Anti-Horror Strategies
 

So your pretender, prophet, or favorite hero got horror marked, eh? Quelle horreure! What do you do to ensure survival? Everybody share your tips on surviving this unfortunately common occurrence....

My tips:

1. 10 wyverns set as bodyguard, plus ring of warning. You are defending, they fly, so they will attack it first. If it is a lesser horror, they might kill it before it can attack.

2. Gloves of the gladiator attack 4 times. Boots of quickness doubles that. If you can survive the first round of attacks, you should be able to kill it if you have high attack skill and decent strength (12/12).

3. Twice-born.

Possibilities:

Bell of Cleansing--does this consider Horrors to be demons?
The Ark. Anybody try this?
The Ankh. Anybody?
Wraith Crown. Anybody?
Spell, spell, spell, spell. Any suggestions for spells?

Re: Anti-Horror Strategies
 

there isn't a limit to 5 body guard only ?

Re: Anti-Horror Strategies
 

Not with Ring of Warning, allows 10 bodyguards, also gives +10 patrol bonus. Good little item for 5A gems.

Re: Anti-Horror Strategies
 

Petrify will either kill or paralyze the horror, should be pretty sure to win with that.

Re: Anti-Horror Strategies
 

Returning and Ritual of Returning (if you can survive a hit) are obvious escape routes. The problem then is remembering to change the scripting before planned battles. Seeing your best mages teleporting out of a critical fight on the first turn is always disappointing...

Re: Anti-Horror Strategies
 

There's also taking Luck and/or Drain. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/image...ies/tongue.gif

Re: Anti-Horror Strategies
 

Does giving blood slaves help? Ive given them to assassins even if they cant use them as gems though I havent actually tested yet to see if they get targeted.

Re: Anti-Horror Strategies
 

Can you please explain that.

Re: Anti-Horror Strategies
 

I think misfortune and magic scales attract more horrors than normal. So order 3 drain 3 misfortune 2 MA Ulm/LA Man would mean fairly few horror attacks with no real disadvantage.

Re: Anti-Horror Strategies
 

Anyone try purposefully horror marking bodyguards so they have a chance of being attacked as well? Can that be done?

Re: Anti-Horror Strategies
 

Yes if there was a summoning spell which provided fast and/or flying units which were already horror_marked then I'm sure it would be used to provide guards for important horror_marked commanders.

Perhaps Illwinter will add this type of spell after they return from vacation.

Re: Anti-Horror Strategies
 

If it's early then starting the battle casting 'returning' thus the horror never has a chance to even strike. Blood slaves will provide time in a battle and can be acquired early as well.

The bell won't work because the horrors are considered magic beings and not demons or undead. So weapons like the elf bane and an item of penetration would be a good combo.

Yes the wraith crown is good and provides lifeless beings thus the horror cannot gain hitpoints when attacking them. I recommend lifeless beings whenever possible ESPECIALLY against the real nasty horrors.

Re: Anti-Horror Strategies
 

If you could risk it skullface might be more useful than wraithcrown, letting you cast raise skeletons each turn.

Re: Anti-Horror Strategies
 

I've seen the non-nerfed Hunter of Heroes laugh at a Wraith Crowned EA Demonbred, easily kill all the undead, then the Demonbred itself. The same Demonbred had killed the HoH easily when using a Spirit Helm -- the HoH is not lightning resistant... but it has Blood Vengeance (as do all Doom Horrors other than Scabiel), so low-level undead will easily maim themselves when attacking as the HoH.

A Phoenix Rod would also work, because they also lack fire resistance.

But yes, Petrify is a lethal pick if possible, and has the advantages of not needing gems and also being reasonable for normal battles. Magebane and the Infernal Sword also have unresistable effets, and Magebane has the further edge that it'll boost your MR so you have a chance of surviving the Consume Soul attack and of bypassing Blood Vengeance. Magebane will horror-mark you, but with it, you shouldn't have to hard a time of surviving them.

Ark -- needs to beat high MR, does very little damage per turn (you want to KILL it -- not disease it, blind it (may not even need eyes, can't remember), or do a piddling couple of hp).

Otherwise... you want precise, non-MR-based damage. High level Blood has two unresistable "send them to Hell" spells. Against two of Umor's forms, Astral would also be an important flag. That... or Returning. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/laugh.gif

Re: Anti-Horror Strategies
 

The wraith crown is to provide time for the commander and the low-level undead will make sure the horror doesn't gain more hitpoints.

Re: Anti-Horror Strategies
 

What about the blood spell that does irresistable damage? A life for a life? I dunno what it's called, but it's supposed to do like 40+ an damage. There's also the necromancery touch spell that does tons of damage, although you risk blood vengancy doom. Non-gift of reasoned tartarians would probably do prety well, since they're are undead and you could theoretically have ten of them.

Re: Anti-Horror Strategies
 

Yup, life for a life. Two casts should do it, unless you're unlucky.

I think you're risking blood vengeance with any of the hp spells... and probably the hp-based instadeath spells (isn't Soul Slay a 999 hp attack? Which is usually death, unless you're an in-dominion Gift of Health'd Sphinx or maybe a well-fed Eater of the Dead), too. Basically you want decent MR because of both the blood vengeance and the MR-negates death attacks.

The Tartarians, being former deities, also have good MR so long as you get rid of the frequent Feeblemind.

Haven't yet checked whether a failed MR vs. Blood Vengeance roll on a Banish to Inferno will send the caster to Hell... which would be cruelly funny, IMHO. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/evil.gif

Re: Anti-Horror Strategies
 

Explain this a bit, Endoperez? Does plus luck or drain scale reduces the appearance of horrors?

Re: Anti-Horror Strategies
 

I am not sure if these are considered horrors, but I had a huge number of units attack me, and it said something like "you were killed by the souls of all enemies you've slain."

What in the world is that, and what triggers it?

Re: Anti-Horror Strategies
 

That spell is vengeance of the dead. If the unit with the highest kills in the target province fails a MR check, and is not undead, and requires sleep, then a number of undead troops equal to the number of units that commander has killed will attack it. If it survives, then the next time the MR check fails, he now has at least twice as many kills.

Re: Anti-Horror Strategies
 

Thanks, Graeme!

That totally sucks though. So I suppose high MR is the only (uncertain) antidote?

Re: Anti-Horror Strategies
 

I don't think Returning/Ritual of Returning will pull you out of vengeance of the dead, at least they shouldn't, but maybe they will anyway.

The worst thing about Vengeance of the Dead is the fatigue. The individual units are weak and easy to kill if you have any sort of weapon. But if your commander is not encumbrance 0 (and most that can be affected by VotD aren't) he may get exhausted and become unable to fight.

MR is the best protection against VotD, but even there the chances are not perfect, since it is only "MR negates" and not "MR negates easily."

The most common targets for this sort of spell are non-undead pretenders and mages. Occasionally a living thug will get hit by it. Mages don't really stand a chance. Fortunately, mages and pretenders have good MR, and frequently resist the spell.

Re: Anti-Horror Strategies
 

Seems like we have two different scenarios here:

1. supercombatant (hero, pretender, etc.), characterized by high hitpoints and the ability to dish it and take it.
2. mages (rainbow pretender, great sage, archmage, etc.), who can dish it out, but they can't take it.

I believe there are a number of good strategies for a supercombatant to take. However, mages are in for a beating unless they are lucky--and plan carefully....

Re: Anti-Horror Strategies
 

VotD isn't that bad. Regular mage can often survive just by using fire shield, astral shield body ethereal and personal luck. Even when he falls unconcious he can avoid being hit while destroying enemies.

Re: Anti-Horror Strategies
 

Actually vengance of the dead can be survived simply by having decent MR.

Re: Anti-Horror Strategies
 

I was still talking about anti-Horror strategies.... VOTD is pretty easy to survive, usually.