Indie Battle Question
 

My troops are about to win an independent battle. The Last routed enemy troop leaves the field and there's a sound effect, like a mindbLast, and one of my troops goes poof. There's no mention of a spell being cast and there are no enemies to be seen on the field, battle ends. This has happened twice. Once to a unit who was chasing the Last enemy off the field and now to a casting Commander far to the rear of the enemy rout. She was a standard Machaka Witch Doctor who had just earned her first medal, full health with no diseases or afflictions. Can anyone clue me in to the cause of this? I have screenshots of the battle's end if it would help. Thanks in advance.

Re: Indie Battle Question
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">The only things I can think of are poison or decay. At the end of a battle (or when a unit retreats) those effects run to completion (which, in the case of decay, is invariably fatal to non-lifeless non-undead - that reminds me, do bane blades work on demons now?). But there may be other similar effects that get "fast forwarded" at the end of a battle.

I might be able to tell you more if I had the battle replay - do you still have the .trn file that has the replay in it?

Re: Indie Battle Question
 

Thanks for the reply, Chris. I didn't save the turn file unfortunately. There was no indication of her being spelled on her character stats just prior to her going poof within the battle animation. The only thing I can think of is that she was lost due to supply loss in the conquered province, if that is normal. Does a unit go from full health, no prior starvation or disease, to eradication at the end of a battle animation due to low supplies in the newly annexed province? If so, I didn't realize the attrition factor was that immediate. I thought they went through a starved turn before being lost.

Re: Indie Battle Question
 

Leaders consume supplies, but never starve.

Re: Indie Battle Question
 

I think that something like this can also happen through fatigue overload due to the heat/chill auras. It would make less sense for that chasing unit than it would for the caster, though. Also, aren't there spells that also overload fatigue over time, but don't show any animation at the same time?

Re: Indie Battle Question
 

I had a similiar experience too...

One of my favored generals got caught up in a minor skirmish..she was my prophet and gift of health and a strong dominion were running..so she had close to 80 hp and rather buffed up stats all around..

I watched the battle closely...it was mostly a bunch of miltia and a few border patrol troops against 60 or so undead. Being ulm my side crushed them rather quickly but right as it said they lost, my commander dropped dead..and I swear NOTHING touched her the entire battle as I was keeping tabs....watched the replay again and I still didn't see anything hit her.....all she casted was a few banishes to boot. Course I got pissed after this and restarted ;p

It also happened after ermors commanders took off, and she was full health....so no clue what happened.

Re: Indie Battle Question
 

Yes, Dekent, sounds exactly like what occurred with my troops. My enemy was a low level threat, a Druid and a few of his woodsmen and blowpipes. Nothing that I believe could have been responsible for the unit's mysterious disappearance. She did cast heat shield as her Last living act, so HJ may have the explanation. I've posted the shots of her final moments maybe they will help. battle pix

Re: Indie Battle Question
 

On the battle pix it looks like your Godess has cast breath of winter or maybe is wearing a rime hauberk. Those thing will kill nearby units who aren't cold resistant.

Re: Indie Battle Question
 

This was pretty early on in the game, turn 14 or so. The highest magic level researched was 2, so I think the 'cold' graphic representations were from the Goddess's Last act, casting a cold bolt. Could that casting have interacted with the Witch Doctor's fire shield? Thanks everyone for trying to help with this. I wasn't at all happy with her disappearing act just after her medal award.

Re: Indie Battle Question
 

I had a similar thing happen, and I didn't understand it at all until I read Chris Byler's post. I was using a Dragon pretender, won a battle handily, and at the very end, my Dragon suddenly went *poof*. He had something like 152 hit points left before he dissapeared, and I was at a total loss to understand it. But IIRC, the battle was against Onyx Amazons, who probably used Decay. And if Chris is right that the effects of Decay inevitably lead to death eventually and that the effects run to completion at the end of battle, then Decay, at Death 1, 20 fatigue, no gem cost, Thaumaturgy *one* is one mighty potent spell.

[ November 19, 2003, 19:18: Message edited by: Truper ]

Re: Indie Battle Question
 

Johan had the answer for me. Seems my Goddess was killing off her own followers with Breath of Winter, a lev1 Enchantment spell, 0 gem cost. I just lost another commander to this friendly fire. Thanks everyone for the help http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon7.gif .

Re: Indie Battle Question
 

This has happened to me as well, since sometimes casters and/or other commanders won't stay in place if they have nothing to cast or to do, and tend to wander into breath of winter or other clouds unprovoked. I started putting water-2 mages alone and separate from all other troops/commanders, since they tend to like to cast it a lot as their sixth spell, like many other self-protecting spells, and this hurts even more than friendly-fire crossbows. Damned cowards... http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon12.gif

[ November 19, 2003, 19:56: Message edited by: HJ ]

Re: Indie Battle Question
 

Keep your death mages away as well; anything Death-3 or above risks casting Soul Vortex. If you play Jotunheim, keep your Seithkonas away from your other troops because they're not cold-resistant...
Still, it doesn't beat some of the nasty own-goaling I occasionally saw in Dom I. For instance, I've seen my air mages skip the "Thunder Ward" part of a script and instead go straight to "Wrathful Skies". Ouch. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/blush.gif

Re: Indie Battle Question
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">It does have an MR save, right? Dragons are supposed to be highly magic resistant - I find a country bumpkin primitive voodoo witch hexing one to death to be pretty unrealistic... maybe dragons need more MR, or immunity to some magics=)

For those concerned, other common battle-end instakills include dehydration, poison, bane poison/disease, and being on fire. Also, being a mercenary - they die in a bloody puff if they retreat off the screen=)

Does anyone know if dehydration is certain death? I have not been able to tell.

P.S. I have questions about Charge Body and Shock Wave. Both have been cast by my mages, who were not elec-resistant, but the descriptions say they are dangerous to the caster. Does anyone know if this is true? I've never seen them harm the caster, but if they can, the AI should not cast them.

[ November 19, 2003, 20:11: Message edited by: Saber Cherry ]

Re: Indie Battle Question
 

Decay has a battle display, the sprite flashes black, so it's not an "anonymous" killer. Some fatigue-draining spells/effects are though.

Re: Indie Battle Question
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">Yes, Decay does have a MR save, and it only has a precision of 3, but since its only Death 1 and 20 fatigue, it can be cast repeatedly.

Re: Indie Battle Question
 

I feel real sorry for these guys! Taking on horrific troops is bad enough, but with death from friendly crossbows, archers, javelins and protective castings, well personally, I'd desert real quick, and my pretender god would never find me again http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon12.gif .

Re: Indie Battle Question
 

So my commanders can all be killed by a level 1 death spell if it hits them.....greaaaat......


I think it would be best to have it like Dom 1, where once a battle ends that is it for all poisons ans such....

Re: Indie Battle Question
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">Wouldn't be much of a "Death" spell otherwise...=) Though 20 fatigue might be a bit low.

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">Actually, poison DID run its course after battle in Dominions I, though I'm not sure about the other things - those might be new.

Re: Indie Battle Question
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">The decay and poison effects have not changed from dom 1, when the battle is over the remaining poison damage is dealt to poisoned units. Non regenerating decayed units die, units that regenerate sufficent amounts survive. There is MR on decay.

Re: Indie Battle Question
 

Ok I never had a commander die that way in Dom 1....ever....


and people complain about the AI...bah


Still its pretty stupid to think a level 1 apprentice necromancer can take down a dragon in 1 shot

Re: Indie Battle Question
 

It's the power of death, not the power of the mage that kills the dragon http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon7.gif

Re: Indie Battle Question
 

Yet another countermeasure against super-combattants. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon12.gif

PvK