How to deal with elephants

[Lazy_Perfectionist]

I don't remember, do elephants stop when they encounter an enemy, or do they just trample straight on through to your back lines?

Hmmm... an awake pretender could definetly help with research, as well as a few other things, but I'll assume for simplicity's sake that you've recruited a Thaumaturg each turn, dedicated to research. (4+40)/2 * 10. So, maybe 220 rp to commit. Say... level three in one school, give or take.

I am curious whether Astral Shield responds to tramplers at all, or only melee attacks.

Well.. have you considered throwing in a few dozen Retarius? Even 10 of them are cheaper than one elephant, let alone ten elephants. And if they manage to net one or two elephants, it'll cover the cost. As a small bonus, they have a higher combined damage of 19+DRN versus the Shadow Vestal's 14+DRN. I hate to recruit one-use troops, but elephants seem like a good enough cause. I'd use the vestals to hold the center, and the retarius to hold the flanks.