Re: Making something out of nothing (Can you turn this into a Thug?)
 

I use Dryads of the earlier ages (who have H2) as semi-thugs, leading sacred sneakers.

Any sort of cheap armour and vine-shield, frost or fire brand, horror helmet, AMA (if you have access to astral) and a ring of regen (and my favourite, flying boots, but that really requires special things to get the air access). Script Bless, Holy Avenger, attack rear (while the sacred centaurs have attack closest). Works wonders against any non-undead targets or non-barbarians, simply because nobody has the guts to attack her, and if they do half the time they don't get past the AMA, and if they do the armour should help enough to let the ring of regen heal the wounds. By far not the cheapest thug, but so incredibly useful together with berserking sacred centaurs.



If anybody wants to see a markata scout thug in action, I suppose you have seen my video on Aracana the markata scout thug? :) Not cheap, not most likely very useful against a human player, but oh yeah does it feel good when a markata scout chops up Niefel giants left and right :D
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vu6X3ko-5Ho
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQwerXKXFrQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DbTSeJu7QaA

Re: Making something out of nothing (Can you turn this into a Thug?)
 

Regarding dryads, those are quotes from some LA pan discussion. The trick being to combine the spellsongs with bodyguards of manikins(tune of dancing death) or dryad hoplites(tune of fear). Perhaps it could work with Tune of growth and minotaur bodyguards for earlier ages?

Re: Making something out of nothing (Can you turn this into a Thug?)
 

Turning a bard into a thug:
Give him an amulet of lycanthropy ... and wait.

Once he's a werewolf, a snakebladder stick, and a vineshield. Between the wearwolf regen and the amulet of lycan, his regen will exceed your poison damage.

If you're lucky.

Re: Making something out of nothing (Can you turn this into a Thug?)
 

Yeah. Not much moxie now that I look at him. Perhaps best left spamming skellies.
-ssj

Re: Making something out of nothing (Can you turn this into a Thug?)
 

He has decent natural precision. You could leverage that at least. Or how about a Standard of the Damn and Eye of Aiming? Mix in with some chaff to leverage the fear effect and life drain some mofos.

Re: Making something out of nothing (Can you turn this into a Thug?)
 

Seems a waste not to make use of his flight.

Poison ring, gall bladder, skull amulet. Still leaves room for good armor.
Or maybe some other flyers set to guard commander

Set him in the back flanks so the forward units draw the focus of the enemy. Hold, then Attack archers or attack rear-most?

Re: Making something out of nothing (Can you turn this into a Thug?)
 

Five-fold Angel of Bogarus? (Or whatever it's name is)

Re: Making something out of nothing (Can you turn this into a Thug?)
 

Putting an unarmoured dryad up front in late age is calling for doom, no matter if you equip her with a shield or two. There are very few non-missile indies or PD's out there, and a single arrow hitting the dryad is all that it takes to destroy the whole group; I've tried it quite a few times, and I know it just doesn't float reliably. Unarmoured dryads should IMO stay the heck out from the frontlines.

In earlier ages centaurs and revelers are so marvelous, there is no need for minotaurs except when storming forts. The centaurs (both regulare and the white ones) have enormous staying power, the revelers are quite good too at staying alive (and lots of cheaper than the centaurs). However, if you are not using the centaurs or revelers in a sneaky raiding group, an indy commander with a bow (for example those light cavalry commanders) will be better than a dryad to lead the group (and in many cases I would take some indy sneaker or harpy to lead the group, rather than waste a dryad to the task).

In Late Age I use groups of Black Dryad + 6 dryad hoplites to expand early on, with everything set far back. The Black Dryad is scripted Bless x 2 (as she has just H1, she is likely to miss some of the hoplites else), Spells; she will start to fear the opposition which thus improves the survival of the dryad hoplites to nearly insane levels (fear + awe is just marvelous, and the dryad hoplites have excellent stats and good gear too to further improve their staying power), while staying well out of range of the hostile archers. The expansion groups can later on be grouped together for a really impressive central block of dryad hoplites.



In my opinion the dryads, to be thugs that is, really need decent equipment to make them shine. As such, they are not cheap thugs, but in spesific situations they really do shine (but still need the help of the berserking troops). As spell-casters in armies they are useful for other reasons, but that was not what this thread is about :)

Re: Making something out of nothing (Can you turn this into a Thug?)
 

Warrior Smith from EA Ulm...

Re: Making something out of nothing (Can you turn this into a Thug?)
 

Read Baalz' EA Ulm guide - it has loads of Warrior Smith thuggery ideas in there.