[Nagot Gick Fel]

Originally posted by tinkthank:
How can I get a good communion slave for Tien Chi Spring and Autumn?
Empowerment seems way out of the question.

Right.

Using a Celestial Master as a slave just seems like such a waste.

Agree, although it's still doable when everything else fails.

Hoping for a nice pick for a Master of the Way might give me 1-3 in two dozen turns, but that doesnt sound like a decent strategy upon which to *rely*.

Sabbath slaves act just as communion slaves for communion purposes. Two 2 dozens MotW should give you 6 potential slaves on average, if you do a bit of blood hunting.

So I figure: manufacture Matrixes and put them on the Masters of the Dead.

Doable but expensive, don't rely on it too much. Although having a couple Slave matrixes ready to use would be a good insurance in your case.

Or research up to Conc 7 and cast Forge, then anyone can forge them?

You can't rely on that either.

What other options are open to me?

There are no easy options for nations who lack easy access to a cheap astral or blood mage. One of the most common ways is to rely on lucky placement of independents. Look for amazon provinces above anything else. The Crystal/Garnet priestesses both make good cheap communion/sabbath slaves.