Hey all, feeling a bit fatigued from having played too many FPS's and too many of a certain series fast paced action-RPG's exclusively these last 3 years. So I am searching for games that are relaxing (not too challenging, but if there is some challenge, loss/death is not anger-inducing like on some games) and have that "tabletop" game feeling. So I guess something in the realm of CRPG's, Dungeon Crawlers, or Strategy. Turn-based would be a plus, but I'm ok with real-time (and real-time with pause)... I'm also open to suggestions from other genres as long as it's something that mainly requires thinking, planning, and is something I can just get into without requiring hours of out-of-game research, and can just sit back and relax while playing. If it has a story/plot, that'd be a definite plus.

I've had my eye on Darkest Dungeon, Pathfinder: Kingmaker, and XCOM: EU/EW for some time, and I could be wrong, but I fear they might be a bit more stressful than what I'm hoping to play next. So I'd be grateful for some recs. Thanks in advance.

Some ideas:

Might and Magic series
Dragon Wars
Wasteland

Or more recent:

The Quest (think Elder Scrolls, but turn based, though with a smaller world, no custon spels (but there are custom enchantments), a different growth system (with different warts), and fewer bugs)

(All of these games allow you to save anywhere, are all turn-based, and aren't even close to the likes of Wizardry 4 difficulty wise.)

Edit: Why the low rating?

as long as it's something that mainly requires thinking, planning, and is something I can just get into without requiring hours of out-of-game research, and can just sit back and relax while playing

Into the Breach

Expeditions: Conquistador might be interesting to you, has nice turn-based combat and good rpg-like choices and consequences.

Thanks! I've been wanting to play the Might and Magic series, especially VII. My only deterrent has been that I think I'll run into the same situation I ran into when trying to get into TES: Daggerfall... Daggerfall required a lot of out-of-game research for me to create a character that I could enjoy the game with. I could be wrong, and please do correct me if I am. Thank you. But isn't that game known for its unforgiving difficulty? I may be mistaken... If so, I'll definitely give it an honest try. Interesting. I'll look it up. Thanks.

I highly recommend Into the Breach too.

Here are some other ideas, maybe it could interest you :
https://www.gog.com/game/opus_magnum (not really giving tabletop feeling, but smart & enjoyable puzzle game)
https://www.gog.com/game/warlords_i_ii and/or https://www.gog.com/game/warlords_iii_darklords_rising (Warlords II and/or III : TBS, with a very nice feeling)
https://www.gog.com/game/kings_bounty_the_legend (a bit like Expeditions conquistador, but with a lot of humor, and battles like in Heroes of Might and Magic)
https://www.gog.com/game/steamworld_heist (Good Tactical-TBS)
https://www.gog.com/game/witcher_adventure_game (a "fake" tabletop game :) I appreciated to play it some times !)
https://www.gog.com/game/massive_assault_phantom_renaissance (TBS)
And if you want to relax with a very easy HoMM-like game : https://www.gog.com/game/braveland this serie is really nice to simply relax.

Hope some game may interest you, even if not a lot really have tabletop feeling :P

That's a lot of options there. Thank you very much!

Thanks you. Divinity: Original Sin 2 is another game that definitely crossed my mind. Temple of Elemental Evil looks great too. I was a big fan of Baldur's Gate 1-2 back when they came out so that sort of stuff also resonates with me.

Maybe:

Cardhunter.

The Talisman games.

Warhammer Quest.

The Warlock of Firetop Mountain.

You're welcome ! I hope you'll find what you're looking for !
Oh, I forgot :

https://www.gog.com/game/star_vikings_forever (puzzle game with good atmosphere)
https://www.gog.com/game/triple_town (this one is reaaally for relaxing)

And not here, but all the Creeper World series games ! (even the first one, all are very good ! I LOVE all of them !)
http://knucklecracker.com/ (it's the dev website, and if you buy the game(s) here, it's DRM-Free)(and there are demos to try :))

Edit : I forgot https://www.gog.com/game/slay_the_spire : roguelike-deckbuilding game. But it can be difficult :P (but is really enjoyable)

I am not familiar with the later Might and Magic games (6 and later), but the earlier ones don't have that issue; all you need is a balanced party and some basic understanding of what the stats do so you can distribute the various stat bonus effects found in the game and you should do just fine. (Also, the game discourages overspecialization by making stat changes matter less at high stats.) Even then, I note that MM2, in particular, allows you to easily boost your stats into the 50s regardless of what they start as, and MM5 has a diffierent way of doing this late in the game.

Actually, you could probably do fine even without the knowledge contained in this post.

Daggerfall has a high amount of cognitive overhead when it comes to character builds; that is not an issue with the Might and Magic games.

(Do note, however, that MM4 requires that your party contains at least one Sorcerer or Archer.)

Edit: If you do play MM2, however, don't steal Murray's treasure, or if you choose to do so, rest and check your stats before you go back to the inn and trigger a save. I mention this because the consequences of this are severe enough to make the game go from fun to not fun.

Edit 2: Also, why the low rating?

Check out King of Dragon Pass and/or its spiritual successor Six Ages: Ride Like the Wind (same dev as KoDP, same game world, different time period and culture). They're sort of strategy/RPG/choose-your-own-adventure games in a bronze-age fantasy setting where you're meant to guide a tribe by putting yourself in their frame of mind, learning their myths, etc. (instead of the usual metagaming that's so commonly expected with most "RPGs"). Really interesting idea, though the gameplay's not for everyone. I couldn't really get into KoDP, for example, try though I did :( . Also, KoDP is pretty much entirely text with static images (no animations), and I think Six Ages is largely the same, so if you can't do without 3D models, animations and such, they might not be for you.

FTL turn-based and real-time with pause. It's actually kinda stressful with you being constantly on the run with limited resources. Yet, at the same time, it has a really cozy and laid-back feeling.

Card City Nights This is a deck-building game taking place in a city where everyone is on a quest to find the eight legendary cards. It's casual, but with a soul.

Blackwell Supernatural detective adventure game. The universe just draws me in, like watching a good TV serial. One reviewer criticized the puzzles for being super easy, and that's probably right. What can I say, works for me!

Defender's Quest Little tower defense game with some light story and RPG elements thrown in for good measure.

You could also look into visual novels.

This guy recommends Mechanicus. And you can get it right now on sale on GOG.