Questions regarding my strategies

[Loren]

Mass wave tactics, meet Master Enslave.

In a MP game I'm in I just watched an army that looked like it could steamroll anything in it's path.

It met a force consisting of some blockaders, some communion slaves and a pretender that was the communion master followed by a couple of master enslaves.

The steamroller is now going the other direction.

[K]

The most common newbie mistake is to ignore the power of magic(spells and gems).

Strategically, it has a lot of use. Invincible armies of troops can be destroyed outright with a single battlefield enchantment, but it is even the small spells that can turn important battles. A few mages casting Falling Fires allows them to kill far more troops than their gold cost would indicate.

Using gems wisely is also of primary importance. Always look at the number of troops killed (or saved) for your investment in gems. For example, a Sceptor of Authority will kill far more troops over its lifetime than Fire Sword for the same gem cost, but for triple the gems a Wand of Wild Fire will kill more than triple the troops. A Flame Storm will kill enough troops in five castings(total five gems) to put all to shame.

Research is way of more efficiently using your gems as higher level effects become better. While the late game requires powerful mages to get to these magics, Communions, boosters, and the summons are all ways to reach these powerful magics.

In general, your overall strategy should be based on what magic you are pursuing. For example, Fire nations are wise to invest in archers(Flaming Arrows) and Fever Fetishes (requires Nature and Fire).

[Sombre]

There is something to be said for extreme aggro swarming in the MP early and mid game. It forces your opponent to switch from research and building their SCs and the like to simply trying to keep hold of enough land to keep their income. It's tricky though and it WILL get you killed in MP a lot of the time because while you ruin your opponent by throwing all your resources at them, you also worry people and are weak to attacks - by going right for the early game pressure on one opponent, you seriously risk your midgame position.

In a duel though,.. can be as effective as an elephant or bless rush.

[Amhazair]

Freespawn nations (such as LA R'lyeh and Ermor) can put swamping tactics to good use, as they have so much chaff that you can afford to attack every border province every turn, and don't care one fig whether all the guys they sent out get killed or not.

If your opponent puts somthing in their path, that's a bit of resources he's not using to otherwise hurt you. If he doesn't put something in their path, well... that's one lost province. And if he really sends something consequential away from the safety of his main armies or forts to deal with your chaff, you can then teleport something designed to deal with it right on top of him.

[Dedas]

A common mistake overall (even late game) is to forget the importance of a mixed army of troops, mages, thugs and perhaps a SC. I often see people using a troop only army, maybe backed up with a few evocation horny mages, that are trying to deal with a single SC - and get slaugthered. Then focusing on their own SC to try to counter the other one, only to get killed by it. The result is usually that they resign after a couple of turns.

[K]

Dedas said:
A common mistake overall (even late game) is to forget the importance of a mixed army of troops, mages, thugs and perhaps a SC. I often see people using a troop only army, maybe backed up with a few evocation horny mages, that are trying to deal with a single SC - and get slaugthered. Then focusing on their own SC to try to counter the other one, only to get killed by it. The result is usually that they resign after a couple of turns.

Adapting is key. If someone throws SCs, you toss in SC killing spells...if someone has tons of chaff, you toss in archers or big evokers.....if someone tosses in lots of mages, you use battlefield-destroying spells....the lists of tactics and potential counters is what makes this game so rich.

[Dedas]

Yes, of course the main goal should be to adapt to every single encounter you have. But in the wild world of dominions things can change very, very fast. It may appear that the enemy builds only one or two types of units, or that his SC is vulnerable to poison and frost, but that might be very wrong with a good player. Suddenly you face and invisible army of shadows and ghosts backed up with a SC who is frost and poison resistant when your army is focused on defeating just the opposite.

It that and many similar situations it is good to not have adapted too much to what you think is right but instead on avoiding the worst case scenario. A dynamic army with a balance between flexibility and focus can do that.