LA Utgard guide

[Baalz]

Yeah, exactly. What I was really thinking though is since you're mixing magic movement with non-magic movement you'll often want to stage them a turn before combat so you can make sure everything's peachy, the teleporting is really mostly to make you not have to worry about them being cap only with a map move of one...though its not hard at all to teleport 5 Norna into a province you expect to be defending an important fight in and making sure your communion order is good that way.

[Viajero]

Indeed communions should be a powerfull tool for Utgard, but... in my short experience these have prove indeed usefull up to mid game. Once Fires From the Sky, CloudTrapezed Tartarian Cyclops with A2E2 casting Rain of Stones, etc etc start appearing, communions are effetively cancelled as an offensive tool: move out of a Dome and you're fried. Unless one starts diligently crafting tons of Ring of Fire, Robe of the shadows etc that is.

Which begs a question which may deserve its own thread: How to efectively use communions on the offense past the mid game?

[chrispedersen]

Life after death, elixirs of life, crystal heart. 2nd forms like nahulis, aldermen.

[Squirrelloid]

Also, offensive defense. Raid a province, move communion in to defend against reprisal. Get your opponent to attack you somewhere you're unexpectedly strong.

And use a crystal matrix on your master so you can drop something worthwhile turn 1, possibly with a mage who didn't have astral to begin with. Mistform or Invulnerability suggest themselves, and can easily be provided by summons. (if the matrixed master is on the bottom, all the slaves will join the communion first, and thus be protected by whatever the master casts - making them far more resilient to whatever communion counter your opponent has).

Or drop something that doesn't require the casting mage to be communioned: Army of Gold (Tart Cyclops or Troll King with boots) or Fog Warriors (Faerie Queens are the easiest, probably, but you can get tarts which are good for it) are probably my favorites.

[chrispedersen]

Its too bad there is no summon spell that lets you summon *your* spell casters into battle.

I wonder if you could make a ritual spell that sends him into a protected dimension- and then use a battle field spell to summon him from that dimension.