On the effective early use of Pretenders in combat

[Huzurdaddi]

since the only 100% sure way to not get afflictions is to not get hit!

LOL. I agree. And the astral shield really helps too.

The reason why you are getting more afflictions is because the chance is related to what percentage of your HP the damage you receive is. So the lower your hit points, the more likely you are to get an affliction.

I did not know that it works this way. If so well that makes a big difference!

Being a walking blender is helpful too (understatement)... but that's hard to balance with not falling unconcious due to fatique...

Actually this is a big one IMO. I find that many times my SC's (not the vamp queen) go unconcious due to fatigue. This is one of the main reasons I like her. Perhaps I do too much buffing. You really should see if you can work earth into your pretender for Earth Might. But your fear of +10 probably saves you from really long fights.