Tips for newbs - just add

[mathusalem]

give to your mages exactly the number of gems they need for casting what you have scripted

give all the other gems to a scout, always in stealth moving with your army.

[Ironhawk]

Unequipped assassins only work once against a human player - so make it count. After the first attack, they will put bodyguards on all thier useful commanders.

[K]

If you have 200 gems of one type in the bank, and no plans for them, you are doing something wrong.

[K]

You can't seduce Lifeless things. However, undead who are not Lifeless like Banelords or Ghouls can be seduced (eewwwww!).

[VedalkenBear]

Don't view your mages simply as research batteries. Many nations profit from using (some) early mages as artillery.

Using Hold and Attack with infantry is almost always better than simply Attacking when you have archer support. (About the only exception is when your normal infantry have missile weapons, such as EA Ulm or any 'legionnaire'.)

[Rytek]

When you have an elite army type which is vulnerable to missle fire (something like EA Tien Chi warriors of the 5 elements) Place a decoy unit of 5 or so throw away or shield untis at the front left of the battle and have them on "Guard Commander" orders. Place a commander at the rear left of the battlefield with "holdx5" orders. Place your elite units in the middle. The computers archers will target the forward placed units on guard order and will keep moving forward to shoot the units who are moving back to guard the commander on "hold X5" This allows your elite units to slaughter the incoming infantry without taking missle fire and then proceed to the archers who will be closer to your elites. *Note* watch for enemy light infantry with Javelins as they will throw them at your elite missle vulnerable troops"

You can use this tactic to create 2nd and 3rd expansion armies very quickly with elite Blessable troops that would normally get decimated by archer fire.

[AlgaeNymph]

If someone offers a non-aggression pact (NAP), never give an unconditional "no" when a conditional "yes" will almost always work much more in your favor -- and that's vastly understating things.