From the get-go it's clear that there is both a lot more polish and a lot more focus towards the single-player game in Dungeon Siege 2; instead of the first game's throwing a poor nothing farmer at a bunch of enemies, players are instead treated to a lengthy and almost Lord of the Rings-inspired video of tales of ancient battles and big, powerful artifacts, followed by impressively entertaining shots of a gigantic orc army making a landing upon an island beach. Amongst them is a group of mercenaries comprised of a ragtag collection of races, and amongst them is the player and the player's elven friend Drevin. Albeit with reservations on the part of the mercenaries, the tutorial of the game tells the story of how the pair of characters assist in the takeover of a dryad island and temple, help recover a segment of, yes, you guessed it, an ancient artifact, and how the good Drevin, after entrusting the player with his family medallion, gets skewered by the general of the army he was working for in a moment of madness.