Alex (apoger),
I *do* use that strategy just right now in MP, and with some serious gamers .. up to now successfully, but it's only turn 25
Obviously one also has to get wise in diplomacy and careful about the "stated" gem income - income from trade and items doesn't count !
But maybe I'm wrong and will get bLasted... Well, life will tell
!
As for the "training" part, just note that it's *harder* to find a strategy with a more versatile nation... In fact when playing Ulm you discover step by step "the" strategy you can use, and so you get a grasp at how to use more "rich" nations strategy-wise.
In fact my first Dom1 game was with Pangea : I didn't succeed in anything and had no idea on how to use their troops and magic. Then I tried Man, it wasn't much better. Then Arco, I did learn much but was *very* bad with magic, because Arco has mostly "random" paths for mages. I played my first pbem with Arco, and was trounced on the first fight with another player, even with 4:1 odds on my side
, just because I was waaaay behind in magic and had no idea on how to use it effectively...
Then I played Ulm, and finally was able to put it all together and define at least a strategy
: units, spies, mages, items, spells - mostly because the choices were narrower, (only 2 magic paths, no sacred units, etc..) !
So my experience matches Aldin's, and I still would suggest a new player to train with Ulm !
Note : No offense taken, nor meant