[sergex]

Well, part of your VQ strategy must involve conquering her domain. Start off with as high a domain as possible (8-10). Restless Worshipers. Sceptics, Monks, Stealthy Prophet, etc, to lower her domain in her own provinces. Preach like crazy all over the place, build juggernauts, stone idols on scouts, whatever you can do to mess up her domain.

Only then can you begin the work of ridding the world of her (for at least a couple turns). Make her route and have no provinces for her retreat to. Send in many, many seeking arrows into the province she is in. Earth Attack and send horrors.

To deal with actual combat with her? First of all, use a unit that is immune to lifetap. Undead units work well. Banelords, Wraithlords. Then gear them up, get them exp to raise their stats. Give them Astral Shields, Fire shields, Elf Banes, Mage Banes, anti-undead weapons.

There are many ways to skin the cat, but none of them come in the early game, and unless you control the domain of the game then all you are doing is trading your gems and income to make it return to its home province.