Ulm beefed up ...

[Sandman]

Why would one ever buy this? It is a bad researcher (3 points), cannot cast any useful battle spells (65 gp for 4-5 Iron Wills/battle is not useful IMO), cannot forge any useful items... Master Smiths are what Ulm has. They are cheap, and moderate researchers when one remembers that you get 120 free points from their drain immunity.

It's a more efficient researcher than the Master Smith; 1 RP for 22 gold, versus 1 RP for 28 gold on the Master Smith. Note that the Sage is 1 RP for 20 gold for Ulm (unless you try putting them where your dominion is weak).

The apprentice can forge one item which I consider useful; the Girdle of Might (+3 strength, +3 reinvigoration) for only 3 earth gems. There are a few other semi-useful items at earth-1, Boots of the Behemoth being one example.

And yes, the apprentice is pretty limited on the battlefield. So are lots of other low-level national mages. Their main role is supporting the Master Smiths via research and simple forges. The Master Smiths are then free to perform more important stuff; complex forges, summons, site-searching and combat.

No! With "low Earth" this would take away Ulm's specialty, drain-immune mages - and Ulm would get nothing out of it! Ulm's Master Smiths already are immune, and Ulm would have to find independents to make this useful. Other nations, OTOH, would be able to make Drain-protected Vanir, Mystics, Sea Kings...

Fair enough. I can't really see any other nation being very competitive if they were employing a drain scale and drain stones strategy, though. I mean, is it worth taking max drain as Vanheim or Arco now, and making up the difference with Owl Quills?

But I'm happy to drop this one. It can't be modded anyway.

I agree that some kind of a bonus would be appopriate. Just making it magic weapon able to harm ethereal opponents could do, I think, but extra damage against magical creatures would be very powerfull. I don't know if it would be too much. Is it possible to mod Moon Blade-like extra damage for magical units?

I don't think that it is... I'll just go with the ability to hit ethereal stuff.

But then, both are known for their high power in ways of magic. Ulm, the nation with as little magic as possible, with higher-than-normal magical resources? Thanks, but no thanks.

Hmm, that's true. But then again, the Forges of Ulm are, well, forges. And Ulm is known for forging stuff.

I may try enacting some of these changes via a mod. I'll probably use the Black Acolyte (useless unit) as the graphical base for the Apprentice Smith.