Favourite MOM race.

[moomin]

Yes, I realise that we go for different general strategies. But I go for heroes too - I usually end up with a superhero cleaning up the map.

And while all retorts and no spell books is a bit more difficult, that's still how I did my earliest ever spell of mastery victory - you get to it quick when all you need to research first are the arcane spells!

[Jack the Bodiless]

My favorites are the Dark Elves. Mostly because of the sheer variety of the units you can eventually build: even your Swordsmen have a ranged attack, Warlocks are awesome, Nightmares can be useful.

And Nightblades are the only non-magical invisible units in the game. Getting the most out of them requires some strategy, because they only have 1hp each (so make sure they're Elite for that extra point). But elite invisible Adamantium nightblades are pretty useful because their invisibility usually protects them from ranged attacks and most spells until they get close enough to strike. Often the enemy forces just sit there and wait for you to close in. And, if you're desperate, you can just hide and wait for the enemy to go away.

Undead, being immune to illusions, can see them though.

[aaglo]

Oh yes... I almost forgot nightblades... they also make excellent sentry-units in the enchanted roads or myrror... the enemy can't see them in the map, so they automatically interrupt the mega-stack of wartrolls (if there ever was one - but so far luckily not )

[moomin]

Thightblades are great for all the reasons you mention. But then there's no real reason to start with the DEs to get them - just conquer a DE town later on.

The only race bonuses that should be considered for starting races are those that'll speed the very early game.

[aaglo]

Moomin, the only drawback in your theory is, that maybe those desired races cannot be found in the game.

But, according to that thinking, the best races would be halflings (high food prod, low interracial unrest) and barbarians (speedy pop-growth, almost-as-low interracial unrest).

[moomin]

I seem to find at least one town with any specific Myrran race in the game almost every time. Arcanus races are another thing, though.

And I go with HE for free mana and great early node liberation (bowmen). Halflings are great too.

[aaglo]

The reasons why to play different races:

High Elves = longbowmen, elven lords, +1 to-hit and free mana
Barbarians = thrown weapons, fast growth (+20)
Halflings = slingers, food
Lizardmen = javeliners, dragon turtle, lot of shields
Klackons = stag beetle, lot of shields
Highmen = paladins, magicians, pikemen
Nomads = money, rangers, griffins
Gnolls = wolf riders, lot of swords
Orcs = ??? no negatives, wyvern riders (poison attack)
Dwarves = mine-bonus, hammerhands, golems, lot of hitpoints
Trolls = regeneration, lot of shields&resistance&hitpoints
Dark Elves = ranged attacks, nightblades, free mana
Draconians = breath attacks, airship, free mana
Beastmen = minotaurs, centaurs, free mana

[moomin]

I don't consider any critters that races have to be a reason to choose them - most likely you'll get them anyway. I often build highman paladins, for instance, but I never chose the higman as my starting race.

A race bonus to mana or food, now, that's someting else... or gold, as with the dwarfs, although I din't go for Myrran either.

[aaglo]

Moomin, I disagree with you. The starting race's critters are very important (to me). With certain races the unrest can be a drag, so the starting race has some meaning. And usually I get beaten up by various monsters, if I have only some crappy swordsmen or spearmen as a garrison (no macth for a pack of phantom warriors), but that also depends on the magic I use, so...

And heroes aren't all that I use. In a recent game I played with draconians (with no spells casted; myrran-warlord-famous-charismatic-alchemy-2 white books). Early in the game I made a city near adamantium mine. I had a hero with armsmaster ability (increases experience). In that city I started producing draconian archers - OH MY GOD THOSE ULTRA-ELITE ADAMANTIUM FLYING ARCHERS WERE WONDERFUL!!! And so were the UE adam airships too. And spearmen, and swordsmen, and halberdiers... Yahooo!

I killed everything - and everybody with those archers (I had about 30 units of them altogether...)

Try it, you'll love it

[moomin]

Ag, I know it's useful. But I don't play with critters mostly for MM reasons. And I don't care for unrest, because I will build as many cities as I need to get enough cash/mana - say, like, four or five - and any city I take beyond that is for a special critter only... so I don't care if they're not satisfied.

And runing around with heores trashing all the AIs cheat-built cites is so much fun! It isn't, by far, the best way to play the game, but it's the fastest. Which matters most to me these days.

But what you wrote sounds nice. I'll just have to take some time of one of these days for a mega army romp.

[aaglo]

Hey moomin, Now you LOOK LIKE MOOMIN! Jag gratulerar!

About that mega-size critter (?) army - don't forget the food supplies needed. It's a good thing to have a city built near 2 game (reindeer or is it elk) sources -> a ton of food...

[moomin]

Why thank you, aaglo! I will try to look a bit more like a moominPARATROOPER if I ever get around to draw one... but for now a simple moomin will do.

And it IS elk. Or else they wouldn't get german tourists...

[aaglo]

Hey moomin, that avatar of yours still doesn't look like a paratrooper...

About the topic.... Has anyone ever really started a game playing as orcs?

They seem pretty mediocre - nothing bad, but nothing good either. I think that the only unit worth mentioning is Wyvern riders... they have the 6 poison attacks, which is quite handy sometimes... but overall that race seems to be very boring to play with...

[moomin]

Orcs are pretty middle-of-the road, yeah. Unlike in AOW where they are up and away the best race in the game.

And my av's already made the jump at this point.

[Sikander]

I usually prefer Nomads on Arcanus and Dwarves on Myrror. I like the money honey, plus they both have some good units early on. All I need is an army to defend my town and some time to build up my heroes. I have played woth High Men, Elves, Lizard Men, Halflings etc. and they are all worthy species.