AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

This is a Solo game. I am the only human player. The other 7 are AIs set at Butler (the third level). Jester (second level) is the human player level.

http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/CoE3/AAR2/AI_levels.JPG

There will be 4 2-man teams. One of the AIs (also Butler level) will be my ally.

http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/CoE3/AAR2/participants.JPG

I will be playing the class (nation) of High Cultist which is based on Rlyeh/Cthulhu.
My ally will be the class (nation) of Troll King.
This can be a surprisingly good alliance. The Cultist needs cities which can provide sacrifices. Sacrifices can be used to create/summon powerful amphibious units. The Trolls also want cities for gold. However I tend to use the coastlines attacking port cities which the Trolls tend to march up the middle. So even though we are after the same resources we should be able to work together to each others advantage.

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

the "piss boy" difficulty rating made me lol.

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

Hello. I am the Hugh Cultist named Cthulhu_Fthagn.
(from the song http://www.thefump.com/lyrics.php?id=1195 )
I and my assistant Zag'mi have laid claim to a deserted port city with a few mercenaries we brought with us.
http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/CoE3/AAR2/starting_army.JPG

Its not much of a town. It supplies us with a minimal amount of gold and sacrifices, and a measly defense. But it does allow us some ability to trade and recruit. That, and as others of our ilk join us willingly, will allow us to expand.

We also have some spells available to us. Zag'mi is sadly deficient. I might choose to expand his abilities later. Luckily I have some useful ones including one which allows me to invade the minds of an enemy making him my slave. Zag'mi also lacks the amphibious ability which my faith has granted me. Hopefully that is something else he will pick up later. But for now I will tread the coastlines avoiding both land and water enemies if I am careful.

http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/CoE3/AAR2/Cthulhu_Fthagn.JPG
http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/CoE3/AAR2/Zagmi.JPG

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

I am eager to begin capturing cities. The larger, the better. With sacrifices I can call upon troops which are far superior to the menial very standard types of mercs I can hire now.

http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/CoE3/AAR2/recruiting.JPG
http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/CoE3/AAR2/rituals.JPG

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

Oh joy! (sarcasm)
On the one hand, the gods have granted me an ally. On the other hand its a stinking stupid Troll.
On the other hand he will distract our enemies. But on the other hand he is eager to take cities in his lust for the gold they can give him. We will be in competition for cities.
On the other hand he is far far away from our lands. But on the other hand... no. Thats all Ive got.

(by zooming completely out I was able to catch a glimpse of my ally on the map)
http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/CoE3/AAR2/Ally_start.JPG

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

All right. I have ventured forth (carefully).
I will be alone until I have collected enough sacrifices to start calling for troops. But I am in a hurry to discover some targets for our expansions. Since we are near jungles and deserts I have decided we are near the southern coastline. So I will begin by going South and then work my way toward my "ally".

By the time I get there he might have managed to destroy himself against some strong site. And I will easily claim his abandoned resources.

http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/CoE3/AAR2/t1.JPG

(so far the actual game has consisted of startup and 2 mouse clicks)

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

Oh great. We have already been contacted by Gymer the Troll King.
He wishes to share map info. I have told my assistant to comply. He mumbled something something under his breath that sounded like "well ZAG me". I did not realize his name was some sort of slang that the young people use. One of these days I will have to demand from Zag'mi the meaning of the phrase.

Anyway, I dont mind sharing maps. If I discover some tasty site then the idiot troll will probably work his way straight toward it. Fine by me. Fight your way in my direction. By the time you get here I will own that site anyway. And the more you explore coming towards me, the happier I will be.

Plus, seeing your maps will give me an idea of what I can claim from you when you kill yourself stomping on everything you see.

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

OH by the Mother of Pus! Only two months into the campaign and ALREADY I have had an enemy knock on my door. And its another High Cultist of all things! Even if I turned back now I would not get back in time to assist.

Well he came with only 7 spearmen. I will instruct Zag'mi to leave one unit guarding the while he STOMPS this guys ***.

http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/CoE3/AAR2/t3.jpg

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

YAY! Zag'mi managed to pull it off. Very well in fact. We only lost a couple of units.
I am surprised and pleased with my assistant. The other High Cultist had spells for Soul Slay and for Summon Lesser Horror (wish I had those). He fought till the end but Zag'mi defeated him nicely. AND has spotted a lightly defended Cannibal Village (more sacrifices) AND the other cultists assistant rushing to aid his master with only 4 troops in tow. Zag'mi is eager to follow his victory with another. I will allow it.

It is also a good thing that we left one troop. While Zag'mi was gone a wandering deer that I had not noticed wandered into the town. The spearmen we left dispatched it easily. It would have been embarrassing to lose our town to one deer.

http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/CoE3/AAR2/b1+.JPG

(To be honest, the first combat failed horribly. And soon after that we lost our town. I did not want the AAR to end so quickly so I reloaded a save. The next combat went as described above. Please forgive me.)

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

That second combat went well also. The other minor cultist had only a spell for confusion and one for paralyze. My asst Zag'mi has a paralyze and the ability to stun 3 enemies at a time. Now Zag'mi is eager to go up against the Cannibal Village. It is guarded by 3 cannibal warriors and one great ape. Zag'mi has 5 spearmen and 3 crossbowmen. Should be OK but I hope he isnt getting too cocky.

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

I am going to take a chance.
IF the other High Cultist started with the same benefits we did then maybe I have taken out his only two commanders. :)
And IF he was smart enough to start in some kind of port city, then that city must be on the coast nearby.

I am going to take a chance leaving only one spearman in our city. I will have Zag'mi continue south toward me. Hopefully we will find that city badly defended and add it to our empire. :D

The other high cultist might also have an ally hidden somewhere but if that ally is as far away as ours is then this is still worth taking a chance.

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

It seems that Eidolon of the Blind has aided our cause. We have both arrived at the enemies capital without them preparing.

http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/CoE3/AAR2/b3.JPG

And thank he-who-must-not-be-named but I also have saved up enough sacrifices to make a Call of the Deep summoning. I was blessed by 3 Shamblers coming up out of the depths to join our army just in time for the fight.

http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/CoE3/AAR2/s1.JPG

Even though they have a slightly defensive position I have no concerns for the battle now. Zag'mi and I shall both attack from opposite sides at the same time.

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

Now its time for my Status of the Empire address.
My assistant is still alive, and surprisingly capable.
I have most of my original army.
I have my Capital, AND a matching Capital from one enemy.

My only concern is that my slain enemy might have had an ally marching toward me to take back his allies capital town.

Come to think of it, I havent checked on my ally lately. Oh there he is. As I predicted. He hasnt captured much. He left his Troll Pit and has been marching in a fairly straight line toward us probably hoping to take our resources as I am hoping to take his.

http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/CoE3/AAR2/Gwymer.JPG
http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/CoE3/AAR2/dumb_troll.JPG

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

I just started reading this so I didn't read the whole thing yet but what is the "southern terrain" option in the game set up? Is that another plane like Myrran in MoM (sorry not a CoE2 player if this was in CoE2)?

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

No its simpler than that. If you havent noticed yet, our devs have a distinct love of northern climates. Maybe because the company is Swedish?

Anyway, the Southern Terrain is just the jungle, desert, mesa, and savana map tiles. Also special items like cannibal villages, desert palace, sphinx, pyramids. And creatures such as great apes, lions, tigers, elephants.

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

Is it possible to have a "balanced" mode with both northen and southern terrains and creatures on the same map ?

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

You mean equal parts?
Yes, one of the game switches is for how much Northern Terrain you want. So you can have all the way to 100% Northern Termperate, or if you want 100% Southern jungle/desert terrains. Or any split in-between.

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

Well, in general I, Cthulhu_Fthagn, am pleased.
I decided to wait a month because I was already close to being able to cast another Call of the Deep ritual. I was hoping for more aquatic warriors to take with me than the two Shamblers I have now.

What I got was another Cultist like Zag'mi. But not quite like Zag'mi. Olgothu came up from the deep he is not human like Zag is. He is a hybrid between human and deep one. So he has the same limited spells as Zag, but he is also amphibioius like me. And he has extra acute senses which allows him to see units that are hiding nearby like bandits or goblins.

http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/CoE3/AAR2/Olgothu.JPG

I have decided that it is not such a loss. I will split the shamblers taking one with me as a bodyguard to continue my exploration to the South. And allowing the new guy Olgathu to take the other one and go around the coast to the North. Eventually we may run into each other on the far side of the continent but we both should have expanded our abilities by then.

I will leave the limited Zag'mi cultist here to move back and forth between our towns making sure no wandering wildlife steals them from us. Eventually I may allow him to use some of our gold to hire more plain humans to aid him. Maybe.

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

I have discovered a Coastal Village. Not much. It will give 2 gold and 1 sacrifice a month. But they had no defenders so I just stepped thru and told them they were now mine. And that they should send their tithes to Zag'mi.

However when I stepped out of the village I found myself uncomfortably near a Great Shark. I might be able to kill it with my shambler. Or maybe even invade its mind and enslave it. But I have no need for an aquatic only creature. I will simply step onto land to go around it. As long as I step onto the land to avoid the water creatures, and step into water to avoid the land ones, I should be able to travel safely.

http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/CoE3/AAR2/shark.JPG

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

Poor Zag'mi. He has been fearful of a local bear. So he has not wanted to leave the town I left him in to return to our original one. He said it was for fear of the town but I think it was more about fear of the wilderness if he had to split his forces leaving some as town guards.

I have relieved his concerns. I get word that the original capital has begun to show signs of our faith. The populace have begun cross-breeding with deep ones. We have hybrids appearing in various forms. Also, an occasional insane peasant which is a side-effect. But oh well, they also make good defenders. So now our lone experienced spearman has help in defending our home capital. Fine Zag'mi. Just stay where you are.

http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/CoE3/AAR2/townsfolk.JPG

(A few nations have autospawns. Cultist, Dwarfs, Bakemono. And some can cast a ritual to gain autospawns. Troll, Senator)

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

What happened exactly in that last post ? Did you get a special event giving you some hybrids ?

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

@@@ No they are autospawns specific to that nation. There are others. Like Bakemono automatically get goblins of various types appearing at their mines. And Barons get a yearly bunch of volunteer troops showing up at the capital

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

In my exploration south I have discovered a Coal Mine. It is claimed by some rogue dwarfs. Dwarfs are scrappy fighters and best to be avoided at any time. But to fight 11 of them over just a coal mine is definitely dumb at this point. I am moving on.

Olgothu reports running into 3 large lobsters. If he were alone Id worry but I think his shambler bodyguard can make it safe just to move past those.

http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/CoE3/AAR2/t16.JPG

(side note: at this point we are 16 turns into the game. The actual game actions have been a couple of mouse clicks to move a piece, then hit END turn. Only a couple of minutes in real time. I want to make it clear how much fun and how much story happens in a short time)

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

Ahhh... the very next month I discovered another Coal Mine. This time its claimed by 4 goblins. Much better. There is also a Cannibal Village but it is guarded by 4 cannibals and they have an elephant.

http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/CoE3/AAR2/t17.JPG

I can do another Call of the Deep. I will let the results decide me. Well I got 4 hybrid spearmen.
So I will attack the coal mine.

http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/CoE3/AAR2/army2.JPG

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

Success. I did lose one of my spearmen but I am still happy with the results. I am not as interested in mines as others are. But some of the recruitables require that I have iron available. This mine will provide 1 gold and 1 iron production each month.

I think I will pass on the cannibal village for now. I do not wish to test myself against the elephant. Now is where my mighty giant Troll King ally would be handy

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

Another Coal Mine. Guarded by 8 Bakemono troops. They do not fly a flag so they must be independents. I could maybe take them but Id rather move on

http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/CoE3/AAR2/bakemono1.JPG

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

Ahh.. my troll ally has run into another nation. It is only a single imp flying around scouting but it wears the colors of a nation. My ally is clueless but I am sure that means that a Demonologist is actively expanding his territory near to him.

http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/CoE3/AAR2/troll1.JPG

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

AHA I was right. He stomped the little imp and immediatly a Demonologist showed up. With only a small force though. If my ally is smart (hey I can hope) he should stomp that wizard NOW while he is weak. If Demonologists get strong they can summon some very nasty denizens of the dark realms.

http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/CoE3/AAR2/demonologist1.JPG

I am a bit jealous of my ally. The most interesting thing I have seen lately was an elephant.

On the other hand, Olgothu in his northerly exploration has run into a hunting party of 10 Triton mermen. He will definitely be stepping onto land to bypass that.

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

OH GREAT HILARITY!
My wonderous ally the mighty Troll King has had his Mother appear and take charge of things. She is not happy with him.
http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/CoE3/AAR2/Mum.JPG
But wait. That can be a good thing. She is smarter than he is. And she is almost as huge and powerful. It means I will not simply be claiming his territory when I get there but still this can be to our advantage. Plus I hear that she has interesting powers to awaken the forests. If they continue to concentrate on the middle then I will be able to safely build up power along the coastlines. Yes... I think I like this turn of events.

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

What does A Promise for Life do? That's a weirdly named spell :D. And wow that is a lot of frog magic.

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

arrggh everyone else gets to have all the fun!
Olgothu has discovered another nation. Well, he only found an outlying farmhouse. But it is flying a nations color (blue).

Now I must make a hard decision. My rituals are:
Call of the Deep (15 sacrifices)
Contact Deep Ones (60)
Contact Old Ones (100)

Olgothu only has:
Call of the Deep (15)
Ceremony of Mastery (50)

I have 90 sacrifices saved up. I was waiting to see what worthwhile target would appear. But now, should I allow Olgothu to do his ceremony? Then he will be as powerful as I am. But it will give him new spells and more rituals.

Well he doesnt need anything to take one unprotected farm. I will wait for more information. Maybe I can find some worthwhile target to make it logical that I withhold his chance to advance.

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

Yes it is named strange. It allows her to Curse one entire enemy rank.

And doubling up on the frogs was bad luck for her. There are much better spells I would have wished her to have.

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

Hmmm a message has appeared that a Pyromancer has offered himself to me for recruitment. But I dont think I need a mage of that type at the moment. Maybe if I run into druids or Witches then I could use him to burn down the forests. But Ive been using my trade ability to expend gold for sacrifices. I have nothing in the coffers for this mage.

Olgothu's taking of that farm has caused nothing. I was hoping it would be taken back. I dont need a single farm that much and it would give us an idea of who flies the blue flag.

I have discovered an enemy. A single farmhouse flying the same colors (magenta) as the Demonologist that plagued my ally. I must be close to my ally. I can now attack the backside of this demoner to distract him from my ally. We can squeeze him between us. If I am careful I should be able to ocean-raid him effectively. He might not have anything that can pursue me on water.

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

Oh the old ones have smiled upon me. When I jumped onto the farmhouse I found that next door was the Demonologist Citadel.
http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/CoE3/AAR2/turn38.JPG
There are no commanders there. Just 24 troops. Mostly archers, and a couple of swordsmen.

Now for some strategy. I will get back in the ocean and summon. Hopefully get enough to take the citadel. It has a high defensive ability though so I need to be sure. If I am lucky, maybe he will march out an army while I am waiting. That will leave it more vulnerable. There wont be any special things like demons.

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

AHA! He did. He got nervous with me nearby so he marched out half of his units to try and find me.

I quickly did a Contact Deep Ones ritual calling for aid in my battle. I was answered by a Shambler Prince leading five experienced War Shamblers. I took a chance and gave him all of my troops to do the raid instantly. I did not want the searching units to return.
http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/CoE3/AAR2/citadel_fight.JPG

He won the day! It was expensive. He only has 3 of his War Shamblers left, and none of my troops.

I could recruit there. A catapult would be nice. Or some archers. But I am low on gold. I might want to wait and see what will be thrown against me. I expect the Demonologist to come charging home. But if he brings a large army then I and the Prince can just step into the ocean. Or even that lake next door to it if it isnt winter. Let him take back his Citadel. When he marches out I will take it back again. We can ping-pong ownership forever. It will tie him up, waste his gold, and give my ally time to whittle away at our enemies lands.

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

Now things are starting to happen.

Olgothu has discovered who he is up against. An army has appeared to take back the one lonely farmhouse.
http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/.../BlueBaron.JPG
Such an army! Led by a mounted High Lord. From its makeup I am thinking that it is one of the powerful Baron nations. Well he might as well move past that one. The cities we want will be well defended by local defense units. :(

In my area, those searchers have returned. Im a bit nervous. I can see 10 archers. But I see no commander. He must either be some invisible demon, or a human with some magical piece of equipment. The last thought makes me want to attack. But that first possibility holds me back. The Prince and I will step into the ocean and watch.

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

OK I chanced 100 sacrifices to the ritual Contact Old Ones. I was hoping for a sizable army. Instead I got a single Basalt Queen. But she is like an army.
http://www.dom3minions.com/~gandalf/...asaltQueen.JPG

And her rituals DO allow her to call an army. And her spells allow her to call water elementals in battle. PLUS she is a giant. She can move much faster than I can. So I think I will allow her to continue the exploration. And I will try to have sacrifices available for her to summon Army of the Deep when she finds something interesting.

The Troll Mum is sniffing around my new Citadel. Im tempted to let her have it. It will give them a reason to expand here. Besides, I can still hold to my plan. I can hide in the citadel of my ally then jump into the water when danger comes.

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

It has been a blast. Thanks! Now I'm actually starting to dread the release of the game... I don't know which character I'm going to play first. I'm so torn!

Re: AAR High Cultist & Troll King alliance
 

The troll king drawing is beautiful. I'm truly impressed. Who is the artist?- KO?