The God Design Initiative

[Nerfix]

Back in the days of Dominions: PPP, even before I had joined, there was a competition of sorts. A competition to create pretender gods that could be used as predesigned pretenders.

Dominions I didn't support multiple pretender designs per nation, so they went to Illwinter's site. This had a strong impact on me, a new player, who payed heed to the given example strategies.

Therefore I would like to do something along these lines again.

I would ask you to create a pretender design and then share it in this thread. Having a little story attached to the Pretender is apreciated, as is giving a couple of pointers of what sort of strategy to use with the pretender.

If it is possible, if pretender designs are saved into separate files, I would like you to upload the file. I would like to create a section for pretender designs in Dom3minions.com and from what I gathered Gandalf agreed to give me server space for this.

So, fellow dominions fanatics, let your creativity loose. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

[Thilock_Dominus]

Heh, I don't even have my copy of dom3 yet. But count me in.

[silhouette]

I vote six tentacles up! /threads/images/Graemlins/Teddy.gif /threads/images/Graemlins/Teddy.gif /threads/images/Graemlins/Teddy.gif /threads/images/Graemlins/Teddy.gif /threads/images/Graemlins/Teddy.gif /threads/images/Graemlins/Teddy.gif (eldritch tentacles disguised as plush toys to preserve silly humans' sanity).

I'm disappointed I couldn't make time to followup my own suggestion thread (http://www.shrapnelcommunity.com/threads/showflat.php?Cat=&Board=UBB74&Number=427156&Forum= ,f74,f82,f127&Words=online%20pretender&Searchpage= 1&Limit=25&Main=427156&Search=true&where=sub&Name= &daterange=1&newerval=5&newertype=y&olderval=&olde rtype=&bodyprev=#Post427156) for a similar idea. Also my home internet has been down quite a while, and work posting is ick.

Sill

[Caduceus]

Nerfix said:
So, fellow dominions fanatics, let your creativity loose. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif



In my case it would be let my creativity lose http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif

[Nerfix]

Welcome in. How many of you have the game already?

[Boron]

I love the oracle/fob and the dragons in Dom3.

For magically versatile nations i just use such supporter gods with good scales.

For early era maverni is such an example, for late era argartha.

Example dragon:
Blue dragon, dom6
Awake
3 order 3 productivity, 1 growth, 1 heat, 3 misfortune, 1 magic

Unfortunately there are 35 points then left, with those i buy 2 further picks of water magic.

If productivity is not important for my nation i take growth 3 productivity 1 instead.

The dragon's sole purpose is to speed up the initial expansion and then to raid the enemy a bit.

Once he dies calling him back is not too important, only if you are lucky and have many priestmages. Otherwise you do not need to worry neither though and can just leave him dead. By the time your dragon dies he normally already fulfilled his purpose.

Such a dragon normally survives the indies but gets eventually killed by your opponent.

[Nerfix]

Interesting design Boron. Cold would be more suitable for a Blue dragon, and that Misfortune is quite steep...but ah, perhaps the Dragon stole some powerful but cursed fire artifacet? http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif

[Boron]

Nerfix said:
Interesting design Boron. Cold would be more suitable for a Blue dragon, and that Misfortune is quite steep...but ah, perhaps the Dragon stole some powerful but cursed fire artifacet? http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif



Hm yeah, but the dragon is not cold blooded. But BoW would work a little better with cold 1 hm.
Next time i probably take cold 1 http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif.
But Heat 1 on the other hand messes up jotunheim and caelum slightly, so imho heat 1 is usually better http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif.

[Nerfix]

BTW, is there a special reason you use Blue dragon and not one of the others?

[Endoperez]

Nerfix said:
BTW, is there a special reason you use Blue dragon and not one of the others?



Perhaps the fact that Water increases defense now?

[Nerfix]

Perhaps so. =)

[SafeKeeper]

We've got everything from trolls to dragons to fairies to aliens living on the bottom of the sea, so the only thing I can think of is a little child that somehow aqcuired Pretender God powers.

It'd be a different Pretender, and it'd play on the psychological effect of encountering something regarded as harmless (a kid), but which is in reality a powerful threat. A bit akin to those scattered stories you hear in the news about a family's friendly lap-dog suddenly going berserk and killing everyone in the house. Hey, maybe that's an ideahttp://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/smirk.gif...

[Nerfix]

Well, a little kid as a god would be interesting, but I meant...pretender design as in the ones you make in the game. You know F9/A9 Phoenix, Dormant and with suchsuch and such scales.

[Gandalf Parker]

A glyph or a stone pillar or a fountain arent harmless enough?

I like using the guy on the chair being carried by slaves as a pretender.
I name him "Iam Iam Iam aGod"

[Nerfix]

Stone pillars are evil, don't you know. I hear Basalt Kings have.......living pillars. *shiver*

[Endoperez]

Nerfix said:
Stone pillars are evil, don't you know. I hear Basalt Kings have.......living pillars. *shiver*



It's a magic site.

[Nerfix]

I thought the Dark Crystral is a site and Living Pillar is an unit? O_o

[Endoperez]

Nerfix said:I thought the Dark Crystral is a site and Living Pillar is an unit? O_o



Well of course they are! But they aren't stone pillars. They are Atlanteans! They might look a bit like statues, though.

[Nerfix]

They're living fishbasalt pillars? D:

[Boron]

Nerfix said:
BTW, is there a special reason you use Blue dragon and not one of the others?


Yup, imho he has the best breath attack.
His breath attack is AOE 3, the red dragon's breath attack is only AOE 1, and the green dragon has a bile breath attack, so AOE 5, but this is poison, so kills not fast enough.

At least at indy 5-6 the blue dragon rocks. Very often 1 breath attack on a 10-20 troop strong indy squad kills some of them and then the others fail their morale check and rout.
So very often they do not even reach your dragon http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif.

And as endo said, the slightly better defense from water is good too.
And finally, fireshield is enchantment 3, so too much research usually, but breath of winter is only enhantment 1, so after a few turns your dragon can use it.
And he could use quickness later too http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif.

So unless you aim for a bless imho the blue dragon is slightly better then the other 2 dragontypes.

[Endoperez]

Isn't Breath of Winter much weaker now, especially in hot provinces? What with dealing no damage and all that.

[Morkilus]

Well, I was playing with it yesterday and in combination with the natural Chill effect of the Niefel Giants, it killed off almost all of the indie lizardmen along for the raid. It is still very effective, especially against armored/glamoured units.

[Daynarr]

Man, Basalt Kings are something. Nice stats with lots of HP, lots of magic power (Earth, Fire and Water) and fear effect. I'm playing EA Atlantis in my current game and Livin Pillars are actually sacred troops of EA Atlantis and they have 32 HP + 20 Protection. Heaviest troop in whole EA. Even Abyssia doesn't have such protection. They cost a lot of resources and are only capitol based, though.

[Boron]

Daynarr said:
Man, Basalt Kings are something. Nice stats with lots of HP, lots of magic power (Earth, Fire and Water) and fear effect. I'm playing EA Atlantis in my current game and Livin Pillars are actually sacred troops of EA Atlantis and they have 32 HP + 20 Protection. Heaviest troop in whole EA. Even Abyssia doesn't have such protection. They cost a lot of resources and are only capitol based, though.


Basalt kings are potentially very good SCs http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif.

3 encumberance, but they can do summon earthpower which gives 4 reinvigoration.
With F1W2E3 and a 100% and a 10% EFW random they can do amazing buffs:
Invulnerability, summon earthpower, fireshield, breath of winter, quickness.
They are sacred, so you might give them a lvl 9 bless effect that is also good for your living pillar troops.

They have full slots, so you can equip them too.

Another good strat might be to take a semi rainbow for Atlantis who covers the paths you have no access too or only little access (you can only get astral 1).
So with death,astral,nature and air magic, lvl 3-4 for all those paths.
Then you can flexibly equip your basalt kings http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif.

I personally would say a basalt king has about the combat value of an ice devil and is only slightly weaker than elemental royality http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif.

[Nerfix]

Coooolnes, but I wonder if there is an atlantian pretender that can play into their strengths.

[Boron]

Nerfix said:
Coooolnes, but I wonder if there is an atlantian pretender that can play into their strengths.


Sure, imprisoned archmage and good economic scales for example.

[Nerfix]

Hmm, I imagine that the frogzards would benefit from 4E 4A 4N and maybe W9 if it could be afforded...

[Daynarr]

Nerfix said:
Coooolnes, but I wonder if there is an atlantian pretender that can play into their strengths.



Dagon and Son of the Sea are good for bless strategy for Atlantis. Both can accomplish W9 N6 bless with equal scales and dominion strength at practically same cost (1 design point difference). W9 and N6 make Basalit Kings and Living Pillars extremely durable 10% regen and +4 defense and double strike (they have magical weapons) make them very deadly.

[Nerfix]

Thanks for the tip. =)

[Daynarr]

Boron said:

Another good strat might be to take a semi rainbow for Atlantis who covers the paths you have no access too or only little access (you can only get astral 1).
So with death,astral,nature and air magic, lvl 3-4 for all those paths.
Then you can flexibly equip your basalt kings http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif.




Well, they don't really need rainbow that much as they will mostly get water provinces and they have a spell that searches all elemental paths in underwater province for the cost of 8 water gems (Voice of Tiamat). They can cast it easily and their mages can get 1 astral random skill so they can cast arcane probing there too. Nature pretener is good for blessing strategy so he can search nature sites and only thing you will really miss is death magic.


Btw, don't forget that you NEED productivity scale 3 as living pillars cost 56 resources each. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/shock.gif