Now I serve among the Colonel's Retinue (Apostle - Obdurant spoilers)
This is a long post.
After about 5 attempts I finally managed to complete Apostle - Obdurant mod.
And I gotta say I think this mod is so cool, it's unreal. Everything that I find frustrating and tedious about cult sim? Bam, gone. Exile gameplay? Vastly improved. The whole war process and the feeling of commanding an army was honestly incredible and I don't think there was a single piece of lore in this game that I didn't love.
And the whole process becoming a Name has some of the most interesting set-pieces I've seen experienced in this game yet. Spoilers from here on out, because I just need to gush about how cool some of the more important steps to Name-hood where, so turn away now and play the mod whilst you have the chance.
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>!The highlights of this mod was definitely facing off against the enemy Edge-long and the quest for Ebrehel. !<
>!For starters, Ebrehel was a fun twist. I was surprised that it was so important as a step too, as aside from it being easily the best item in the Exile DLC, it never struck me as being so instrumental in the lore. A powerful and ancient(?) relic, for certain, but a one with a lost purpose. But I'm pleased at it's newly ascended status, regardless. !<
>!I initially stumbled onto the lake by accident, as I noticed that the Doves had an option of interaction, and then at the same time got the hint that I needed Ebrehel. Naturally, giddy with excitement I leapt into that lake, and promptly died. Woops. The run that was successful was exhilarating. I mean, we've been to the Mansus in our dreams and skirted close to it in the wake, but straight up entering such a place, and with an army in tow? I Just imagine the image of a general marching into a lake, with a company of soldiers, scouts, and a line of tanks, watching them submerge into the waters and the world flipping upside down to reveal some other realm. So cool. !<
>!And the real show stopper. Those terrible beings they call the Edge Long. !<
>!I fought the Iron-eater (Though I did encounter the War-maker on my first run), and I gotta say I was genuinely gripped with his story. The process of upgrading his contemplation. Finding out he killed his rival immediately gave me a bit of an "Aha" moment, even before the mod told me directly itself (After all, no one said that a halved Edge-dyad needed to die immediately). The twist with an artillery shell landing the perfect blow on The Orphan. And I can just imagine that gleeful little giggle as he goes down to slit his nemesis' throat, and that terrible realization that would dawn upon him his actions. Also, this guy might be older than his own god? which is wild.!<
>!Oh and the final fight with him was awesome. Chasing him out to the plains, fighting his phantoms with my own and wielding every bit of strength I could muster just for a single hit on him. It took me almost my whole army and poor Nikolai, to take him down. But I finally did. And oh gods, was it satisfying. Being chased everywhere by this beast, and finally getting the honor of putting him down was just, MM! So good. I wish he would get back up so I could kill him again, but I'd probably lose if he did.!<
>!All of this was so good, that when I finally reached Stalingrad, I was actually kinda disappointed. It was about halfway through my winning run that things were getting too easy. I was too stron. And finally reaching the end just for it to be 3 Main objectives? I mean, it was fun. Everything was fun. It was just a bit... simple. Compared to Ebrehel and the Edge Long. I was hoping I'd be met with more resistance, more cunning. Maybe another edge long. I never did get to see The Continental, whom I encountered in the Exile Expansion mod. Bit sad, that.!<
>!I'll also give an honorable mention to the powers you can get. The funny thing I found about the mod, was that the best answer to most things? Do it yourself. Enemy tanks? Hit em with the Colonels salute, cut those bastards in half. Snipers? Kick them in the shins with your holy peg leg. Enemies scrambling positions? I don't need to see you, to see you. Get spotted son.!<
>!And after fully upgrading my lore, I figured I'd go to a shrine and see if I could get some bonuses with it, and boy did I! Instantly ready all exhausted allies, defense against literally everything (Wish I had that for the Iron eater), and my personal favourite, turn all dead units (friend or foe) into undead conscripts! Oh my god, I genuinely felt like I was turning into a powerful Edge Name through-out the whole game it was Incredible!!<
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All in all, this was an incredible experience.
Now I'm left wondering how to tackle the achievements. I can figure that 'Hero of the Soviet Union' 'Career Soldier' and 'With Due Honors' are all related to resolutions. Just how many for each I'm not sure. I ended my game with 17, so there's the rough upper limit. 'Mouse and Lion' is obviously the alternative Edge Long I can face, and 'The Light has gone' is trauma death (never even got close to it, that one will be annoying).
And of course, the hidden achievement. Genuinely no clue where to even start, spent the whole run looking out for clues for that one but came up short. Wouldn't mind some advice on that one.
Looking forward to Apostle Proterant. I can hardly wait to jump back into the fire.