best to wait until you can afford to make an attack on multiple fronts. The decision is a gamble; it could pay off or it may cost you dearly. When a mine you are using is low on Gold, you will receive an advisory warning that the Gold Mine is about to run out, and the minimap will ping the location of the mine. You will also receive a message when a Gold Mine is depleted. A mine is considered low on Gold at 1500.
creeps
ven the most expert travelers must be wary, for in the exploration of any map they’re bound to encounter a variety of Creeps. Creeps are neutral units that generally don’t like you, regardless of what type of blood runs through your veins. They will attack unprovoked, and they’re very protective of their camps. This camp loyalty means that the Creeps will be in the same place on any given map anytime you explore that map. If your hale and hearty band of travelers can keep their wits about them long enough to do battle with the various Creeps that populate each map, they stand to profit from their bravery. It’s a well-known fact that once vanquished, Creeps give up varying amounts of experience, gold, and sometimes even valuable, mystical items–the tougher the Creep, the greater the reward. Creeps also give up the ghost permanently when you vanquish them, so your stalwart troops won’t ever have to re-vanquish any Creep respawns. Some Creeps might be willing to suppress their distaste for you long enough to join your cause…for the right price. These Creeps can be purchased at the Mercenary Camp. Otherwise, expect to stumble across hostile Creeps near town exits, at various choke points around the map, around extra Gold Mines, and defending Neutral Buildings. Ah the variety of Creeps you’ll see…this page lists but a few of them. Rock Golem Rock Golems are huge, lumbering creatures that were crafted from magically imbued stone. These unthinking automatons were created to act as guardians over precious treasures and entranceways – and occasionally as bodyguards for eccentric wizards. Rock Golems are incredibly durable and feel no pain from either physical or magical attacks. They never tire – and they never relent their brutal attacks once activated. Red Dragon Ruled by the mighty Dragon queen, Alextrasza, the Red Dragons exemplify the grace and serenity of life and nature. Though the Orcs captured the Dragon queen and raised her whelps as living weapons during the Second War, the Red Dragon flight has since regained its former power and sworn to uphold its ancient charge of defending the wild things of the world. Though noble and wise, Red Dragons are terrible enemies when their wrath is incurred. Their destructive, fiery breath is feared by all races – the Orcs in particular. Ogre Lord Using their immense bulk to terrorize their lesser ilk into service, Ogre Lords are often encountered guarding Gold Mines, Healing Pools and other valuable locations. Although they do not cast spells, Ogre Lords make up for their lack of magic with pure brawn, blasting their tree-trunk sized clubs into their enemies’ skulls with unequaled fury.
new battle.net features
Blizzard will be implementing a slew of groundbreaking enhancements to Battle.net® for Warcraft®III: Reign of Chaos?. The following list highlights many of the new features designed to streamline your Battle.net experience and help you get the most out of Warcraft III. Anonymous MatchmakingBlizzard’s dedication to intuitive interface design extends to Battle.net. With the efficient anonymous matchmaking system (AMM), players are now just two clicks away from their next battle. Players are anonymously matched based on skill level. The AMM randomly selects maps based on the players’ preferences. Players can choose which race to play, or they can let the service choose for them. Players can also select the game type, which indicates the number of allies and opponents. Other game options are preset by the designers, resulting in a higher level of play. The top-ranked players from each gateway will be listed on our Web site. Arranged TeamThe new custom team option lets players create games that friends and clanmates can see and easily join. Players can team up with friends, and team records are tracked. Arranged team games count toward the ladder. Team members are automatically allied and set to allied chat. New Ladder SystemBattle.net’s ladder system has been revamped for Warcraft III. This new system promotes active competition and maintains the ladder’s integrity. The AMM prevents win trading and ensures that high-level players face opponents of similar skill. Ladder-play prerequisites have been eliminated (everyone who uses the AMM earns a ladder rank). Top-ranked players can compete in seasonal tournaments to determine who really is the best of the best. Custom GamesPlayers can join or create custom games with nonstandard game settings for added excitement and replayability. These games have a wide variety of play options, and they do not affect your ladder record. Play with or against computer players. Play on the map of your choice, including user-made custom maps. Anyone that you permit can join, so you can play against opponents of your choice. Allow/restrict observers, toggle fog of war on/off, adjust game speed, and adjust diplomacy settings. Separate Gateways and Name SpaceWarcraft III name space is not shared with previous Blizzard games or even between gateways, so more names will be available for selection. To prevent name copying, nonstandard characters have been disabled. New Built-in Friends SystemTo help players keep track of friends, the friends list shows each friend’s location (whether in or about to start a game, or on a chat channel). Players can easily join a friend’s channel or a game ready to start. Players are notified when a friend enters or leaves Battle.net (this notice even appears in-game). Advanced Battle.net Icon SystemPlay your favorite race often to earn better icons, and earn upgraded icons by gaining more wins. Icons reflect the race you play most, your ladder rank, and if applicable, your clan affiliation (coming soon).
Special Items and Equipment
Legendary Heroes can carry up to six special items in a small inventory. The items can turn the tide of battle as they grant the Hero the ability to cast offensive and defensive spells, heal units, utilize special abilities or gain bonuses to specific statistics. Neutral BuildingsSeveral types of Neutral Buildings exist, each with a different function. From selling Hero Items, hiring out Mercenaries, to healing nearby units of hit points, these structures confer a wide variety of strategies and surprises for even the most veteran of players. Neutral UnitsThere are numerous Neutral Units – known as Creeps and Critters – that inhabit the world of Azeroth. Creeps are hostile units that relinquish Gold when killed and sometimes guard valuable resources or Neutral Buildings. Critters are friendly neutral units such as sheep or seals. Huge Spell-casting SystemMany types of spells are available to the clever player, including Offensive spells, Defensive spells, counter spells, Autocast spells that are cast automatically, Auras, and the extremely potent Ultimate spells. New Multiplayer FeaturesShared unit control between players Trading of resources between players Choice of army color Observation mode Ability to ally with computer players Improved Battle.net FeaturesNew ladders including Random Team, 1 vs. 1, 2 vs. 2, 3 vs. 3, and 4 vs. 4 Anonymous matchmaking for games Improved ladders that prevent “win trading” Separate name space for Warcraft III on Battle.net allows players to obtain new account names without conflicting with those in previous games Improved clan support with levels of membership, home clan channels and clan ladders (coming soon) Advanced World EditorAdvanced world design tools allow players to customize many aspects of the game including tile sets, character art, quests, mission Objectives, unit types, AI, attributes, special abilities and spells.
features of wow
Four Unique RacesArmed with distinctive units, magical abilities and weapons of war, the Orcs, Humans, Undead and Night Elves clash in their renewed struggle for dominance. Two New Nations of WarriorsThe Warcraft universe grows with the introduction of two new races for players to control. The Night Elves are mysterious, shadowy beings and are one of the eldest races of the world. They have emerged from centuries of seclusion to defend the world from the coming apocalypse. The Undead is a plague-ridden army known as the Scourge that has come from the frozen wastelands of the North to topple civilization in its darkest hour. A World in 3 DimensionsBlizzard is powering Warcraft III with its own 3D engine, providing a fully interactive world that incorporates non-player characters, wandering monsters, neutral towns, strongholds and temples, and environmental effects. Multiplayer MayhemExpanded multiplayer options over Battle.net® with up to 12 players per game, multiple game types (including team play and questing) and new game matching and tournament options. High Resolution SupportWarcraft III offers support for multiple resolutions and will take advantage of many features included with the latest 3D cards while supporting as broad a range of older cards as possible. Legendary HeroesLegendary Heroes lead powerful armies while they complete quests, gain experience and acquire special items. As the core of each race’s force, Heroes have the ability to advance in levels, learn new spells and abilities and confer special benefits to nearby units.