gems etc in combat

[Aezeal]

In my SP games I usually don't let my commanders carry gems etc because they tend to blow them even in small battles.

Of course I see the benefit of using battle spells that cost gems since they usually help your army a great deal. Especially in large battles the whole battlefield spells etc can be usefull.
In my MP games I can certainly see that using mist, storm etc in the LARGE battles can turn the tide of battle and save the lives of many of my skinshifters.

BUT if I give my commander 10 airgems (midgard is the nation of the moment) HOW do I see to it that he ONLY uses them in the large battles with 100 + troops and not in the small skirmishes.

Obviously start of game I just don't give them gems.. but how do I do that later.. when I want to bash a few small armies and then for example besiege a larger force somewhere. How can I see to it that when I load the gems on the mages they still have them when in counts?

Any advice would be appreciated.

[cleveland]

Load up a scout with gems have him follow your army.

You can then transfer an appropriate amount to/from mages just before each battle.

Since the scouts are stealthy, you won't lose 30 gems to a stray arrow.

It won't keep mages from wasting gems in small battles, but it will limit the total # of gems lost.

[Aezeal]

hmm sounds like an idea.. any more suggestions?

[Agrajag]

You could give them gem-generating items, which will help make sure they'll always have some gems. Though I suppose you already thought of that.

[Aezeal]

is there one that produces air gems?

[K]

Aezeal said:
is there one that produces air gems?

Nope. Air gems are one of the most elusive of the gem types, in my opinion.

To break it down:
Water: Sea trolls 1/turn
Fire: Fever Fetishes 1/turn if unt is Wounded(-10 HPs)
Earth: Blood Stones 1/turn
Astral: Clams 1/turn
Death: The Sickle whose Crop is Pain(gems based on kills with item)
Blood: There is a Demon Lord who spawns 3 blood slaves a turn.


The easiest way to get gems to the front with Air gems is to get one of your Air mages to Cloud Trapeze to your army and then distribute the gems.

Unfortunately, keeping gems on commanders is a tactical issue that everyone must address. Even the most well stocked mage will blow his gems when a Golem SC Teleports in or an Earth Attack elemental strikes.

[cleveland]

K said:

Water: Sea trolls 1/turn

Really?

[K]

cleveland said:

Really?

The Water 3 commanders at least. I've never GoRed the troops to see if they do it too.

Considering that it takes 55 Water gems to summon the Sea King's Court, yuu aren't going to break even any time soon.

[vfb]

K said:

Nope. Air gems are one of the most elusive of the gem types, in my opinion.

To break it down:
Water: Sea trolls 1/turn
Fire: Fever Fetishes 1/turn if unt is Wounded(-10 HPs)
Earth: Blood Stones 1/turn
Astral: Clams 1/turn
Death: The Sickle whose Crop is Pain(gems based on kills with item)
Blood: There is a Demon Lord who spawns 3 blood slaves a turn.

The local peasantry (5K+ pop) is usually happy to oblige in providing any blood slaves you need, but you've got to park for a turn of course.

There's also an Arch Devil (Furcas?) that gives 1 fire gem per month, and one of the Earth Kings generates 1E.

[QXel]

There is no way to prevent things like carefully scripted Fort assault, ruined by an incomming enemy in the same province the same turn ...

Battles are resolved before storming castles ...

Yep, this is my painfull SP experience from last evening ... 80% very experienced troops loses, 20% mages loses (some but my trampling routing troops ... Sob!) & 60 % other mages routed ... Hopefully tempered that I owned two border provinces (they are all safe) and another of my big army arriving in there ...

Combined with a dispelling of one of my major (mean: important for my strategy) Global Enchantement by myself due to the Mystery of Randoming Global Casting ...

Well, I went to bed just after this nightmare ...