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Old July 3rd, 2008, 09:42 AM
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Default Combat Actions, Sites & Miscellaneous

COMBAT ACTIONS

Q: I have a mage scripted to cast <script>, but he ignores my orders and casts <spell> instead. WTF and where's the money?
The Dominions 3 spellcasting AI does not blindly follow orders in all cases. If the mage scripted to cast a spell targeting enemies but none are in range, the mage will cast some other spell available to him instead. Sometimes the spellcasting AI will evaluate the threat as too minor to warrant casting scripted spells that cost gems and will opt for something else instead. When the mage runs out of script, the AI will decide what spells to cast, depending on a number of factors. Some spells are considered higher priority if available, so the AI tends to focus on those.

Q: My <commander> is supposed to be attacking the enemy and pounding them to a pulp but just stands with his thumb up his backside and keeps casting <spells>. What's going on?
You probably forgot to script him properly. Mages will always cast spells unless scripted otherwise. So what you should do is give the commander a script to cast any possible self-enhancing spells (buffs) such as quickness, mirror image, fire shield etc that are available to him and then set his last order as 'Attack [designated enemy]'. Then he will put the fear of [insert pretender name here] into the heathens.


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SITES

Q: How many sites can there be in one province?
Four is the maximum.

Q: Can I automate site searching?
Yes, if you are using the site searching spells. Set a mage to cast them as a monthly ritual (shift-m) and they will check provinces that have not been searched for that path yet. Provinces with two or more sites already discovered are skipped until provinces with less discovered sites have been searched, because the likelihood of sites being there is small. For more details, see the links to site searching threads in the Strategy Index

Q: I'm getting these messages about my undead and demonic units in [province] being hit by holy fire. What's going on?
Certain sites have an effect that smites undead and demons with holy fire (a magical, dmg 10 armor negating attack) and each undead unit has a chance of being hit for every turn they stay in that province. Consult the magic site section of the Dom3 DB to see what those sites are if you wish to know. The sites will hit your units even if they are not yet discovered.

Q: I'm getting these messages about my undead units in <province> being killed by a holy force native to the province. What's going on?
See previous answer, except demons are unaffected and the sites with the Holy Power attribute are different.

Q: I found a magic site which gives <bonus> to <school of magic>. Does that mean that I get a <bonus> discount to spells of that school if I cast them there?
Yes, but it only applies to ritual spells, not spells cast in combat. Unfortunately, any gems used that fall between the discounted and normal prices do not count toward making a global enchantment more difficult to dispel. This is a known bug and has been reported.

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ODDS & ENDS

Q: Can I disband my old and/or wounded units? (wording by Caduceus)
No, there is no disband command. At this time, if these units are a hindrance to you, you must put them on the front lines of your army or drown them to be rid of them.

Q: How how is time counted? (by Jazzepi)
The basic unit of time in Dominions 3 is the turn. A turn is equivalent to one month of the Gregorian solar calendar. There are 12 turns in a year, and 3 in a season.

While there are no smaller units of time in Dominions 3 besides the turn, there are larger units like years and seasons. Each of these years is divided up into four seasons: Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter. Each season is divided up into three sections: Early, Normal, Late.

All games begin by default in Normal Spring of the first year (the 2nd season of Spring). Once 11 turns have been taken a regular game enters into Early Spring of the second year. From that point on it takes 12 turns to reach year 3, then another 12 to reach year 4, etc.


Q: I like Dom3, but sometimes I wish X or Y was a little different. Is there any way I can alter the game? (by Sombre)
There sure is. Check the docs subfolder in your Dom3 install - there's a pretty handy modding manual in there that explains step by step how to make game altering mods. You could also drop by the modding forum for more info and mods made by other fans. More specific questions about modding will be addressed in a separate modding FAQ if/when one becomes available. In the meanwhile, welcome to the modding forum.

Q: If I buy mercenaries in a province and the enemy conquers that province on the turn the mercs were supposed to come there, do I get my money back? Do I get the mercs somewhere else?
Yes and no. Since mercenary recruitment is the very last action in turn resolution and you no longer control the province, you do not get the mercenaries but you do get a refund.

It used to be that the mercenaries took your coin, went to the province to report to whoever was in charge and take orders from him. In other words, you had just paid gold for the mercenaries to work for your enemy for the next three months, but this was patched away at some point.

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Last edited by Edi; February 17th, 2012 at 05:47 AM.. Reason: Formatting
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