It is not any of the battlecry series.

That also could be it, good guess.

Not Birthright, I bought the Collectors Edition Box set of that game, which I enjoyed a lot.

The game I am searching for has 3d graphics.

The rts part of the game was like Maelstrom : Battle for Earth begins. except you got gear and levels up and stuff for only your hero, and you can bring that hero into the RTS with you from the RPG part of the game. and zoom in and contro l your hero.

Can your hero be of a troll race in this game?

Maybe Dungeons & Dragons: Stronghold? The game is even available here.

Lords of Everquest perhaps?

Or Rising Kingdoms?

Last guess; Heroes of Annihilated Empires?

Dominus (PC, 1994)?

I really miss that game! why isn't it here?

No idea but it's not on Steam either.

It's now owned by Take Two.

Battle Mages: Sign of Darkness

Yes, you can make your Hero, a male or female of each of the races, trolls, dark elves, humans, and I cannot remember the others.

Not it is not Dungeons & Dragons Stronghold

Not lords of everquest, I checked last night.
Heroes of Annihilated Empires is one of my most favorite games, I really wished they had produced the Science expansion pack of Technology before they went out of business, but I am still happy with the game none the less. It is not the game I am looking for either.

Rising Kingdoms is not it.

It is not it.

This is not the game.

It's going to end up being Warcraft 3 and we'll all have been wracking our brains for naught.

"But, OP, you said character creation!"
"Oh, my bad. I guess I mis-remembered."

That guess was to obvious to propose. :D

I'm getting pretty curious about what this mystery game might be.

I mean, there aren't that many early 2000s fantasy RTS/RPG hybrids with a 1st/3rd person mode.