Assailed by heroes

[Moanerette]

OK... it's early game and I have a fortress besieged by immensely tough looking indy 'heroes' with nasty magic weapons, spells etc. I can't see any way of driving them off, but they're not touching my fortress. If I just wait it out will they get bored and wander off, or am I somewhat in trouble?

[Soyweiser]

You are in a lot of trouble. Basically you cannot use that fort anymore. (or expect some losses). The heroes are strong, and they cheat. One of them is scripted to shoot commanders.

http://dom3.servegame.com/wiki/Bogus

As they always shoot a commander, they are very hard to kill using conventional early game armies.

[JonBrave]

Has he been very wicked to deserve this?

[Moanerette]

Aye, that's the chap. I can't see how I'm going to shift him till I get more powerful magic, as my conventional troops are no match for these irritants (troll mages! I ask you!). That's my year one expansion down the drain then. On the plus side, Bogus and chums are probably blocking the pass more effectively than my fortress on its own was.

[Knai]

What nation are you playing? Bogus and his ilk are surprisingly easy to cut down with some (e.g. Vanheim). You'll take losses, but having a fort out of commission is worse than relatively mild losses.

[Moanerette]

Chelms - LA Man. I had a chance to take a look at the heroes when they first went in, and their combo of high HP/protection and regeneration suggested that it would be hard to make an impact. I suppose a large longbow army might have a chance, but I'm really wary of that target commanders thing Soyweiser mentions. My other option would be to send in the mages with a communion master/slave thing, but if that went wrong and I lost a load of mages that would be disastrous.

[brxbrx]

I love those guys. This is, though, a good opportunity to try out some commander killing stuff, as well as a recruitment chance for SC's if you've got some mind control available.
And some of those magic items aren't at all bad!

[shatner]

Originally Posted by brxbrx

I love those guys. This is, though, a good opportunity to try out some commander killing stuff, as well as a recruitment chance for SC's if you've got some mind control available.
And some of those magic items aren't at all bad!

The game in question is on Turn 13. Mind control isn't an option.


Here's a little advice from his neighbor in that game:

The guy that snipes commanders does so with a bow. By turn 13 you should have a minimum of 26 air gems, allowing you to forge air shield items for your commanders if needed. That way 4 of every 5 shots from the troll sniper will fail to hit, nullifying that particular participant. Failing that, any shield with a decent parry will block most shots; double points if you forge Shields of Valor (5 air, constr-2) because they give both air shield AND a parry bonus of 8. And really, the three main terrors of that force are the sniper, Bogus (good protection, life drain sword, regen) and the griffon-knight (super high defense, fear, luck, high protection).

Given that the bad guys have high armor, massed archers might not be the right approach (though they won't hurt). Lightning bolt is an excellent choice, which your Magister Arcane can cast natively. Get enough blockers and a dedicated group of lightning spammers should kill Bogus and the griffon knight; once those two are dead you can overwhelm the rest with conventional melee troops. Be careful because I think the griffon knight has flying and is scripted to attack rear (can someone else confirm that?) so be sure to spread out your lightning spammers and maybe even put them ahead of your archers. Something like

<-- Back --- Front -->
Longbows-----SpreadOutMagisters-----BlockingInfantry

I won't deny that it was a real rough break having Bogus and co. sitting on your new fort. Still, pump enough volts through them and they'll die or route, and you might even get some magic items as spoils. It's a small consolation prize but at least it's something.

[Knai]

Originally Posted by shatner

The guy that snipes commanders does so with a bow. By turn 13 you should have a minimum of 26 air gems, allowing you to forge air shield items for your commanders if needed. That way 4 of every 5 shots from the troll sniper will fail to hit, nullifying that particular participant. Failing that, any shield with a decent parry will block most shots; double points if you forge Shields of Valor (5 air, constr-2) because they give both air shield AND a parry bonus of 8. And really, the three main terrors of that force are the sniper, Bogus (good protection, life drain sword, regen) and the griffon-knight (super high defense, fear, luck, high protection).

There is also the commander flooding method. Basically, the AI usually tries to hit high HP targets when possible. Mages frequently have fewer hit points than fairly heavily armored indie commanders who shuttle troops around. Getting a group of those to stand out in front of the mages, ordered to Hold Position x 5 could potientially draw fire long enough to take at least some of the heroes down with lightning.

[thejeff]

Originally Posted by shatner

Be careful because I think the griffon knight has flying and is scripted to attack rear (can someone else confirm that?) so be sure to spread out your lightning spammers and maybe even put them ahead of your archers. Something like

<-- Back --- Front -->
Longbows-----SpreadOutMagisters-----BlockingInfantry

The griffin knight definitely has flying and I believe he is scripted to attack commanders (or possibly mages?)

Spreading out your infantry & archers as suggested won't help. Instead bury your mages in archers, so there aren't any open spaces next to them. He can't attack what he can't get to.

A few indy commanders as bait might help too.