Truly noob: Dominion

[JonBrave]

OK, so I get this baby out of the box. Tutorial. Go for small random map. Keep building armies, capture a couple provinces. But I don't do well on the candle-front, and after a while I die because I got no dominion left.

What am I failing to understand, please?

[Gandalf Parker]

Priests preach to push dominion.
As you grow, temples help also.
Selecting one of your units as a "prophet" gives you some more push.
And try not to move your pretender outside of your candles for very long.

Unless it was a blood nation, some of which have to hunt for blood slaves to sacrifice in order to push dominion.

Also when making your pretender, you might add dominion strength to it. Some start at just a dominion strength of 1 which can be wiped out quick. Especially if its a crowded map

[Rytek]

Try a pretender with a high starting dominion. One of the basic pretenders that can work for any nation:
Try an awake Wyrm with Dominion 9 score and Air1 as a path.

On the second turn have your Wyrm pretender on the back row, script air shield/hold/hold/hold/hold/attack.

The wyrm pretender will kill neutrals, and he will spread dominion.

[JonBrave]

Umm, you guys seem to move your pretender. He didn't move in the tutorial, so I haven't moved him in my games. Sounds like I'm missing a trick...

[Gandalf Parker]

Only a tactic. Not something that works all the time for all nations.

There are some basic pretender "types" that get referred to here. Such as SC (super combat, such as the Wyrm), or Rainbow (many magics for site search, research, and forging), or Blesseds (specifically designed to give blessings to the sacred units that they can use), not to mention some of the national specials (only available to some nations to be used in a theme based strategy that fits that nation)

[Gandalf Parker]

The game is designed so that each nation plays very differently. Its hard to give general recommendations. But there are strategy guides posted which include some players favorite settings and pretender builds for specific nations

[OmikronWarrior]

Sounds like you did not start with a high Dominion Score. When you create a Pretender, you also set a Dominion Score. This effects how high your dominion can be, and how fast it spreads. A score of 1-3 is very dangerous. I recommend at least 5.

[RadicalTurnip]

And don't play Micltan until you get a handle on normal Dominion.

[JonBrave]

Sounds like you did not start with a high Dominion Score. When you create a Pretender, you also set a Dominion Score. This effects how high your dominion can be, and how fast it spreads. A score of 1-3 is very dangerous. I recommend at least 5.

Ah ha! Nobody told me there was such a thing! I looked and I never noticed you could change the candles at the top, so I've always been playing on "Dominion level 1"! I think you hit the nail on the head, thank you. :)

[OmikronWarrior]

Sounds like you did not start with a high Dominion Score. When you create a Pretender, you also set a Dominion Score. This effects how high your dominion can be, and how fast it spreads. A score of 1-3 is very dangerous. I recommend at least 5.

Ah ha! Nobody told me there was such a thing! I looked and I never noticed you could change the candles at the top, so I've always been playing on "Dominion level 1"! I think you hit the nail on the head, thank you. :)

You are welcome. I actually remember dying in a similar manner my first game as black candles start popping all over the map while my few did nothing but sit there and vanish.