returning spell

[Memento]

HI
I have a question regarding the spell returning.
I am often playing LA Marignon cranking a lot of soul contracts. To prevent the losing contract i often put them on my royal navigators and script them to cast returning. Now, if navigator got a lucky pick of S2 everything is ok - he uses his 2 astral pearls and get back to capitol (i am hoarding them in non capitol castle to make returning work).
But when the royal navigator has only 1S nothing seems to work. I am trying to give them 3 astral pearls so that he use 1 pearl to improve his S to 2 and other 2 pearls to actually cast returning - but this somehow does not work.
Does everybody know how to make spellcasting AI to cast returning on 1S mage?

thanks in advance

[Bullock]

in fact you cant use more gems than your level.

So a S1 mage can't burn more than one S gem per spell.
you could only cast returning with 1S mage if returning had no cost. (spending the extra gem only)

[shatner]

Give your S1 guy an astral booster (crystal coin, starshine cap) or a crystal shield and he'll be able to cast returning.

[Memento]

Originally Posted by Bullock

in fact you cant use more gems than your level.

thanks.
somehow i missed this... poor navigators...

[Bananadine]

If you use Ritual of Returning instead of Returning, you can gradually put Returning on all your S1 commanders with just a few starshine skullcaps, and then do something else with the skullcaps. That's something to consider.

The catch is that that kind of returning doesn't work until after a commander takes a hit, and that first hit might still be enough to kill him. But it appears that these navigators have A1 consistently, so you could then give each one a single air gem and have him cast Mistform, maybe... or maybe it's all just too much trouble.

[earcaraxe]

not sure mistform will help versus horrors.

[BewareTheBarnacleGoose]

Originally Posted by earcaraxe

not sure mistform will help versus horrors.

I think Horrors have a magic attack, so mistform would not work.

[Shangrila00]

The point is returning works when you take your first hit. For human hp units, the first hit is often the last, making returning useless. Unless you have mistform, in which case any single attack will always do at most 1 damage. Magical attacks will pop the mistform, but that doesn't matter when you just need to survive one hit.

That said, that's way too much trouble. Just put Soul Contracts on indy scouts, and if they die, they die. It's very unlikely to happen until the late game anyway.

[Soyweiser]

Originally Posted by Shangrila00

That said, that's way too much trouble. Just put Soul Contracts on indy scouts, and if they die, they die. It's very unlikely to happen until the late game anyway.

This also stops you from wasting a misc slot on a mage. A mage that could also be holding a penetration item in that slot. A mage with astral.

[Shardphoenix]

I think Horrors have a magic attack, so mistform would not work.

Even magic weapon needs 1 attack to pop mistform.