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Taerkar
Dec 7, 2002

kind of into it, really

Should be able to get the first part of Water 1 up this afternoon.

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Taerkar
Dec 7, 2002

kind of into it, really

Age of Wonders 2 - Water: Initiation Phase, Halfling Repose


Reborn from the waters I feel a new life upon me, a new beginning from which I can gain understanding of the sphere of water. And this path will be found with the assistance of the halflings. They are quite useful as merchants and as such I shall join them to start my new education.



Unlike before I have a friend in this stage, Marinus. While not quite as useful in a fight as Karissa is, he is by far a more reliable and trustworthy individual. There is seldom profit in war is a favorite saying of his. To get me going he provides me with some reading information while I am on my way to join him.



Halflings posted:

Halfings are friends with Eagles. Because they lack aggression, Halflings have relatively crude weaponry, preferring to pelt their enemies with many stones. Their toughest brawler is given the honorary title of "Sheriff" in their town, at which point he is given a bright red uniform, making him the most obvious target, while all the other halflings of the town find ways to excuse themselves from battle.


Dwarves posted:

According to dwarven tradition, a dwarven male that is unable to best his wife in a show of physical strength, is called an engineer. Dwarven engineers are capable of fixing all machines, and inanimate objects. They are consigned to a life of fiddling with contraptions in the hopes of somehow discovering a way of pleasing their overbearing mate. When dwarves accumulate enough resources they create mighty machines capable of destroying entire armies and blasting holes in the most formidable walls.


Dark Elves posted:

They merge their rebellious with spiders and then worship their abominable creations as demigods. Dark Elves desire nothing more than complete world domination, at which point they would turn upon themselves and destroy themselves.

Many races inhabit the lands here, beyond just the Halflings and Humans. Dwarves I have briefly encountered before and there are Goblins and Orcs present as well. Rumors speak of some Dark Elves lurking about in the depths of the world here, but I do not yet have confirmation of this.



My arrival in the land is relatively unheralded, save for a single messenger from Marinus awaiting me. He claims to be unable to assist me directly, but has informed me of a nearby Halfling settlement that I settle into.




True to his word there is a small village nearby. Not the ideal means of starting off, but it will be a means by which progress can eventually be made.



Further assistance arrives the next day, an Elven Stalker by the name of Avernus. It seems that the assistance that I received from Julia in the desert was just a start. I welcomed him and immediately started to make plans with his assistance.

Me posted:

Pretty average as far as heroes go, Avernus has some wasted points on Control Animal. It's useful on regular units, but kinda wasted on heroes as later on it just becomes easier to murder the animal instead of maybe controlling it.



The Halflings were so overjoyed to be graced with a presence of a wizard that they threw a party. Apparently it is called "Let's prop up a big ol' tower. Thing of the banners that will fly from it!" in their language.




All is not all happiness and joy on this island, however, as there is a Goblin settlement to the south that must be dealt with. Fortunately it is relatively new and poorly defended, but it does fly the banner of one of my foes here, Mab.

Me posted:

Early level Goblin units. The Grunt is their tier .5 unit, the Darter and Bomber we're all familiar with from the first game. No real change to either of them. Of interesting note though is that the Goblin Bomber is technically a siege unit as it comes from the construction/siege building line, not the barracks.



And she is not a very pleasant individual to deal with.


She favors her Goblins greatly and refers to them as her children. Their foes are her foes and she will occasionally use the Orcs as well, though typically only the scavenger clans that have been banished from Orc society. After all, no true Orc will let a Goblin rule them.




Avernus leads a small contingent of Halflings to evict the Goblins from their island. The fight is a quick and bloody one, and one that likely would have ended better than it had were Avernus accompanied by more martially skilled troops.


Marinus sent a lovely little fruit basket in celebration of the victory and I think I hear some horns bleating outside.



Shortly after this victory I am met by a messenger from Nimue, a foppish man that was almost gushing with love for the Wizardess. His presence alone disgusted me a little by how smitten he was with her.


And what a vain Wizardess she is. Nimue has spent so much time admiring her reflection in the waters she treasures so that she has forgotten how to deal with others. To her almost everything else is a plaything or a toy, easily disposed of should it bring displeasure to her. And yet people adore her.




An amphibious assault is a difficult task for the most skilled of warriors and as such a near-impossible one of the halflings I am dealing with here. As such it will take a great amount of preparation before I can set off on it, leaving Avernus with plenty of time to explore and visit Marinus' land.



Where other races would have fortifications and camps in the face of an outside threat, the Halflings have gardens and beehives. Were it not for the vast sea that separates his islands from the mainland I do not doubt that Marinus would have fallen long ago.





My review of what passes for soldiers among the Halflings is rather depressing. What little I have now is almost useless. They field farming equipment, grip swords the wrong way, and are only good with shields because they can cower behind him. My sole hope right now lies within the natural affinity with a sling that almost all Halflings have.

quote:

Peasants are their tier .5 and are, like so many Halfling units, uninspiring. The Swordsman is pretty forgettable as well and the only saving grace of the Slinger is that they start with Marksmanship I, giving them 3 shots at 8 ATK and 6 DMG, making them somewhat better than most archers.




Avernus' exploration of Marinus' island reveals a few more points of interest, including a cave in the parts of the island that seem to be forgotten or neglected by the halflings.



A gaze into the pool gives an interesting result, but one that is not of any real use to us right now.


Deep in the noxious cave, however, Avernus makes an interesting discovery. An old and forgotten ring, etched in some strange language, that seems to almost quiver with anticipation. It gave him a sense of utter wrongness, however, and thus it was only pocketed by the Elf, not worn.

Me posted:

Yeah, they went there. And in the SP game this ring is almost completely useless. Invisibility doesn't work on the AI and Physical Weakness is a REALLY BAD IDEA. True Seeing isn't worth that handicap.



Some of the Halflings have decided to go on a "Minnesota Vikings Cruise" and have taken the ship out in the harbor and headed north.


Will their minds be able to handle the results of protracted warfare? Or will they drown what they see with their bubbly drinks?



I have heard tales of storms to the west. Will they blunder into an angry crowd and find themselves stranded on a forgotten island?

Me posted:

Upon discovery of this Altar there will be random lightning storm strikes in the area.



Or will they make it safe to the far north and find treacherous jungles where most fear to tread? Only time will tell I suppose.



I will need a strong economic backbone if I am to successfully drive out my foes from this land, and this means that there is a need for expansion. After many a party-meeting I am finally able to convince a great number of Halflings that more wonderful places exist outside of the town to make merry in.



Perhaps a bit too successfully in fact.

Me posted:

When you build a Pioneer unit it'll take a good chunk of population away from the city. And when you consider that a new village only has a population of 35 it becomes apparent that the challenge to settle a new city involves running dozens of games of Oregon Trail at once.



Some of my Halflings even decide to visit Marinus and set up on his island. From what I have been told, disputes over land are settled through what is known as 'Dance-Offs' between the two parties.





It has been many weeks since those Halflings took the ship in the harbor and as they have not returned yet, the remaining populace have decided that they're clearly off having a fabulous time sailing to strange lands, sampling their treats and candies, and just generally partying on the waves. I see no reason to disabuse them of this belief.




I do not think that they would like to know the truth.



As Chaotic as they may seem to outsiders, there is a strange sort of structure to Halfling society, which makes it no surprise to those that are familiar with their ways that the Halflings have a respectful shrine to the Spirit of Order in many of their settlements.


And he does favor them for their ways, though those favors may tend towards things less suitable to the Halfling way.



His next request is not a simple one, unfortunately, and it pushes me to take stock of what resources I have available.




Though my plans have led to more options being available for leading the Halflings to war, I still cannot help but feel a bit depressed when I review my options. Almost all that I see before me reminds me of what my humans could provide, but worse.

Me posted:

Here's the Tier 2 and Tier 3 selections for the Halflings. The Rogue has been effectively knocked down a bit from the (relative) powerhouse that it was in AoW 1. The Pony Rider is mediocre light cavalry and the Sheriff is not nearly as good as the Cavalier (At least until AoW:SM). the Eagle Rider is one of the better scouts in the game, but not suitable for a front-line unit with how fragile it is for a Tier 3.



It takes a great effort but I am able to get the halflings to Waterdown so that they may rebuild the city.


But a poorly-timed "Look at this beautifully set brick!" party causes the construction to not be finished in time. This leaves me with nothing to show for my actions save for a settlement that I cannot hope to defend right now.

Me posted:

Sadly finishing the task the turn that it expires does not count.



But not all of the news is bad. What I feared would be a unified front to deal with on the mainland has come crashing down. I knew it would only be a matter of time before the two wizards turned on each other, but I didn't expect it to be this soon.

This presents an opportunity that I must exploit.

KnoxZone
Jan 27, 2007

If I die before I Wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take.
drat, I forgot that Sheriffs don't get pistols until SM. That makes Halflings a really grim race. I do vaguely remember beating this mission by buildings hordes of slingers and defending the mainland city for a million turns before finally having an army to win the map.

Basarin
Oct 15, 2012
"Some Halfling's Ring?"

Oi.

Still, I remember the halfling slingers being ridiculously useful in this game? Or did they tone it down for AoW 2?

LordSloth
Mar 7, 2008

Disgruntled (IT) Employee
Continuing to enjoy the lp, better you play halflings than me.

I'm convinced halflings could have been viable if their concealment worked, but they come out more like the less awesome version of MoM halflings in this game. Build Sheriff, with leadership and bard's skills, lead mixed army of evil and good units that are actually useful.

If you play through this mission without keeping a thriving goblin town or two, more power to you.

Oh, and just to point out on the sheriff, he's definitely smoking weed.

Dr_Gee
Apr 26, 2008
Never got past this mission while playing the game, unfortunately. Looking forward to seeing the rest!

Glazius
Jul 22, 2007

Hail all those who are able,
any mouse can,
any mouse will,
but the Guard prevail.

Clapping Larry
Are Halfling units, like, cheaper or something to make up for their decreased power?

Boldor
Sep 4, 2004
King of the Yeeks

Glazius posted:

Are Halfling units, like, cheaper or something to make up for their decreased power?

By some, but in base Age of Wonders 2 it is nowhere near enough until you reach leprechauns. It doesn't really matter that a slinger costs 25 and a elven longbow costs 30, since they cost the same in maintenance anyway. Usually a difference in cost like that matters little unless the upkeep varies (I don't think this ever varies much at the same tier?), or the base price is different enough that it makes a difference in build time (but then again, you won't build too many witches/herbalists over knights playing as humans, and that cost difference is substantial).

Leprechauns are good, AoW Shadow Magic halflings are good, but base AoW2 halflings bite at lower levels.

I suppose it makes up for halflings being awesome in Master of Magic. (They're overall the best race in that game, good enough that it's worthwhile specifically choosing them even on Myrror and even though they're not a Myrran race.)

Taerkar
Dec 7, 2002

kind of into it, really

I'm not aware of any unit that has a different upkeep cost for their tier, which is the main limit on 'usefulness'. If Halflings were cheaper to upkeep then maybe they'd be decent in AoW 2, but as it stands they're not all that great. The Slingers are probably their best low-tier unit after the Rogue got neutered.

In SM they get +4 RES, which is rather nice actually, and the Rogue gets a LOT of stuff back (Extra movement, more movement types, better attack)

Cardiovorax
Jun 5, 2011

I mean, if you're a successful actress and you go out of the house in a skirt and without underwear, knowing that paparazzi are just waiting for opportunities like this and that it has happened many times before, then there's really nobody you can blame for it but yourself.

quote:

According to dwarven tradition, a dwarven male that is unable to best his wife in a show of physical strength, is called an engineer. Dwarven engineers are capable of fixing all machines, and inanimate objects. They are consigned to a life of fiddling with contraptions in the hopes of somehow discovering a way of pleasing their overbearing mate. When dwarves accumulate enough resources they create mighty machines capable of destroying entire armies and blasting holes in the most formidable walls.
The dwarf description always makes me laugh my rear end off. "Pussy-whipped" as an actual unit type is just hilarious to me.

Also, love what you did with the halflings. Dance-offs as a diplomatic measure suits their personality perfectly.

madmac
Jun 22, 2010

Glazius posted:

Are Halfling units, like, cheaper or something to make up for their decreased power?

Like everyone else said, no there's not really any trade-off for Halfling units being slow and fragile and bad at fighting in this game. They just straight up blow chunks.

Shadow Magic made halflings good again by buffing the poo poo out of them. The low tier fighting units got their recruitment cost cut down to almost nothing, most units gained concealment, Rogues got mega-buffed, the entire race went from resist 6 to resist 10, Sheriffs got pistols, ect.

A lot of races got way more fun to play in Shadow Magic but for Halflings the difference is night and day.

Torrannor
Apr 27, 2013

---FAGNER---
TEAM-MATE

madmac posted:

A lot of races got way more fun to play in Shadow Magic but for Halflings the difference is night and day.

That's true, I wish they had left the magic system alone instead of ruining it :(

The thing about this mission is that it really demonstrates the power of defending a walled settlement. While the enemy is busy destroying your gates and later fighting through your blockers in the gates, your ranged troops can kill the enemy's troops. Having a good cheap ranged unit is a real benefit here.

Although this can be even stronger in Shadow Magic. Play as the Dwarves with water magic. Have the building that heals your walls and gates, and cast mud to change the battlefield. With your enemy's advance on your walls slowing to a crawl, and your enchanted walls having a chance to freeze enemies, and your walls regenerating, your ranged troops have all the time in the world to crush the sieging army. I was even able to survive my opponent casting hellfire, destroying a good part of my walls. By the time his troops reached them, my fortifications were already regenerated.

If you fight against phasing enemies (like Leprechauns or Iron Maidens) or fliers, this strategy is much less powerful though.

Torrannor fucked around with this message at 14:06 on Mar 25, 2014

Taerkar
Dec 7, 2002

kind of into it, really

The Dwarves get absolutely insane in SM. The Engineer gets a pistol, allowing for you to have nothing but siege weapons and engineers defending your cities.

And of course the hilarity that the Steam Tank becomes.

Boldor
Sep 4, 2004
King of the Yeeks

Taerkar posted:

The Dwarves get absolutely insane in SM. The Engineer gets a pistol, allowing for you to have nothing but siege weapons and engineers defending your cities.

And of course the hilarity that the Steam Tank becomes.

Well, you also want some runemasters to hold your gates. And a few clerics to back up the runemasters. Just steam tanks, cannons, and engineers don't do very well if the enemy ground offense is strong enough to break through your gates.

Yes, this from the experience of the last campaign mission in Shadow Magic, how did you know?

Bloodly
Nov 3, 2008

Not as strong as you'd expect.

quote:

That's true, I wish they had left the magic system alone instead of ruining it

I don't see any difference between this and Shadow Magic. What's the issue? Explain to a dumbass.

Torrannor
Apr 27, 2013

---FAGNER---
TEAM-MATE

Bloodly posted:

I don't see any difference between this and Shadow Magic. What's the issue? Explain to a dumbass.

The way they changed the sphere system, from being a water mage and knowing all water spells, or a cosmos mage and knowing ALL spells, to you being able to customize your mage with the various spheres. One of my biggest problems is that you won't get all spells of a sphere anymore, even if you specialize in only that sphere. And they needlessly nerfed cosmos, you basically only get the level 1 spells of each sphere if you take pure cosmos. If they had it like in AoW1, where you could get level 1-4 spells of one sphere and then level 1-3 of another sphere was much better than the SM system.

Taerkar
Dec 7, 2002

kind of into it, really

Age of Wonders 2 - Water: Initiation Phase, Tricks and Treats


After many days of contests and practice, I was informed by my Halfling followers that they had prepared a secret weapon to use to claim more of Marinus' land. This 'Breakdancing' proved to be something that Marinus was wholly unprepared for and secured yet more of his land for my purposes.



This new mastery also brought in an unexpected boon as it drew the attention of some Leprechauns to my Halflings. These notorious tricksters are also well known for their dances, sometimes to the point where a Leprechaun will never stop dancing, even when they sleep. Apparently these Leprechauns have not only learned of 'Breakdancing', but have declared themselves to be the Lords of the Breakdance and expressed an intent to spread it to all.

Me posted:

And there it is, folks, the Leprechaun. Laughably bad offensive stats, but a defense that's hard to beat. Their low HP means that lucky hits can chip them down quickly, but regen means that you have to kill them or else.



As the Lord of the Breakdance prepare for their enlightened quest, I am given another task by the Spirit of Order, a task which is easily completed unlike the former one.




A handful of the Leprechaun Lords accompany Avernus to explore a magic vault on the northern end of the island. This first test does not go as well as I had hoped, but I am promised that practices are to work out the kinks.


They make a request for some special props to help spread the glory of the breakdance, props that take the form of gaudy jewelry and large timepieces on chains. I have long since stopped asking questions.





A little daytrip to the west provides a boon from the small island there. Resources from a forgotten project and a node of raw mana are located, as is a suitable site for a nice vacation resort, one that will no doubt contribute much to my coffers in the future.



My sleeping has been a bit restless, no doubt due to the monumental task that lies before me. I have put a great deal of trust in these "Lords of the Breakdance" and if they do not deliver then I do not know what to do next. During one of those nights I was visited by the Spirit of Order, who informed me of a small Orc warparty that was on my island.



A war party that Marinus was quite happy to handle. While his ability to wage war over a distance is limited, he does prove to be a strong defensive ally.

Me posted:

You can pretty much ignore any 'Kill heretics' quest that pops up on your island as Marinus will send overwhelming forces to crush it, which gives you credit for quest purposes.



The Spirit of Order was quite pleased with this show of cooperation and offered two rather nice rewards for this accomplishment. As nice as the ring was, I could not pass up the opportunity to further increase my finances.


Especially as the last piece of my plan has settled into place.


There is no hesitation as I immediately start to work on the ritual.




I feel the rush of power flow through me as I finish the ritual, and within hours I start to hear from my followers the results of it. The fields are more productive and tiny little gemstones seem to just grow from the ground for any passerby to collect.

Me posted:

It has been (necessarily) nerfed from the original version, but it's still +20 Gold per city, albeit for a rather pricey upkeep. Though mana income becomes less important than gold after a certain point.





The Lords of the Breakdance have begun their sacred quest and their first converts are the Goblins that took Waterdown from me. The Goblins could not resist the spectacle of the Breakdance and were seen fleeing from their ill-begotten homes in shame.



The Spirit of Order clearly approved of this and provided further assurance that my next chosen target would be the correct one. After all, what good is a doorway without anything for it to open into?





Stronger resistance is provided by the Goblins this time against the Lords of the Breakdance, but in the end they cannot hold against the majesty and terror that such moves provide. Their square contraptions are torn apart and the shamed creatures are sent fleeing into the swamps beyond.




I am not sure what to make of the Spirit of Order's rewards for this achievement. Perhaps he is worried that I may be unbalancing things too much?



In the end though that is not a primary concern, as the main purpose for taking the settlement was for the wizard tower, not for the Spirit of Order. That tower allows for Avernus and a cannon battery to travel from our capitol to the front lines, providing immediate reinforcements.

Me posted:

The wonder of a Teleportation gate in action. It allows for troops to move instantly from one Wizard's Tower to another, no matter what the distance. Stacking rules still apply of course, but it makes things a lot easier than shuttling troops around the map.



Some Goblin stragglers are found and handled by the Lords of the Breakdance, allowing for them and my own focus to turn to the north.


A north where trouble has long since brewed and a shattered peace is spread over plains and swamps.





A war that I will certainly take advantage of and the Lords will use to further demonstrate their mastery of all things. Not even large hordes of Goblins can stand a change against the Way of the Breakdance.



And it seems that shame spread from the Goblins to their so-called Goddess. Through both Nimue's actions and my own, Mab has been driven from this land, her influence gone.



The Spirit of Order is starting to act like the Spirit of War in this land, which is a surprising thing but not an unwelcome thing.



The task is an easy one to accomplish and one that is very satisfying to me as it means that some of my fellow Humans are no longer under Nimue's terrible influence.


And the Spirit of Order is much more agreeable as well with this victory. I send the ring with further orders to Avernus, as well as more of the Lords of the Breakdance to finish up their sacred work in this land.



We're going to have a great party soon.

KnoxZone
Jan 27, 2007

If I die before I Wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take.
Oh Leprechauns. When I build them they die in one hit to a charging Orc Cavalry, but when the enemy has them I have to sit there and watch as it dances around every attack I throw at it for 6 turns. I hate those little fucks so much.

JamieTheD
Nov 4, 2011

LPer, Reviewer, Mad Welshman

(Yes, that's a self portrait)
Hrm, breakdancing, dance offs, and a great wit, eh? Yup, sounds like leprechauns. But I can't help but think MC Hammer lyrics whenever I watch them fight...

Torrannor
Apr 27, 2013

---FAGNER---
TEAM-MATE
The Spirit of Order is definitely showing it's aggressive side here. But you can never go wrong with a new global enchantment that you could not learn on your own! Spirit rewards can be really helpful, it's one of the best things in AoW2.

And a Leprechaun brigade. Those battle results are all too familiar. Having them on your side is great, fighting against them is torture.

Taerkar
Dec 7, 2002

kind of into it, really

To put it into perspective, there's only two units that have a base attack of 17: The Kharagh and Glutton. There's a handful more at 16 and 15 attack, but that means that the best offensive unit in the game (unmodified) has a 50/50 chance of hitting a Leprechaun, less actually because the Leprechaun has Blurred (25% miss chance). Now a couple of units have special attacks at 18 (Fire Cannon, Shoot Javelin, and Steam), but they're all mechanical units and thus will get murdered by sabotage (Save for the Air Galley since Sabotage can't normally hit air units)

Taerkar fucked around with this message at 02:27 on Mar 29, 2014

double nine
Aug 8, 2013

If the leprichaun animation isn't entirely obvious from the images, here is an animated gif lifted from heavengames:



it's adorable. (source:http://aow2.heavengames.com/media/animations)

Glazius
Jul 22, 2007

Hail all those who are able,
any mouse can,
any mouse will,
but the Guard prevail.

Clapping Larry
So Leprechauns just bolt everything to death and never get hit?

Torrannor
Apr 27, 2013

---FAGNER---
TEAM-MATE

Glazius posted:

So Leprechauns just bolt everything to death and never get hit?

Yes. That sums it up.

Peanut3141
Oct 30, 2009

Torrannor posted:

Yes. That sums it up.

So how awful would a leprechaun on leprechaun fight be? 10 attack, 18 resistance. Would any leprechaun die before the player did of old age?

madmac
Jun 22, 2010

quote:

So Leprechauns just bolt everything to death and never get hit?

That's about it!

Not only that, but they have:

Regen: Heal back to full health every turn out of combat.
Concealment: Invisible on the campaign map.
Swimming: Can Cross Water
Sabotage: Massive damage vs siege weapons, unlimited use.
Phase: Can teleport once in combat. Walls are useless.

Leprechauns are tiny avatars of concentrated bullshit to try and deal with. They're the one unit no one forgets after playing this game.

my dad
Oct 17, 2012

this shall be humorous

madmac posted:

Leprechauns are tiny avatars of concentrated bullshit to try and deal with. They're the one unit no one forgets after playing this game.

I never had any trouble with them. :shobon: Although I usually buff my troops a lot, so that might help a bit.

Krumbsthumbs
Oct 23, 2010

2nd Place.
1st Loser.

my dad posted:

I never had any trouble with them. :shobon: Although I usually buff my troops a lot, so that might help a bit.

Agreed, although I've never fought more than 2 together before. Does their bullshit feed off each other? I've never really had problems killing them with Karaghs because power + speed = killing those buggers before they do too much damage.

Krumbsthumbs fucked around with this message at 18:34 on Mar 30, 2014

madmac
Jun 22, 2010
It's really more a multiplayer thing. The AI isn't smart enough to mass Leprechauns or use them properly. Even then I wouldn't say they're the strongest thing in the game, just infuriating.

quote:

Although I usually buff my troops a lot, so that might help a bit.


Funnily enough, they can also dispel buffs. :) I don't think I've ever had cause to use it, though.

my dad
Oct 17, 2012

this shall be humorous

madmac posted:

Funnily enough, they can also dispel buffs. :) I don't think I've ever had cause to use it, though.

That's the thing, every turn spent unbuffing my units is a turn not spent trying to murder them.

Krumbsthumbs
Oct 23, 2010

2nd Place.
1st Loser.

my dad posted:

That's the thing, every turn spent unbuffing my units is a turn not spent trying to murder them.

I'm fairly sure they can't dispel if enough units get attacks off at melee range (2-3 should make dispel impossible that turn.)

Boldor
Sep 4, 2004
King of the Yeeks

madmac posted:

Leprechauns are tiny avatars of concentrated bullshit to try and deal with. They're the one unit no one forgets after playing this game.

Air galleys are the other. The thing about air galleys (and steam tanks in Shadow Magic to some extent) is that you can pile a bunch of powerful slow units like cannons in them, and rampage around the map at air galley+ speed.

Moving a transport doesn't cost movement points for the units inside, so anything inside can take short side trips as long as they can get back to the air galley before it moves on; doing this effectively gives an air galley stack significant extra speed.

The AI doesn't really know how to either exploit this or defend against it, no more than it knows how to build oh-god-annoying stacks of 8 leprechauns.

You aren't allowed to stack air galleys because it's a transport, which is their biggest disadvantage. If you could, they'd be beyond overpowered.

Taerkar
Dec 7, 2002

kind of into it, really

A bit of bad news/good news everyone.

The bad news is that I'm going to be a bit slow about updates.

The good news is that's because AoW 3 is out now!

Torrannor
Apr 27, 2013

---FAGNER---
TEAM-MATE

Taerkar posted:

A bit of bad news/good news everyone.

The bad news is that I'm going to be a bit slow about updates.

The good news is that's because AoW 3 is out now!

We demand a mini-AoW 3 review in exchange for a slower update pace!

Just kidding, enjoy the game.

Thyrork
Apr 21, 2010

"COME PLAY MECHS M'LANCER."

Or at least use Retrograde Mini's to make cool mechs and fantasy stuff.

:awesomelon:
Slippery Tilde

Taerkar posted:

A bit of bad news/good news everyone.

The bad news is that I'm going to be a bit slow about updates.

The good news is that's because AoW 3 is out now!

:neckbeard: hope you're enjoying it as much as i am!

Taerkar
Dec 7, 2002

kind of into it, really

I am indeed.

I've got a test tomorrow, but I should be able to knock out the rest of Water 1 this weekend. If nothing else I will swarm my foes with giggles.

Taerkar
Dec 7, 2002

kind of into it, really

I am a horrible liar. But I shall provide you this as an apology for my tardiness:

All aboard the Party Balloon!

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boredsatellite
Dec 7, 2013

That's a hellship

Torrannor
Apr 27, 2013

---FAGNER---
TEAM-MATE
Party balloon! :woop:

Instead of sating my Age of Wonders addiction by reading your LP I played Age of Wonders 3, which is a great game. Still, nice to have it back this week.

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JamieTheD
Nov 4, 2011

LPer, Reviewer, Mad Welshman

(Yes, that's a self portrait)
Whisky Tango Foxtrot, we are delivering the Awesome Birthday Party to our foes.

If you don't show us the true horror wonders of Awesome Party soon, I will get cranky (because I don't have AoW3 to fall back on). After all, I loves me a bit of "OHGODWHYISTHISKILLINGEVERYONE?!?"

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