Alexander's Ever-Expanding Tome of Knowledge, pt 2

[HoneyBadger]

Playing on very large 1500 province maps with many opponents is also a completely different game from playing on a 25 province map.

I'd play larger if I could.
That's the kind of game I like, and very-long-term is the kind of strategy I follow.

I also tend to play ocean races over land races (except for Mictlan) so a lot of units and strategies which I otherwise would use, aren't as available to me. I do consider globals (except gem-producers) to be wasteful, but I don't believe juggernauts or abominations are amphibious (maybe abominations, but I don't know).

And playing R'lyeh, how exactly are you going to manage to pull off a blitz game? All you've GOT are SCs (another reason to play huge maps). So I'm stuck with 1 very good SC capital only commander per round, kinda crappy to very crappy everything else, and summons. 12 abominations at a time might be great, but by the time I've crossed the board and it's down to me and one other nation, the other guy is going to be pretty damn tough too, and I'm going to lose abominations and juggernauts-lots of them at 25 pearls a pop.

If I can take out a hundred of the other guy's troops per SC of mine, and still keep the SC, it could very well decide the game, even if I'm putting all of my astral pearls into SCs. After all, I'm going to have a lot more of them than the other guy, because that's one thing R'lyeh's good for.

If somebody handed me 300 astral pearls at the beginning of the game, sure I'd use them differently than I would if I were producing that many every turn and had most magical research done.

People need to get around the idea that every MP game is a blitz game.

[Teraswaerto]

I've never played a blitz game. Have you played an MP game, HoneyBadger? I am curious.

I like games that last long. Getting to high levels of research is fun, but the only time I can see one would have enough gems to Wish for and empower pretenders would be if one had Arcane Nexus up and even then there would be, IMO, a better use for the gems.

[HoneyBadger]

I have, though not a lot. So yes, I'm just speculating like everyone else, since we're not all currently involved in the same specific MP game.

Arcane Nexus is a given, but if you make a determined effort at clam-spamming right from the beginning-and Aboleths can do this very quickly into the game-you can be generating tons of them, at an exponential rate. That's just applied mathematics.

And certainly, you can find lots of good uses for 300 astral gems. That's not at all the point. Circumstances differ and different strategies should be developed which can get the most out of whatever circumstance you happen to find yourself in.

I don't suppose that this particular thread is intended to find "the one true only best way" to do anything, regardless of the game you find yourself in, and your own feelings on a specific subject at a specific time. It's for coming up with strategies and expanding our knowledge about the game-tools in the toolbox.

[upstreamedge]

Well, in one sense they do not. ME Pangea has no unit which can give you the detailed info of a spy, but they can instill uprisings, Here is how.

1) get a black harpy

2) give it ten revelers

3) send it to an enemy province

as each reveler has a check to produce turmoil separately you will average about 5 points of turmoil per turn. One drawback is the fact that you can not see how much turmoil you have caused, but the target will not be alerted that someone is causing trouble in their territories.

[void]

I'm posting here coz' I love the Ever-Expanding Tome, not for a paper-scissors-rock game. That said, it would be sad to see comical tactics--while relaxing--write in the tome.

Here's another example of such a comical idea, although IMHO it's far more executable than the great Karkens March On tactic, that had me stunned a few minutes ago on another Dominions Forum.

The idea is simple:

- Build a high astral unit. 10S Pretender can be a good start.
- Raise the unit's astral magic to 15+.
- Give him some penetrate bonus items. +7 or +8 would be very ideal(that's possible on a blind 4-misc slot unit).
- Get some astral gems for him.
- Have it scripted "Master Enslave","Master Enslave","Vortex of Returning"(or simply Returning).

Guess what?

Yup, that's the "THE GRAND MASTER". as hilarious as Kraken Swarm, but way more effective shall I judge.

[Meglobob]

Meglobob's quick & easy guide to slaughtering the opposition with MA Man:-

MA Man is a strong nation, it has alot going for it and many possibilites. Here is one based on stealth...

Bards, only 75gp, +30 stealth, can instill unrest, fantastic, recruit loads, get 4+ to every enemy castle, take unrest over 100. Your enemy can't recruit anymore. You have won.

Mothers 130gp, 2N 1A, stealthy, cool, research upto storm of thorns, put into squads of 4, script 5xstorm of thorns, should defeat most PD upto 30+.

Monks, 30gp, stealthy, can cast bless, can lead 10 stealthy blessed wardens into enemy lands. Can any PD defeat 10 wardens with a W9F9N4 bless? Or if you want decent scales try...E9N4.

Put all those together, plus plenty of longbows (wind guided of course, flaming arrows if your lucky) mix with plenty of lightning/thunder strikes...cool.

[HoneyBadger]

Void, my point is that we're here to write suggestions about strategies in the game, not to be arm-chair generals and nitpick about the merits of a particular strategy as applies to our own personal method of playing the game.

I'm not at all trying to be comical except as a means to an end, nor am I suggesting or intending to suggest something that would necessarily lose someone a game.

If something I suggest flat-out cannot be done in the game, then please inform me, otherwise I fail to see your point as we don't play the game the exact same way, and no two games, or players, are alike.

[Meglobob]

Gold, you never have enough, especially in dominions, so here is a nice way to get more of it.

Research watcher spell, cast 2 of those in your capital and any other high population province with a lab. Get 1 of your cheapo mages to patrol with them. Now slam taxes upto 200% and leave them there. You now have double your income permanently, with 0 unrest and a mounting stockpile of corpses. Watchers have +50 patrol bonus and are tough defenders who discharge lightning and never retreat, so a decent defense to support your PD.

Also to get the most out of this, turn those corpses into free troops, research carrion reanimation, and when you reach 100 corpses get 100 souless undead for 10D gems, cool...