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Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
I like Ulm, in concept. Poor magic, low morale, expensive units. . . I can see why it has a poor reputation in practice. However, I've done some thinking and I've developed a Three Phase Plan. [Phase Three is "get eaten by demons." I'm hoping by then I'll have a better idea. ] Swords against Sorcery- in memory of Fritz Leiber.
The One True God was dead, they said. All over the world, false prophets arose. Blood drinking demons, lunatic sorcerors and crazed beasts rose up and declared their godhood. In the forgotten caves beneath Mt. Ulmon, unbreakable chains. . . broke. Ulmon, ancient beyond Gods, Who had been imprisoned ages before, strode forth again to save His people from madness and magic. And the people of Ulm, the children of fire and steel, long-suffering and faithful, strode forth at his back. Setup: I took the Cyclops, with Earth 8 and Nature 3. Indy strength 4. Ten pretenders total, none aquatic and no Ermor- I'm new and Ermor still cleans my clock. High productivity, high drain, and good fortresses- I'll need a lot of forts, both for supplies and troops. Ulm NEVER has enough troops. My plan for Phase I is to send out my Cyclops as a low-end Supercombatant while I build up Smiths and troops. I'm on a small ismuth- four provinces, and then natural bottlenecks to the north and south, water to east and west. Ulm remembers much and says little. The Forges of Ulm started up again, producing the legendary Black Steel armor, and a Smith of Ulm reappeared- nobody asked where he came from. Ulmon Himself forged a Black Steel blade in the old true pattern, quenched it thrice, and raised it high. TURN 1: Results- none yet. Shopping- I buy a Master Smith and a handful of crossbowmen. Action- My dozen light infantry (well, light for Ulm) are in no position to fight anything. I send my spy to the northeast. Ulmon, Himself, is currently unarmed- totally unacceptable. I forge a Sword of Sharpness. TURN 2: Results- I have an alleged 60 mixed infantry and archers to the south, 10 militia and infantry to the north, and 30 barbarians to the northeast [as measured by my spy.] Shopping- I call forth another Master Smith to the forges and request more crossbowmen. My Ulmites are powerful soldiers, but so few, so very few. Actions- I, Ulmon, walk northeast to spread the Word of Myself. I send my spy farther north, to the first possible bottleneck, to measure and report. My Smith starts researching Evocation. TURN 3: Results- Ulmon takes up the mantle of war. The Barbarians flee after inflicting but little damage; however, one of the wounds scars badly. I take this as a reminder to be careful. My spy reports relatively weak resistance to the north of my new first province; less reliable reports put the northwestern strength at 10 soldiers, and the south at 20 [from 60?!]. Shopping- another Master Smith and some heavy infantry. I choose the Black Plate with flails- multiple weak attacks, but the survivors will get stronger. Later I'll want to switch to something with a shield. Predictably, my new province produces nothing but barbarians, and I don't want any of those. Actions- my First Army is far from grand, but it is ready to attack a few militia and light infantry. 12 light Ulmish infantry, 10 crossbows, and my first general. I send them to the north of my capitol, and decide Myself to go north to the end of my isthmus, and to open combat with a barrage of stones [Legions of Steel took my damage resistance from 28 to 29.] . I send my spy further north still, lest I overrun my intelligence. My Smiths are all diligently researching. |
Re: Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
Personally, I'd forget about blacksteel and light infantry and just concentrate on churning out those Infantrys of Ulm. Get some mercenaries as well.
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Re: Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
or a ****load of sappers :p works for me
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Re: Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
(By the way, I've played the first 9 or so turns, but haven't posted all of them yet. The heavies are coming. . . the 12 light Ulmish infantry were my starting troops. )
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Re: Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
i believe sandman is suggesting you dont get heavies
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Re: Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
I'm new. . . We'll see. I have A Plan.
I also have my notes with me for this post. I think I'm playing The Desert Eye- it's hard to tell, because of the wraparound. Which I didn't realize the map had. . . My enemies are Abysia, Pythium, Caelum, Pangaia, Vanheim, Jotunheim, Mictlan, T'ien Chi and Machaka. Plenty of Sorcery to go around. Turn 4: Results- Ulmon takes out some regular troops- about 30, again- while the First Army knocks out 3 commanders, 15 troops while taking no casualties- no kills, no injured. This turn, not last, is where Ulmon picks up his never-healing wound. Ulmon's new province has a Library- nice, but with the crippling Drain I don't think Sages are worth it. Shopping- I recruit 7 archers in the First Army's new province. They can fire into melee with my Black Plate infantry and basically damage only the enemy. Also, more Black Plate and another Smith. I end the turn with 164 gold and big plans for a castle in the northern bottleneck. Plans- my First Army goes back to the capital to collect the archers. I move Myself, alone, into the province where my spy waits- and keep him where he is. Turn 5: Results- Ulmon cleans out a variety of heavy infantry, light infantry, archers and militia. One gets a lucky hit on the side of his knee and I develop a slight limp. Time to stop Phase I- at least for now; My physical toughness isn't sufficient to keep me entirely safe, and the next affliction could be more serious. Shopping- I buy a second Spy. My Spy starts building a fort in the bottleneck, and I raise 8 Province Defense. For Ulm, PD below 8 or above 20 is cost-effective. Desperate for cash, I convert 5 Earth vis into gold and buy more flailmen Plans- the First Army goes back to pick up their archers. Ulmon, protecting his bottleneck, searches the province for gold and gems. Turn 6: Results- none. Shopping- I buy a Priest. First Army is now 8 flailmen, about a dozen light Ulmish infantry, 10 crossbowmen and 7 archers. Plans- I move Ulmon to the province with the Library. Spy keeps moving. First Army heads back to Ulm , with the goal of heading south and converting the rest of my isthmus. Pippin will become my Prophet. [I missed the chance to rename him, alas.] Turn 7: Results- Mictlan is the neighbor of my fort-to-be, which is protected by a spy and nine crossbowmen. . . it would be bad to lose that. Evocation 2 is reached. Shopping- My planned push to glory- a Smith every turn, researching their hearts out- has been sapped by lack of money and focus, and the castle on my north. More troops, of course, but no Smith. Plans- I will search My internal province, risking my expensive, expensive construction project. I am betting that the blood-drinkers of Mictlan will pause before starting a war. First Army heads south to conquest, with 18 Black Plate and nearly 50 troops in total. Turn 8: Results- Mictlan did, indeed, hold off. I found no magic sites in My province. First Army crushed the independent pagans, with neither deaths nor permanent afflictions. Shopping- I can, barely, afford another Smith. And the Forges of Ulm continue running at full speed. Plans- First Army will continue to a chain of islands to the south; I will move to protect My construction project. Pippin shall north with five of Ulm's finest flailmen as a personal guard. Turn 9: Results- First Army took the chain of islands, and along with it a magic site- the Wormwood Forest, producing 1 Nature gem. Truly fortunate. Evocation 3 has been researched, and my Smiths are now capable of sending Magma Bolts down on the unbeliever. Mictlan seems to have backed their army off, and my fort is complete. Shopping- I, Myself, build a lab in my new fort- while I would like another Smith [I have six] the fort is maintenance-free and the cost of my army is starting to become significant. I purchase a Commander of Ulm along with the flailmen- my army is large enough for a second-in-command. Plans- I send First Army agaisnt a large force of Woodsmen. This is the last "bottleneck" province I will be able to hold and I wish to move as far as possible before putting in the choke point. 210 gold of Point Defense is not a small investment. Current status( start of turn 10): Upkeep: 105 gold. Income: 376 gold. Treasury: 276 gold. Research: partway through Evocation 4. 30 RP per turn. Gem income: 5 Earth, 1 Nature. Magic Resources: 40 Earth, 2 Nature. Provinces: 8 Soldiers: 49 in First Army; 5 with Pippin; 10 in Capital. Notes: Some of my turn-by-turn results are off; I didn't save the turns as they happened. I got sloppy on the latter turns- Pippin is still one province behind my fort, my spies are in my own territory, and my new fort has not turned out a single Black Plate Soldier. Second Army is forming as slowly as I feared. |
Re: Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
Turn 10:
Results- All is quiet. Shopping- Two Smiths (they're expensive, but once I can cast Blade Wind one smith should be the equal of twenty archers), and troops. I convert another 5 Earth gems into gold, sadly. Planning-Everyone moves up and out. Research continues. I get greedy and send First Army against the independent Ichthyids to the west, rather than waiting two turns for my Smiths [with Blade Wind] to arrive. Research continues as I slowly build up Second Army. Turn 11: Results- Disaster. The Ichthyids take out six troops- not particularly good- but Caelum, from the other side, attacks the province just after I do. My outnumbered, outmanuevered troops fight valiantly, but they are not in formation for this and individual acts of heroism are not enough. At the end, my Commander- alone, badly injured, and surrounded- nearly cuts his way to freedom but is finally taken down by sheer numbers and time. The shell of First Army mills around, leaderless- 27 troops total, two of whom are missing an arm [naturally enough, they both had two-handed weapons so are worthless.] I lost all my hammermen and archers, half my axemen, four of my flailmen and only one crossbowman- the Ulmish tendency to put armor on EVERYTHING works in my favor. On the plus side, I have now researched Blade Wind and my Smiths are a force to be reckoned with- as long as they have gems, that is. Shopping- I buy what troops I can, and a single Smith for Second Army. I put some Province Defense into the southern bottleneck- it's now up to PD 8. Planning- My Smiths will arrive in "the bottleneck" with a true combat commander, to take control of the First Army. I start researching Conjuration- once they have Earthpower, my Smiths will truly be a combat force I can count on. And I have quite a few Smiths. Turn 12- Results- None of note. Conjuration 1 acheived. Shopping- Another Smith, and a pathetic handful of Hammermen. Planning- Strike directly for T'ien Chi's capital. Hopefully three Smiths will be enough to compensate for my severe troop reduction. I'm bringing more troops and a siege engineer south from the capital. Turn 13- Results- The assault on T'ien Chi went well. The Smiths rip a good chunk out of the enemy troops and flailmen clean out what's left. I am pleased to note that the enemy composite bows do nothing to me; unfortunately, the glaives work a little better. I lose a couple troops but nothing to worry about. Siege commences. Shopping- Built three horsemen- I need to be able to hit harder. Also a siege engineer and raise Point Defense to 13 in the southern bottleneck. T'ien Chi is a wealthy province. Planning- Hold T'ien Chi and destroy the enemies as they come . Consider starting a third war with Mictlan. Looking at the score charts, Pythium and C'Tis are far ahead. I'm second from the bottom in almost everything. If I don't start taking capitals soon, I'm going to be too far behind to have ANY chance. If I can take Mictlan fast enough, I can pincer T'ien Chi. It's a bad idea but the only one I have. Turn 14- Results- I got cleaned out at T'ien Chi. Celestial Warriors aren't something I can fight, apparently and I lost every Smith I brought in a display of exceptional stupidity. Give them a set of gems and they summon Earth Elementals instead of casting Blade Wind. I'm losing and there's not much I can do about it. |
Re: Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
Sounds like you didn't take strong enough scales if you're hurting for money as Ulm. That Cyclops was far, far too expensive to just sit around searching.
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Re: Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
I'm going to switch to a much more general "Things of Note" format, as I am putting in too much detail.
Turns 15-18: "The Stall." Reinforced First Army. Bought up Province Defense to 20+, bought some cheap archers, brought down troops from capitol. Built Second Army- brought up Hammermen from capitol, bought several Smiths. Set my Cyclops and Smiths to researching until I got to Conjuration 3. Now Smiths are truly in Phase 2: able to cast Blade Wind at least once each per fight. Researching for Construction 4- Earth Boots will make them twice as valuable. Turns 19-25: War on Mictlan. This is exactly what my army is designed for- wiping out lots of cheap scuzzy troops. I send Second Army north with 3 Smiths and Myself. We besiege the blood-drinkers. Our besieging army, though surrounded, repulses huge attacks [96 troops attacked, 50 were wiped out] easily. Six or more Blade Winds are truly brutal. Myself goes for a walk through the remaining Mictlanese provinces. (Truly, the Cyclops is best used not "just sitting around searching." Especially when One can start a battle with 150+ flying blades.) Turn 23, the would-be God disappears in a puff of disbelief. This is somewhat disturbing, although it allows Me to take his castle unopposed. I now have a large, ferocious army to the south of T'ien Chi and a medium ferocious army to the north. Time for a rematch on those Celestial Warriors. Also, My people research Construction sufficiently and start producing a truly astounding number of Earth Boots- yet, not enough. . . now I must decide what I need next. * Alteration- that my Smiths may protect themselves? * Conjuration- that I may summon large, ethereal bears and eventually Trolls? I need something fearless. * Thaumaturgy- that my Smiths may find more sources of power? * Enchantment- that Myself may become an unstoppable regenerating force of Supernature? Looking at the scorecard: Pythium and C'Tis are far ahead in almost everything; Caelum is badly only ahead in magical power. Jotunheim and Vanheim are also generally ahead. Abysia and Machaka are being beaten badly and I am theoretically ahead of T'ien Chi- though they have a Dominion of 8 [!] Looking at the map- if I take T'ien Chi I will have a north-south wraparound. I have a long border with C'Tis and short ones with Caelum [at war with me already], Jotunheim, and Man- an unrealized "across-the-sea" highway to my capitol. I have no information on Pythium, Pangaea, or Vanheim- three of the powerhouses out there. Looking at the economics- I am making a profit of around 250 Gold per turn. If I limit my production of Smiths I may be able to start buying Temples and priests. I now have a lot of gems, by this game's standards, and a good variety of types. I still have a lot of Earth gems- even after making six sets of Earth boots, and a couple of items of armor for Myself. I should be able to pin up T'ien Chi in a single province within three turns of the start of the war- I fear that storming the castle will be a bloody mess. Celestial Warriors cause fear, and are proof against light missiles, and there may be a large number of them inside. |
Re: Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
Turns 25-31: Quagmire.
Second Army strikes deeply and effectively. First Army gets thrown back to their base province with severe losses. I need to work on impatience and lack of focus. T'ien Chi breaks out with a small army and rampages through the former Mictlanese provinces. I do not have the resources to start a Third Army; eventually they run up against my northern bottleneck and are repulsed. I start besieging the Dark Citadel where the TC Pretender, a lich, is locked up with less than 10 troops. Unfortunately, TC's main army was out on campaign to the west. I go Myself with a few troops to intercept at the obvious blocking point. I am destroyed. Ten Celestial Warriors come in and clean house. Looking at what went wrong: 1. I didn't bring enough troops. Two half-armies are no good. One Smith, a handful of troops [fled from the last wreck of First Army]- not enough. 2. I didn't concentrate on building up the province defense, despite knowing where the enemy would strike. 3. My physical form was not equal to the challenges. I was fighting in Dominion -8 [!] and so, instead of the 70+ HP I should have had, I had about. . .20. This is the beginning of the end. There are three really large enemies- C'Tis, Pythium, and Jotunheim- remaining. Jotunheim's armies are starving, diseased, and miserable [my spies report] but still crushing Pangaea. I have very few priests, fewer temples, and many months before I can return as even a shadow of my old Self. I do not have the forces, I suspect, to hold TC against the armies coming home- never mind actually taking the Dark Citadel. [Can I wipe out an immortal Lich with multiple Blade Winds? I think that's what the question comes down to.] The next on my decreasingly-plausible To Conquer list is Caelum. Their research has been spectacular and, even if their troops can only peck vainly at my armored masses, they undoubtedly have horrifying magical calamities waiting for me. I suspect at this point my only option is stubborn, doomed resistance. |
Re: Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
Have been reading and enjoying.
Do hang in and keep fighting--I'm rooting for you. In my own AAR, things are going to hit the fan very soon. There are ways of fighting out of many tight corners. The Forum in particular can be a valuable resource. Cheerio... http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/smile.gif ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Think outside the box? What's a box? |
Re: Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
Sorry for the lack of updates. I have been busy with other things.
Update: Turns 31-37: Restoration. My forces sweep back through and recapture the TC territory. First and Second armies meet up in the TC capital. The Celestials can be beaten with numerous Blade Winds and some sturdy troops to slow them down- perhaps 12 Blade Winds to 10 Celestials. I try my new plan of bringing reinforcements in before needing them. Shopping: My loyal people buy Temples and Priests- I have almost none of each- and set them to restore Me. I create a new Prophet- much more heavily armored than the last- and bring up some Cavalry. My Smiths build a Crusher [disappointingly poor attack and defense skills] and a batch of Clockwork Horrors. Two of My Spies discover the extent of Pythium and start spreading sedition- if I cannot directly destroy Pythium yet, I can at least slow them slightly. Another starts trouble in C'Tis. Turns 37-41: The Two Front War. I am restored! My troops finally win a brutal war of attrition, breaking into the Dark Citadel of T'ien Chi and finding almost no resistance (I lost one Cavalryman to the lich's evil spells and perhaps a few footsoldiers to the Citadel's defenses.) I capture the Desert Eye itself and pin the T'ien forces in a single province. And Caelum attacks. The southern bottleneck works well. I lose the province [26 Prov. Defense] but, of the 160 attackers, 20 are killed and many rout. In a bit of luck, one province up from there [Ulmwards], the local chief built a fortress with no prompting from me. The bottleneck that was taken was immediately next to T'ien Chi, where My army is pinned down in siege. Caelum attempts to continue the attack (towards Tienese territory )but is repulsed in the next province and, after T'ien Chi itself falls, is thrown back from the bottleneck. Unfortunately, I still had my Smiths dispersed and un-bodyguarded to lower the chance of losing some to the Citadel defenses. Two or three are slain, but two sets of Earth Boots are recovered for the next generation to step into. In the Desert Eye, my new Clockwork Horrors face an unexpected threat before they can finish off the few [less than 10?] Tienese forces- Caelum attacks me [80 Caels vs. a Smith, a couple of heavy infantry, the Clocks and a handful of Province Defense.] I did not realize that Clockwork Horrors gained 15 Fatigue per turn, every turn. Fortunately, the flying Caelumites surrounded them near-immediately and the Clocks inflicted great damage before getting smashed. Net result: Approximately 25 Caels killed, all my Clocks destroyed, no other casualties and the province is still mine. I, Myself, created another miraculous bag of wine, and started moving south to the bottleneck with reinforcements. Soon I will step into T'ien Chi and empower Myself back to pre-death levels. Enemy Status: Caelum has taken noticeable losses in troop strength. They have cast Dark Skies and their leader seems to [based on his Prophet] have significant Death and Air magic strength. C'Tis has a long border with me, and many large armies along it. Jotunheim has two short borders with me, a huge army, and has driven Pangaea near-literally into the ocean. Vanheim, and Pythium are vague future threats- Abysia shall not last long, I think. Own Status: Outside of TC's resources, I have found another source of Earth gems [I'm up to 7/turn], and a source of Nature gems. I have a few other small supplies, including an embarassment of blood slaves. Gold is available in reasonable quantities- never as much as needed, of course. Planning: I require more Smiths. Also, having proven that constructed troops are severely limited, I feel that contacting Trolls is my best bet for "advanced" troops. This will be a long and difficult time researching- My Smiths are almost all needed for war and I have only Conjuration 3. [One Smith is probably the equal of 30 Longbowmen right now, offensively.] My Dominion is weak- destroying the last vestiges of the lich lord of T'ien Chi is crucial. I want to experiment with economic warfare- using Spies to lower Pythium's available gold and the like. Probably too little too late, but perhaps some defections will occur. I will also be building a few Commanders to place in the border provinces- they will not survive determined attack, but at least my province defense will not be routed by a stray arrow in the first volley [as has happened.] As far as my enemies: After Caelum [all going well] I must assault C'tis- all my gains in Mictlan and TC could be overrun easily by only a fragment of their strength, and I have only weak defenses in place. |
Re: Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
re: Two-Front War
Well, at least you're not attacking Russia in the winter. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/image...es/biggrin.gif re: Mechanical Men Meat shields are even more effective when they are not actually meat. |
Re: Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
What do you recommend for walking shields? The Crusher hasn't really been fieldtested- it looks like it is NOTHING but a damage sink, and might get ignored. The Clockwork Horrors were fun (SO fun!) but impractical. I don't know what I should be trying to research- I was thinking "Trolls" but I haven't committed to any path yet.
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Re: Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
It's not really thematic for Ulm, but I've had fun with Fall Bears. Tough and Ethereal. Pretty expensive though. Maybe Mechanical Men. Living Statues when you can get them.
Remember that Trolls cost upkeep. |
Re: Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
A Crusher will not be ignored (it may be swamped, but it won't be ignored). Enemy troops with Attack Rear orders may detach some units to go around it, but some will stay, and the Crusher will stump off in pursuit of the rest when it wins.
If you have never built a Crusher, I recommend building one, just so you can see it in action. They're slow, so consider putting it forward far enough that the rest of your shield gets up to it just before the enemy gets there. If you are in a bad enough way that your forts are under siege, blocking the gates with several Crushers can brutalize the foe, especially if you have a long, narrow gate and a high rate of defensive fire. Unlike recruited troops, summons can appear directly in a besieged fort. Likewise, sending in a Crusher or two directly against an enemy fort gate (as far forward as you can) while storming might get you in a little easier. Ulm heavy infantry is pretty good, especially when bolstered by the Legions of Steel spell and Giant Strength. Trolls augmented by these spells are truly awesome in melee, but remain vulnerable to fire and spells. Both need priest support to keep their morale up. I always considered the Clockworks a little fragile and prefer Mechanical Men if you have the gems (Living Statues are even better). Remember that constructs do not heal hit point damage normally after combat, but that Labs do fix them eventually, so don't ignore your infrastructure when using this troop type: build a few Labs along the way. A Crown of Command (Cons 4, S2) will let a normal commander lead constructs. It isn't practical to make specific magic research recommendations without knowing your current level in each school, gem income, and research rate. Long term, look at Earth Attack--it's lots of fun squishing enemy commanders with this. Crumble can really embarrass an enemy hiding in a fortress, especially a tough one like a Mountain Citadel. Once you get to Construction 8, making a Philosopher's Stone (there can be only one!) will leverage your money favorably. Put it where you can find it quickly. Seek out the Global that gives you Earth gems. Once you have this up, you will have a much easier time getting the really neat Ulm-thematic globals: the one that makes you rich, rich, rich, and the one that lets you forge things cheap. Running a Search or two of the forum on these should give you some ideas. I usually use a 2-year net, unless I'm digging further back for something specific. |
Re: Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
At the moment I have 11 Smiths [having gone through rather a lot in the several disasters. . .] As of the start of the turn, 3 are researching. Yes, I have turn 41 and 17 research points [probably to go up rapidly this turn.] Current gem income: 7 Earth, 3 nature, 3 astral, 2 fire, 2 air, 1 water, and 3 blood.
I have Conjuration 4, Alteration 3, Evocation 4, Construction 5, and Thaumaturgy 2 researched. I'm at about 8 in research; the top 3 [Jotunheim, Caelum, and Vanheim] are at around 18-20. Priest support [moralewise] is very hard to come by- I have *one* priest that can boost morale- my prophet. Given these things, I think my best bet is Trolls at about 360 RP from where I am, with Crushers in the meantime. If I have surplus Earth gems, which would be better: Uparmoring my Smiths, or lots of commanders with [say] Swords of Sharpness? |
Re: Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
If you are feeling the pinch on priests, you might consider alchemizing some Earth gems, building some Temples, and recruiting some cheap priests.
(One of these can really toughen up a province defense (PD), and 2-3 would be really useful if you hit undead or need to keep those rather chaotic Trolls pushing forward.) Personally, I like to keep about half to two-thirds of my top mages researching. Of course, I also get my butt kicked for not building enough ground troops... http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif Being too low in research is almost as unhealthy as being too low in dominion. Ulm is not noted for the efficiency of its research, though, so as long as you are not dead last or static/declining you may be ok. You do want to see an elevated growth slope on your research graph. Items that may help include Owl Feather (Air, +3), Lightless Lantern (Fire +6), and Skull Mentor (Death +10). You might consider saving your Earth gems for the globals. At Cons 5 you are approaching Forge of the Ancients (Cons 7, caster E5). You might want to take another look at Enchantments: both Riches From the Earth (Ench 6, caster E5--$$$!) and Earth Blood Deep Well (Ench 7, caster E6--EEE!) will give you substantial benefits. I would feel a lot better about handing out Swords of Sharpness (which are not magical!) if I knew my thugs were protected by Gift of Health, but that's just me. If you have a hard-charging knight, you might consider a Shield of Valor. Armor of Virtue would protect your prophet at the cost of occasionally putting him out of position--a flight item would return him to action quickly. |
Re: Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
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@Constr-2: Owl Quill .. Air-1 @Constr-4: Skull Mentor .. Death-2 (!) @Constr-6: Lightless Lanter .. Fire-1 Quote:
I'll attach two tables with all multi-path items and all magic-boosting items for your convenience (you're playing unmodding, IIRC ?!) Quote:
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Better get him - a Stinger (less damage than the sword, but as a length-4 weapon, it repels swords etc.) - a Girdle of Might (Constr-4; gives him reinvigoration AND strength +3) If he lives through some battles and gets heroics, you might want to add items which give - Luck - Regeneration Some argue to deck him out completly from the start, but this is quite costly, and might end up very futile in the very first battle. Which items to choose depends on what threats you face and what smithes pathes you can depend on, though: Maybe you need some resistances as well .. e.g. a Burning Pearl is another nice addition if you're up against Abysians or Fire Elementals. |
Re: Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
Lightless Lantern at Con-6? I may have to research that instead. Because a Smith can build a Lightless Lantern and be twice the researcher. . . plus whatever other wonders Construction-6 delivers.
I would be in better shape if I hadn't lost, over the past few battles, 6 or 8 of my front-line Smiths. I should be getting back into the swing of the game soon. Ulm endures. |
Re: Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
OK, turn 42-43:
A series of "suspicious events" occurs: Two arrows from the sky- one killing a smith, the other injuring a Commander- an earthquake in T'ien Chi [destroying my temple there] and 1/5 of the population moving out of one of my minor provinces. Caelum captures the Desert Eye, cutting me off from taking the last T'ien Chi province. Hopefully they will clean that up soon- it's still giving me -7 and -8 dominions in places. Also, Caelum creates a SECOND global enchantment- the one that gives them millions of Air gems. They must be destroyed, and fast. I reorganize my armies into one Army, plus a "floating reserve". There is some chaos and starvation but it is brought under control. I shift my "economic warriors" over to adjacent provinces- the unrest numbers are nice, but the number of patrolling troops is getting a little high. Shopping- I recruit three Smiths, increase my research- I am two turns from Conjuration 5, and [many] from Conjuration 6. I recruit one or two spies and a Commander or two on general principles, then buy Battleaxemen. I have concluded that the Black Plate of Ulm is basically so good that shields really don't add much except encumbrance, and My troops need to deliver faster kills. Tactics- I am reorganizing my anti-Caelumite troops. There is no "front" as such, dealing with winged troops, so I huddle my Smiths together, surrounded by a large group of bodyguards, and put the other half of my melee troops up front to [hopefully] reach the archers before they do too much damage. My regular archers are going to have to fend for themselves, I fear; I do have two cavalry in the rear set to "attack flyers". Strategy- I am pleased to find out that, although there is a huge Pythian army, they have essentially no magical research. I anticipate some ugly times taking the capital of Caelum- hopefully I will be able to storm the castle before my leadership is decimated by arrows. I have about 50 "soldiers" worth of siege warfare. If I could reach Pythium directly, I would attack them next. As it is, the enormous lizard threat is probably My next worry. |
Re: Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
Ivarr considered the last four years of long, slogging battle as he sat by the fire in the main hall. The grim battles against the lich of T'ien Chi. The months of despair when it seemed that his Lord Ulmon was dead, and the news was all bloody and bad. Then the return of his Lord, the crushing of T'ien Chi, and the storming of the castle at Caelum. Hardly a castle, he thought, looking out at the wooden parapets with no ladders, scorched and broken . Giant mechanicals worked, tireless, repairing those walls. "Better them than us," was all he said to the new men around him. It was not exactly clear what he meant.
Turns 44-49: Caelum is besieged, then stormed. There are 140-ish troops inside a Mausoleum, and it takes me some time to get the siege train into place. The battle is brutal- they have Air Shields and Confusion, we have three Crushers, dozens of superheavy troops, and enough Smiths to cast Blade Wind over 20 times, delivering over 1000 individual sharp things to the enemy. As always, their spearmen take a few jabs, get nowhere, and rout. From here it is merely a matter of cleanup. My spies are starting to trickle into Pythium- I have only two there, but three more are on the way. I have learned that if I build unrest, the AI will move a fairly large army into that province- would it be an exploit to use spies to move armies away from my route of attack, or would humans respond likewise? Shopping: I am now making around 500 Gold a turn over my expenses. I can finally start buying what I feel I deserve, instead of robbing Dominion to buy Province Defense. I have nearly enough Smiths, and have started the luxury of an actual cavalry unit. [I built three horsemen, long ago, and the second just died storming the gate at Caelum. ] Planning: I need to finish off Caelum, and then start [hopefully] on both C'Tissan fronts with a large supply of angry Trolls. Scores, etc: There are basically five Pretenders left worthy of the name. Pangaea's pretender, a blind Cyclops [note to self: be careful with your one and only eye] is dead, and they hold only a couple of underwater provinces and their capital. Caelum is crushed, with a few dozen troops and a handful of provinces left. In general, the top three are Pythium, Vanheim, and C'Tis. Vanheim and Pythium seem to be carving up Jotunheim[ good neighbors, for evil deathcult heretic unbelievers.] Pythium is particularly low on research, but high on Dominion [they're at 3, I'm at 1, and the others are at 2.] Other than that it's pretty much a 3-way tie for first. |
Re: Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
Arralen is right. Listen to Arralen.
Priest morale effects start at H3 (that should teach me to check instead of relying on memory!). On the Swords of Sharpness, I could have sworn I read that they weren't magic (in a thread long ago), but several days of searching hasn't turned up a reference, so go with Arralen. Another cool thing about research-boost items is that different types stack (a feather and a lantern give +9). On dominion, you do know that five Temples gives you a +1 (to a maximum of dominion 10). Good going against Caelum--give the lizards heck! |
Re: Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
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Sword of sharpness - an item made from 5 earth gems in one of 2 variants (one- and two-handed) is a magic weapon. Weapons of sharpness - a combat spell gives affected units armor-piercing, but not magical weapons. Good AAR, keep it up! |
Re: Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
I'm not worried about Dominion as long as I have a major advantage on research- I don't think faith and legions can compete with dozens of uparmored Trolls and hundreds of flying knives. I have enough Smiths that I probably can do without spending the extra 30 Earth gems on a King- or maybe I only need one, for the starter set.
I find that my real enemy in the later game is distraction. . . once the game gets really big, it requires more work for each turn, and more "where was I?" time for the first turn of the night. I renamed all my Smiths to composers, and that helps me find them. Any tips to help coordinating my spies would be appreciated. |
Re: Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
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So, temples won't affect dominions spreading, except for your pretender, prophet, and possibly Juggernauts. The maximum increases, as well as resistance to enemy dominion, but the speed of spreading doesn't. EDITED another reply in here. It took a while to find that post! Boltcutter Quote:
Also, doing fewer turns might help to remember your plans. During the thrice-a-week game of Dom:PPP (that lasted over turn 100!), checking the turn always set the wheels rolling, and I let the ideas to mature for a while. Never really tested it in a Single-player game, though. AI never gives such surprises as humans... and the best of all, you aren't afraid the AI will quess your plans even when its impossible. But, you know, a human just might quess that your rainbow pretender has to move through one uncastled province with only few bodyguards... |
Re: Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
I've been enjoying the AAR; I really like Ulm, too! I'm curious if you'll ever bring Ulmon back out of retirement; sufficiently equipped with the latest in high-tech gear. Have you been investing in any other magic paths?
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Re: Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
We have been occupying Ourselves, since Our return, with various army-feeding miracles- magical wineskins, summer swords, and the like. We have been equipped with a flaming sword and matching flaming shield by the Smiths, and have built a ring of regeneration, but We are respectful of Our worshippers and try to avoid gaudy displays of magic.
Also, as the lands around Us are filled with unbelievers, heretics and pagans, We feel that it might be . . . less than safe to travel without a strong escort, such as twenty or thirty Hammermen and perhaps a few Trolls. (My dominion doesn't really extend into enemy lands, and fighting in enemy dominion can be surprising hazardous. Regeneration doesn't help much when you have only 30 HP.) |
Re: Ulm SP AAR- Swords Vs. Sorcery
Turns 50-53: Relative Calm.
We clean up some of the remaining provinces of Caelum. We discover the secrets of contacting Trolls, and acquire 12 for the First Army and 16, plus a Troll King, for what will become Second Army. The Trolls, as predicted earlier in this thread by thejeff, are expensive in upkeep. We have a gift for spending gold as fast as it comes in. . .We have also built a small unit of cavalry- I have been impressed with the previous unit and hope these are even better. It seems Caelum, like Pangaea, will be driven into the oceans and remain there, safe. . . until We develop techniques for invading even there. Our spies are creeping through the lands of Pythium, spreading dissent with small visible success Magically, We have pushed heavily to increase our knowledge of Construction- next turn, We will have several lightless lanterns. We now have a lab and a library, and a single Sage [unfortunately, one with fire magic] to research- soon, we will be able to free all our Smiths for the armies. Our enemies are still large and ominous. Jotunheim is near the end of their strength- they have taken some lands back from Pythium, but are down to a handful of provinces and their army is weak, primarily undead . Pythium is growing ever stronger, and slowly developing some magical might. We are tempted to turn aside from the relatively constant C'tissan enemy to strike them first. C'tis has some unexpected dangers- aside from the hundreds or thousands of their troops, they have one or more provinces that are sinks of disease; two of my spies have fallen victim already. Vanheim is the most disturbing to Us- I know little of their armies, I have not seen them in battle, and they are powerful in both magic and materiel. Their armies can grow tremendously strong without starving, and who knows what evil sorcery they can muster? Our current plans are unchanged: strike hard and fast, from two directions, at the C'tissian threat. Once they are reduced, continue on into Pythium. Last, Vanheim. Possibly a third force will be mustered, to clean out the oceans. We are developing large stocks of various gems; We may enhance Our power in water, and build Tomes of Water Breathing. Possibly my Sages will produce another answer. Come the time, Caelum and Pangaea's false gods will be cleansed from this desert earth. |
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