Lab Secrets

[LintMan]

Originally posted by Borg:
- Is there a certain "Research Rate" that you like to maintain throughout the game ? How many RP's are you gunning for per turn ?

I don't have a specific research rate, but I tend to *constantly* buy mages - as many as I can afford/produce. (In my Last Arco game, on a huge, rich map, at the end game, I had 30+ astrologers, 80+ mystics, 50+ sages, plus numerous summoned mages (ie: lamia queens, lichs, ether lords, elemental kings/queens, Ivy kings, tartarian titans, etc). That was a bit insane.)

- Do you sometimes interrupt that research ? For shorter or longer periods ? Or do you maintain research at all times ?

Almost all the mages I recruit are used in my "magic pool", where they research unless I need them for something else. (I don't tend to use mages in combat until late game. Unless I'm really pressing to get to a specific research level, I usually freely divert mages from research to site searching by spell, item forging, or ritual spells. Since I'm mostly gem-limited in these activities throughout the game*, there's usually plenty of researchers still available.

* ie: early game, I have few mages, but also few gems to use for rituals and forging, while late game, I have many gems, but many mages to use.

- When you forge items. Do you appoint one or several mages to forge continually or do you sometimes forge 4, 5, 6 items at the same time - so you can fully equip one of your Commanders right away ?

Unless a mage has a special path combo that is need to cast or forge something, I don't dedicate them to forging or rituals. If I have the gems to do it and the need for fast results, I'd definitely pull as many mages onto forging duty as I needed to get the items built quickly. (Unless at the same time I had a special strategy that needed a certain amount of research completed ASAP, but that's not common for me)

- Is there maybe a certain Research level where you stop researching and go on the offensive, because you can cast all the spells you're looking for ?

Nope - I want access to those top level spells. Actually, if I wasn't playing a blood-using nation, I'll probably not bother with blood research.

- Do you have special tips on research which you think other people haven't thought about or might find very usefull ?

Not a special tip or "secret", but my thoughts on mage recruiting: Because I want my mages to be multi-purpose, I partly buy mages based on their research efficiency (ie: sages), and partly based on their random path spread, trying to get good/diverse paths. For example, Arco mystics have 3 random elemental picks. I buy lots of mystics, hoping for mystics with those picks slotted into only 1 or 2 paths. That gives me more chances of having mages to forge whatever items I need or be boostable to cast the ritual I want to do, etc. If I was playing a less magically-diverse race, I'd still try to get as much spread as I could, but then probably focus on efficiency.

[Borg]

Thanks LintMan, that's the kind of info I'm looking for.

Gimme some more gems please folks

[ July 26, 2004, 07:34: Message edited by: Borg ]

[Stormbinder]

Originally posted by Borg:
Thanks LintMan, that's the kind of info I'm looking for.

Gimme some more gems please folks

Hmmm. All right, here are some tips to help you to get started:


In MP try to build castles around your main reseach centers. If you can't and some of your mages are reseaching in the field labs, position them way back on the battlefield and script your mages to retreat, perhaps after casting few spells. Do the same for your bloodgathering mages. This way your reseachers/bloodhunters will not be destroyed by the random event, or by the cunning enemy. Keep in mind though, that if enemy is determined to wipe out your mages, he may attack all provinces abjustent to your laboratiry, in this case retreat is not a good option.

Never keep all your reseachers in one center since if it'll fall to the enemy your future reseach will be severely crippled. The best way is to allocate several reseach centers it in the back, far from potential frontlines, even if you had to lose 1 turn of reseach due to flying yor mages in the back. (they can pass flying boots to each other). Later on in MP game, protect your reseach centers with Dome spells. Also this way if the things get very hot, you can quickly shift some of your mages from reseach duty to support your troops in the field, using the closest reseach center to your front.

If your lab in the castle is about to fall to the enemy, always try to destroy it. This way not only you'll force your enemy to spend 200gp and occupy 1 mage to rebuild it, but also it'll deny enemy instant transfer of items/gems to help them in future conquest. But don't wait until the Last moment, if you've decided to burn your lab, do it at least 1 turn before the enemy smash your gates, or you'll not have time to do it since "destroying lab" order happens after the battle phase.

If you choose magic>0, as you may very well do, as I said in previous Posts, use the labs which do not have the best magic scale rating yet (those in newly conquered lands, or near strong enemy dominion, etc.) for summons/fogring/spellsearching, and those that have your maximium dominion magic spell for pure reseach.

Burning laterns are best reseach enhancing items in the game, from cost/benefit ratio. Skull mentors are also very good. Owl suck unless you are swiming in airgems and don't have anything else to do with them.


"TAB" button is your friend.


All right, hope this will help you in the begining. Good luck!

[Frosted Flake]

I should have said as Neifelheim , jotun has terrible reseachers..250 au for 7 is as bad as it gets


frosted flake

[Arryn]

Originally posted by Frosted Flake:
I should have said as Neifelheim , jotun has terrible reseachers..250 au for 7 is as bad as it gets

I'm rather partial to Seithkona, and in general I prefer the Utgard theme to Neifel. The Neifel giants may kick butt, but they are too expensive for my taste, and the Neifel theme does leave me feeling magically-impaired. If I need a mini-SC chassis, I'd much rather build it on a Bane Lord or a Firbolg playing the Utgard theme than a Neifel giant, freeing up my cash to buy magic researchers. If I played Neifel, my money would be tied up in either cost-ineffective mages or in pricey mini-SCs.

But this strays afar from the thread's topic, so I'll stop discussing the Joys of Jotun(TM) now.

[Boron]

Originally posted by Arryn:

quote:

---

Originally posted by Frosted Flake:
I should have said as Neifelheim , jotun has terrible reseachers..250 au for 7 is as bad as it gets

I'm rather partial to Seithkona, and in general I prefer the Utgard theme to Neifel. The Neifel giants may kick butt, but they are too expensive for my taste, and the Neifel theme does leave me feeling magically-impaired. If I need a mini-SC chassis, I'd much rather build it on a Bane Lord or a Firbolg playing the Utgard theme than a Neifel giant, freeing up my cash to buy magic researchers. If I played Neifel, my money would be tied up in either cost-ineffective mages or in pricey mini-SCs.

But this strays afar from the thread's topic, so I'll stop discussing the Joys of Jotun(TM) now.

---

yeah the Niefel giants unfortunately have no recuperation and will sooner or later get an affliction if used early because you can't equip them too good so early .

thnx for the rp graph caine and storm and arryn

[Kel]

Really? One of the first earth items I try to forge is that dwarven hammer - the sooner you get one, the more benefit you can get out of it.

Of course...it's just harder to forge. I can forge research items with 3 different paths and 2 of them require only 1 in a path. In contrast to the hammer that requires an E3 mage. Obviously not a problem with a couple of races but with most races, it's going to take you a while, plus other items (like earth boots) to get to a hammer.

In addition to that, and this is just me, I tend to only forge research items if I am intending a focused rush to a certain research level. In which case, I want the research asap.

It's not that I don't forge a hammer at earliest convenience, it's just that I only really find use for the research items (ok, not so much the lantern) in the extreme early game and hammers just aren't as convenient (given that you can make research items with 3 different paths and lower path requirements to boot).

I suppose that if you were looking at an end game rush strategy (clamming/wishing being the only semi famous one I can think of), this might not be true (I don't know how the numbers on how clams vs. research works out the best). Then again, I am only speaking for me and I have never started a game with a strategy to clam anyway

- Kel