Newbie's first impressions

[Endoperez]

In Dominions, there are only few spells that can affect normal units, and none permanently (besides killing/harming them, of course). However, you can get spells that offer your whole side an advantage, Battle Fortune, Fog Warriors, Armor of Lead and AoGold, all in alteration, offer your whole side pretty hefty bonuses. Also, there are Global spells with big effects (Wrathful Skies, Ecovation), and others that can harm an army badly from across the world (Murdering Winter and Flames from the Sky at Evocation 9), and those with big but not so direct effects (Haunted Forest at Enchantment 8).
While it's impossible to cast spells on commanders, giving them items and making them cast buff spells and then wading in and killing whole armies can be done with most tough commanders, although recruitable ones rarely qualify. I think you will find some very interesting spells when you become more comfortable with how the game plays.

And while it would help to know the effects of the spells, the more common ones you will probably learn quite quickly as you research them. Press F5 to visit research screen, and click on the name of the researched school to see the spells, and again, click on the spells to see their descriptions.