Re: Dominions 2 Power Rankings
 

Caelum
Abysia
Vanheim
Jotunheim
Arcoscephale
Ermor
Man
Pythium
R'lyeh
Marignon
Mictlan
Ulm
Pangaia
C'tis
Atlantis
Machaka
T'ien Chi

FAR below everything else... http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/frown.gif
Ermor BE

Re: Dominions 2 Power Rankings
 

Really? I think broken empire has lots of nice possibilities. Their Princepes are every bit as good as Pythium's, and you need no research to etherealize them. Plus, your dominion is not malign, so you can take growth and a blood fountain to play the blood game. BE has easy access to ghouls for castle defense and soulless for siegeing and patrolling. It is true that thaumaturgs are expensive, but with moderate enchantment research and significant evocation, they are excelent battle mages.

Re: Dominions 2 Power Rankings
 

Well two things make them seem a little weak:

1. Troops their troops really are "average" and by that I mean below average. They just don't have any "trick" units. They do not have elephants. They do not have excellent defence. They do not have sacred troops. They do not have serious HP. They do not have great strength. They do not have very high prot. Almost all nations have some trick unit. T'ien Ch'i doesn't.

2. Mages. Their widely recruitable mage ( the master of the way ) is somewhat underpowered although he does have a random which is a nice bonus and he makes a very efficient researcher. He is not however a great combat mage. Their combat mage is only recruitable in the capital and he has one astral which can be a serious liability.

BTW I'm seeing a lot of common themes in the rankings. Caelum, Vanhiem, Pythum, Acro, Abysia, Ermor these all look like excellent nations to me! Is it "group think" or do these nations really have a leg up? Only time will tell I suppose.

Re: Dominions 2 Power Rankings
 

Mind Duel. Celestial Masters go poof, thus rendering T'ien C'hi's most formidable mages nearly useless for battle against any nation with access to cheap astral mages either national or independent (e.g. shamans)... Leaving you with the puny Master of the Way as your reliable battle mage. As for units, they are decent but definitely not first class. (Though the Red Guard is an excellent blessable cavalry unit due to low cost)

Mind you, T'ien C'hi S&A is a different proposition, as the Master of the 5 Elements can to some degree compensate when facing astral nations and as the Master of the Dead gives access to low level death magic, which has many useful spells. Additionally, the extra random pick on the Celestial Master can make him a much better ritual caster. The tradeoff is that the units are even worse and the theme specific summon is very mage-intensive. While probably the most versatile magical theme of any nation, it can be difficult to really exploit your magical strength.

Re: Dominions 2 Power Rankings
 

My view

Tier 1 Outstanding

Caelum
Abysia

Tier 2 Solid or powerful but flawed

Ulm
C'tis
Machaka
Mictlan
Jotunheim
R'lyeh

Tier 3 Flawed
Ermor
Pangaea
Tien Chi

Others I have not experienced enough

Arco
Pythium
Vanheim
Atlantis
Marignon
Man


Pickles

Re: Dominions 2 Power Rankings
 

Here are the average tier. I treated tier 4 as tier 3 (thanks for changing the report method guys) and assumed the first 5 and Last 5 in lists were tier 1 and 3 respectively.

Tier 1
Abysia
Arcosnuffle
Caelum
Pythium
Vanheim

Tier 2
Atlantis
Ctis
Ermor
Jotunheim
Marignon
Mictlan
R’lyeh

Tier 3
Machaka
Man
Pangaea
Tien Chi
Ulm

Of course this takes no account of settings. I assume that it takes the best theme of any nation.

Pickles

Re: Dominions 2 Power Rankings
 

My take
I am assuming the nations are handled by expert players. Since some nations are better in the hands of a master :;)
I'm also assuming a large MAP with more the two thirds land mass.
My list is based on MP experience only.
And I admit I'm a bit biased towards Pythium. (Love makes us blind ::)

Pythium
Caelum
Abysia
Vanheim
Machaka
Ry'leh
Arco
Marignon
C'Tis
Ermor
Jotun
Pangaea
Atlantis
T'ien Ch'i
Man
Ulm
Mictlan

Re: Dominions 2 Power Rankings
 

Tier 1: Pythium, Arco
Tier 2: C'tis, Caelum, Abysia
Tier 3: everything else
Tier 4: Ulm, Tien Chi

Re: Dominions 2 Power Rankings
 

Tier 1: Abysia, Mictlan (too much micromanagement though), Caelum, Ermor, Vanheim, Jotun
Tier 2: Arco, Pythium, Rlyeh, Man, Pangaea
Tier 3: Everything else
Tier 4: Tien Chi, Ulm

Re: Dominions 2 Power Rankings
 

1. Mictlan ( micro is hell though )
2. Ermor
3. Jotunheim Niefelheim
...
16. Ulm
17. Tien Chi ( one of my real favourite nations though http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/frown.gif )