Looking for TienChi S&A EVIL strats - anyone?

[KissBlade]

Morkilus said:
I'm sure you'll get better posts than from me, but I love to pounce on strategy threads to get people rolling...

I'd make the Black Servant Thug® equipped with the following, in order of importance:

Rime Hauberk
Horror Helm
Lucky Amulet
Girdle of Might (in case you fight lifeless, i assume)
Flying Boots (seems useful for sniping unprotected armies)

Kissblade (on the forums) has been the one obsessed with this theme, contact him or search for his posts for some deep thought if he's interested.

Hehe. If I recall, Black Servants don't work during 5.4 anymore since they don't have life drain anymore. Try not to get a rainbow pretender actually, try to get an early combat (Dragon really since Wyrm requires a bit of research) or VQ because that'll be your main power in expanding in the beginning. Your early forces just won't be that good since your only real units are going to be archers, I haven't found the other troops ever effective so archers with a basic thug or two in the front is alright (or even water demons). I don't like to send celestials master out till late game or unless I'm in a war. They're so expensive and you need them for so many things. Or enpower yourself to make one. Do get a high magic scale though. From there on, I'd just try to research up a lot and stay low profile and explode out the gates with gem income spells later on. Don't be overly aggressive till then because you really don't have a good military till you have a solid research + gem base going. Oh and spirit mastery is nice but not as good as you think since it's not mage effective to mass lots of them as screens.

[quantum_mechani]

KissBlade said:
If I recall, Black Servants don't work during 5.4 anymore since they don't have life drain anymore.

No, that would be next version...

[Oversway]

I havn't tried this, but what about spamming lesser elementals, since they've been moved to level 1? TC has good site searchers so you can afford to waste some gems early on, right?

[Turin]

I still find the best way to go with s&a is using a waterdragon, lvl 9 water is nice, but not needed. He can take most province right at the start, when you script him to hold or fire*5 and then fire closest. Just don´t go to the usual SC killer provinces (crossbows, lizards, strong barbs and cavalry).

Don´t bother buying regular troops, start hoarding CM´s(prophetize one) and immediately search your provinces with them. Research alteration 3 for body ethereal. Once you get there, burn all your watergems for riverdemons, you should get ~10. Send them out with 2 cm´s(for blessing and bodyethereal) on the remaining provinces, which your dragon couldn´t take. With the bless, body ethereal and luck, those demons will be able to take lvl 9 provinces easily.

From that point on it depends on what sites you find, but try to get a second fort early for masters of the way. Use blood masters as bloodhunters, astral masters for demon summoning,fire ones make decent battlemages and you can use the death ones for spirit summoning.

If you get pressured you can hold of research and spam demons of heavenly fires with your CM´s, which make great raiding parties.