Just purchased Dominions 3...

[Nick_K]

If you've played the demo, then I imagine you already know the basics, so just jump in and enjoy.

If not, I'd recommend trying someone like MA Ulm, MA or LA Man or Pythium, although this is hardly an exhaustive list. I'd recommend avoiding blood nations and anything with weird special rules like Mictlan or LA Ermor. Set the AIs to easy if you want to win as Dominions is quite hard until you know the game well. Specify which nations oppose you - avoid facing LA Ermor or any water nation for your first game as they require somewhat more specific strategies to deal with.

As for nation setup, I'd recommend just going with how you envisage the pretender rather than worrying about getting a perfect build. Good scales are probably simpler to gain advantage from than high magic, although some magic is always useful. Make sure your starting dominion is at least 5... otherwise, whatever you like.

My number one tip for actual singleplayer play is to buy mercenaries. Bid very slightly over their asking price to win the auction. They give a huge boost to early expansion. Also, understand that your pretender may well die. Don't get too upset if you have to call him back and he loses some of his magic. You can always even the scales by killing the AIs' pretenders!