Dud nations

[calmon]

Baalz said:
Well, I'm not going to comment on Ulm as I haven't really played them in EA or MA, but I am surprised that more people haven't mentioned MA Mictlan. They loose all the best things about being Mictlan (blood, cheap researchers) and gain absolutely nothing.

At least they still have the cheap priest researchers. In MA with a 100% random magic (FWSN).

[Baalz]

Oh also MA Argatha has some pretty good stuff going for it. Ubrals have some pretty wicked combos (gift of reason, iron warriors), the sacred statues are insanely tough for early game and can easily carry you through midgame with a good blessing. Plus the powerful earth mages pack a good punch mid game (earth quake, blade wind, or destruction depending on what you're facing). Skull mentors ARE easy because what they do have is dark knowledge, and it only costs 30 death (4 skull mentors) to empower somebody to 2D if you haven't got a random pick. Good research (skull mentors plus lightless lanterns) and several solid non-unique SC chasises can be a strong late game if you play it right. Also, because of their solid summons early, mid, and late game they can go with fairly crappy scales and depend on the summons for the core of their army.

[Meglobob]

Baalz said:Now, EA R'yleh I have to strongly disagree is a dud, but you do have to play them quite differently. They have very strong defensive capabilities (in the water) but their real offensive power is the sneak attack. Aboleths have strong astral and water plus good hp and life draining, that's all you need for a thug capable of teleporting and taking out most PD singlehandedly with no equipment other than possibly an amulet of the fish (body ethereal, personal luck, quicken self, astral shield, breath of winter, attack closest). The trick to EA R'yleh is knowing full well you can't carry on a head to head fight on the land with an evenly matched opponent...so don't. Use your natural water defenses and long border to watch for opportunities to sneak attack, and in MP leverage this to cultivate allies to help you carry the fight on land (ie need help with that war you're in against Pangea?). Don't attack until you can cause enough damage in your initial attack (swarming over your long border and teleporting in aboleths everywhere just when your target committed most of his troops elsewhere) that it cripples your enemies ability to counterattack. This can be amplified by a withering barrage of mind hunts- also best served as a surprise. You've got to think of EA R'yleh like a submarine- surface and fire at a battleship head on and you're gonna lose every time, but if you play to your strengths your opponents won't know you're there until it's too late.

So your a submarine and I am a battleship, in that case where are my destroyers with the depth charges?

[Potatoman]

I agree with Baalz about EA Ryleh; I actually won an MP game with that nation. The strength of the Aboleths is in Mind Lord SCs- one random earth pick and some research will give you a truly fearsome AOE life-draining SC that can be fielded very early in the game. Later in the game, your Mind Lord and Golem SCs can teleport around wreaking havoc. Unfortunately, lobo guards are your only real troop option, and they are not so good. You live and die by your SCs as EA Ryleh.

As an aside, the first nation I eliminated in that MP game was EA Ulm.

[DrPraetorious]

Obviously it requires a certain amount of thought, but here's a first draft. I'm going to wait until the next patch before I do any more actual coding and testing. Let me know what you think.

Construction 3, Sparks. The master smith shatters an earth gem in his mailed fist, sending the fragments hurtling into the enemy.
EF, 100 fatigue. 15 effects + 5 per level of earth magic. 15 points of fire damage (not armor piercing), precision -3. Very long range.

Construction 5, Purified Lance. A lance of purified steel is sent hurtling towards the enemy at tremendous speed, striking unerringly, inflicting massive damage, especially to demons and undead.
EE, 100 fatigue. Pre 100. 50 points of physical holy damage.

Construction 7, Shrapmetal. A rain of shattered metal fragments falls on the entire battlefield.
EEE, 200 fatigue. AoE entire battlefield. 15 points of physical damage.

Thaumaturgy 3, Word of Steel. The magic-draining properties of iron are deadly to beings of the spheres. Words endowed with their power are a weapon against which these unnatural beings have no defense.
EE, 50 fatigue. Does 25 points of untyped damage to a single magical being. 100 Pre. Do not pass go. Do not collect $200.

Thaumaturgy 4, Bane Metal. Hammers and manacles are used in a sympathetic rite to symbolize the dominance of iron over false Gods and their idols, which are shattered and bound. Holy warriors who see their icons treated such, if theylack the will to resist the magic, will find themselves bound and their bones shattered.
EEEE, 200 fatigue. Strikes all hostile sacred units. Magic resistance negates easily. Cripples and also inflicts false fetters. If I can add side effects in the new patch, this will be two effects so targets can suffer one or both conditions.
Thaumaturgy 6, Iron Rage. (Buff, all friendly units, MR+).
Thaumaturgy 7, Purity of Iron. (Buff, all friendly units, MR+)

I have to decide what the buffs do. Problem - Berserk and Haste are two different effect #s, so I can't combine them unless I can give spells side effects.

[Dedas]

Cool spells, but shouldn't sparks cost an earth gem?