[Squirrelloid]

Originally Posted by Calahan

- The national Heroes are ok, but don't offer enough because they don't give access to non-Agarthan magic paths. High Earth pathed Heroes mean little to Agartha, and high Water paths have limited use in general for any nation. I certainly wouldn't give up a N4/6 bless for it as you have no easy way to get regen on your SC's then (and regen on SC's is mostly always a must)

Would someone please tell me why 2hp/trn regeneration is exciting? I'm really not seeing this.

Also, never turn down free research, especially free researchers you don't have to pay for at all.

And the guy with 4 reinvigoration is just awesome. He defines 'cast all day'.

- While the Fire Plate does negate the encumbrance effects of the severe heat scale, it doesn't help with encumbrance overall as the armour itself has +2 encumbrance (which is what the severe heat gives you). Plus it actually has an overall negative effect on encumbrance as it adds a further +2 to spell casting encumbrance (which the severe heat doesn't do). Although the positive value of putting some armour on a SC is another matter although (I just thought I'd point out it has a negative effect on fatigue).

If you are just after the effects of the E9 Bless and LoS, then equipping just Bracers covers both of these. As the Bracers act as 'armour' for the purpose of these spells, and so allows the protection buffs (Bless, LoS) to take effect.

Here's the thing, E9's +4 protection applies to *every* piece of armor that is worn. And bracers also stack, even when multiples are worn. So adding armor + 2x bracers gives you 3x the E9 protection bonus. Good deal. So bracers are not a replacement for armor. Which is why you were going to put on armor anyway.

- You will struggle to survive a proper MP game with a Dominion scale of only 4. Even access to H3 preachers won't stop your life being a misery, and probably very short. You would have to play on a very big map (+25 provs per player) to get away with a Dominion scale of 4.

I haven't found dominion 4 to be that problematic, but my experience is somewhat limited. However, one of the key points here is you have an awake pretender, which means you'll actually average dominion spread slightly to a Dom 10 sleeping or imprisoned pretender. (1 guaranteed for Dom 10 vs. 3(?) at 40% = 1.2 expected dominion spread events/trn). Later in the game you might have more issues, but the early game shouldn't be a problem unless you're sandwiched in between a bunch of Dom9-10 SCs. (And then you may well have other problems).

- I have some concerns for your early research. With your Pretender forging each turn (as he should do), and your other mages going out as SC's and/or forging Bracers/Fire Plates/Stars of Heroes, you are really going to fall behind badly in the research game. And new reasearch centres will cost you at least 1700gp (fort+temple+lab).

So, you do build up a core of researchers even with some forging and some going out to be SCs. And of course any heroes help immensely here. I find myself in the 50RP/trn ballpark at the end of year 1, which is respectable. Also, tend to have Constr2/Conj3/thaum 2 by the end of year 1. I mean, even the forge lord does research until Constr 2 comes online.

- You will really struggle for money with your build. The effects of your Order 3 scales will be minimum outside of your capital as your low Dominion will mean it won't spread very far. Unless your H3 SC's stop to preach. And if you run up against some Dom9/10 neighbours, you will be lucky to see your Dominion outside your capital.

Your Luck 3 scale might help with the income, but I have two games on the go right now where I took Luck 3. In one of them I didn't have a single money event inside the first 18 turns, and in the other it was the first 23 turns before a money event occured. So you can't, or more accurately, you shouldn't rely on the Luck scale for money (at least not in my recent experience). Although the Luck scale is far more reliable for money under Turmoil 3 than Order 3. But then obviously you get less money again due to the effects of that scale change.

Actually, the other scales you have seem to effect the kinds of events you have, so O3 causes your events to favor tax revenue. Which is exactly what you want. I've had good luck with the O3Lk3 combination.

In the plurality of three test games I couldn't afford an oracle 1/11 turns in the first year (the third game i could afford an oracle every turn. That game also saw a fortress get started on turn 8 vs. turn 11-12 for the others).