My starting terrain wasn't the best. I'm getting a -1
penalty on grassland and plains, as well as a -1
penalty on plains. I had decent land to expand into, but then found I could not even farm plains....
My starting Deer resource saved me from initial stagnation.
Got the Allies to help tech Way of the Wicked, changed to Slavery and got whipping. The Doviello are good for rushing though, so I immediately captured the only Sheaim city on our side of the pass before they spammed too many Pyre Zombies. The Hippus took the Kuriotate city on their side of the map soon after. With nothing left to rush, I took Breunor's advice and just
turtled, which I found was the only option I could take, though with the Doviello was not an optimum strategy you want to find yourself in.
I started pumping out worker's and settler's to get a foundation established before my allies stole it. I got the Allies to tech RoK which was founded in one of my cities. My Godking boosted capital spammed Thane's to spread the religion and to culture bomb new cities, then later Stonewarden's to quickly auto-build Temples of Kilmorph. I got Bambur, but lost out to the Hippus who made Arthendain.
The Hippus were just monster's on this map. They took barb cities and spread rapidly, assisted by an already extensive army. At one stage they had blocked off the Illian with early cities. To get around it, I basically had the cities gifted to me, who in turn would be gifted to the Illian. The Illian were more interested in building wonders in their capital, which was putting the squeeze on my capital's land next door! By the end they had even built a Temple of Kilmorph and Temple of Leaves in there?? They were crushing my capital with so much culture I actually had to bomb it with a GB, and later blow a GE on Syliven's Perfect Lyre!
So I merely
turtled, built just an army around my only hero, Bambur, to take the dungeon and open up the pass. The dungeon was a good little side track, but could have been so much more.... I thought I'd leave the vast armies of my Allies to deal with these monstrous dragon's I had heard about. I leisurely opened up the pass at Turn 300. The game was won on Turn 339.
As soon as the pass was opened, the 3 dragon's spawned. The next turn Acheron is dead; I think it suicided into a Sheaim city with Abashi in it. I think also at this point that the Kuriotates and Sheaim declare war on each other too. While my stack waited at the portal exit for my allies to start pouring through, the Kurio and Sheaim all of a sudden had some big stack's slamming into each other before my eye's, while virtually ignoring me.
When my allies started pouring through with their SoD a massive wound feast ensued. I then cast my World Spell to add fodder to the huge fray! The Hippus speeding about dueling with the equally fast Centaur was a dazzling sight, while I backed up the Illian's who were tending to the slower Sheaim on the right. Abashi seemed to want to simultaneously defend every Sheaim city at once. It kept moving around, but the cities were falling before it could shift there, and it ended up vapourizing, without a drop of blood spilled, when their last city got razed. On the other hand, Eurabatres, the Kurio's gold dragon get's a special mention. It would come charging out of their border's supported with Centaur, kill some stuff, and then retreat back to heal. It was by far the most effective dragon out of the three, and the most effective enemy unit in the game!
Points of Interest:
*Had a small problem that has occurred in other 'Allied' scenario's. Sometimes one of your allies won't research what you want. You have to then order them to study something else, then go back to them and order them to again research what you're studying. Then they do it.
*Bambur couldn't cast Enchanted Blade on allies, yet Priest's casting Shield of Faith could?
*Maelstrom could be cast and damage allies, but not start war's?
Overall, an enjoyable scenario, made easier by a single choke point enabling
turtling. It could have been more intense if mass Gargoyle's did spawn from the Pristinus Passes. The Kuriotate and Sheaim (or some other combo) should start Allied to offer a united front when you pour through the pass. Maybe the red dragon, Acheron, should spawn in the middle of the pass, behind the unit's that have just opened it. That may keep it alive longer and definitely give you a big surprise!!!
Acheron killed 2 of my Champions before turning attention elsewhere. The other attention was Abashi who was propably already weakened by Sheims cause he instantly killed her only to be destroyed next turn. Eurabatres was the only one fooling around bit longer. Though he didn't behave in way proper and noble dragon should behave.
