What is the best pretender for Ulm?

[SCKnight]

So, instead of Astral, go with something else, like Earth or Nature?

[quantum_mechani]

No, extra paths are very expensive for the virtue, and don't improve her lot. If you want more versatility, pick a different chassis.

[PDF]

I like an E9 Cyclops and good scales. He's a pretty tough SC and once he has racked up afflictions he can summon Living Statues by droves and/or cast all the big Earth globals.

Giving him a few "something else" (a couple Fire or Water) makes him more versatile but you may have to make it Dormant.

[HoneyBadger]

I like dormant Pretenders. You get 150 building points and only lose your first year-a year that you can spend building up your home province, building armies, researching spells, and building magic items. You aren't immediately in a big push to expand, and you can't do a whole lot that first year, even with a Pretender available, because you'd quickly overextend yourself when your nation is weakest. Another advantage is a year of contemplation about your nation, any special events, and your surrounding neighbors. Sometimes that's worth a whole lot too.

[PDF]

HoneyBadger said:
I like dormant Pretenders. You get 150 building points and only lose your first year-a year that you can spend building up your home province, building armies, researching spells, and building magic items. You aren't immediately in a big push to expand, and you can't do a whole lot that first year, even with a Pretender available, because you'd quickly overextend yourself when your nation is weakest. Another advantage is a year of contemplation about your nation, any special events, and your surrounding neighbors. Sometimes that's worth a whole lot too.

Huh, don't ever do that in MP, you'll end up totally outclassed - it's not unusual to have 8-10 provinces by the end of the first year (even with indies at 7+) !

[PvK]

Dormant or imprisoned pretenders can work fine, but that doesn't mean the nation shouldn't expand. EA Ulm doesn't need a pretender to expand quickly, because they have good units which can be recruited quickly enough. MA Ulm can expand steadily once it acquires a body of heavy infantry of sufficient size that it won't rout. LA Ulm is sort of like MA Ulm in that regard, except it can also mass produce some missile units to get started faster, but they're less durable and heavy inf.

PvK

[HoneyBadger]

I'm not talking about no expansion whatsoever, I'm talking about not taking a province every single turn, which is what I usually am doing by the time I have my Pretender, unless I'm playing R'lyeh, in which case it's usually atleast 1 every 2 turns or better until I've got Wish researched and a pearl-factory set up and can start spamming demon contracts on land.

[Shovah32]

Only 1 every 2 turns with rlyeh? What era are you playing?

[HoneyBadger]

Early era, and I don't really have much use for provinces except as defensive bulwarks, or to take them away from an opponent, because I play ea R'lyeh with all scales except magic and luck at -3. I can usually do a lot more damage to an opponent without leaving my lands than I can for the same amount of effort/cost with an army, via globals, summons, etc.

[Ming]

Don't know what's best, but I had fun in SP using an awake N4 Mother of Earth and good scales.

Use the Pretender for site search until equipped. Then it became quite a lethal SC. The recruited units more than held its own without help due to the strong scales