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DLC that pushes the game toward RPG
You, dear reader, are probably wondering what will you get with this DLC. Considering the price, it's normal to hesitate. I hesitated too, but in the end, bought it. Question is:
Is it worth the price?


Giant king rulers
Fee fi fo fum. I'm big and tanky and I can take severe punishment before they bring me down. Other units can hide behind me and I will obliterate front line with cleave attacks and heavy ranged cc. Am I better than other rulers? It's hard to say, but I have my qualities indeed. Personally I used Giant king abilities more than abilities of other rulers. Eldritch sovereigns, wizard kings and champions feel inferior when compared to the giants, at least for my play style (which relies on heavy melee and physical damage). Dragons are still my favorite though.
New tomes
New tomes are focused mainly on underground. There are some interesting spells and buildings that will enhance your experience inside caves and dungeons. Others can be used on surface as well. It's nice addition, but two tomes are somewhat less than I expected.
Hand crafted regions
This is the main reason I bought this DLC. I was blown with Eldritch realms since it added new map layer and many new things to do in it. Now, we have new, beautiful provinces to tickle our eyes, for some time at least. Apart from the fact that new provinces are nice, they are useful as well. You will want to include them into your empire for the bonuses they will provide long term. Some of them are pretty powerful and will force you to change your priorities when waging wars with other empires. This is a must have and sole reason to buy this DLC.
Fated regions
Fated regions are like hand crafted provinces but they also feature a quest. This really pushes the game toward the RPG. And I like that. When I was doing quests tied to fated regions I felt that I'm playing completely different game. I forgot about my neighbours, borders and resources. Finishing this quests provides a significant boost to empire power. They require commitment of resources and armies, but rewards are worth it.
Other stuff
Crystal dwelling is new and unique NPC city-state, somewhat similar to the Eldritch dwellings but much deeper. Crystal dwelling offers you quests for reputation and every reputation level unlocks new items, units and magics to be purchased. Some of this is really good actually. Beside the dwelling, now we also have artifacts - powerful items that provide empire-wide bonuses. And, last, but not least, they included traveling merchants. For gold you can now buy levels for your heroes, re-train hero etc etc.
Price
I bought every single DLC, and when I saw this new one, I expected it to be priced at 15-20eur as well. When I saw the price I felt furious. For 25eur you can buy full indie game to spend 50-100 hours in it or even a bit older AAA game to spend even more time. There are some incredible titles priced less than this DLC and this is the main downside. In the end, I bought it, couldn't resist so I don't have any right to complain.
And, is it really worth it?
Well... yes. Now, when I saw hand crafted and fated regions, I can't really imagine playing without them. I'm a casual player and play only for fun. I'm not concerned about balance or meta. I'm just relaxing, not doing math. For a casual player, like me, this is a must have if you plan to continue playing AoW4. There is much more content hidden behind new ruler type or two tomes. If you focus only on that, than yes, it's overpriced. If you get a full picture and experience every bit this DLC has to offer, than it's still overpriced but it's worth it.
Enjoy your play.