Playing a normal medium-sized map game.  I've put no points in any combat techs... all civilization.  I have one city.  I have a 20 or so power ranking, and the guy with a 100 declares war on me.

So I go out with my two heroes and one sovereign (almost my entire army).  Low level... maybe 4th or so.  I have two casters and one melee type.  Using almost no spells other than Heal (a massive 8 hp heal), Growth and Giant Growth, I've taken over every city of the 100 ranked computer.  My three characters are now 15th level or so.  I don't even bring the other two into combat.  One casts Growth, the other Giant Growth.  Maybe a heal per fight, but it's not really needed.  The melee just runs through everything.  No thought, no strategy.

Maybe have the computer use Dispel Magic type spells more often?  I've probably fought ten different heroes, and I can't remember any casting anything except a fog spell.  Or you can have them set up an anti-magic spell, where anything you cast costs more to break through?  The only thing I've even come close to worrying about so far is the few archer-type units the enemy had.  Those were targeting one of my back casters... even still, he would have gone down and the melee with the buffs would still win the fight.

The game is much more stable than Elemental.  I haven't hit a crash yet.  Some small graphical glitches, but nothing major.  I like the initiative system.  The monsters in the wild are much more abundant.  I like the item drops with level requirements, and the random leveling up skills of heroes and cities.

One other area that could use AI work besides fighting is enemies not attacking cities sometimes even when they have a clear advantage.  Sometimes they park themselves right next to it with my one whole militia unit with a club standing inside.  This used to bug the heck out of me in Master of Magic... I mean really, make it so I feel like I have to really defend my city!  And make it so the enemy can raze the city if they take it over.  I don't know if that's an option, but so far I haven't seen it.  When they take over one I've left lightly defended, they just hold it until my three-man army comes and retakes it. 

I know AI is being worked on, but that's how it currently is.  Hopefully it'll get more challenging.

Thanks.

Telaeus