Beware of Ashdod

[OmikronWarrior]

Originally Posted by Zeldor

I think that Ashdod is really better in research than Mictlan. And has much much better battlefield mages.

I would think this would be pretty easy to test figure out. Research ability is just cost/RP, with cheap low level mages usually being the most cost effective researchers in a magic dominion.

[JimMorrison]

Not such an easy test, though. Especially since Chris specified "better battle mages" as well. Often, these are not the same unit.

For example, Mictlan Priests are marvelously cost effective researchers, with Magic1, but they are not extremely useful in battle, most of the time.

[AreaOfEffect]

Originally Posted by JimMorrison

Not such an easy test, though. Especially since Chris specified "better battle mages" as well. Often, these are not the same unit.

For example, Mictlan Priests are marvelously cost effective researchers, with Magic1, but they are not extremely useful in battle, most of the time.

Which is why I always encourage players to buy the Nahualli. 5 research (6 with magic 1) for 110 is solid in my opinion. They may not be as cost efficient, but they can provide a variety of battlefield options. They are great for panic spam, communions, curses, and more. Bringing a bunch along while casting banner of the norther star or using a reverse communion allows for solid astral magic. I can easily make dozons of turkey mages into S3N3 mages, which can be quite effective. The other positives are that these researchers are quick responders, as they can fly, and they get a second life due to their secondary form. Just keep them as turkeies in battle. Flying also allows them to leave losing battles quickly and fly back to labs when the threat is over. Lastly, they have the potential to expand your magic diversity by having blood or death on rare occasions. The only negative is that they aren't sacred, but that hasn't stopped me from obtaining countless victories thanks to them.

[chrispedersen]

Originally Posted by JimMorrison

Not such an easy test, though. Especially since Chris specified "better battle mages" as well. Often, these are not the same unit.

For example, Mictlan Priests are marvelously cost effective researchers, with Magic1, but they are not extremely useful in battle, most of the time.

To make matters more complicated = there are two kinds of effective: straight cost effective and time effective.

[AreaOfEffect]

Originally Posted by chrispedersen

To make matters more complicated = there are two kinds of effective: straight cost effective and time effective.

A point I wanted to bring up. Nahualli may not be as income effective, but they are income light and more time effective. So I just don't buy the Ashdod > Mictlan in research argument. Both of them have what it takes to beat the other if the player behind the wheel wants it bad enough.

[Agema]

Bowfire should not be Mictlan's biggest worry. MA Mictlan has easy access to arrow fend or storm. Even before those spells are researched, archers can be annihilated by setting eagle warriors to fly over and attack them.

[AreaOfEffect]

Bowfire? That came out of left field I think.

Alright, lets get off the subject of Mictlan and back onto non-nation specific ways to deal with Ashdod.

In my opinion, dealing with Ashdod is simular to the way you would deal with an army of thugs. The less you think of their dudes as national recruitables and more like national summones, the more likely it is that you can devise a strategy against them. However, that's just a mindset, not an actual strategy.

[JimMorrison]

Originally Posted by AreaOfEffect

Bowfire? That came out of left field I think.

Alright, lets get off the subject of Mictlan and back onto non-nation specific ways to deal with Ashdod.

In my opinion, dealing with Ashdod is simular to the way you would deal with an army of thugs. The less you think of their dudes as national recruitables and more like national summones, the more likely it is that you can devise a strategy against them. However, that's just a mindset, not an actual strategy.

Basically the functional difference is between -doing a little damage over a large area-, or -doing a lot of damage to single target-.

There are different routes to accomplish both things, but certainly each nation does have tools to use against individual (or small groups of) thugs. There are of course, additional hurdles, such as Ashdod's strong armor at the start of the game, Nature bless, mages that can't be easily killed with stray arrows, etc.

And of course in the grand, convoluted, chess-like strategy of Dominions, if anyone suggests an "ultimate answer to Ashdod" for any particular nation, then a skillful player can prepare to meet that, once they know who their neighbors are.

So in honor of that, I will once again state the *only* foolproof solution to Ashdod, that (almost) everyone can access, and that there is no protection from - Stellar Cascades.

Use this knowledge wisely, my children.

[MaxWilson]

Originally Posted by JimMorrison

So in honor of that, I will once again state the *only* foolproof solution to Ashdod, that (almost) everyone can access, and that there is no protection from - Stellar Cascades.

Use this knowledge wisely, my children.

Hmmm. Thinking more about this, Stellar Cascades doesn't work well IIRC against an opponent who stay well out of range (back of the battlefield) with his troops on Guard Commander. However, IIRC GftH has Range 100, and it will kill anything but a Tartarian or a Pretender in one shot. Therefore, I propose an augmentation of the previous approach: Stellar Cascades + Gifts from the Heavens. Plus Eagle Eyes.

Yay for Marverni!

-Max

[JimMorrison]

That's a good point, Gifts from Heaven is 100 range, and isn't very easy to counter. Though, if they do get Air, a Storm would render them pretty ineffectual at range, with a base Prec of -3.

I'll let one of my favorites go here - if you know your enemy is going to script to stay away from a range 25 spell, have your casters start more forward, and do Attack a Turn once or twice behind your line, and then start casting. This should generally get them into range of anything that was placed in the far back of the enemy field.