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MAGES:
Moving on to the mages, you will note the impressive diversity of magic paths that is availabe to LA Pythium. In point of fact, this nation has access to
every single magic path in the game! Not only that but it can get at least 2+ picks in all but three (Air, Earth, Blood). Its truly an impressive display of magical versatility, which can be leveraged both on the battlefield and via it's unparalleled site search coverage.
Again some notes about the less valuable Serpent Cult mages: The Serpent Acolyte is not a bad researcher in its own right but it pales in comparison to the Renatus. Plus he looks like a dork and you definitely dont want that! Another LA Pythium flavor unit, the Leo is not worth its high price tag. The Mystes is a good research mage which doesnt require a temple, but again it has to take a back seat to the Renatus. The Renata is a decent water mage but you can get access to Water magic much more reliably via your Serpent Priests so there is no reason to produce them.
Heliodromus: While slightly expensive for its power, this mage can fairly reliably get you 2F. You don't want to deploy them everywhere, because thier Heretic abilities will destroy your dominion. But you should keep a stable of the stronger ones with your main armies so that they can deploy some fire evocation spells (Fireball, Falling Fires, Incinerate) through the mid and late game.
Epotes: Your only reliable access to an Earth magic pick. Build only enough to get the Earth magic and then move on to other mages. Once your earth site searching is complete you can have your Epotes form up with your armies in order to heal your Comitantense or Hydras between wars. Sadly the heal ability of the Epotes does not effect Tartarians.
Renatus: Ah, the Renatus, workhorse of the LA Pyth mage force! Unlike the Heliodromus, the Renatus is not a Heretic and you are free to produce it anywhere in your empire without fear of ruining your dominion. It's a very good researcher and you should mass produce these mages as much as you can for that purpose. On top of that, it has a pair of path combinations (DD and DS) which will make 50% of them quite valuable on the battlefield. In particular 2D gives you quick access to Raise Dead which is a key point in LA Pythium's early strategy. Later, 2D can be leveraged into a variety of vicious spells (Disintegrate, for one!) while DS can give you Nether Darts and, when boosted, Vengeance of the Dead. Also not to be overlooked is thier impressive and stylish jackal masks - fancy!
Reveler: These guys like to get it on!
Hehehe - seriously tho, this mage is your only access to Blood magic. They dont get blood reliably enough to build up a real blood economy, so thier only real use is to cast Orgy, LA Pyth's national spell to summon satyr assassins. Only build as many of these as you need to get a single Reveler with 1B. Hunt for a turn, cast Orgy until you are out of slaves, and repeat for an endless supply of assassins you dont need a fort to produce!
Theurg: The Theurg is your only access to 2S and 1A. Unfortunately, it is a cap-only unit and you must trade off thier production against your highest level mage, the Serpent Priest. Unless you are facing off against a nation which is weak against Astral magic (Paralyze and whatnot) only produce a couple of these mages for site searching early on. Later in the game when you have a large population of Serpent Priests you can devote more capital time to making some Theurgs.
Serpent Priest: Finally we come to the best mage the Serpent Cult has to offer, the aptly named Serpent Priest. These well priced mages will give your nation very strong access to Nature magic and occassionally produce a good Water mage. One of thier most important features is thier 100% poison resistance. This ability makes them the only unit LA Pyth can recruit which can safely fight alongside Hydras. Use them to command, bless, and support your Hydra forces. Beyond that, thier Nature magic makes them very useful for ritual spells in the early game and powerful battlefield enchantments as the game goes on.