Mirror image work on spells?

[Edi]

Fliers like birds will almost always go for the eyes on a target bigger than they are. If the target sees it coming, fending it off isn't THAT much of a problem. And attacking with anything but a charging stab attack from the air has one really big problem: Leverage, or more specifically, lack of it, which means weapons that need to be swung are pretty much useless decoration. You can't get enough power behind the swing.

Give me wings and endurance and I'll pick up a bloody long spear or trident and then get back to business, but there's the problem that with those that if the target manages to dodge the stab and e.g. get hold of the shaft of the weapon, he'll use it as leverage against you to knock you out of the sky unless you let go of the pointy stick. At which point you're unarmed or need to resort to short things like knives that require close contact anyway.

Rewriting the game mechanics just because somebody has a poor grasp of the physics involved in the topic he holds forth on and no capacity for suspension of disbelief seems a particularly poor idea.

[Shovah32]

They may well attack from above but they do have to get into range to attack and elephants are rather large. Trampling may not just represent running over units-i reckon getting hit by an elephant while your diving about the sky could be quite damaging(or if you prefer they elephants could knock them out of the air when they attack and then trample them)

[Teraswaerto]

I imagine it would depend on how well they can control their flight. They wouldn't try any kind of swooping attack if they knew they'd crash, and certainly they are not hummingbirds, so no hovering over their opponent.

It might make sense to have separate "flier" and "poor flier" abilities. Poor fliers would only take the air to move, and land before fighting.

[Xietor]

would demons with venomous claws/talons not attack an elephant from behind, or do you assume they would just fly straight into its trunk? Could its trunk effectively dislodge a demon that sunk its claws fangs into an elephant's back and just sat there tearing it up?

Since you could not write a scenario to cover every flyer v every melee trampler, as i think that may be very complex, I think most true flyers, that attack with their bodies(claws talons fangs) would be skilled enough at air combat to not be trampled every time the trampler attacks.

I think it makes more sense that the trampler would get an attack at them with his melee weapon since they are in range, and not be guaranteed a trample attack.

I am not sure you see my point, i am not disagreeing that some fliers may be knocked to the ground and trampled, but you think a skilled flyer, especially if there are 30 flyers and 1 trampler, would all be knocked down every time to where an elephant coukld trample them all?

[Nick_K]

Demons and the like are powerful enough as is. If they're given the ability to attack without being subject to enemy blows then there might be some very serious problems with all-flyer armies becoming the only viable tactic. In dominions even ethereal units are subject to normal attacks.

Flyer already gives the ability to cross all terains and attack behind enemy lines, the ability to instantly jump to anywhere on the battlefield and to instantly escape without being run down in a rout. It's a powerful ability.

There are many more significant areas that require suspension of disbelief than this. Including ones core to the genre such as the idea of explosive growth from a single province.

[Xietor]

I am not suggesting they be immune from attack, but from trample. Some units have a better melee attack than trample anyway, such as the minotaur. I play Pangaea a good bit, and would not mind seeing the minotaur be "limited" to a melee attack against flyers!