CoE3 AAR: A Chronicle of the Interregnum

[Edi]

This is the start of a new AAR to provide a glimpse into the game and some aspects of it that are new compared to CoE2. However, I do not play one of the new classes, instead we shall explore the game from the point of view of a Necromancer who must discover the new powers he is facing and overcome them.

Here is the beginning and backstory for this AAR, but I will probably only manage one or two posts before I must leave for work and will continue the AAR tomorrow morning. Onward!

****

I am Barras, a Necromancer. Perhaps the last of my kind in Elysium. I shall write this chronicle so that even should the unthinkable happen, I shall not be forgotten.

It is the time of the Interregnum. The Empire has fallen. Battlefields and ruins of the empire litter the lands. Few cities and villages remain. Human lands are in chaos, and bandits roam the countryside. Even worse, great acts of evil have been performed in the capital, which has turned into a stronghold of undead creatures and unspeakable horrors. Only a powerful leader will be able to rebuild the empire.

The fall of the Empire has been a boon to me. When the Empire was at the height of its power, the practicioners of my art were hounded and persecuted by the Imperial priesthood and there were few places indeed in all of Elysium where we could safely hide.

Now, thanks to the feuds and squabbling among the Senators that Bellania incited and her further machinations, the Empire is no more. Little did they know that she serves that upstart god Baal, whose cult only appeared toward the later days of the Empire. It was also genius on her part to entice my former acquaintance Calthus to think he could seize power and become Emperor.

Fools the Senators may have been, but even they would not have countenanced a Demonologist on the throne of the Empire. It is amazing really how far that blundering idiot got, that he wasn’t devoured by the things he called. Or perhaps he learned discipline later, little that it matters. *snicker* Poor Calthus, abandoned by his staunch ally, Bellania, right on the edge of victory. Of course, it was then that he turned to desperate measures and all his bad habits caught up to him. Tried to summon an Arch Devil, but of course he skimped on the offerings, what with the Imperial army bearing down on him and fighting all over the streets of the Capitol.

The former Capitol, I should say, since he failed to control the creature and it destroyed him and then proceeded to slaughter the entire Imperial military and anything else that got in its way. Nobody knows exactly what happened, but the rumors from the vicinity of that place tell that anyone who goes too near disappears and is never heard from again. All I know from what the spirits of the Netherworld tell me is that there were more than demons roaming the streets of the Capitol at the Time of the Fall. Creatures rarely glimpsed, beings made of the stuff of nightmares that devoured and tortured mortal and demon alike. Whether they are gone is unknown, but I would surmise they are not. However, it is at best an academic concern, since I do not intend to find out.

The upheaval since the Fall has left everything unsettled and nobody knows what state the land is in now, other than chaos, of course. It is left for those with the means and the ruthlessness to pick up the pieces and build something new.

I have found an ally in a servant of the Old Powers, a Witch who is as glad as I am to see the Empire gone and who has little love for Bellania. We have pooled our efforts and shall seek to claim a position of power from where it will be impossible to dislodge us. She seeks to return Elysium to where it was before the coming of man. I seek immortality. Once I have achieved that, our goals are not incompatible at all.

I know that Bellania did not survive the unexpected results her machinations brought about, but her cultists have found a new leader named Hephzibah and allied with other newcomers, the barbaric, backward people of a Priest King from somewhere called Mictlan whose names are quite unpronounceable. These savages worship something called the God of the Four Faces, with human sacrifices, I hear. How predictable. I have no use for gods of any sort, so it is imperative to stamp these cults out.

Other spies have managed to find out some preliminary information on the other factions powerful enough to be contenders for the rule of Elysium. There is another Old Power at play, a member of the tree worshiping Druidic Order, who has allied himself with the Moutain Folk. It may sound like a strange alliance at first, but the Druid is only interested in seeing wilderness reclaim the cultivated lands and the dwarves want nothing more than to be left alone under their mountains to mine what they discover underground.

The third enemy alliance is one of chaos and destruction. A barbarian horde has gathered and it has allied itself with a strange breed of goblin-like creatures that has emerged from a mountain citadel somewhere in the land. These beings have not been seen before and it is speculated that they have come to Elysium from some strange hitherto unknown netherworld, not to be confused with the Realm of the Dead. They are far better organized than goblins and have spread like a plague, but fortunately each band seems to be on its own. These things call themselves the Bakemono and it is known now that when they are led by a shaman or witch doctor, they practice human sacrifices to call more powerful allied beings, like unto demons but different. Rumor says that a powerful Bakemono Sorcerer has emerged and unified the heartlands of the Bakemono to his banner.

I do not like so many unknowns. The Druid and the Dwarves are predictable and the barbarians may call spirits of their ancestors if they find shamans powerful enough. Everything else is a question mark. Baal cultists seem to have an affinity for spiders, but aside from that, there is no telling what my ally and I will face. I suspect that her swamp monsters and Androphags are going to have their work cut out for them. I myself must gather enough Hands of Glory to summon something more than weakling longdead and soulless...

[Edi]

So, during game setup, which you could already see here (http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/showthread.php?t=48279), I chose an Enormous map (72x50 squares), Interregnum society and allied play. I did NOT include Common Cause or Clustered Start, since the story here requires that each player survive on his own even if they work toward (at least somewhat) common goals.

I set all AI at Knight level (4/10) to provide some challenge and to increase their chances of surviving the early game.

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum/01_setup.jpg

So these are the classes and teams.


Next, we shall take a look at the Player Overview screen provided by F2 once game has started:

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum/02_f2_player_overview.jpg

This lists the player names and controller (human or AI), but nothing else so as to not give away too much. Of course, in this instance we know what classes each of them are, but in a random game, we would not. The names can give some clues, though.

*****

Greetings! I am Barras, a Necromancer lately of some renown.

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum/04_necromancer_stats.jpg


It is time to begin my bid for immortality. I had managed to squirrel away enough gold and other resources to hire a workers to construct a citadel when the time is ripe. Built out of black granite, it offers a commanding view over the countryside.

(The Dark Citadel has the Vision attribute, which allows the player to see 2 squares in all directions instead of the standard 1 square, but only if there are troops in the square.)

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum/03_startlocation.jpg

Directly to the west there is a farm that has been taken over by a rabble of bandits and poachers and a little to the north is a village guarded by more substantial troops.

The village must be my first priority, because in settlements of that size there are always enough altercations and mayhem going on that one can reliably expect at least one person to be hanged for murder each month. And the left hands of hanged murders can be turned into Hands of Glory, which is precisely what I need for my rituals.

To the southeast there is a gallows, which serves as the common execution site for miles around and provides me with more hands of glory. Of course, since the place is under my control, any rabble that strays into my territory without invitation is liable to be hanged for murder. They are ALL guilty of it anyway, or would be, sooner or later, so this makes things expedient. And if a person has been hung for murder, their hands can be used since the requirements of the netherworld spirits are fulfilled.

Now, I should start making plans for conquering the village, but several problems present themselves (as if I didn't have enough already!):

- The bandit and slinger at the farm are certainly not going to stay there. They are liable to wander, so they must be eliminated at once. Otherwise I might find uninvited guests at my citadel, which would be intolerable. Equally intolerable would be if they went and vandalized my gallows.

- The lookout at the top of the citadel reported that to the south there is a sounder of Great Boars and that a bear has been spotted in the forest. They pose a hazard and should be eliminated, but all of them are powerful beasts and can easily maim many of my men. So I must let them be. For now.

I think I shall send my apprentice to the Gallows to reanimate what longdead and soulless he can coax out of the boot hill next to it, though that is likely to exhaust the dead. And it's slim pickings anyway, not like a proper graveyard or battlefield.

Oh, and here is my apprentice, Arnulf:

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum/06_necromancerapprentice_stats.jpg

He is rather a weakling and knows little, but he can summon a longdead in battle and scare away the more easily frightened creatures. As long as he has some troops to prevent enemies from getting into close contact with him, he should do adequately.


Now Arnulf has reached the Gallows and is preparing to reanimate the dead. He can feel the presence of the dead, which means there are about a dozen to twenty dead here. Hopefully he manages to reanimate the lot, since I cannot spare him any human troops.

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum/07_necrorituals_apprentice.jpg

Fortunately, he seems to have gotten the hang of it:

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum/08_necrorituals_reanimation.jpg

Six longdead and five soulless should be enough to let him keep the situation at home under control while I shall go and inform the villagers who their master is. Arnulf can deal with the bandit and his stone-slinging coward of a companion next month, though he must do it without the soulless. Those are needed to guard the gallows. Hopefully the bear goes elsewhere in search of food. The poor thing might get food poisoning from eating rotten meat if it tries to snack on the soulless.

Now, in order to attack a village guarded by six spearmen, I would ordinarily need more troops than just ten spearmen of my own and three crossbowmen. Fortunately magic will tip the odds in my favor. As you can see earlier, I have memorized Summon Longdead, Banefire and Dark Power.

I did not memorize Decay, because it kills over time and is best used in long battles with much more participants. Summoning longdead is always good, because if the enemy uses its efforts on summoned things, my own troops will be spared. However, that is the weakest of my spells.

This is what Banefire does:

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum/05_spell_banefire.jpg

The star icon indicates that Banefire does magical damage. It is almost guaranteed to kill any spearman it hits. Their shields are no protection either and if they should survive, they are likely to rot to death in the space of minutes. Dark Power is similar, but does not cause decay. It hits three random targets and drains their life force, bestowing it on me to heal damage or augment my health beyond what I could normally experience.

Now, it is time for my first conquest.

[Edi]

Aaaaand

*fanfare*

Next update breaks savegames, so this AAR is going to have to be rebooted rather soon. I'll keep the same premise to preserve the writing, but the rest of it will change to reflect the new circumstances when the time comes.

In any case, Barras conquered the village with the loss of just one spearman and you can see the banefire spell in action here:

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum/09_battle_banefire.jpg

[AngelSong]

Great work.

[Jack_Trowell]

Thanks for the AAR.

I like the fact that the combat report the shield use, it helps seeing how effective they are (or not). In dom3, I know that theyr are very useful, especially against ranged attacks, but sometimes it's good to just see the numbers.

[Flop]

Great AAR, so far. The necromancer is probably the first character I'll try out, when the game is released, so I'm extra interested in this AAR.

I have to say, though, that I'm quite disappointed by the missing descriptions. From looking a the banefire picture, it seems very informative, but lacks flavour and theme. I need those things! Hopefully, they'll make it into the game, at a later date. :)

[Edi]

The CID (Combat Information Display) shows who hits who and how much damage they do and also some other things. It will indicate when special abilities like Ethereal or Awe negate an attack (prevent it from hitting).

While we're discussing shields, there are two varieties: Shield and Large Shield. Both reduce damage by 4 and they have 20% and 30% chance respectively to do so unless an attack is armor negating or shield negating.

Since version 2.94 came out today, I will reboot this AAR tomorrow morning. This evening if you guys get lucky, but don't count on it. Only one name needs to be changed in the OP and the second post can stay there, since all of the stuff in it is useful info and I'll just work it into the rebooted AAR, won't be a problem.

NOTE: All of the screenshots are resized or otherwise doctored to reduce image size and dimensions. For example, the CID is located at the lower left corner of the screen in battle, not below the army, and the summoning of longdead and soulless has been clipped from the battlefield and pasted inside the CID. The main screen also shows just one structure popup at a time at the place where the farm info is.

[Ighalli]

It doesn't look like the necromancers in your report have a sanity value. Does it only appear when they start to lose it, or did they make reanimation free? If there is no more insanity, what are the differences between becoming a vampire or a lich?

[Edi]

The apprentice screenshot was taken before reanimation. Each reanimation hits you with 6 points of insanity. Icon for it is the same as in Dom3.

[Jack_Trowell]

What are the effects of insanity ? % chance of random action like in dom 3 ? If so how does it handle stacks with several commanders ?

[Edi]

What are the effects of insanity ? % chance of random action like in dom 3 ? If so how does it handle stacks with several commanders ?
Insanity is a percentage chance of the commander going off his rocker and refusing to accept orders for that turn. Get them insane enough and they will simply sit in place mumbling to themselves 9 out of every 10 turns.

There is also a battle affliction of Temporary Insanity, which has an automatic healing chance every turn. It'll go away eventually, but boy is it annoying when it hits your main artillery (usually a mage) or SC.

Supercombatants fortunately aren't quite as super as they are in Dom3, by the way, which is a good thing. For example, the Troll King looks really harsh on paper, but some starting armies will wipe him out without breaking a sweat because their mage support simply tells him "shut up" and he does, enough that it makes a difference. Non-resistible immobilization effects are murder on lone SCs. Even if they break that immediately, they're liable to be hit with it again instantly.


Also, there has been an annoying kink in rebooting this AAR. Due to an inadvertent bug that has already been fixed for the next version, the High Priestess currently starts with no troops, so I can't include her as a player, she would get instantly wiped out. I'm going to replace her with the High Cultist (R'lyeh) and change the narrative accordingly, so the next post will be the origin story rewritten, then followed by the actual AAR.

[Edi]

Okay, time for a reboot. Had to slightly alter the backstory in order to replace the High Priestess with the High Cultist, but here goes:

============
==********==
============


I am Barras, a Necromancer. Perhaps the last of my kind in Elysium. I shall write this chronicle so that even should the unthinkable happen, I shall not be forgotten.

It is the time of the Interregnum. The Empire has fallen. Battlefields and ruins of the empire litter the lands. Few cities and villages remain. Human lands are in chaos, and bandits roam the countryside. Even worse, great acts of evil have been performed in the capital, which has turned into a stronghold of undead creatures and unspeakable horrors. Only a powerful leader will be able to rebuild the empire.

The fall of the Empire has been a boon to me. When the Empire was at the height of its power, the practicioners of my art were hounded and persecuted by the Imperial priesthood and there were few places indeed in all of Elysium where we could safely hide.

Now, thanks to the feuds and squabbling among the Senators that Bellania and her strange allies incited and their further machinations, the Empire is no more. Little did they know that she serves that upstart god Baal, whose cult only appeared toward the later days of the Empire. Devious minx, which is why I never trusted her, even though she could make everything sound so reasonable. And she could be persuasive indeed... Ah, well... Those allies of hers, they were stranger still, worshipers of the starts and the sea. It was also genius on their part to entice my former acquaintance Calthus to think he could seize power and become Emperor.

Fools the Senators may have been, but even they would not have countenanced a Demonologist on the throne of the Empire. It is amazing really how far that blundering idiot got, that he wasn’t devoured by the things he called. Or perhaps he learned discipline later, little that it matters. *snicker* Poor Calthus, abandoned by his staunch ally, Bellania, right on the edge of victory. Of course, it was then that he turned to desperate measures and all his bad habits caught up to him. Tried to summon an Arch Devil, but of course he skimped on the offerings, what with the Imperial army bearing down on him and fighting all over the streets of the Capitol.

The former Capitol, I should say, since he failed to control the creature and it destroyed him and then proceeded to slaughter the entire Imperial military and anything else that got in its way. Nobody knows exactly what happened, but the rumors from the vicinity of that place tell that anyone who goes too near disappears and is never heard from again. All I know from what the spirits of the Netherworld tell me is that there were more than demons roaming the streets of the Capitol at the Time of the Fall. Creatures rarely glimpsed, beings made of the stuff of nightmares that devoured and tortured mortal and demon alike. Whether they are gone is unknown, but I would surmise they are not. However, it is at best an academic concern, since I do not intend to find out.

The upheaval since the Fall has left everything unsettled and nobody knows what state the land is in now, other than chaos, of course. It is left for those with the means and the ruthlessness to pick up the pieces and build something new.

I have found an ally in a servant of the Old Powers, a Witch who is as glad as I am to see the Empire gone and who has little love for Bellania. We have pooled our efforts and shall seek to claim a position of power from where it will be impossible to dislodge us. She seeks to return Elysium to where it was before the coming of man. I seek immortality. Once I have achieved that, our goals are not incompatible at all.

I know that Bellania and her cultists did not survive the unexpected results her machinations brought about, but her disquieting friends fared much better and have allied with other newcomers, the barbaric, backward people of a Priest King from somewhere called Mictlan and whose names are quite unpronounceable. These savages worship something called the God of the Four Faces, with human sacrifices, I hear. How predictable. I have no use for gods of any sort, so it is imperative to stamp these cults out.

Other spies have managed to find out some preliminary information on the other factions powerful enough to be contenders for the rule of Elysium. There is another Old Power at play, a member of the tree worshiping Druidic Order, who has allied himself with the Moutain Folk. It may sound like a strange alliance at first, but the Druid is only interested in seeing wilderness reclaim the cultivated lands and the dwarves want nothing more than to be left alone under their mountains to mine what they discover underground.

The third enemy alliance is one of chaos and destruction. A barbarian horde has gathered and it has allied itself with a strange breed of goblin-like creatures that has emerged from a mountain citadel somewhere in the land. These beings have not been seen before and it is speculated that they have come to Elysium from some strange hitherto unknown netherworld, not to be confused with the Realm of the Dead. They are far better organized than goblins and have spread like a plague, but fortunately each band seems to be on its own. These things call themselves the Bakemono and it is known now that when they are led by a shaman or witch doctor, they practice human sacrifices to call more powerful allied beings, like unto demons but different. Rumor says that a powerful Bakemono Sorcerer has emerged and unified the heartlands of the Bakemono to his banner.

I do not like so many unknowns. The Druid and the Dwarves are predictable and the barbarians may call spirits of their ancestors if they find shamans powerful enough. Everything else is a question mark. These new cultists seem to have an affinity for the sea and are fond of coastal settlements, but aside from that, there is no information at all to tell what my ally and I will face. I suspect that her swamp monsters and Androphags are going to have their work cut out for them. I myself must gather enough Hands of Glory to summon something more than weakling longdead and soulless...

[Flop]

Once you attain lichdom your sanity is restored, like in CoE2, right? IIRC, in CoE2, your lich would start going insane, too, though. Is that the case here, as well? What about vampirism?

[Edi]

[QUOTE=Edi;793645]So, during game setup, which you could already see here (http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/showthread.php?t=48279), I chose an Enormous map (72x50 squares), Interregnum society and allied play. I did NOT include Common Cause or Clustered Start, since the story here requires that each player survive on his own even if they work toward (at least somewhat) common goals.

I set all AI at Knight level (4/10) to provide some challenge and to increase their chances of surviving the early game.

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/01_setup_players.jpg

So these are the classes and teams.


Next, we shall take a look at the Player Overview screen provided by F2 once game has started:

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/01-2_f2_playeroverview.jpg

This lists the player names and controller (human or AI), but nothing else so as to not give away too much. Of course, in this instance we know what classes each of them are, but in a random game, we would not. The names can give some clues, though.

*****

Greetings! I am Barras, a Necromancer lately of some renown.

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/02_stats_necromancer.jpg
I seem to have had the strangest dream that I was myself, or almost myself, but knew things I do not and that I was somewhere else very much like this place. I was facing my old ally and lover, my old enemy Bellania in a bid for power, but that cannot be, for she is dead, killed in the fires of the Fall that consumed the Empire. It is curious thing how the mind can sometimes play tricks on you when you sleep...

It is time to begin my bid for immortality. I had managed to squirrel away enough gold and other resources to hire a workers to construct a citadel when the time is ripe. Built out of black granite, it offers a commanding view over the countryside.

(The Dark Citadel has the Vision attribute, which allows the player to see 2 squares in all directions instead of the standard 1 square, but only if there are troops in the square.)

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/06_startlocation.jpg

My citadel is in the trackless wilderness, with nothing for company except the trees and the wind. Forest as far as the eye can see, with a scattering of mountains. My only other holdings are the gallows and a farm that produces food to feed my human troops. There's a little surplus to sell, but that income doesn't stretch far.

I'd be much more g´lad for a village in teh vicinity, because in settlements of that size there are always enough altercations and mayhem going on that one can reliably expect at least one person to be hanged for murder each month. And the left hands of hanged murders can be turned into Hands of Glory, which is precisely what I need for my rituals.

Fortunately the gallows serves as the common execution site for miles around and provides me with more hands of glory. Of course, since the place is under my control, and there aren't any settlements anywhere close, any rabble that strays into my territory without invitation is liable to be hanged for murder. They are ALL guilty of it anyway, or would be, sooner or later, so this makes things expedient. And if a person has been hung for murder, their hands can be used since the requirements of the netherworld spirits are fulfilled.

Now, I should start making plans for finding and gathering more resources, but as usual, several problems present themselves. As if I didn't have enough already!

- There is a herd of deer running loose near my citadel, no doubt tempted by the crops and fields of the farm. I think it is time to roast some venison soon, or we'll be fresh out of bread as soon as we turn our backs.

- The lookout at the top of the citadel reported that to the south there is a great forest that stands much taller than the trees anywhere within sight of my walls. I've heard of these places, though never seen them. Holy places to Druids, they are the breeding grounds for herds of deer and moose, ferocious wolf packs, great bears and sounders of boar. I fear I must be vigilant, lest my farm be overrun by vermin, my gallows chopped to bits by boars and bears sharpening their tusks and claws and my citadel infested with snakes and other vermin. *sigh*

The only other feature of interest is far to the north, a round blue expanse rising past the tops of the trees that wither in its shadow. A humongous mushroom, as tall as the greatest trees. No doubt dangerous, as most unusual things in the wild are in these unsettled times. I shall make a note of going far around it.


I sent my apprentice to animate all the dead that could be brought to service from the graveyard next to the gallows.

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/04_reanimation.jpg

Fortunately, he seems to have gotten the hang of it. Six longdead and three soulless should be enough to let him keep the situation at home under control while I explore the vicinity. Childerik can deal with emergencies in a pinch, though he must do it without the soulless. Those are needed to guard the gallows.

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/05_necromancy_rituals_apprentice.jpg
He could try to reanimate some more undead, as there are still a few in the ground, but it's not worth even the effort of thinking about it.

Oh, to introduce you to Childerik a little better:

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/03_stats_apprentice.jpg

He is rather a weakling and knows little, but he can weaken the enemy in battle and scare away the more easily frightened creatures. As long as he has some troops to prevent enemies from getting into close contact with him, he should do adequately. As you can see, the encounter with the souls of the dead has left him slightly shaken, but that is an occupational hazard in this business. There are ways to deal with it, but that must be in the future.


Now, to deal with that annoying herd of vermin that threatens the breadbasket. I might incur losses, because the deer bucks can be surprisngly aggressive in defending their does. Fortunately I have just the thing to deal with them. As you can see earlier, I have memorized Terror, Bane Fire and Drain Life.

I did not memorize Fear, because it only affects a single target whereas Terror will hit an entire squad of enemies. Drain Life is useful for healing myself and augmenting my health if anyone manages to wound me and then there is Bane Fire:

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/07_spell_banefire.jpg

The star icon indicates that Banefire does magical damage. It is almost guaranteed to kill any man it hits and even many much hardier creatures. Armor is no protection either and if the target should survive, it is likely to rot to death in the space of minutes.


I managed to drive off the vermin, but no before one stag gored one of my spearmen through the liver and killed him. Another one destroyed one of the longdead, but fortunately it was the weakest one. I managed to cast Life Drain on one of the deer and now feel much better than before. Can't get any better than this, though, which is rather a shame.

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/08_battle_lifedrain.jpg
http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/09_stats_necro_hp_augmented.jpg

Childerik scared one away and if it hasn't collapsed from exhaustion yet, it's still running until it does.

[Edi]

Once you attain lichdom your sanity is restored, like in CoE2, right? IIRC, in CoE2, your lich would start going insane, too, though. Is that the case here, as well? What about vampirism?
Liches are immune to insanity. Vampires have other ways of dealing with it. Wait and see...

[Flop]

Sounds cool. Thanks.

[Edi]

After having dispatched the verminous deer, I sent my apprentice back to guard the citadel. Losing the citadel to brigands would spell instant end to my ambitions, so until I have an alternate base of operations, I must dedicate some troops to guard it.

I have also received a report from my ally, the Witch Pantariste. Her tower is located some ways to the west and a little to the south and her surroundings seem to offer much richer pickings.

(Pressing TAB will hide all units and show only the map terrain)


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/startingloc_witch.jpg


There is a lightly guarded coal mine and an iron mine that has been taken over by these goblin-like creatures, the Bakemono. A large and powerful tribe has made the mine its home, so it is likely that she cannot evict them anytime soon.

While her Androphags are formidable warriors and their archers use poisoned arrows, there are not yet enough of them to dislodge the Bakemono.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_androphags.jpg


Of greatest interest to me is the ancient battlefield close by, since there would likely be an opportunity to reanimate significant amounts of undead with little effort. However, there is a problem. The battlefield is guarded by several soulless and worse, my ally reports that stalks of death fungus have been seen growing in the area.

The death fungus is a thoroughly nasty fungal specimen, a large mushroom that reacts to the presence of living creatures by spewing forth a cloud of parasitical spores that will settle on the hapless victim, bore in and begin to rot the doomed creature even though it is still alive. The process does not take long and is invariably fatal. Worse, the fungus feeds of dead and rotting flesh and given a sufficient quantity, will spread until there is a veritable forest of them. Fire is the only reliable means of eradication. At least these are out in the open, in a forest the things are almost undetectable unless one has minions versed in woods lore along.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_deathfungus.jpg


Pantariste also has a problem with brigands who prey on the area. They have a lair close by and undoubtedly the malcontents are out and about, waiting for opportunities. These outlaws have been known to attack even well fortified citadels in sufficient numbers to overwhelm them and they are masters of moving undetected. One needs scouts of one's own to be forewarned of brigands before blundering into them. Dire wolves or something similar that is not so very easily fooled will do equally well.

Let us hope that the brigands in her vicinity do not pose a problem.

[Edi]

It is midsummer now and I have discovered an ancient temple and a second farm in the vicinity. The farm owner is likely to need some persuasion to see that it is in his best interests to do his dealings with me.

The temple, on the other hand, is something else entirely. It is guarded, and not lightly. We were about to approach closer, when we spotted the guardians: Half a dozen Dust Walkers, led by a Priest. Dust Walkers are greater undead and each one is easily the match of four or five spearmen. Alone they are a serious enough obstacle, but the Dust Priest is also an accomplished mage skilled in the use of Necromantic spells.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_dustwalkers.jpg


There are easier ways of committing suicide than trying to dig them out of that temple, which even in its ruined state offers them protection and defense.

(the defense value of squares is added to defender's armor)

[Edi]

I also instructed Childerik to perform a Ritual of Dark Knowledge, in the hopes of finding something useful, like a nearby graveyard or a battlefield.

This is what he discovered and as you can see, it's a long trek if I want to go there. At least there is a village nearby there and it is even undefended from all appearances. There also seems to be a dwarf accompanying a ballista crew in the area. Whatever are they doing in that forest?


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/scrying_battlefield.jpg

[Edi]

*drains glass of spirits*

That's...better...I think...

*thinks*

No, doesn't help. Not nearly enough. Sod it all!

*drains rest of the bottle*

Better. A little. Not a whole lot, but at least it's going to numb the worst of the nerves for a while.


Late summer was going just fine until a few moments ago. I had just discovered and taken over an abandoned farm. And then my apprentice contacted me to convey the results of a scrying he undertook on his own initiative. Couldn't get a word out of him and he was mentally white as chalk.

Hold on... You there, hand me a second bottle! Yes, I know what I'm doing! It's not going to hit me for a few moments yet. And yes, we're done for today, set the camp up right here!

Where was I? Oh yes, the scrying. Well, see for yourself:


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/scrying_haunted_capitol.jpg


I had no bloody idea that my citadel was this close to the former Capitol, the land has changed so much in the few years since the Fall. No wonder this place was deserted and abandoned.

And now I also know what happened after Calthus loosed the Arch Devil. The one thing I always wondered was why the thing didn't go on a rampage after it wiped out the Imperial forces, but that mystery has been solved. There isn't an Arch Devil. Oh, there was, but it isn't there anymore. The rumors were true that something worse happened there.

The couple of wights and the banshee in there are like ticks clinging to a giant when one considers the thing that has taken residence in the buildings of the Senate and Emperor.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_horror_olm.jpg


I have no idea what that is, but if I had to guess, something that Bellania's allies are responsible for.


And it's not even the worst part. There is a...Something!...in the slums.

Just looking at it from afar is almost enough to send me gibbering over the edge of sanity and I've seen some rather unpleasant things in my time. The only way to describe that thing is that it is...WRONG!


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_doomhorror_slave_to_unreason.jpg


THAT is the reason why there is no Arch Devil there anymore. It's because the Arch Devil, its demon minions and whatever remnants of the Imperial military and citizens might have survived the demons now reside in that thing's belly.

*shudder*

I have no idea what I'm going to do next, but I REALLY need to find some serious income, resources or a few battlefields fast and fortify my citadel, because if THOSE things are lairing that close, there is no telling what may be ranging farther out for fear of going too close!

[AngelSong]

Deep spells is so powerful,as astral magic in dominions world.

[Joelz]

Can the amount of special "fortresses" such as the horror overrun city be set up during game creation or is it all random?

Interesting AAR :)

[Gandalf Parker]

Its all random. But the different social ages have a lot to do with that so the 6 choices will give people a good range. And, the map commands give full control over it if someone wants something real specific.

[Edi]

Can the amount of special "fortresses" such as the horror overrun city be set up during game creation or is it all random?

Interesting AAR :)
Thanks. :)

There are a number of special forts in three of the six eras.

The era of the Empire has a Capitol, which is four squares in size and very heavily defended by human troops. Managing to conquer it is almost like an instant win for Necromancers or anyone who uses sacrifices, because it provides massive gold, sacrifice and hand of glory income as well as massive trade income (which can be converted to more special resources in return for golf).

The era of the Fallen Empire, also called the Interregnum, has the Haunted Capitol, demonstrated above.

The era of Monarchy has the King's Castle (named just Castle, like the starting castle of the Baron and a generic Castle). This special castle provides a kingdom wide 25% gold income boost, so it's not a trivial target to conquer.

Dark Ages and Agricultural Period don't have any special castles unless something rare appears at random and Dawn of a New Empire is the same.

[samoht]

I've been pretty excited about this game. Now, after reading the most recent AAR entry, I'm pretty sure I'm going to be calling in "sick" on the 20th. This looks great. It takes the atmospher of CoE2 to the next level. And then some.

[shatner]

What determines if a monster is capable of wandering vs. stationary? I assume both the Horror Ulm and the Slave to Unreason are suppose to stay in the ruined capital as guard monsters, so are those units specifically incapable of movement or is it something scripted to keep them in place? Can they move about within the 4-tile capital location? If something of that caliber were capable of wandering around it would spell doom to pretty much any nation it stumbled across...

For that matter, I don't see a movement stat. How far can units move in one turn? Do any units move further than others, or otherwise have superior mobility (flight, swimming, sailing, teleportation, etc.)?

Also, I'm really enjoying the AAR and I'm looking forward to the next installment. Thanks for doing this Edi.

[Edi]

I'll try to answer your questions as clearly as possible.

General movement rules:
- Standard units have 3 Action Points, Slow units have 2 and Fast units have 4
- Terrain costs 1 or more AP to move through (plains 1, forests 2 etc)
- If moves cost more AP than you have left, the rest is deducted from your AP next turn
- Immobile units can't move (duh!)
- Various movement related special abilities reduce some terrain AP costs

General rules about terrain guards:
- Monsters that guard special terrain do not move
- Animal guards are more liable to wander, and usually only from Ancient Forests
- Monsters spawned in random terrain squares (not special terrain like mines or ancient temples) wander around


In this specific case, based on these rules, we can deduce the following:
- The Haunted Capitol is a special site, therefore its guards don't move (the things it spawns, on the other hand...)
- The Horror Olm is a slow unit (snail icon, last in list), therefore has 2 AP if it were to move.
- The Slave to Unreason is an immobile unit (last icon in list), therefore it does not move no matter what.


So in this case there is no fear that either of those is going to charge out of the capitol gates anytime soon. Poor Barras just doesn't know that, but he knows enough to suspect and is suspicious enough to expect that something else might come out of there.

Of course, there are things like Manticores, Chimaeras, Catoblepas and Dracolions that can appear as random wandering monsters. Starting next to one of those and getting caught unawares can mean instant game over. I remember one test necromancer who got a manticore right next to the Dark Citadel and it attacked on turn one. Got left with one or two crossbowmen out of his entire starting army plus animated undead and that only through a fluke of luck (one crossbow landed a 29 point hit, which allowed victory, just barely).

As far as the next installment, I'll see whether this evening or tomorrow sometime.

[ArkhanTheBlack]

Are there also any 'Epic Spawns' in the later stages of the game?
One thing I loved in Master of Orion 1/2 were special events like gigantic Space Crystals or Space Hydras or a scary Antharen fleet entering the galaxy and wreaking havoc. Then you get the chills: Where will it come? Which planet will it attack? Will my precious super battle ship be able to stop it?
Fall from Heaven 2 also had such events with Orthus, Acheron or the demon lords (Stephanos & Brothers).
I imagine a doom horror or an arch devil entering the lands...
Since such events can be game changing, especially in MP, they probably should be optional, but it would be really great.

[Gandalf Parker]

Yes it has them, but they are not optional.

There is one where undead flood the land attacking all sites. It can totally take you out of the game or it at least knocks every back quite abit.

There is a fungus one of giant mushrooms popping up which can be good for some nations and bad for others.

Troll armies and Dragons can show up in search of gold mines to take over.

And some others also. Not to mention the ones players can write into a map

[ArkhanTheBlack]

Ah great to hear that. I also don't mind that they are not optional. I don't think I would ever deactivate them :D.

[Edi]

One month's travel to the west from my previous farm I added a farm and a hamlet to my holdings. The lone spearman who tried to bar my way was incinerated in flash of bane fire.

Unfortunately immediately after, a herd of more deer stampeded through the fields of the farm and someone needs to go and put it back together.

There is a coal mine close to the hamlet, but it is guarded by some kind of large monsters and I dare not confront them now, with so many threats around.

I also made a very interesting discovery nearby. There is an absolutely colossal stone statue standing in the middle of the plains. I will investigate it soon. I wonder what secrets it may reveal?


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/discovery_colossus.jpg


In the north near my citadel, the lack of knowledge of the surroundings is a serious liability. Childerik took two of the longdead with him and set out to explore the region. He discovered a very lightly guarded coal mine, where there are only three dwarves in residence. Two longdead and one apprentice aren't enough to handle that, but as soon as I have funds to recruit more troops, Childerik will secure the mine with their help.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/enemy_contact_deepcultist.jpg


It was a good decision on my apprentice's part to scout out the terrain, because no sooner had he discovered the coal mine than he made contact with an enemy. Some kind of cultist accompanied by two spearmen came over the mountains, but holds the high ground and my apprentice must retreat to a more favorable position. It seems like one of Bellania's allies, those responsible for the horrors Childerik's scrying revealed.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_deepcultist.jpg


This one has an aura of the same strange magic that surrounded the monsters in the destroyed Capitol, so there is no telling what he can do, weak as he seems to be. Caution must be the order of the day.

Elsewhere my ally Pantariste has explored a substantial tract of wilderness, but has discovered nothing of note. She did catch a glimpse of an organized band of those Bakemono that marched under a strange standard, but they were gone before anyone got a close look at them. They may have been minions of the rumored Bakemono Sorcerer.

[sansanjuan]

Edi
Nice work on the AAR. I'll buy this dang game.

Seem like a nice balance of risk/reward regarding expansion. Will take some time to figure out what can be tackled and what is best left for another day...
ssj

[Edi]

I ordered Childerik to retreat back to the gallows, where he has soulless to reinforce his longdead. From that position, he can keep an eye on the enemy cultist and possibly strike him down if opportunity presents itself.

I myself ignored the deer that are ravaging my crops, I have better things to do. Come to think of it, why by all the spirits of darkness am I worrying about crops and farming?! I have more important things to do, but the problem with trying to build a power base is that competent minions are hard to come by and so I need to take care of even trivial tasks myself. It's going to be venison on the menu again at some point, though...

Instead of indulging my craving for fresh venison, I set out to examine the great colossus on the plain. It was standing on an equally massive pedestal and though worn, it was covered in runic inscriptions.

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/location_colossus.jpg

A better part of mid-autumn was spent studying the inscriptions, for they offered tantalizing hints of possibilities that could solve all of my problems at a stroke! If the implications were, after all, fact... If the statue could be brought to life... Bound to service...

At the last I had managed to glean enough from the inscriptions that I could proceed. All the preparation, the painstaking assembly of an incantation, checking and checking again that here was no mistake, was brought to a culmination!

I recited the calling ... and nothing happened!

Then...


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/message_colossus.jpg


With a rumbling and groaning of stone, the great head turned, the massive limbs flexed and the colossus stepped from its pedestal! My troops scrambled back to avoid being crushed as the giant kneeled before me, its weathered face rugged and ravaged by time, but there was a gleam of...not awareness...but something, in the eyes that had been blank stone before.

It spoke not, but there was an understanding that passed between us, that it had in me found a master and that it would serve me, its liberator, from henceforth.

It would be a trivial task now to conquer the nearby mines and defeat the immediate threats, with this giant of stone towering over my army and fighting as my vanguard!

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/army_colossus.jpg
http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_colossus.jpg

I ordered the colossus to proceed north, but to my shock, it was as if speaking to a deaf-mute. No answer, no response. It ignored me, as if I and my troops did not exist! And then it began to move, not where I directed, but somewhere else entirely.

The magical bond was still there, is there even now, so I know this creation, this golem, serves me, but I have neither control nor direction over it. It will do as it wills in my service, though never will it turn against me.

I had expected so much more, but alas, such is the hand of fate.

It was already well into the late autumn when we were able to depart the site of the colossal base where the stone giant once stood. I led my troops north to slaughter the herd of deer that had done so much damage and to intercept the enemy cultist who had moved south of Childerik's position.

The last I saw of the colossus was as it entered the forest into the southwest, crushing and splintering thick trees in its wake as if they were kindling.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/event_diverging_paths.jpg


It was at this time that a scruffy creature calling itself Aun presented itself at the gates of my citadel and offered my steward its services for hire, in return for 37 gold coins. This goblin chieftain further offered the services of his followers, a contingent of goblin archers, for 50 more coins.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/recruitment.jpg


Just the goblin chieftain alone would have bankrupted my treasury and the creatures are notoriously unreliable, even if they can be surprisingly effective sometimes. His services were declined. I intend to buy troops of higher quality when I get the opportunity.

A quick review of the disposition of my troops tells me that I am spread frightfully thin. The main force accompanies myself, a light guard of longdead defends the citadel and the rest of my meager undead follow the command of Childerik at the gallows while the Colossus works under its own unfathomable direction.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/unit_overview.jpg

(F1 opens Unit Overview. Childerik has not used any AP in late autumn yet, so the remaining AP are shown as diamonds)

(The reason that the Colossus cannot be placed under anyone's command is that it is a Stupid unit and will move under its own direction)

[Jack_Trowell]

What did it cost you exactly to activate the colossus? Only a mage turn ?

Do you really have no control to the colossus? He move randomly each turn ?

Oh, and thanks again for the AAR.

[Edi]

Disaster looms!

Winter has come hard upon us and dried the streams of gold flowing to my coffers. On eve of midwinter, the north winds have blown an army before them, led by the master of the sea cultists. This atrocious upstart threatens my citadel, where Childerik has retreated with all the forces he could muster.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/event_citadel_threatened.jpg


He came from the northwest with a force of spearmen, accompanied by creatures that were born nowhere on this land, tall shambling monstrosities like unto a cross between a man, a fish and a crab.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/army_highcultist.jpg
http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_shambler.jpg


The thing itself, for it can no longer be called a man, looks like a creature from beneath the waves itself and it has the same stench of magic as the abominations in the fallen Capitol.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_highcultist.jpg


My troops and I have force marched through the winter, but snow and blizzards hinder our progress and slow us down. Even the fastest routes take twice as much time as normal and trying to go through the forests is out of the question. I had to flee in such a manner one winter long ago and it is even slower going.

I only hope we can relieve the citadel in time, or that Childerik and his inadequate squad of undead can hold the attackers off.

(Winter increases movement costs by 1 AP for all terrain and reduces gold income by 80%)

[Edi]

Activating the Colossus costs only one commander turn, or more precisely, it costs 3 AP. That'swhy moving into teh square was 1 AP, activation 3 and only 2 AP left for movement next turn, which you can interpret from the narrative.

Any commander can activate it. It cannot be controlled, because it can randomly appear even right next to a starting citadel. If it were controllable, it would be an instant "I win", which is why it was changed to being a stupid unit that cannot be led.

[Edi]

Spring has finally arrived and I am in time!

The High Cultist T'yog, for that is what that creature calls itself, left my citadel alone instead of assaulting it. He probably did not feel confident that he had sufficient forces to overcome the defensive advantage the walls gave Childerik. I had to cut straight through the forest to my fortress after all, because a massive migration of more uncooked venison first blocked my way on the plains and then headed toward the citadel, still on my chosen path.

However, we managed to join forces and I left three spearmen and a crossbowman to guard the citadel along with one scout who presented himself belatedly and did not manage to join us in the assault on T'yog's forces.

Even as I began to position my forces, my mind's eye was drawn south, where my giant stone minion had climbed the hills where all those months ago the ferocious monsters blocked our access to an abandoned coal mine.

The Colossus feels no fear and it did not consider the beasts anything of note. They boiled out of their lair to do battle.

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_troglodyte.jpg
http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/battle_colossus_vs_troglodytes.jpg

The clash was terrible and the monsters would have trampled normal infantry underfoot like yesterday's grass, but the golem was unfazed. The giant monsters bounced off the stone limbs of the Colossus with little effect and then it swung that massive granite sword.

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/battle_colossus_kill.jpg

The monster that would have taken a score of infantry to bring down was cleaved in two at one stroke! A moment later the second of the monsters lay broken on the ground and the third shared its fate soon after, though it managed to avoid being killed on the first blow. Severely wounded, it was not fast enough to evade again.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/battle_colossus_victory.jpg


The contact with the Colossus faded as it began to put the mine in order and I was brought back to the grim reality of facing my own battle with an enemy whose forces were at least the equal of mine if not superior.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/battle_necro_vs_highcultist.jpg

The fell creature spoke words that told of the vast gulf between the stars and of worse things best left unnamed and sent many of my men reeling, stunned and unable to do anything other than cling to their weapons and trying to recover as his troops charged mine.

We were lucky, for even though we sustained losses in that first exchange, my men and undead gave better than they got and slew many of his troops while some ran away in terror before the nightmare images I set on them. My apprentice conducted himself well, weakening his frontline and reducing their effectiveness.

More words of power struck at us, but we were prepared and weathered them better this time. Then, the thick of battle swirled away for a moment and I got a clear view of my enemy, long enough to do something about putting a stop to his fell enchantments:

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/battle_necro_vs_highcultist_drain.jpg

I drained the life right out of that abomination, leaving its withered husk on the field. With their leader gone and no magic to support them, his remaining troops were quickly slaughtered or routed. Now I need to hunt down his wretched apprentice to make sure I can stamp out their repulsive cult once and for all.


My realm, such as it is, is in complete shambles. Half of my holdings have been ravaged by brigands, herds of wild animals or the depredations of that wretched sea cult. My forces are a shadow of what they were and I need to regain control of the gallows and hang some more rabble to resume collecting the all important Hands of Glory.

One piece of good news is that there is a battlefield in the vicinity of my new coal mine, even though heavily guarded by longdead and soulless under the command of a wight. If the Colossus should chance to wander there, it will make short work of them, because the wight cannot drain the life of something not alive and the lesser beings will not be able to do much damage, if any at all.

And then I would finally have a proper source to replenish my sadly decimated troops.

[shatner]

Other than winter increasing travel costs and decreasing gold income, are there any other seasonal effects?

Furthermore, does the Colossus move in a completely random fashion or does it's AI direct it towards enemies and sites of interest?

You mention in your battle with the cultist that "Then, the thick of battle swirled away for a moment and I got a clear view of my enemy, long enough to do something about putting a stop to his fell enchantments". Does this mean your spells can't target the back rows without the front rows being destroyed? Does this mean there has to be actual line-of-sight between your caster and the target? Or am I just reading too much into your choice of prose?

[Edi]

It is now early autumn.

After the defeat of T'yogh in early spring, Childerik animated some replacements from among the dead and then moved to regain one of my farms. He then moved onward in search of the missing cultist and fortuitously discovered him even as I was reorganizing the rest of my forces at the citadel and taking back the gallows.

Childerik prepared for a long chase, but the fish cultist doubled back toward the citadel and once more raided the farm. My apprentice and his numerically superior soulless engaged the wretch and his two bodyguards, but unfortunately the apprentice was greater than the master.

All I would learn later was gathered from the impressions of one of the soulless minions, of how the cultist called out to the night and piercing white light lanced down from the stars, spearing Childerik and burning him to a cinder. His victory was shortlived, however, as the soulless tore him and his men limb from limb before they ran out of instructions and reverted to standing guard.

Childerik's victory from beyond the grave was the final annihilation of this disturbing new cult, which with the death of both master and apprentice is no more.

With no minions under my command and reduced to doing everything myself, I spent the next three months gathering nearby resources before yet another herd of venison steak once more disrupted my gallows and I had to head back. At least the treasury is somewhat on its way to recovery, what with taking the nearest coal mine that the cultists had thoughtfully cleared and adding a village beyond it to my realm.

I even had to resort to reanimating dead myself, and I hope I do not need to do it many more times.

The Colossus still roams the vicinity of the southern mine and my ally is buried up to her ears in wildlife and patrols of dwarves have been skirting her territory. We received reports from spies that the Druid has been defeated, all his strongholds lost to hostile forces.

Pantariste also discovered the citadel of the Bakemono. It is disturbingly close to her own tower, though fortunately there is a lot of difficult territory in between.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/discovery_bakemono.jpg


The Bakemono citadel was discovered in late summer and now it looks like Pantariste's apprentice Androdameia has attracted the attention of the master of that forbidding fortress. She may follow Childerik to an early grave.

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/discovery_bakemono_sorcerer.jpg
http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_bakemono_sorcerer.jpg

I need more minions and even one of those scruffy goblins will do right now. Anyone who can spare me the tedium of administering more farms and similar things is more than welcome. I would summon something to bolster my forces, but the current situation has left me no choice but to hoard the Hands of Glory so that I can summon something more powerful later.

[Flop]

Did the AAR end, due to a new version, or is it just that real life is intruding?

I've been enjoying it, so far, and would like to see more. :)

[Edi]

RL has a habit of intruding. Johan reviewed the manual and requested changes, so that pushed the AAR on the back burner and other stuff has also occupied my time. I'm continuing it tomorrow and on Monday.

[Flop]

Ah, no worries. I was just wondering. :)

I'm looking forward to the continuation.

[Doo]

Likewise awaiting its return, I'm keen to see how the Cultists develop. I'm thinking for my first CoE3 game I'll give them a go.

I've read the Lovecraft story where there are the strange cultists in the woods at night and thus my imagination fed. Usually the undead in their many forms hold my attention but the Lovecraft mythos is fresher (excuse the pun).

If you can lose a little Edi so we can see some things from the void, that would be great ;)

[AngelSong]

I have a question,what is coe3 mp game style.
Simultaneously turn like dom?One by one like HOMM？

[Edi]

I decided a month after I had gathered the remnants of my pitiful army, I had finally scraped together enough gold to hire more troops. I have enough of a skirmish screen that I can actually pay attention to my woefully inadequate archery support. I had the option of hiring another one of those scouts, but could not afford him. I bought a squad of 5 crossbowmen instead.

One of the most imperative things was now to find where the cultists had come from and explore the nearby regions before some other unpleasant surprise decided to manifest. There hasn't been much of any other kind lately...

So after bolstering the citadel defenses and leaving a few soulless to once more guard the gallows, I headed north through the forest while the seasons were still amenable to such ventures.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/northcoast.jpg


I discovered another dwarven mine, but far too heavily defended to even consider attacking it. Going northwest, I reached the open seacoast just in time to see the last leaf of autumn fall from the trees before the onset of winter.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/northcoast_latewinter.jpg


Once the snows set in, it was an ordeal in itself to get out of that miserable nowhere on the north coast. Three months later I had made little progress and everyone but the undead are cold, tired, bored and hungry. We did manage to find one coastal village where we were able to spend a couple of warm nights. It was a curious thing, really. The place bore unmistakable signs of sea cultist occupation, strange runes scrawled on walls and similar things. Yet the people were not hostile even though most would be scared to death of the undead. They were positively relieved when I told them of the fate of T'yogh.

The strangest thing in the place was a well dug near the shore, larger than wells usually are and the placement made no sense whatsoever. The water would be contaminated by the sea and undrinkable, and lo and behold, so it was. The villagers would answer no questions about it, just make warding signs against evil. All except this one fellow who was a wild-eyed fanatic and merely spewed epithets at us. None of the others in that place liked him, but they feared him that much more despite the fact there was nothing special about him. I would have questioned him more forcefully, but once word of the sea cult's demise got out, the villagers knocked him on the head, trussed him up in a weighted net and tossed him down that odd seawater well. Then they set about filling the whole thing in.

Well, when I find the cultist bolthole, perhaps there will be more answers there.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/northcoast_desertedtown.jpg


In the middle of spring I finally found what I was looking for. After a stop to replenish our rations at a lone farm eking out a living here in the northern back of beyond, on a hunch I headed north to a forest that seemed to stretch northward. And certainly enough, after two weeks of trekking through the trees, we emerged out to a headland where a sadly delapidated town looked north to the sea.

The place was an actual town, but almost deserted and cultist signs where everywhere. There were several similar sea water wells in here and the people were close-mouthed and hostile, much like the fanatic the villagers killed. Once we put a few of them to the sword and informed them of what happened to their master, they decided to cooperate. Several threw themselves off the cliff and into the sea in despair and good riddance, they would have been troublemakers anyway.

Some of the writings I found were disturbing. Apparently these people worship something called the Old Ones that come either from the sea or someplace called the Void. There are references to Star Spawn and Deep Ones. They used those sea wells apparently to subject their women to congress with some kind of abominations from the sea in order to produce things called Star Children. All they ever got were things part human, part fish and part octopus.

*shudder*

If this place wasn't to suitable to use as a base of operations, I would put it to the torch. Apparently these cultists also had trade contacts because there are few ports here, so I now have options to trade for things I lack. Unfortunately I'm so lacking in everything I don't have anything to trade with...


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/ui_tradeadministration.jpg

(You can trade resources for gold or the other way around. Max trades automatically, up to your number of trade points.)

[Edi]

That sad little town at the edge of nowhere turned out to be a greater boon than I had expected! Once all the business of establishing control had been dispensed with, I finally had time to take a good look around with my senses and it seems these murderous sea worshipers had been busy little killers indeed.

The presence of the dead in and around the town was considerable. So, not only did this place open the trade opportunities for me, it would also provide me with the troops that I have so long been lacking!

Toward the tail end of spring, I performed the rites of raising the dead as my servants and they came to answer my call:

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/desertedtown_reanimation.jpg


I left the contingent of soulless to remind the townsmen who their lord and master is and headed out with the rest of my new warriors. By late summer I had made my way close to the outskirts of the ruins of the Imperial Capitol. I discovered another ancient temple, guarded only by what seemed a single weak spirit of the dead who have lost their way.

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/monster_toad.jpg

Close by there is also a swamp inhabited by a giant sized man-eating toad. Useless places even at the best of times, and this one doubly so. Well, Pantariste would probably disagree, since she uses all sorts of strange things growing in fens just like that for her concoctions, but she has her own hands full with the Bakemono and the dwarves who have been harassing her.

I had not quite up my mind about trying to acquire the temple for myself when the Colossus once more called my attention. It usually does not do this and has proven to be a most inefficient guardian of my southern realm, but this time there was cause enough and more.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/new_enemy_mictlan.jpg


The Colossus had spotted an army approaching from the south, a formation of strange and barbaric warriors the likes of which even it had never seen before. It is led by a man dressed as some kind of tribal leader or mystic, with feathers aplenty in his headdress and jewelry and tattoos in abundance.

Though this leader is human, the main force of his soldiers are creatures half man and half toad that walk upright and wield spears. The force is bolstered by what appear from all indications to be slaves overseen by a few human warriors. A strange bat-like creature flies to and fro ahead of the force, possibly as a scout, so they must know magic to control these beasts.

The most troubling aspect of this army is that it seems this barbarian has knowledge of the Realm of the Dead, because his advisor is a spirit form the Netherworld, though of a kind I have never seen. It would be most inconvenient if it turned out that this interloper is a necromancer in addition to whatever he is otherwise.

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_priestking.jpg
http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_toadwarrior.jpg
http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_beastbat.jpg
http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_civateteo.jpg


Whether or not I take the temple, I must hasten south to deal with this new threat.

[Edi]

The middle of the autumn is once more seeing the leaves fall from trees, but it is a much less dismal occasion now than it was a year ago. Considering my position right outside the lair of the horror that lairs in the ruins of the Capitol, that could be interpreted many ways... *chuckle*

The environs of the destroyed city are swarming with undead. There are small groups moving across the land, posing a hazard for anyone not sufficiently prepared. I was set on retaking the farms and hamlets around the plain where I found the Colossus, but I had to change my plans somewhat.

Those painted savages and their toad men are still somewhere in the near vicinity, the restless dead pose a threat and if I try take on everything, my troops will be whittled down in short order. On top of that, I nearly walked into an ambush that had the potential to decimate my troops, even as numerous as they currently are. Only that woodsman I hired as a scout prevented me from blundering headlong into it. There is a well organized band of brigands led by renegade military scouts preying on settlements and they had set up an ambush in a hamlet formerly in my possession.

Since defeating the brigands first would leave me weakened before facing those worshipers of...what did they call it? Yes, the God of the Four Faces, I decided to first move to take possession of the battlefield southeast of the Capitol. It was defended by a fairly sizeable band of lesser undead led by a wight. However, as always, there is a complication.

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_wraith.jpg

The wight is merely the lieutenant and the true power on that battlefield is a wraith, a far more dangerous undead. I wish I had one in my ranks, but I'm just going to have to destroy this one. They are notoriously independent minded and there are no magical means of persuading them to change allegiance. If I still had only human troops, I'd stay away, since the mere appearance of a wraith is enough to send men fleeing for their lives, screaming in terror. Fortunately the living dead do not have such concerns. I must remind myself to give that scout a pay raise, since it was him once more who noticed that all was not as it seemed at a casual glance.

(Narrator's note: The pay raise is part of the story. There is no unit upkeep.)

The presence of the wraith is an annoying setback, but there is also some good news:

A most capable fellow by the name of Manvale presented himself at the gates of my citadel and offered to work for me. Hiring him cost the price of a squad of swordsmen plus a scout thrown into the bargain, but despite this sudden bankruptcy, I consider every last copper of it well spent.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_hero.jpg


My new lieutenant and seneschal is a local hero of some note and can well take over the more mundane duties of managing the holdings and he can hold his own in a fight if he should come face to face with brigands. I still need to gather group of underlings for him, since this area is far from pacified and holding off a bandit or two is a far different proposition than facing large groups or entire wolf packs.

Moreover, Manvale seems to have come into possession of a spell scroll in his travels, which is an unexpected boon. It is of absolutely no use for him, but invaluable to me, as it will probably contain the knowledge required to learn more incantations. I must arrange to meet with him face to face at once!

[Edi]

I lost a couple of spearmen and some longdead on my assault on the wraith and its minions. Of my original contingent of spearmen, I have only four left with my army. Two more are guarding the citadel and I shall send these veterans with Manvale when I meet him. They deserve that much, especially after standing up to the wraith without flinching.

The battlefield was just as rich in pickings as I thought:

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/reanimation_battlefield.jpg

There is a strong presence of the dead here, which allows me to substantially increase the size of my army. Right then...


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/reanimation_battlefield_results.jpg


I feel a little shaken after reanimating these minions and I must at all costs avoid the need to have to do so again. However, now my forces are significantly bolstered and I can eradicate the annoying nuisances that have made administering my holdings and trying to get anywhere an exercise in frustration.

And very soon now I will have enough hands of glory to summon a powerful ally, which should make things much easier.

However, everything is not well, at all. Pantariste is dead.

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/pantariste_realm.jpg


A barbarian horde has invaded her lands from the south or southeast and what remains of her holdings are meager indeed. What with the brigands, hostile wildlife and constant harassment by Bakemono and the dwarven allies of the late Commius the Druid, she had no resources to stave off another well organized enemy.

Pantariste herself fell guarding the stone tower she had captured from an unaligned lord, though she did manage to slay all but one of the barbarian attackers. Small comfort, since that force comprised only a third of the invading horde. I only got the news later. Pantariste's apprentice Andromedeia is the only leader the Androphags have left and her troops are few.
http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/army_witch_androdameia.jpg


The other troops my ally has left are concentrated to the defense of her forest tower.

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/army_witch_towergarrison.jpg


The barbarians are lead by the chief who gathered the horde in the first place, Jordanes, a battle scarred veteran of many a vicious skirmish. One could almost call him crippled...

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_barbarianleader_jordanes.jpg
http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/army_barbarian_jordanes.jpg

This force is moving on Andromedeia and when they catch her, she will die. Were she a full Witch and knew the right kind of spells, she could at least hurt them severely, but as things stand, her fate is already sealed.

And if Jordanes and his warriors are not enough, his second in command, leader of the barbarian horse, is on the move with more troops.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_mounted_chief.jpg
http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/army_barbarian_huml.jpg

Huml and his men are moving to assault the forest tower. I fear I am soon to lose my ally while facing one intact alliance and the survivors of two more. If I do not manage to gather more powerful forces quickly, my prospects are bleak indeed.

[Edi]

After my successful summoning of the longdead at the battlefield, I retook possession of the mine where the colossus slew the monsters two years ago. I also spotted the band of brigands again, they were still in the hamlet and they would be the next to feel my wrath. The Colossus has discovered the lair of these ne'er-do-wells and as soon as time permits, I will eradicate that nest of trouble.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/brigand_lair.jpg


The brigands fled north before me, to the farm they had looted. My undead butchered some deer that got in our way as we took possession of the hamlet and prepared to pursue the outlaws. However, by fortuitous coincidence, it seems that the brigand threat is no more, for those jungle-born savages that the Colossus saw earlier had passed north but were coming back to take my holdings and they seem to have run headlong into the brigands.

I love being able to kill two birds with one stone and this if anything qualifies. First my enemy takes care of a nuisance that could have cost me troops and weakens himself in the process. And offers himself up for being eliminated at the same time. I love it when a plan comes together!

The only cloud in front of the silver lining here is that I don't have enough funds to hire the apprentice who came begging for employment. I didn't even know there were others of my order left after Childerik's dead, but apparently some texts have survived in secret and there may be neophyte practicioners seeking to learn from a master.


I attacked the jungle savages and in the first charge I lost some of my longdead to the spells of the undead spirit and the toad-like warriors. The leader of the enemy is some kind of priest and he invoked the favor of his gods for his soldiers.

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/battle_necro_vs_priestking.jpg


Little good it did him, for despite taking a few more losses, my troops cut his forces down. I was not about to take any chances with that strange woman spirit, so I dealt with it once and for all in the most expedient manner: Bane fire.

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/battle_necro_vs_priestking_banefire.jpg


The priest in the fancy headdress was the last to go down. He fell to a hail of crossbow bolts and that was that. Unfortunately only one of my spearmen survived the battle, but such are the vagaries of war.

Elsewhere Manvale took the garrison troops out of the citadel to deal with a gigantic preying mantis that had appeared to terrorize the farmers. Apparently winter drove it out of the forest to the plains to seek out prey.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/battle_hero_vs_mantis.jpg

The creature was swiftly dispatched, with Manvale himself striking the fatal blow.

Now I face the tedious task of once more establishing myself in the south. The ethereal spirits roaming the countryside are wreaking havoc with my holdings, so I'm going to station my soulless in the farms and hamlets to take care of such nuisances. The undead are immune to the life-sapping cold of the spirits, which means that they will be able to dispatch any such incursions with ease.

[Edi]

I have no left garrisons of soulless at the hamlet and farm near the colossal base, since the Colossus cannot be relied on to keep watch. I had just managed to retake the coal mine after a dispossessed spirit scared all the workers away and was in the process of tidying things up when the scout alerted me and the undead back to the surface.

At first I had no idea what he was about as he pointed out across the plain toward the Capitol ruins. Then I raised my eyes up from the ground level.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/enemy_horrors.jpg


Whatever those things are, they grow from the same twisted root as all the other things I have seen in that benighted place. As they drifted across the plains, it became clear that they were quite large and nothing to dismiss lightly.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_mindslime_horror.jpg


However, monsters or not, I have for some time now had enough hands of glory for a more powerful summoning, and I refuse to put it off any longer! It will take those floating things time to arrive and so I made preparations for my ritual.

There is a precise configuration to the patterns one must place the hands of glory, each holding a candle made from corpse fat. A precise order in which to light the candles that will then burn down and ignite the hands in their turn while the summoning incantation is recited.

The preparations took the better part of a week and checking that everything was in order required more time. Finally, the time arrived. As night fell and darkness shrouded the land, my undead servants took positions around my circle while I lit the candles and began chanting.

An hour passed as the candles burned down, then two. Then, in sequence, they burned down to the stubs and the flames ignited the hands, calling the spirits of the Netherworld to do my bidding, to bring me allies. A chill wind blew, laden with the whispers from beyond, then stilled. Followed by... Silence.

The hands of glory were consumed, nothing remaining but blackened outlines on the ground, were there but light to see it, yet there was not, for the night was moonless and overcast. Darkness deep enough not to see your hand in front of your face, the only light coming from the torches at the entrance of the mine some distance away. Silence quiet as a tomb, no sound of nightbirds or anything else. As if the world were dead.

It was faint at first, the sound, coming up from the dark plains. A rhythmic, staccato tapping. It grew to a pounding beat against the ground, accompanied by the jingle of harness and armor. The thundering gallop approached closer and closer, up the road toward the mine then past the entrance and a looming patch of darkness obscured the lights.

The horseman reined in outside the patterned circle of burnt hands, then vaulted off the massive charger. The bulk of heavy armor in outline, a faint suggestion of a horned helmet could be seen against the gleam of torches, a gleam of cerulean pinpoints behind the visor. The warrior stood in silence for a long moment.

Then he knelt, bowed his head and spoke, in a voice hollow with death: "Master. I am Cernetu and I have come to serve."


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_deathknight_cernetu.jpg


We spoke of the plans to come long into the small hours of the night, in the light of a banefire kindled in the circle by my art. With the light of dawn, the scout and the remaining spearman ventured outside with the mine workers. One could see them struggle to overcome the urge to run in the opposite direction. Finally their courage and knowledge of my high regard for them won out. It was a different story with the mine workers. I doubt they will peek so much as an eyelash out before we are long gone from here.

It is now time to remove the danger of those floating things. With Cernetu at my side, it will be far less costly than it would otherwise be.

[Edi]

The floating horrors were slain with ease with Cernetu's help. It was a pleasure to watch him wield bane fire against the things, though I am annoyed at the losses they inflicted on the longdead.

Once that threat was eliminated, we parted ways. Cernetu will go south to eradicate the brigand lair and rejoin me later. That black charger of his can move much faster than anything on foot.

At the cusp of summer, as spring was fading, the Colossus once more called my attention to its location, this time east of its pedestal.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/battle_colossus_vs_brigands.jpg


It appears that the brigands I thought my rival had eliminated had instead escaped and are still a menace and the Colossus blundered into the midst of their camp on the plain.

I left the giant to deal with these vermin on its own, but soon my stone servant called my attention back with insistent force, accompanied by an unfamiliar note: Distress!

I linked with the statue just in time to receive an impression of resignation and failure. I felt the Colossus lose balance as its foot detached from the statue and the ground rushed forward. Impact...and the link that had been there for these years was...gone.

Somehow these outlaws found a way to harm it and the Colossus is no more. It's ruined body lies on the plain less than a week's travel from the base on which it had stood for centuries beyond counting.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/colossus_nomore.jpg


I was not far north when this happened, at the site of the hamlet where that feathered priest met his end. We spotted the campfires of the brigands to the southeast and there are not quite as many left as there were before.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/brigands.jpg


Soon there will be none left alive. If there is a way to snuff out their souls after death, that is what I will do to them!

There would be an opportunity to reanimate more troops at this site, but I dare not do it at this time. It is time to focus the increase of my troops on summons. Cernetu, being an accomplished necromancer on his own, can reanimate things in an emergency and he will do so on his return from the south if it is necessary.

[Edi]

It is the middle of summer and right now things are looking well. Cernetu has taken control of the brigand lair. His return route swings him out east past a lake to get him out of the forest and explore the surrounding environs.

He encountered a band of brigands on his way.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/battle_cernetu_vs_brigands.jpg


They obviously thought to ambush a lone knight and claim his equipment and horse, but bit off slightly more than they could chew.. It seems the woods down south are positively lousy with brigands.

I also found another apprentice looking for work and this time I had the funds to hire him, even though it emptied the treasury. Then again, it was 74 gold coins well spent. Now I can have him make full use of the remains of the various large battles in and around my territory.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_apprentice_gunthamund.jpg

[Edi]

Most of late summer was spent eradicating pests. I slew two bands of brigand stragglers between midsummer and autumn and Cernetu himself ran into another large band of brigands.

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/battle_cernetu_vs_brigands_02.jpg

He had already been wounded in the first battle and a group of nearly a dozen brigands attacked him from ambush. After slaying three, he managed to disengage long enough to call a band of longdead to his aid. The first few were cut down by the brigands but bought Cernetu time to call more and after that the result of the battle was a foregone conclusion. In the space of two months, Cernetu has singlehandedly slain 14 brigands and outlaws.

However, he needs at least the entire autumn to heal from his injuries. Tough he may be, but not invulnerable. More's the pity...


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/cernetu_wounded.jpg


The soulless I left defending the hamlet out west came under attack by more horrors like the ones we slew on the plain.

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/battle_soulless_vs_mindslimehorrors.jpg

Fortunately, they prevailed with the loss of but one. However, being animated undead, soulless lack healing powers and their injuries are permanent. That group is in sad shape and needs reinforcements.


The beginning of autumn also brings with it a surfeit of frustration:

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/offer_golden_wizard.jpg

Having just hired a new apprentice, there is nothing but a gaping hole where my treasury used to be and THEN comes a wizard, hat in hand, asking if I have work for him. Yes, yes I bloody well do! Only not quite enough funds to pay him up front and the bastard doesn't accept payment in several installments!

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_goldenwizard_preview.jpg

It's especially aggravating, since wizards of the Golden Order usually don't have anything good to say about those of my discipline, so I would dearly have loved to have him as part of my staff. They are very useful and Manvale could have used some help.

(In this recruitment preview, the stats of the wizard can be seen, but his magic and item slots are obscured, since wizards do not reveal their secrets to anyone but those who hire them, nor do they advertise what treasures they may carry. This prevent min/maxing on the basis of what spells a wizard for hire may have and forces a serious consideration of whether to take advantage of an offer. Assuming one has the funds in the first place. Wizards often carry items and quite a few times the item may be more valuable than the wizard himself, depending on the circumstances.)

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/recruitment_goldenwizard.jpg

There was also another scruffy goblin chieftain and his band of archers, who while useful, were given short shrift when there was the wizard to negotiate with.

(The goblin archers appear in green because they are mercenaries who appear along with the chieftain. Mercenaries may only be recruited once, like commanders, even if you have several citadels. Once recruited, they disappear from the list.)


I have planned a rendezvous with Manvale and Cernetu and Mavale is on his way. With all the various wildlife and brigands nearby exterminated, he should be safe enough on his own for this little stretch. Cernetu has taken refuge at a mountain where he can enjoy the advantage of defensive terrain if something should be foolish enough to attack him.

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/events_rendezvous.jpg

[Edi]

I finally managed to meet with Manvale and take possession of the spell scroll he had. There were two spells inscribed on it, an apprentice level incantation and another, more powerful one. I have now mastered both. The first spell was meager and useless spell for summoning a single soulless in combat. The second...

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_barras_newspells.jpg
http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/spell_soulvortex.jpg

Soul Vortex is a more powerful version of Life Drain and quite, quite useful in battle, far more so than many other spells in the Necromantic school, even though those others are nothing to roll one's eyes at either. I pronounce myself quite delighted with this turn of events!

Also, it seems like with winter once more in the offing, the middle of autumn sees everyone and their dog scrambling to find shelter. I got two more offers of service, but once more, my treasury hold not nearly enough.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/offer_hedgewizard_assassin.jpg

Not sure how much use a Hedge Wizard would be. Their magic has great variety and little focus, though they can provide one with a nasty surprise on occasion.

The assassin, on the other hand, him I would very much like to hire, but the cost is prohibitive. A pity, because I would have found very, very many things for him to do.

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_assassin.jpg


(Assassins work as part of a regular army, but their assassination weapons are used at the start of combat before any other attacks take place. The only things that work before assassination are prebattle effects, which only things like demon lords and such possess. The strikes rear attribute means that the attack is made on a random target in the rearmost row of the enemy army, so it is quite possible to kill an enemy mage. Especially if there are no other things in the rearmost row.)


However, there has been a most annoying setback. Apparently Cernetu didn't manage to eradicate every brigand from the south, since someone has retaken the brigand lair and I expect that sooner or later we will see more of them making a nuisance of themselves.

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/brigandlair_lost.jpg

[Edi]

Winter has arrived. The last days of autumn emptied my treasury literally to the dregs as I hired a squad of swordsmen to protect Gunthamund on his journey to reanimate the remnants of that savage Priest King's army and then added another scout for good measure so he isn't taken by surprise by sneaking things.

I had already moved northward on the eastern outskits of my territory when we got word of more of the savages coming from the south. This lot is lead by another priest type, this one with a headdress of red feathers.

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/enemy_sunpriest.jpg
http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/army_sunpriest.jpg
http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_sunpriest.jpg

And once more it's a race to the south and to destroy another invasion. Just as well, since there is absolutely bloody nothing up here in the north.

[Edi]

I have no recollection whatsoever of what happened in midwinter. My army was supposed to move south, but when late winter came around, I was still precisely where I had been at the end of early winter. The scout and spearman tell me that I acted erratically and refused to go anywhere. Most odd..

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/insanity.jpg
http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/insanity_message.jpg

(Insane commanders appear pink when selected, deep red when not selected but viewed. They also appear in pale red text in the unit overview. They refuse any orders as long as they are insane.)


The enemy savages destroyed the soulless garrisoning the farm where their king is serving as fertilizer and I can only hope that this unexpected delay does not prevent me from crushing this interloper. I must find a cure for my unexpected lapses as soon as possible. I need more Hands of Glory!

[AngelSong]

Barras The Vampire?
Nightwalk,blood sucker^^

[WraithLord]

"rank: back" + "assassination, strikes fear" - reminds of good old disciples :)

Great AAR. Thank you.

[Doo]

So healing is the same as in CoE2 in that it can take a few turns to fully heal a unit?

[Edi]

By the time I really realized where I was, which was exactly where I had been midwinter as well, it was already spring and my army had sat out in the cold, twiddling its thumbs and doing nothing. Or more precisely, the spearman and the scout had, the undead had just stood around, like frozen statues. I had, apparently, been investigating the differences between how the bark of various different trees behaved in the cold.

*shakes head*

I have GOT to get a grip...

In any case, having wasted two entire months, I spent the next three force marching southwest to meet the jungleborn threat.

I left Cernetu behind, since he is more useful scouting the northern frontier. That area is currently tame enough that he can do it on his own without a lot of risk and I don't need to tie up troops up there. The death knight also took care of that annoying blue mushroom growing in the forest. Took him half a month to chop and burn it down, but at least it's gone.

When I finally arrived south, there was more than one enemy army in place and I had my work cut out for me, even with the help of Manvale and Gunthamund. I would have to choose which one to engage first.

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/enemy_mictlan_choices.jpg


In the end the choice was easy. The northern force was both weaker and poised to wreak havoc in my rear echelons and perhaps even threaten my citadel, necessitating a chase if left to its own devices. Crushing it first would give an opportunity to reanimate more troops both after the battle and again on the way south at the farm. Let us see how this self-styled jungle king and his army of slaves fares...


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/enemy_mictlan_choicemade.jpg
http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/battle_necro_vs_tribalking.jpg
http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_tribalking.jpg
http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_slave.jpg

The battle went more or less as expected, though Manvale almost got himself killed in the opening exchange of blows. He is going to have to sit the next battle out, because I paid far to much for his services to lose him to carelessness.

We lost a few more longdead, but apprentice mitigated things a bit by inspired and proficient use of the Bolt of Unlife spell. Excellent choice against unarmored targets, kills them and then reanimates them to serve the caster.

http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/spell_boltofunlife.jpg


The second enemy army with that red-feathered priest tried to sneak around the mountain on the plain to rendezvous with his now deceased ally, which gives me an opportunity to crush him immediately afterward. With Manvale and his men staying out of this fight, Gunthamund will have to reanimate the fallen from the last battle, even though there are not quite as many as I had desired. Well, it cannot be helped.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/enemy_sunpriest_battleprep.jpg

While Gunthamund reanimated half a dozen longdead and half again that many soulless, Manvale's men made a flanking maneuver back the way the savages had come and regained both the farm and the hamlet for us and denying vital resources to the enemy.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/events_manvale_circles.jpg


And now it is time to engage!


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/battle_necro_vs_sunpriest.jpg


As soon as the battle began, I became painfully aware that this would be a dangerous affair indeed. The enemy priest has some kind of fire magic and wasted no time making good use of it. Fortunately he decided to target one of the soulless in the front rank. Had he aimed it at the back of my army...

However, then it was my turn and I had been itching to test the efficacy of Soul Vortex in battle. and it was efficacious indeed!


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/battle_necro_vs_sunpriest_soulvortex.jpg


Nearly a third of his front line was killed outright or rendered near-dead from the lifedrain and my own energy and health surged in equal proportion.

Half of his monsters lay dead after the first clash and it was our fortune again that the next incinerating strike from the sky found another soulless instead of worthier targets. Some few losses later the longdead ranks closed in and hacked the lone remaining winged jaguar and its master to pieces.

Another invasion repelled, though recovering my forces to their previous levels of strength is once more going to take a while.

[Edi]

So healing is the same as in CoE2 in that it can take a few turns to fully heal a unit?
Unless they have fast heal or regen, yes. Healing is 10% of HP (rounded up) per turn, 50% of HP if you have Fast Heal and immediate if you have regen.

[Tarrax]

So reading these AARs, one thing I noticed is Hit Points (and other stats in general) of units seem to be very low compared to Dominions 3 even for heroes. Is it really hard to keep your units alive? I mean do they even survive 2-3 battles?

[Edi]

The more units you have, the more the chances of each individual unit surviving increase, because the same units don't get hit all the time (since defender always goes first in battle). But if we're talking about the front line units like spearmen, my advice is not to get too attached to them.

[Edi]

After the enemy Sun Priest had been killed, it became obvious that he remains of his army were not worth animating. Too little reward for too high a price, so I sent Gunthamund to see what he could get from the site of the largest with the earlier priest.

Manvale and his spearmen and swordsmen were sent packing home, because I need someone to keep the area clear of pests. Something has AGAIN disrupted things up north, this time at the coal mine. Fortunately I don't exactly have a shortage of iron since I've been accumulating stores over time, but I would dearly like to have a catapult at the citadel. It would bolster the defenses nicely and there is nothing to brighten an invader's day like several hundred pound rocks falling from the sky before he can even get close. The problem with catapults is that while they don't cost a lot of gold, they more than make up for that in the cost in iron.

I myself will be heading south on an exploration mission. It is time to find out where those savages are coming from and put a stop to their incursions. The south is positively lousy with bandits and undead. I hadn't gone more than a month out before my scout again spotted two bands of brigands, one of them big enough to pose a serious threat to anything short of a full army detachment of 10 men backed by archers. This is getting intolerable!

The one piece of good news is that Cernetu has discovered a port town in the north!


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/discovery_port.jpg


The place is held by a rabble of bandits, but Cernetu will make short work of them and I will have finally gained a proper source for hands of glory.

[Edi]

Cernetu gained the port with comparatively little difficulty, though he took some injuries from the surprisingly determined defenders. They had the walls of the fort to protect them, but in the end it was a foregone conclusion.

Things are starting to get back under control now that Manvale has restored the northern mine. Gunthamund conquered another coal mine, taking it from the possession of strange, one-eyed manlike things that were pale as corpses. They look very imposing but turned out to be no real threat.

Just before the onset of winter, there was a troubling new development. The southernmost coal mine was attacked by a joint force of brigands and some kind of manlike monsters like unto soulless but alive. They possess souls, though these are shredded, tattered things and they heal wounds at an incredible rate. They destroyed the soulless guarding the mine with little losses and I have no option but to turn back and eradicate this threat. I should have attacked those brigands on my way south, but didn't, which turned out to be a mistake. I shall not repeat it again.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/battle_soulless_vs_soultorn_bandits.jpg
http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_soultorn.jpg

[ArkhanTheBlack]

What exactly are Hands of Glory? It seems to be some kind of resource like production or so, but I'm not sure if I understood it right.

Combat preparation seems to be a bit easier than in Dom3, therefore you just set where they are located. I've seen back, mid, not sure if I've seen front exlicitly mentioned.

Are there other ways to influence the fights? Something like the spells the mages should use?

[Edi]

*mutters curses*

Retaking the mine was just as costly as I expected it would be and my longdead forces are melting practically before my eyes! At least I managed to ship some soulless from the hamlet to guard it, so the places are again garrisoned, though I would like the garrisons to be beefier.

At least midwinter has seen another new apprentice come to my door begging for instruction and this time I have enough resources to hire him and not be left staring at a lone copper coin at the bottom of the treasure chest.

Cernetu has added another coastal fishing village to my realm a couple of months ago. You wouldn't think it, but over time the catch from fishing generates quite a bit of revenue.


*late winter evening at camp*

"Master look at the sky! I have never seen the foxfires in the sky that strong this far south!"

I looked up from the tome I was studying to see that there was indeed a peculiar light in the sky. Only this was not the normal light that comes from the night sky in winter. I was still running the exercises of a minor summoning ritual through my head when suddenly I felt...

*HUNGER! SOULS! FEED!*

There was something right there next to me, waiting to pounce if given the slightest opportunity! I scrambled back and had the undead form a circle around me as I tried in vain to see the threat.

The summoning ritual slipped from my mind and I felt the threat recede slowly and reluctantly, disappointed. Shaken, I glanced once more at the sky and saw at the same time how the face of the scout had turned ashen.

The lights undulating in the sky had forms moving through them, a faint suggestion of long limbs and razor sharp claws as if glimpsed through a thick mist. The glow and wink of what might have been stars, but might as easily have been the gleam of malevolent eyes...

"M-master..."

"I see them, yes..."

"What are they?"

"I don't know. They feel like the things we saw at the ruins. Magic draws them, so we had best be careful about what we do. No summons for me for a good long while. We must do with what we have for now."


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/world_event_horrors.jpg

[Edi]

What exactly are Hands of Glory? It seems to be some kind of resource like production or so, but I'm not sure if I understood it right.

Combat preparation seems to be a bit easier than in Dom3, therefore you just set where they are located. I've seen back, mid, not sure if I've seen front exlicitly mentioned.

Are there other ways to influence the fights? Something like the spells the mages should use?

Wikipedia on Hands of Glory (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hand_of_Glory)

Essentially they are the left hands of hanged murderers, dried and preserved. In CoE3, necromancers burn these hands as an offering to spirits of the Netherworld to gain the services of allies or knowledge (rituals of mastery).

Yes, there are front ranks (e.g. spearmen), so units are placed according to the placement rank, melee units in front, archers in the middle and spellcasters in the back.

As far as mages and spell use, you can select which spells to memorize if you have more spells than memory slots. The mage will then cast random spells from among those memorized, though not totally useless things (Frost against undead which are cold immune, fire against fire elementals or poison resistance against spearman, who have no poison attacks etc.).

[Edi]

All through early spring those lights in loomed over us in the sky. It was a tense time, but as the spring equinox approached, this ill-starred conjunction of the Realms of Power faded.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/world_event_horrors_end.jpg


I can finally breathe easily again. Gunthamund and I have headed south after leaving a squad of soulless at that pestilential brigand lair to make sure that nobody else takes it over and begins preying on my southern settlements again. We have discovered signs of the jungle savages and a farm that previously belonged to them is now in my hands. Gunthamund is moving toward the battlefield that Childerik's scrying revealed so long ago. He will take control of the village next to it, then defeat the undead on the field and reanimate some more troops for us.

At this rate, there will soon be enough hands of glory that I should be able to perform a ritual of mastery to increase my knowledge of the Necromantic Arts to entirely new heights.


Up north, Cernetu has been exploring the wilderness. There was a tense moment when he encountered a horde of goblins accompanied by two trolls that were looking for victims. A single troll would be a challenge to even a death knight, let alone two of them. Accompanied by more than a score of goblins? Cernetu took the wiser course of action and got out while the getting was good. Fortunately he seems to have found another battlefield, which will provide him with enough troops that if he should run into that horde again, he will be able to defeat it. Normally, I would send an apprentice to take care of the reanimation, but I only have Gunthamund and it's too far away in any case, so the death knight simply must bear the cost of reanimation himself.

(Note: Undead are NOT immune to insanity, apart from the lich)

[WraithLord]

Your AAR makes me think - is CoE3 mostly about chasing indies around?- Sounds like a frustrating prospect :eek:

[Edi]

No, it's not mostly about chasing indies around, but when you play large maps, it is going to be a part of the game.

The reasons why making this AAR has been rather frustrating are:
1) An absolutely hideous start location
2) Consequent lack of resources
3) Consequent lack of troops to garrison important things
4) Three prolific monster lairs in close proximity to important locations
- Ancient Forest
- Brigand Lair
- Haunted Capitol, which actually counts as 4 monster lairs because each square spawns things

5) Distance from home fortress to many places
6) Dismal luck in terms of hands of glory generators (this is actually changing, which the next installment will touch on)


So yes, this one has been uphill all the way. If you have bad luck, you will be spending a lot of time fighting independents, but it's not as bad as it was in CoE2. And believe it or not, the independent spawn rate has been significantly reduced from what it was when the beta started. I don't think anybody would mind if it was reduced another 10% or 20%.

Just compare the start I had for the restarted AAR and the one I had for the first one. If I had had that start for the restarted too, the game would look very different right now. As it is, this AAR should see lichdom attained in another 20 to 30 turns (plus possible travel on top of that).

[Edi]

I should also add something which is not apparent from my previous post: This AAR game is now progressing somewhere around turn 80 or so, well over six years into the game. Most of this time I have had a rather tenuous control over the monster lairs, especially the brigand lair, which proved so troublesome.

The ancient forest near my starting citadel has been notably quiescent for monster lair and the occasional stack that has emerged from there has generally either wandered off or been slain before it had a chance to do much damage.

Going into completely unexplored areas where there are ancient forests, brigand lairs etc. after such a long time, one would be far more likely to run into multiple armies of independents and one would expect a fairly intensive stretch of combat until the area was cleared.

The easiest way to prevent big problems with independents is to act aggressively against monster lairs and flag them, then leave a sufficient garrison that it can't be casually swept away. In case of ancient forests, if you can't flag them, either acquire a pyromancer or a fire breathing monster and burn them down. Enchanters can also turn them into golems, which will likewise destroy it.

[Thilock_Dominus]

No more updates?
Now I have followed this AAR everyday, I really hope you continue it :)

[Edi]

Today, in fact. I had a very busy end of the week and most of my CoE3 related doings had to focus on the manual and map editor guide. Yesterday I had work and other things to do after that. Today and tomorrow I can concentrate on this.

[Edi]

It is once more late summer and the winds of autumn will soon blow the leaves from the trees.

I spent a considerable part of my treasury in midsummer to hire a tribe of goblins, because I simply need enough bodies to hold the walls of my citadel and they came cheap.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_goblin_chieftain.jpg
http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_goblin_spearman.jpg


Hrimner and his goblin spearmen aren't much, but put them behind walls and they'll be able to survive quite well at least in the opening stages of a battle. This frees up Manvale to to take the more experienced spearmen and swordsmen and clear the countryside, so some housekeeping and perhaps even explore a bit.

He was just about ready to set out when an old friend of his by the name of Sethan showed up. Given the caliber of person in question, I hired him though the treasury now only stands at about a hundred gold coins.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_hero_sethan.jpg


Sethan has an interesting sword, enchanted and sharper and better balanced than a regular broadsword. Upon closer examination it explains rather handily why Manvale has always called Sethan a lucky bastard when the subject came up in a conversation.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/item_faithful.jpg

[Edi]

Elsewhere things look grim. It seems Pantariste's apprentice Andromedeia managed to repel the barbarian invasion or the enemy simply bypassed her, but I am afraid she will no longer be so lucky.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/ally_androdameia.jpg
http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/army_witch_androdameia_02.jpg


The Tower of the Androphags has fallen and the young apprentice has only a secondary tower to fall back on. For one of her skills, she has managed to amass a surprisingly formidable force, but her enemy is approaching with a troop of creatures not native to Elysium. Summonings of some sort, most certainly.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/army_bakemonosorcerer_vs_witch.jpg


I fear that my ally may soon be no more.


*****

Elsewhere, Cernetu has been busy in the northeast. After reanimating the dead from the battlefield he discovered, he used them to conquer a mine from a bunch of dwarves. He has continued to take over a nearby hamlet, but going east, he seems to have run into another ambush. The northeast seems to be a vey wild and untamed area and I must have Manvale and Sethan search for a more direct route so that Cernetu can be more easily reinforced.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/exploration_northeast_cernetu.jpg



Myself and Gunthamund, we have explored the southern areas close to the village and battlefield. Gunthamund is slowed down by the soulless he gathered at the battlefield, but he must have protection if he is not to share Childerik's fate. He has discovered a library of magical learning, but it is heavily guarded by a detachment of mercenary soldiers.

I discovered a watchtower, which allowed me to gain a better idea of my surroundings. Now that I have finally managed to amss sufficient hands of glory, the tower is also the perfect spot for my Ritual of Mastery, because it provides a defensive position.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/discovery_magic_library.jpg


The preparations for the ritual were elaborate. Nearly twice as many hands of glory as for the summoning that brought me Cernetu. In this, the tower itself was an invaluable help. Instead of a flat pattern on the ground, it was possible to place the hands of glory in a spiraling funnel that would better focus the power of the ritual on myself.

Once the arduous checking and rechecking had been completed, I waited for the dead hours of another moonless night, with only the stars shining down from a cloudless sky. I began the chants I had learned through long study and knew by heart. One by one the candles held by the hands of glory were lit and the power began to build. I climbed the tower, touching flame to each wick in turn and when I reached the top, I stood at the apex of a funnel that would channel the power through me.

When the wicks burned down and lit the hands themselves, all one hundred and fifty of them at the same time, the spirits that had been gathering rushed in to consume smoke of the burnt offering and whispered the secrets of power to my ears, the price extracted in return for their feast.

It was hours later that the hands had burnt to ash, the swirl of Netherworld spirits gone with it. I closed my eyes and called forth the new knowledge given to me. No mere Necromancer anymore, but a master of my craft!

I spoke the words the spirits had branded on my mind and felt the tingle of my flesh, then drew my knife and stabbed it through my hand, yet all that I accomplished was a dull thwack, the point unable to pierce the skin. Another incantation sent a rime of frost running across the beams and planks of the wooden tower, spreading far and wide and giving off a chill as if of death itself. Great tools indeed, but no gift these, but a purchase paid in full...


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/mastery_grand_necromancer_barras.jpg
http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/spell_invulnerability.jpg
http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/spell_chill-of-the-dead.jpg


Now, it is time to begin the next step on my journey. The knowledge of a necromancer gives the tools to turn oneself into a blooddrinking immortal being, a vampire, a mighty warrior in addition to the necromantic powers. However, there are other, superior options for the kind of master necromancer I have become. To become a lich, to leave behind the fetters of mortality and realize the full power of the necromantic arts, that goal is now within my reach! It will be a long and arduous process, more so than this trial has been, but it is a step that not only asks to be taken, but MUST be taken!


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/rituals_necromancy_grand_necromancer.jpg


The cost, though, it almost beggars belief...

[Jack_Trowell]

I see that you can still do a ritual of mastery while already a master necromancer. What does it do at this level ? Give you another spell ? Or is it that there are still other upgrade options above master necromancer that the lich ?

[Edi]

Lets you learn new spells. You get something random, could be level 1, could be level 3.

[Thilock_Dominus]

What's the benefit of becoming a vampire instead of a Lich?

[Edi]

From the journal of Cernetu, Death Knight and Second in Command to Grand Necromancer Barras:

It has been a year since the ascension of Master Barras to the title of Grand Necromancer. Since that time, things have become...confused is the word I would use. There have been setbacks, but also gains.

In the Master's absence, I have been forced to take command to prevent things from devolving to a disaster. With the help of Sethan and Manvale I have consolidated our position and can now begin to restore order.

Our situation currently stands thusly:


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/map_the-lost-east.jpg

The eastern expedition ended in failure. It seems there is a considerable unexplored landmass even beyond the easternmost limits of my journey, and though none of our enemies seem to have a presence in that direction, the land is not uninhabited. The forces of lesser undead I reanimated at the old battlefield have been annihilated by the

The red markers on this map indicate holdings that were once in our possession. The greatest loss is the port town to the north, which was overrun by trolls and their goblin followers I saw briefly two years ago. The place could be used to trade for hands of glory from merchants who had access to them in other markets.

The other places were in our possession but briefly, for there were not enough troops to garrison them properly. The blue markers indicate desirable resources or other strongpoints discovered by Manvale and Sethan. The area has a wealth of possibilities, but venturing east is simply not possible without a large, well armed force that can absorb losses. There are very large bands of goblins, groups of giant ants and less numerous greater bakemono roaming those territories. It is doubly important because the port and villages together would increase our harvest of hands by more than half.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/map_north_homeland.jpg


Here in the north, around the citadel and the port of the Void cultists, everything is more or less in hand. The first order of business, second to none, is to hire a pyromancer, a mage versed in the art of fire magic. When we can contract the services of such a one, the older forests here shall burn until there are nothing but stumps and ash left.

In the south, the situation is fluid. The Forest of Cutthroats and its northern environs are under control and have been for years now. We have no real intelligence on what lies south of it, given that the explorations of my master and his apprentice focused on the southeast.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/map_south_forest-of-cutthroats.jpg
http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/map_the-southern-salient.jpg


The southeastern front has been quiet, but more of the jungle-born interlopers of the Hungry God have been spotted, led by yet another sort of priest we have not seen before. Gunthamund is retreating as fast as the pace of his shambling soulless followers permits. Any threat from the priest himself is at least a year, probably two years in coming, by which time the current situation should be more than resolved.

As for my master, based on our spiritual bond, I can surmise that he is traveling northwest, but no word has been heard from him since his elevation. He has been completely unreachable for months at a time, the mindlink erratic and garbled. These chaotic spells have become more frequent, possible indications that his transactions with the Netherworld have left him unsettled. I do know that one of the clearer images I got from our contact was of the temple on the outskirts of the Capitol.

Probably he aims to achieve immortality there.

We have also had new reinforcements who have been working for us for some time now. I hired an assassin called Qesban several months ago. A southern name, but already he has proven himself useful, which is all that I or the master care about. There is another apprentice offering his services, and I am going to accept. Someone is required to reanimate the dead littering the eastern reaches. We shall see how this Karl works out. After that, there will be no hiring until the treasure has at least three hundred gold coins or equivalent in it.


http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/recruitment_apprentice.jpg
http://koti.welho.com/ehalttun/public_files/images/coe3/aar/necro_interregnum_reboot/stats_apprentice_karl.jpg


We have an excess of iron, so in the interim some catapults will be bought instead. Hopefully the master will return soon, because if and when things go as planned, we will be unstoppable.

In the meanwhile, I will be heading back out and directly into combat. I had a little conversation with Sethan, which ended with him giving me the use of his sword. Even with the blade, he can't survive against numerous enemies, being as fragile as he is, like most mortals. The blade will be of better service in my hands. He was loath to give it up, but when offered the choice of loot when we find other things and the choice of settling our disagreement in a duel, he chose the first option. Wise of him.

[Edi]

What's the benefit of becoming a vampire instead of a Lich?
Less than half the price in hands of glory and the vampire is a much more combat oriented creature than the lich. The vampire can upgrade himself to a vampire count later, which will also allow access to level 3 spells. Restoring sanity will require destroying hamlets and villages (by eating the population), but if you can find an old castle (required for the ritual) early on, becoming a vampire will allow expansion very quickly.

As a vampire, you can attack enemies without any consideration for losses. If the vampire dies, it will simply reform at the home citadel, stay out of action for a month or two and then go straight back to the fight. The vampire regenerates, so it heals at the end of every combat and if it suffers afflictions, those too will go away on their own (immortality also does the same, so increased chances of quicker recovery).

As the cherry on top, the vampire flies, so his movement is not restricted by terrain even in winter. The only terrain he can't enter is water (which the lich can do).

[Edi]

Androdameia has been defeated and Pantariste's realm is no more. The Rain Priest of the jungle savages has raced north and invaded our lands, but he has not nearly enough troops and even his flying witch assassins (tlahuelpuchi) are not enough to save him when attacked (assassination is available only to attacker).

However, much as I would like to continue this AAR and demonstrate lichdom in another 15 turns, it is sadly no longer possible. The jump from 2.96 to 3.00 broke savegame compatibility and the fate of Barras the Grand Necromancer (soon to become a lich) must be left to the reader's imagination.

:(


Perhaps Barras will return in another incarnation if I wish to do another Fallen Empire AAR, but unfortunately that must be another time. I hope everyone enjoyed this story while it lasted.

There is time for yet one last teaser, though: When you do get the game and explore things, pay attention and somewhere you may find two names that have appeared here... ;)

[Doo]

Well perhaps its good the new version breaks save games, its always more fun when you experience new things in games yourself. If I hadn't already decided to support my local void and play as the cultists I would be aiming to turn into a lich to see what happens. Lots and lots of raising the dead I imagine :)

Great AAR.

On a side note, I was listening to an old Three Moves Ahead podcast which had the author of the Dominions 3 manual on it, is that you?

[Edi]

No, that's not me. The Dom3 manual was written by Bruce Geryk, who was also part of the beta test group, though we did not see a whole lot of him.

When the CoE3 beta began, I knew we needed a manual, so I just took that bit for myself to do. I have always been able to write instructions clearly and in an organized fashion, so it was a natural fit. By the time Bruce showed up, there was already a manual draft that was fairly well along.

[ArkhanTheBlack]

It was a great AAR, thanks for taking the time to do it. :)

That really kept my interest in the game growing and I'm eager awaiting the release now.
Therefore I'll definitely buy the game.

BTW, judging from your AAR you're a very talented writer.
It almost felt like reading a real book sometimes.
It would be nice if the manual would also contain some more 'colourful' descriptions. It makes reading manuals much for fun if they don't just stick to a toaster-style manual.