Elemental: War of Magic Preview

The editors at GameSpot have dished up the very first preview of Stardock's Elemental: War of Magic that we've seen come out of the Game Developers Conference.  When diplomatic relations have been exhausted:
While diplomacy is all well and good, there are those of us out there who feel that crushing our enemies, seeing them driven before us, and hearing the lamentations of their women are the best in life. Those players will make extensive use of Elemental's unit designer, which, at first, will let you start with little other than a peasant with some kind of stick (pointy or otherwise), though with enough research and resources, can eventually become a swordsman in plate armor. However, Wardell points out that metal will be an actual resource in the game, and without it, you won't be able to forge metal weapons or armor--which again underscores the importance of aggressive exploration. Military units will yield the best results when combined by placing them on the same tile, turning them into an army. Since armies will eventually square off against each other, you'll do well to have well-rounded armies with archers, swordsmen, catapults, and halberdiers (rather than 50 archers who will be pounded to paste by a strong melee army).