Abysia CB 5.0 AAR

[RedRover]

TURN 19

Oceania outbids me on the Fishermen, so my troop situation is going critical fast. On the other hand, Orion is up, and I intend to bid high—I could use his punch for expansion in the north. If I can cobble together an army of Mercs and Independents in the north, use the Abysians of Second Army to bolster the east, and build a fully Abysian Third Army in the capital, then I should be able to continue expanding north and west. I can’t move east before building a fortified base of operations, and I still have the Longdeads in the magic site on the island to deal with.


C’tis is expanding north along the east map edge, I think. My assassin spotted a Temple of theirs south of the first province I found, so I’m betting their capital is south, rather than north. The assassin moves south, leaving behind a force of 40 C’tis Militia and Tomb Worms. Tomb Worms, drat. I was hoping that C’tis would be the default nation, but apparently not this time.

I am completing Blood 3 next turn; I put the rest of my research into Construction. If C’tis turns my way, a decent item or two could be the difference between standing and folding. The Manticore has already turned from remote search to research, so I’ll build a Druid to bolster my future Citadel site and handle remote Nature scrying in his time off.

[RedRover]

TURN 20
C’tis does seem to be south. No capital yet, but two more provinces with Temples. He does move in my direction with some of his force—I count 9 Militia on the east side of the bridge after he takes out the independents, and no Tomb Worms. I must fortify here as quickly as possible. I can’t put off building another turn.

Orion joined, so the attack (northwest) is on. After I take these two provinces, it looks like I’ll have to backtrack and start working the far north. C’tis has sealed off the east, the only other crossing is about two provinces northeast of my northern force. I take a minute to reorganize armies.

The new “First Army” is at the east bridge with the Prophet. It’s still something of a paper army until the Abysians from the old Second Army join it. By that time, the new Citadel will be up and pumping out cheap halfbreed spearmen. The new “Second Army” is the northern force. It consists of Hector, Orion, and two understrength spear units. It is attacking with no magic support (other than Orion) but a Lizard Shaman is on the way. I’ll probably delay him long enough to build a Temple somewhere—I need some cheap, weak Priests to bolster the army, aid province defense, and chat up the locals. “Third Army” is building in the capital, currently a dozen halfbreed spearmen and three Abysian Infantry (also a half dozen archers I raised during the blood hunts, but they’re more of a castle guard). I need to double this force and add a Salamander and a half dozen more Abysian Infantry before sending them anywhere.

Scores: For provinces, I’m still third, but static, while everyone else is growing. Not good. For income, I’ve dropped to second, below Ulm; Man is behind me, and accelerating. Not good. For gems, I’m still fifth, but Man has caught up to me. In research, I am sixth, but catching up to three, four, and five. No one is catching Man any time soon, and Arco is so far ahead they’ve more than doubled everyone except Man. In dominion, I am third and accelerating. I will pass C’tis soon; Caelum is ahead of us, but static; Man and Oceania are not only at the bottom of the heap, but fading. For army size, C’tis just hyperaccelerated past Man to grab first place. I’m in last place, but at least my rate of growth is higher than Ulm (third) or Oceania (seventh). Overall, it’s not looking so good.

TURN 21
Pressure’s on. C’tis parked 60 Ghouls and Tomb Worms on my doorstep, and I have only a handful of troops to meet them. The province defense (PD) is up to 25, backed by the Prophet, a Druid, and a Salamander priest. The Abysian Infantry is still two turns out, but the Manticore can get there now. I build junk archers. I think I will not see Construction 4 before the hordes of C’tis attack. Now I need money and troops, and the only way to get those is to get land. I find the C’tis capital, it is on the map edge several provinces southeast of the bridge.

While the new Second Army moves through Godsgrave Pass (how appropriate!) against a Militia/Light Infantry force, the half-built Third Army moves northwest from the capital. We may see a combined attack on the Amazons soon. Elsewhere, I hire Urgek and his Beast Brothers, who will combine with one spear unit and the Lizard Shaman to expand into the far north/northeast. My Demonbred will pop in the first Devil next turn, but the blood hunting came up dry this turn. I have enough slaves in reserve to get three or four Devils. I am relying far too much on mercenaries, but I haven’t been able to ramp up production of national troops yet.

[RedRover]

TURN 22
Mixed news. The C’tis horde moved away from the border, leaving a guard of 10, mostly Tomb Worms and a priest (Prophet?). I have a couple turns, maybe. Meanwhile, my assassin discovers that the C’tis capital is on a choke point--no movement south without going through its province. Do I risk it, or hang around keeping tabs on troop movements in my direction? I think I’ll try infiltrating with a scout before risking an assassin.

The strategic implications are troubling. Northeast/east expansion will eventually hit C’tis coming the other way, so it’s ultimately a dead end. Northwest will be good for a while, but I’m sure someone’s across the bay from me—I just can’t see him yet. I can’t go south on my west border without trickling out down along the coast, and that means dealing with Knights.

Almost forgot to renew Dagan and Orion this turn. That would have really messed things up. Fixing this prevents my getting another Demonbred this turn. I bank the difference and send a researching Apprentice out to find Blood Slaves. This cuts my research even more. I put the Manticore back on line, but I’m only getting 48 research points this turn. At current rate, I’m two turns off Construction 3, and Construction 4 is where all the goodies are.

TURN 23-24
Moving right along. First Army is building at the east bridge, and the Citadel there will finish soon. Trouble on the horizon. Assassin spots a 60-lizard force of C’tis, mostly Slingers and Militia, may be headed my way. In the northwest, Second/Third Army cleans out the Amazons. In north, Urgek and company reach the river border and will cross this turn. Urgek’s mercs were reduced to meat shield status in the last combat, but the force across the river looks soft—30 Militia/Archers. Still, after the next battle there won’t be much left to rehire.

Boy, was that right! The attack failed. Urgek was killed, the spear unit and lizards were virtually annihilated, but at least the leaders and a few troops escaped. With the remnants reorganizing for another attack, the mercenary ettin Pak-Ur joins.

To the west, the Second Army cuts its way northwestward, stopping next to a magic site province (Witch's Roost) guarded by 60 Barbarians. Fortunately, the mercenary unit Grom’s Breakers is available, so I put up a bid. If it comes through, I’ll try to get the site.

At the east bridge, the fort is finally done. I’m going to risk First Army by throwing everything except one priest at the island magic site. C’tis looks far enough away that I can hit it and get back. Also, the 70 Longdead are reading 30 now, so there surely won’t be more than 70, and I can handle those, I think. I’ll just have to suck up the research loss, but I need to find some gem sites.

The extra priest heads north to help the northern river crossing. This map is very constricted; ground units have little mobility and it takes forever to get anywhere. With one renegade air wizard and no sites, it’s not like I’m ever going to be building the Flying Ship (Construction 8), and the Gate spell is a very long way away.

Next turn: Oops!

[RedRover]

TURN 25
Two more disasters! A sudden earthquake released Troglodytes, which wiped out the northern force. Only the Lizard Shaman escaped, even the mighty Pak-Ur perished. Man just hired Hector away from me, which delays the Second Army attack on the magic site. On the other hand, the Longdead were only about 40 strong, and were guarding a Shambler Reef, which opens up the surrounding waters (sort of: 40 Triton Guards are there) and gives me a way south. With enough time and money, I might even be able to exploit this. As a money source, though, the island’s a bust—my income this turn (566) was greater than the island’s population! First Army returns to the east bridge.

The Celestial mercenaries turn up. I bid on them—maybe they can destroy the Troglodytes and open the north to me. The Trogs seal me out of the whole northeast corner of the map. I can’t afford the dozen or so provinces this will hand over to C’tis. I have to get rid of them.

While waiting for Grom to show up, Second Army invades a wooded province. It has a 1-gem Earth site! If I can just get the right caster (Amazons take note), I may be able to find some more Earth sites. My gem income is now up to seven (5F1S1E)!

TURN 26
Good luck and bad. The Celestials are on board, but my Lab near magic site one has burned. No more Lizard Shamans until I get it fixed. The Celestials move on the Trogs, backed by the Lizard Shaman. Past the east bridge, a huge force of 90 heavy C’tis infantry are headed my way. Lots of building this turn, lots of remote scrying, especially the island magic site. Second Army moves on the northernmost magic site. My blood hunting has been sporadic, I can summon only one Devil this turn. I need more Apprentices and more provinces with higher population.

TURN 27
Here it comes. East bridge—90 Heavy Infantry and Longdeads, with 90 more right behind them. And me about 3 turns off Construction 4. My Prophet, who had left to found a new Temple, force-marches back—there is no money for temples this turn. One of my two Demonbreds leaves the capital with all the Devils he can scrape up; he’ll arrive at the east bridge in two turns. In the north, something went wrong: the Celestials didn’t march. I make sure they do this time, and my Salamander priest, who has finally arrived, will go with them. Second Army in the northwest rests after cleaning up the third magic site. This turn will see much remote scanning of that site. I only have two more scans for Nature sites after this—I need a hit or I’ll be forced to wait for another random Nature gem find.

Once again, short term need has overtaken strategic planning. I switch most of my research this turn to Conjuration. Will’o Wisps and Tangle Vines next turn look more important than Fire Rods in three turns. We’ll see how it works out. I miss a shot at rehiring Hector, who still has 10 knights, but 220+ gold is more than I can spare, and Man may kill the unit before it shows up, anyway. Too risky. I put the gold into another Salamander priest at the east bridge.

[RedRover]

TURN 28
C’tis doesn’t attack me, it must all be going north, east of the river. He’s left about 40 Slingers and Lizard Warriors watching me, and the rest are gone. My assassin moves north after them—I need more scouts out here (one is on the way, but it will take awhile).

In the north, the Celestials overrun the Trogs. I will push them forward while building a base up here. I need some of these wooded provinces for my last few shots at Nature magic.

In the northwest, magic site three proves to be Astral. Still only 1 gem, though. Phooey. From the map writeup, I thought the special sites would have something better than one gem each. Or maybe they do and I just don’t have the right paths to find out. But my gem income is now at eight. If this force can hold together for four more fights, I’ll cost to the west continent have a good place for a blocking fort on the west side of the great bay. Right now there are 60 Barbarians across a river saying no. I look at the bridge in front of me and say yes. If I sit here, I starve.

I will have Construction 4 next turn. I put the rest back into Conjuration, but after I hit Level 2 I’m going to start on Enchantments. We haven’t seen a global yet, but my main protection is Dispel, and that’s Level Five—it’s a long way off and I haven’t started on it yet. We’ll look at the graphs on turn 30.

TURN 29
Random Nature gems! Now I can keep the scrying going, but can’t quite get a Thistle Mace. I expected a Fire Wand at Construction 4, but it’s not on the list. I will empower a Salamander and check again (besides, the Fires from Afar spell, Evocation 3, will be useful if C’tis does come my way).

In the north, I’m across the river. I can either turn west and take on a second province with Amazons and Nightmares, or turn east against normal Militia. I go east—once I establish a border with C’tis up here, I can clean up what’s behind me (I hope). If I lose the Celestials, I’m absolutely done up here until I can build a base and make Abysian troops in big lots. It’s tricky—I want the base as far forward as possible, with as many high resource provinces as possible, yet I have to take the ground, build on it, and establish a vible military force before C’tis comes after me. I suspect I’ll probably wait too long to start it, but we’ll see…

In the northwest, I am in supply trouble. I thought I could attack out of it, but disease has struck and I have no counter. This could be really bad—I hope the scum troops die first.

Elsewhere, I have detached an Apprentice to head northwest to build a lab and activate the Amazon leaders in the province I conquered. Nightmares mean Onyx Amazons, which gives me Death and Earth magic seekers. The blood hunts are ramping up again, and I think a Devil a turn is now sustainable indefinitely. Time to go for two. Hector has been on the market for a few turns. I was saving for a fort, but I can use him up north with the Celestials. I couldn’t hire him last turn; that would have lined up four mercs in the same month—couldn’t afford that. Question is, is the hire going to be worth it at this point? I bite…

[shovah]

if your thinking of a wand that increases fire lvl i dont know of any that exist, theres the helmet (with -3 reinvig) or the misc which requires fire and death

[RedRover]

shovah: The only wand I've mentioned specifically so far is the Wand of Wild Fire, which throws Fireballs, as per the spell. It's great for plugging holes in the line when faced with masses of cheap troops. I just got a little confused about when it becomes available (my fault, when I solo I generally don't have the item reference open).


TURN 30
In the north, I find my first Nature site—1 gem, but at least I have an income—C’tis forces are now visible to the southeast. I’ve taken the last choke point I’m going to get. By next turn, I’ll have enough money to start building. In the meantime, there’s one more province to clear—50 Heavy Foot/Archers. I’m going for it.

Hector is back. Crud—the men are about gone, over half are diseased and have 4 hit points or so. They have maybe one battle left, if it’s soon. I’m sending them northwest to hit the Amazons at the map edge—maybe they will kill a few before they die. No one’s coming back, though. Never buy a used merc!

All quiet on the northwestern front, which I’m pushing. All quiet at the east bridge. I will reach Conjuration 2 and Enchantment 2 next turn.

Scores: For provinces, Ulm is leading, followed by me (Abysia), C’tis, and Man. I hold 25 provinces, so I guess Ulm has about 30, C’tis about 20, and Man 17-18. For income, Ulm is first, I’m second, barely edging out Man, who apparently lost a province recently. Caelum is fourth. For gems, the top three are Ulm, C’tis, and Oceania in that order. There is a distinct second tier, with me, Caelum, and Man. For research, I’m running sixth (still). Arcoscephele has a huge lead; Man and Caelum are practically tied for second, with Caelum accelerating. Pythium, Oceania, and I form the next tier, all growing about the same pace. For dominion, Caelum is the clear leader, with Ulm, C’tis, me, and Pythium forming a second tier. C’tis is accelerating sharply. I’m growing slowly and unevenly here—I need to build more Temples.



TURN 31
Caelum bought Grom away from me, just as I won a battle and Grom found an enchanted pike. Figures. My guess is, Grom is about two-thirds used up, but there’s no way to check it now. This halts the attacks in the northwest—I’m just out of steady troops.

In the north, Hector dies and takes out only three Amazons. I start my northern base near the map corner, but west of the river (province #208) to block the river crossing. All my surviving mercenary contracts expire next month, which means I have only enough money left to start the fort. I can’t afford troops or other structures. Nothing else breaks, but I will probably commit the Devils to coastal projects when I have a few more of them.


TURN 32
In the northeast, the Celestials divert across the barrier river eastward to clear the last independents adjacent to the fort site, which is getting a Temple this turn. The Lizard Shaman also goes, with some archers built locally and some recently arrived Lizard Warriors.

In the capital, enough Blood Slaves are available for two more Devils (hunted in the capital, ouch!). I start collecting ground troops for a west coast campaign. The Green Horde is available and I scrape up enough to bid (it takes some alchemy). Remote scrying locates another 1-gem Nature site. Great! Random Earth gems! Double great!!


TURN 33
In the northeast, Celestials push on to the corner province, which has 50 Lizard Men, the other choices are an open province (40 Heavy Infantry and Cavalry), sit, or retreat. There are still two unknown provinces between C’tis and me, so we might split the difference on this one. I don't care, just so I have enough breathing space to finish the fort. The Temple is built, the Lab is going up this turn.

Northwest force sits, except for some scouting, but a big attack toward the west coast begins now (Fourth Army). The Green Horde, a Salamander (now that the Amazon Lab is done) and a Demonbred with 14 Devils should clean out the 40 Heavy Cavalry and Militia in the coastal town. After that, it’s southward along the coast—I might even get as far as the big forest before hitting someone else. We’ll see.

By the east bridge, a few new scouts are arriving and sneaking across the river. I can see two C’tis units of 40, but not much else. I’ll try to get a scout past the C’tis capital and see what’s south. My fort here has become home to my scrying efforts. Meanwhile, I should hit Enchantment 3 this turn.