Hydra Tamer

[Sombre]

Originally Posted by Amonchakad

I don't think that can be done, but I'm not an expert modder.
As far as I know, you can either automatically summon 1 or 5 units automatically(not BETWEEN 1 and 5, just 1 OR 5), give them the ability to spend a turn for 1,2 or 5 units, or use the automatic summoning dependant on dominion strength, but that isn't really thematic for Hydras.

EDIT: Now that I think of it, there could be a way to have them summon Hydra "eggs", but I fear that the maximum incubation time would be 1 month. Still, better than nothing.

You can:

Have them autosummon per month regardless of anything else: Either 1 or 5 units.

Have them summon allies: 1,2,3,4 or 5 units.

Have them domsummon: Full strength, half strength, 20th strength.

Regarding units which change over time (like eggs hatching) it can be done and you can have it take X months where X is the number of unit ids you are willing to use up. However every time they get into a battle, it also 'accelerates' their 'growth' by the equivalent of 1 month. For eggs not so much a problem.

[chrispedersen]

how would you do that without casting a spell sombre?

[Sombre]

#firstshape changes the unit at the end of a turn or the end of a battle.

Pretty simple.

[chrispedersen]

WAY COOL!!!

I forgot the turn bit.

OH. The sad part: Battles will age them.

[Swan]

well a tamer with archer gear behind the hydra "can" be pretty effective

[Sombre]

No more effective than any other commander with archer gear.

Battles would 'age' the eggs, but I don't think it's too problematic. Easily explained that nearby conflict stimulates the growth of the hatchling.

[Fantomen]

Immobile, 1 hp and I don´t think they´d see that many battles. I´d favor a weak domsummon ability. So every one in a while you´d get an egg. Then it could take 5 months or so for them to hatch.

[chrispedersen]

I do like the immobile bit....
Overall I like this a lot more than the hydra hatchling that dies of old age..

[llamabeast]

You can get round the battle aging with some more unit numbers.

egg1: firstshape=egg2, secondshape=egg1a
egg1a: firstshape=egg1

egg2: firstshape=egg3, secondshape=egg2a
egg2a: firstshape=egg2

etc.

When egg1 dies, it turns into egg1a, which turns back into egg1 at the end of a battle. Now, the reason this helps: give egg1 #onebattlespell "Suicide" where Suicide is a spell that kills the egg1. It'll become an egg1a for the duration of the battle (which is indistinguishable from an egg1), and change back to an egg1 at the end of the battle. No aging has happened.

Quirk: Eggs can't easily be killed by remote spells.

Worry: Oddly, I'm not sure whether you can do the #onebattlespell "Suicide" thing. I seem to have a vague memory of having problems testing something similar.

[HoneyBadger]

Somebody suggested a while back that they start out equipped with the Hydra Skin armour--the one with the 15% regeneration. That would make them more interesting/thematic, and slightly more surviveable. These guys are humans, so it wouldn't be a huge balancing problem, either.