[jBrereton]

Aye well I typically get flail-equipped infantry as a 'general purpose' unit, although if I'm building up for something, I'll typically get a few of the morningstar and shield guys too as a frontline to take the inevitable archery/javelin etc. barrage. Tend to save the Black Steel for commanders and bodyguards of crucial mages, mind, just because of the resource cost, which even Prod 3 + some growth can't really cover.

On Iron Darts/Blizz - yeah, fine, you're losing the chance of an Air/Astral/extra Fire plus additional Earth smith, but by the time you're going to have an S Master Smith, anyone with any kind of serious Astral casting is liable to be able to completely destroy a 1S mage.

I typically alternate Priest Smiths and Master Smiths from the cap early on, if nothing else for the utility of having a lab and temple builder, extra blesser, iron-fears-not-A-Thing caster, and so on. With Ulm's pretty vast and stable Earth income, it's pretty small beer to empower your prophet with E if they get a spare turn, and a Lord Guardian able to Divine Bless, Smite early on and then transition into Darts/Blizz a few months down the line is a handy thing.