Caelums troops are really not that bad. Cheap mobile archers make early expansion easy (without using mages) and later they become great shields to protect your mages and help destroy cheap massed troops. It is true that many nations with cheap troops can build an equivalent cost army that will defeat an army of Eagle Kings, Seraphs and Caelum troops. However with Caelum’s mobility the goal is to never fight a battle like that.
Instead you split your army up into 5 parts and take five provinces for every one of yours they take. If they split their army into 2 or 3 pieces to counter this then you attack one of their split up divisions with all 5 of your mini armies (using your superior mobility) and eliminate it. Your Eagle kings can get off 3-4 good thunder strikes per battle… if that is enough to destroy most of the enemy forces you win. Five eagle kings x4 thunder strikes will kill about 80-100 normal troops. So 2000 gold of elite capital mages could kill 800 gold worth of chaff or 1000’s of gold if they are using premium units.
If they are heading to your capital with their giant army then just start taking all of their land... possibly even occupying their capital. Your mountain fortress has 750 defense and 750 supply so you have lots of time before they can storm it. And here is the real key... at any time you can cast call of winds to bring in 21 hawks for defense. You can easily cast this 5 or more times in one turn. So let them hack away at your walls for 4-5 turns, then bring 100 new defenders and let them see your walls being repaired (or let them damage it 10 a round so they have no idea they are not making “real” progress).
During the 5 (or more) turns they are futilely sieging your fortress you have conquered 20 of their provinces (possibly their capital) crippling their income and increasing yours. With hawks and eventually a few supply items (nature 1 is easy with indies) you can hold out forever.
Caelum is fun!
