So it sounds like there is not a comprehensive, up-to-date list of any kind. I'd really appreciate it if Brad or someone would create this and keep it up-to-date in a sticky. Right now, I'm having a really hard time understanding the thought process between WoM and FE being two 'different' games, instead of FE just being a normal expansion that improves and expands the original. So far, it sounds like FE is just going to be better. I see very little being said about why anyone would want to play WoM instead. It is keeping features like dynasties that are basically broken anyways, so that isn't a selling point. Not sure why they are wasting resources on a separate development track for WoM instead of just devoting all resources to making one great game.

What you said was actually similar to what Brad said recently (back 2 weeks or so). He said that he fears FE will replace E:WoM instead of being another game. Maybe at the start they planned to make FE a lot different but decided against it, which kind of goes hand in hand with what he told us much earlier about how they originally planned to much for E:WoM and could not do it all.

My fear is that FE will not be different enough and with that not good enough. I am still waiting to put in enough playtime into these products to warrant spending money on it (and deciding to ever again look at another Stardock product).

No, what he said was that FE was turning out so good, that he feared noone would play E:wom again. He didn't say anything about it being different or not. So, he feared E:wom would not be played, not because it was the same game, but because it was inferior.

I stopped playing E:WoM a number of months back and haven't picked it up since. Elemental needs more than band aids and patches. It needs a complete rework which is what I'm hoping is happening with FE. The chance that I return to Elemental:War of Magic is about zero. Abandon it and move all resources onto Fallen Enchantress which might actually have some promise.

I sometimes wonder if they're hanging on to E:WofM because they're too attached to just pull the final plug on it and admit that it was at best a proof of concept for a new graphics engine and a future fantasy 4x game.

Yep... I was to until 1.2. After that I just relieved that elemental needed a complete rework and not tweeks that weren't going to solve the multiple underlying issues.

I think that one of Derek's interviews (with Gamespot) gives a decent summary of what FE is about:

DP: Yes and no; the point of the game is still to conquer and rule, of course. But the main difference in Fallen Enchantress, in terms of gameplay style and overall functionality, is that the land must first be conquered and then you can start building before you make choices to defend and/or expand.

 

He also lists the the main focus areas as tactical combat, the game world, and the magic system, while simplifying city management and removing things like dynasties. These are the things that have been focused on in most diaries and interviews. We can also expect changes / improvements to research, unit design, and really the entire game. I am expecting, at this point, that FE will be a 'more and better' version of WoM, minus a few systems like dynasties that were never fleshed out / working to begin with.

So...where does that leave WoM? The latest patch is basically just minor tweaks. I still don't have a clear picture of how WoM is meant to  be different. I'm sad that FE is removing dynasties and maybe some city detail, but I'm glad that this will likely mean a more focused, complete product.

Here is what I would like to see happen:

1) Immediately stop all WoM work and focus all resources on making FE awesome. FE is not a new game, no matter what anyone says. It is an expansion of Elemental, hopefully a major and game-changing one.

2) Anything that was going to be improved  / added to WoM, save it for whatever comes after FE. So, if FE is meant to be first of all a more polished, better product and second of all more story / character / world  focused, maybe the next game could expand on FE by adding in dynasties, more city detail, etc.

If this isn't going to happen, I would love to see something from Brad about where he thinks WoM is going compared to FE. The last few diaries have shown a lack of focus on this - Brad's frustration is quite obvious. I love that Brad and others are still working hard on making WoM better, but I hate to think that those efforts might be wasted on a game that will be vastly inferior to FE. I really want to play Elemental, and mod, but I'm very hesitant to spend anymore time on WoM when FE looks like it will be a big improvement.

Because making WoM good at that will require considerable developer effort that has to be taken away from something else?

This is a zero-sum game. If you throw more people at WoM, you're taking it away from FE. The goal here should be to make one really good game, not two mediocre ones.

So basically FE is going to be like "Why did you put some strategy into my RPG?" and WOM is like "Why did you put some RPG in my Strategy?"