This deck is a little side project, built around breaking the parity of combat by shutting off my opponent's attacks. The key spells for that are Reclaim and Sandspout. I'm also considering a Wizard theme for the K'Thir side, so I can have some teleportation (Elven Magi) and some heavy damage (Outcasts of the Flame). I'd also like to play the Wilderkin Snakedancers...I never would have under their previous incarnation, which was so utterly broken I posted about it. However, at just an Entangle they provide a useful way to keep enemies inside the radius of my attack-cancellation spells. I'm also tempted to employ at least one of those wonderful pacification crystals, plus some combination of Brambles/Carnivorous Vines/and my Thorn Collection. Recall is another critical spell, and in the event that I go with the wizard theme Thrones of the Circle. At least one Veasel Druid would also go a long way toward increasing survivability with my techier pieces.
On the Sundered Lands side, Rage Bands give my men the ability to stand inside a Brambles with no ill effects, though it won't prevent Pacifism. Draksar Doomslayers are another great piece in that they gain Fear 3 to suppress folks when he's attacking their fonts. Target Dummies provide yet another way to negate the opposition's offensive efforts. So would Temple Guards, since they also possess Bodyguard. Taint is always a favorite, especially in a deck that lacks for other healing (though I could pick up some regen eq from the K'Thir side). I might like to try the Call to War spell as well; tossing three disposable men I'm not going to be torn up about at the death of is surely handy. There's also the Benedictions and Quickenings to consider. Drakewing Swarms are entirely too asshole not to include, so my single one of those is definitely going in. Resilient Skeezicks are also excellent, since they inflict exceptionally diminishing rewards on ranged combat. Skeezick Netters are another nice, cheap ranged unit with the added benefit of grounding flyers. My Netters are boosted beyond where I imagine most folk run them, but I do have a soft spot in my heart for them. Cannoneers are another excellent ranged option, and they combine beautifully with the Rage Band. These last few choices don't necessarily play directly into the deck's proclaimed design, but they help in other ways: grounding a flying unit over a mountain, for instance, is always hilarious.
Unfortunately, the mass of spells I'm trying to run, at least in this conceptual build, really cut into the champions I could put into the deck. I cut and shuffled the list several times, especially when I found myself underwhelmed with the actual offensive capacity of the creatures in the deck. I may need to revisit the concept and use stronger creatures, banking more fully on the power of the spells; as it stands currently, I'm building the deck around resilient creatures and attack denial spells.
Weak And Powerless: Tenative List
Elven Blademaster x2
Elven Mage
Outcast of the Flame
Wilderkin Snakedancer x2
Brambles
Carnivorous Vines
Devolve
Grimlic's Mirror
Herbal Antidote
Recall
Reclaim x2
Thorn Collection
Drakewing Swarm
Draksar Doomslayer x2
Draksar Psion x2
Dunewalker
Resilient Skeezick x2
Temple Guard x2
Sandspout x2
Scapegoat
Taint
Target Dummy
Showing posts with label K'Thir Forest. Show all posts
Showing posts with label K'Thir Forest. Show all posts
Saturday, January 9, 2010
Monday, January 4, 2010
Deck Construction: Three Concepts for January- Bad Borg and Bonus
Concept the Third...Fourth? Unfortunately, at least part of what I thought I was clever in considering for Concept the Third is not working in the fashion I'd expect, so I'll be eyeing the thread.
To whit, I love the flavor (if not necessarily the synergy) of combining Sundered Lands and Forsaken Wastes. They're both bad, bad crews but seem to have a greater depth than (ironically) the Underdepths, which feels like a faction of mean dudes and sexy mean ladies. The Sundered Lands represent an almost zerg-like cultural expansion, continually welcoming new races into their collective; Draksar Berserkers and Draksar Psions being my two favorite examples, though I'm looking forward to Lonx and Yeti flavors. The Forsaken Wastes, meanwhile, have such an elegiac quality to many of their runes, and mechanically they can be brutal. The synergy doesn't always stack up, however, since the factions are on opposite poles in terms of central thesis.
Sundered Lands runes, and their faction bonus, tend to focus on longevity. High defense and regeneration keep a particular creature in the fight for at least a few rounds longer than his cost might indicate, and the brutal area spells the faction possesses allow it to win wars of attrition by simply standing after the other guy has fallen. Many of the runes are expensive, given all the defensive qualities stitched into their designs, but their ability to slog through lesser runes (especially in a full-faction) justify that.
The Forsaken Wastes, by contrast, die a lot. In fact, most of their runes were dead before you cast them. Traditionally FW runes have been relatively fragile, because the faction bonus and design of many creatures and spells is all about recovering slain runes quickly, rather than agonizing over keeping them alive. There's also a disease thread which was popular for a while, but combining disease and another faction tends to be very difficult (though one could probably do something with Ironfist Constructs and Medics) because even if your other faction isn't suffering much damage from disease effects, the stat reduction from disease is bad enough. Similarly, the good FW relics penalize non-undead creatures often as not. Luckily, I don't have any of said relics.
Nonetheless, I think careful rune selection can yield a very profitable balance between the two factions. Besides obvious inclusions like the Draksar Doomslayer (which has Ally: FW trainable) and the Temple Guardian (same, plus bodyguard to hedge somewhat on FW fragility) the main rune I'm interested in combining with FW is the Arthomancer, since his Hive laying ability dovetails wonderfully with the Mason's Spire. Or would, if it was working correctly. Working correctly, the Spire would boost each lain Hive's hp by 10, counteracting the 1/2 hp limit on lain Hives almost entirely. It would also provide a nora refund for the Hive, which turns Arthomancers into limited nora generation engines not far below a Deepcave Extractor or Elvish Artisan. The Hives themselves do minimal damage to the FW creatures in the deck, since creatures with Boon of the Undead have significant poison resistance.
There are also spells in each faction which grant favored race to any target creature, so I could be turning my Draksar/Skeezick into undead (to grant them disease immunity) and my undead into Draksar for Draconic Force and Hive immunity. With 2 Arthomancers and 2 maindeck Hives, plus Mason's Spire and Crypt Guardian, there'd be a lot of battlefield control at a relatively cheap price. The Doomslayers provide excellent font contesting, particularly backed up by Essence Drains to clear defenders. Both factions have powerful rare-level spells that grant extra attacks (Quickening and Mobilization/Draconic Benediction, natch) as well, meaning that the deck could provide both stable attrition and extremely swingy rounds.
Finally, if I hew Sundered Lands for my Shrine I get a regenerating Avatar, which should help to counteract the shrine life loss of Skeletal Berserkers, Executioners, and/or Blood fiends. With a toolbox of creatures and damage types available on both sides of the fence, this deck would be highly technical to build but quite likely resilient and abusive on the field.
Bonus! I'd also like to put something together abusing the Sundered Lands spell Sandspout and the K'thir Forest spell Reclaim. I'm not sure I've ever combined those two factions before, and Garu/Skeezick springs to mind as a resilient, melee-focused team that would greatly benefit from enemies being incapable of making attacks for a dozen or so turns a game.
To whit, I love the flavor (if not necessarily the synergy) of combining Sundered Lands and Forsaken Wastes. They're both bad, bad crews but seem to have a greater depth than (ironically) the Underdepths, which feels like a faction of mean dudes and sexy mean ladies. The Sundered Lands represent an almost zerg-like cultural expansion, continually welcoming new races into their collective; Draksar Berserkers and Draksar Psions being my two favorite examples, though I'm looking forward to Lonx and Yeti flavors. The Forsaken Wastes, meanwhile, have such an elegiac quality to many of their runes, and mechanically they can be brutal. The synergy doesn't always stack up, however, since the factions are on opposite poles in terms of central thesis.
Sundered Lands runes, and their faction bonus, tend to focus on longevity. High defense and regeneration keep a particular creature in the fight for at least a few rounds longer than his cost might indicate, and the brutal area spells the faction possesses allow it to win wars of attrition by simply standing after the other guy has fallen. Many of the runes are expensive, given all the defensive qualities stitched into their designs, but their ability to slog through lesser runes (especially in a full-faction) justify that.
The Forsaken Wastes, by contrast, die a lot. In fact, most of their runes were dead before you cast them. Traditionally FW runes have been relatively fragile, because the faction bonus and design of many creatures and spells is all about recovering slain runes quickly, rather than agonizing over keeping them alive. There's also a disease thread which was popular for a while, but combining disease and another faction tends to be very difficult (though one could probably do something with Ironfist Constructs and Medics) because even if your other faction isn't suffering much damage from disease effects, the stat reduction from disease is bad enough. Similarly, the good FW relics penalize non-undead creatures often as not. Luckily, I don't have any of said relics.
Nonetheless, I think careful rune selection can yield a very profitable balance between the two factions. Besides obvious inclusions like the Draksar Doomslayer (which has Ally: FW trainable) and the Temple Guardian (same, plus bodyguard to hedge somewhat on FW fragility) the main rune I'm interested in combining with FW is the Arthomancer, since his Hive laying ability dovetails wonderfully with the Mason's Spire. Or would, if it was working correctly. Working correctly, the Spire would boost each lain Hive's hp by 10, counteracting the 1/2 hp limit on lain Hives almost entirely. It would also provide a nora refund for the Hive, which turns Arthomancers into limited nora generation engines not far below a Deepcave Extractor or Elvish Artisan. The Hives themselves do minimal damage to the FW creatures in the deck, since creatures with Boon of the Undead have significant poison resistance.
There are also spells in each faction which grant favored race to any target creature, so I could be turning my Draksar/Skeezick into undead (to grant them disease immunity) and my undead into Draksar for Draconic Force and Hive immunity. With 2 Arthomancers and 2 maindeck Hives, plus Mason's Spire and Crypt Guardian, there'd be a lot of battlefield control at a relatively cheap price. The Doomslayers provide excellent font contesting, particularly backed up by Essence Drains to clear defenders. Both factions have powerful rare-level spells that grant extra attacks (Quickening and Mobilization/Draconic Benediction, natch) as well, meaning that the deck could provide both stable attrition and extremely swingy rounds.
Finally, if I hew Sundered Lands for my Shrine I get a regenerating Avatar, which should help to counteract the shrine life loss of Skeletal Berserkers, Executioners, and/or Blood fiends. With a toolbox of creatures and damage types available on both sides of the fence, this deck would be highly technical to build but quite likely resilient and abusive on the field.
Bonus! I'd also like to put something together abusing the Sundered Lands spell Sandspout and the K'thir Forest spell Reclaim. I'm not sure I've ever combined those two factions before, and Garu/Skeezick springs to mind as a resilient, melee-focused team that would greatly benefit from enemies being incapable of making attacks for a dozen or so turns a game.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Deck Construction: Gunning for Grimlic 3- Going After Grimlic
Game 5- Trials of the Forglar Swamp Normal
I'm so glad this map has the central island; it used to be utterly brutal. I draw Centaur Skirmisher, Archer Commander, Groble, Elven Archer, and Glorious Charge. I open with the Centaur and then back him with the Elven Archer on turn two. The Elven Archer kills the Boghopper Shaman in one turn, and I've got four champs on the board. Other than a weird thing where my Elven Archer dies to a Muck Dragon, my ranged attacks, combined with a War-Enchanted Groble, manage to clear most of the map in short order.
The presence of the magic-immune firk and the magic-eating Mandrake give my WE Groble pause, but I've got Mogaslicers to handle that. Strangely, the game ends the turn after it spawns the boss champion, but without me so much as touching him.
Game 6- Trials of the Forsaken Waste Normal
This is a low champ opening hand: Groble, Outcast of the Flame, Glorious Charge, Repair, and Full Plate. I open with the Outcast, then play a Groble; then I try something that may or may not pan out. I slap the Full Plate on the Groble. The map is small enough that the lumbering will hopefully not be a problem, and a Groble with 45 Defense will hopefully survive the entire fight. This is great. He takes no damage from anything, and I begin to play a mini-game designed around keeping him from being in a position to take damage (meaning, not letting him be hit by something with a base damage much over 10 and a decent attack). It turns out I needn't have worried, as nothing, none of the purple bases, none of the rares or exotics, have the capacity to injure my Groble. He finishes the battle with unblemished health.
Game 7- Trials of the Savage Tundra
Centaur Skirmisher, War-Enchanted Groble, Seed of Potential x2, Grimlic's Mirror. This is a sort of dream. I lead with the Centaur, but my eventual plan is to cast every rune in my opening hand before anything else. This means I'll have two War-Enchanted Grobles in position to eat up all the spells the AI casts. The best part of this is that it all goes down before a Snowblind is dropped, so I'm able to mirror my WE Groble without any misdirection. While the Skirmisher dances with the Frost Giant, being just fast enough to stay out of its reach, the Grobles work their way up toward the northern font. They hold on for a long time, though eventually one falls to the concerted efforts of 5 or so champions, and then the other crumbles a turn later.
As the armada of summoned foes draws closer, I put a Lodestone Construct in front of my shrine and equip him with the Full Plate; and again, full damage immunity. Or near-full; he can't stand up to the couple 18-Attack champions on the opposing team, and they gradually wear him out. In that time I pull out two Mogaslicers, and kill my way around the edges of the massive champion mass with them. However, once sufficient champions appear, they start just attacking my shrine, and then the odds turn against me.
Game 8- Trials of the Shattered Peaks Normal
I draw Medic x2, Groble, Dwarven Mogaslicer, Light as a Feather. The best bet here seems to be the Mogaslicer, and not just because I'm about to face a lot of moga. He's got the same speed as the Groble, but the damage aura will have a more immediate and useful effect once I'm meshed in with the enemies. He does very well in removing the first G'hern, while my Groble comes around and smashes the Scarecrow. The not-saving problem I've had with using experience comes up again, as my Outcast of the Flame somehow still doesn't have Immunity-Fire.
Things do start to clump up, with all the G'hern managing to spawn from the western font because I don't take it in time. The Groble, balanced by healing from a Medic, holds off the entire northern horde of moga. I put down the War-Enchanted Groble and when he starts taking too many hits, give him the Full Plate. Even with that boost, though, the WE Groble is still taking hits from the G'hern, all of whom have Attack in the high teens. I'm able to Mirror him before he dies, but I'm out the Full Plate facing four G'hern (including both of those brutal ranged champs) and a handful of moga. I bring out the Lodestone and the Archer Commander, but the latter isn't much by herself. By the time they're plucked off, I have nothing but my copied War-Enchanted Groble. He fights a running retreat, but Dirge is 48 Attack and 35 Damage by the time he kills me.
So that's a pair of hurtful, hurtful losses. However, they were losses which provided experience, so I plan to spend that and then delve into the battle with Grimlic for which the bg was constructed.
I increase the Archer Commander's Speed to 8 and purchase Volley Leader. I'm holding off on spending the Skirmisher xp, but I am curious as to whether or not Leap powers Blitz; if so, then buying up Leap 3 would let me get an extra move for the ap I'm spending, plus make them even better first-turn font grabbers. I buy the Mogaslicers 4 hp each, and purchase Speed 8 for the Lodestone (it'll turn into 9 with the Forest faction bonus). I max out the Medics' Heal Champion, and actually buy Immunity-Fire for the lower-level Outcast, along with upping his speed to 10. Even though they're getting expensive, I do buy Speed 10 on the Timber Wolves; I think I'll use them in a lot of split faction groups and I want them to have maximal mobility. I finally descend, lovingly, to tend to my War-Enchanted Groble. I top off his Resistance-Fire and purchase the first level of Resistance-Physical, then bump his speed and his health.
Champions Cost/Level/Attack/Defense/Speed/Damage/Hp/Range
Archer Commander 68/1/13/12/8(9 w/ Faction)/10/38/3-6, Commander:Archer, Volley Leader
Centaur Skirmisher x2 70/1/14/11/11/7(8 w/ Faction)/7/42/2-4, Mobility, Blitz
Dwarven King 97/4/14/22/9(10 w/ Faction)/14/58/1, War Cry 3, Divine Favor 3, Melee Specialist 2
Dwarven Mogaslicer x2 73/1/15/12/9(10 w/ Faction)/12/52/1, Damage Aura 3, Rend 3, Charge 2
Elven Archer x2 83/3/13/11(12 w/ Faction)/11/12/30/4-7, Barrage 1
Groble x2 86/3/10/25/9(10 w/ Faction)/10/42/1 Immunity-Fire, Pulverize 2, Siege, Fury
Lodestone Construct 61/1/10/18/8(9 w/ Faction)/11/46/1 Blacksmith, Construct Immunities, Pilfer
Medic x2 47/1/5/12/7(8 w/ Faction)/5/37/1 Immunity-Disease, Cleanse, Heal Champion 3, Passive, Immunize
Outcast of the Flame 82/13/11/10(11 w/ Faction)/14/37/3-6 Fire Aura 3, Incinerate 1, Dissipate, Confuse Attacker
Outcast of the Flame 84/2/13/11/10(11 w/ Faction)/14/37/3-6 Immunity Fire, Fire Aura 3, Incinerate 2, Dissipate, Confuse Attacker
Timber Wolves 88/2/10/10/10(11 w/ Faction)/9/24/1 Detection 1, Skirmisher, Timber Wolves
War-Enchanted Groble 76/1/10/19/8(9 w/ Faction)/11/47 Spellswallower, Resistance-Fire 3, Resistance-Physical 1, Construct Immunities, Adaptive-Ironfist, Loyalty
Spells
Ancestral Anger
Butterfly Wings
Glorious Charge
Grimlic's Mirror
Hammer Strike
Light as a Feather
Repair x2
Righteous Deflection
Spontaneous Growth
Equipment
Full Plate
Seed of Potential x2
So I'm glad I have the free units at start, because I only pull Centaur Skirmisher in my initial draw. I also have Butterfly Wings, Light as a Feather, Full Plate, and Glorious Charge. I use the Charge and Light as a Feather to get my Rangers tight up on the demons to the left and right of the shrine, and chew through them as quickly as I can. I drop the Timber Wolves once I secure a font, and they bite their way through the demons assaulting the font, though they don't do enough damage to get a kill before one of the three wolves falls. I get a Groble out on the west side and run him around, and bring out a few Centaur Skirmishers as well. However, I'm simply not inflicting sufficient damage to kill the demons fast enough. By the time I've cleared the first new wave I'm already trapped facing a second. My Medics do their best to heal, but I don't time my abilities properly in terms of addressing Inhibited Champs. It's another loss for team rock.
So I go again.
My second time, I draw Elven Archer, Timber Wolves, Righteous Deflection, Seed of Potential, and Spontaneous Growth. The Growth was a spell I never once saw last game, and I think it will really help here. I play out my Archer and set to cutting down the first rank. I give Menalaus the Seed, because he's really the one to kill in this game; no regen and vulnerability to fire means he gets hurt, and hurt bad, and hurt fast. Grimlic is tricky because many of the best ways to deal with fire exist in Wrath factions. I throw the Full Plate on Grimlic, since he's a teleporter and doesn't need normal movement. Then I realize that you can't teleport if you're lumbering, and things get a little less awesome- I'm waiting for my Lodestone to appropriate the item.
Another fun interaction lesson is that Spontaneous Growth doesn't override Scorch the Earth. These are the kinds of things it's hard to know without trying. My wolves and Groble push me up to just past the river, but a Gahlroon and fully three damn Imps drive me back. These Imps have fully 15 speed. That's just madness. It ends up being just the brothers, two Medics, a Mogaslicer at my font, and eight Ash Demons, an Imp, a Rust Demon, and a Scorpic. I'm afraid that, at present, I have to declare this experiment a sad failure.
I'm so glad this map has the central island; it used to be utterly brutal. I draw Centaur Skirmisher, Archer Commander, Groble, Elven Archer, and Glorious Charge. I open with the Centaur and then back him with the Elven Archer on turn two. The Elven Archer kills the Boghopper Shaman in one turn, and I've got four champs on the board. Other than a weird thing where my Elven Archer dies to a Muck Dragon, my ranged attacks, combined with a War-Enchanted Groble, manage to clear most of the map in short order.
The presence of the magic-immune firk and the magic-eating Mandrake give my WE Groble pause, but I've got Mogaslicers to handle that. Strangely, the game ends the turn after it spawns the boss champion, but without me so much as touching him.
Game 6- Trials of the Forsaken Waste Normal
This is a low champ opening hand: Groble, Outcast of the Flame, Glorious Charge, Repair, and Full Plate. I open with the Outcast, then play a Groble; then I try something that may or may not pan out. I slap the Full Plate on the Groble. The map is small enough that the lumbering will hopefully not be a problem, and a Groble with 45 Defense will hopefully survive the entire fight. This is great. He takes no damage from anything, and I begin to play a mini-game designed around keeping him from being in a position to take damage (meaning, not letting him be hit by something with a base damage much over 10 and a decent attack). It turns out I needn't have worried, as nothing, none of the purple bases, none of the rares or exotics, have the capacity to injure my Groble. He finishes the battle with unblemished health.
Game 7- Trials of the Savage Tundra
Centaur Skirmisher, War-Enchanted Groble, Seed of Potential x2, Grimlic's Mirror. This is a sort of dream. I lead with the Centaur, but my eventual plan is to cast every rune in my opening hand before anything else. This means I'll have two War-Enchanted Grobles in position to eat up all the spells the AI casts. The best part of this is that it all goes down before a Snowblind is dropped, so I'm able to mirror my WE Groble without any misdirection. While the Skirmisher dances with the Frost Giant, being just fast enough to stay out of its reach, the Grobles work their way up toward the northern font. They hold on for a long time, though eventually one falls to the concerted efforts of 5 or so champions, and then the other crumbles a turn later.
As the armada of summoned foes draws closer, I put a Lodestone Construct in front of my shrine and equip him with the Full Plate; and again, full damage immunity. Or near-full; he can't stand up to the couple 18-Attack champions on the opposing team, and they gradually wear him out. In that time I pull out two Mogaslicers, and kill my way around the edges of the massive champion mass with them. However, once sufficient champions appear, they start just attacking my shrine, and then the odds turn against me.
Game 8- Trials of the Shattered Peaks Normal
I draw Medic x2, Groble, Dwarven Mogaslicer, Light as a Feather. The best bet here seems to be the Mogaslicer, and not just because I'm about to face a lot of moga. He's got the same speed as the Groble, but the damage aura will have a more immediate and useful effect once I'm meshed in with the enemies. He does very well in removing the first G'hern, while my Groble comes around and smashes the Scarecrow. The not-saving problem I've had with using experience comes up again, as my Outcast of the Flame somehow still doesn't have Immunity-Fire.
Things do start to clump up, with all the G'hern managing to spawn from the western font because I don't take it in time. The Groble, balanced by healing from a Medic, holds off the entire northern horde of moga. I put down the War-Enchanted Groble and when he starts taking too many hits, give him the Full Plate. Even with that boost, though, the WE Groble is still taking hits from the G'hern, all of whom have Attack in the high teens. I'm able to Mirror him before he dies, but I'm out the Full Plate facing four G'hern (including both of those brutal ranged champs) and a handful of moga. I bring out the Lodestone and the Archer Commander, but the latter isn't much by herself. By the time they're plucked off, I have nothing but my copied War-Enchanted Groble. He fights a running retreat, but Dirge is 48 Attack and 35 Damage by the time he kills me.
So that's a pair of hurtful, hurtful losses. However, they were losses which provided experience, so I plan to spend that and then delve into the battle with Grimlic for which the bg was constructed.
I increase the Archer Commander's Speed to 8 and purchase Volley Leader. I'm holding off on spending the Skirmisher xp, but I am curious as to whether or not Leap powers Blitz; if so, then buying up Leap 3 would let me get an extra move for the ap I'm spending, plus make them even better first-turn font grabbers. I buy the Mogaslicers 4 hp each, and purchase Speed 8 for the Lodestone (it'll turn into 9 with the Forest faction bonus). I max out the Medics' Heal Champion, and actually buy Immunity-Fire for the lower-level Outcast, along with upping his speed to 10. Even though they're getting expensive, I do buy Speed 10 on the Timber Wolves; I think I'll use them in a lot of split faction groups and I want them to have maximal mobility. I finally descend, lovingly, to tend to my War-Enchanted Groble. I top off his Resistance-Fire and purchase the first level of Resistance-Physical, then bump his speed and his health.
Champions Cost/Level/Attack/Defense/Speed/Damage/Hp/Range
Archer Commander 68/1/13/12/8(9 w/ Faction)/10/38/3-6, Commander:Archer, Volley Leader
Centaur Skirmisher x2 70/1/14/11/11/7(8 w/ Faction)/7/42/2-4, Mobility, Blitz
Dwarven King 97/4/14/22/9(10 w/ Faction)/14/58/1, War Cry 3, Divine Favor 3, Melee Specialist 2
Dwarven Mogaslicer x2 73/1/15/12/9(10 w/ Faction)/12/52/1, Damage Aura 3, Rend 3, Charge 2
Elven Archer x2 83/3/13/11(12 w/ Faction)/11/12/30/4-7, Barrage 1
Groble x2 86/3/10/25/9(10 w/ Faction)/10/42/1 Immunity-Fire, Pulverize 2, Siege, Fury
Lodestone Construct 61/1/10/18/8(9 w/ Faction)/11/46/1 Blacksmith, Construct Immunities, Pilfer
Medic x2 47/1/5/12/7(8 w/ Faction)/5/37/1 Immunity-Disease, Cleanse, Heal Champion 3, Passive, Immunize
Outcast of the Flame 82/13/11/10(11 w/ Faction)/14/37/3-6 Fire Aura 3, Incinerate 1, Dissipate, Confuse Attacker
Outcast of the Flame 84/2/13/11/10(11 w/ Faction)/14/37/3-6 Immunity Fire, Fire Aura 3, Incinerate 2, Dissipate, Confuse Attacker
Timber Wolves 88/2/10/10/10(11 w/ Faction)/9/24/1 Detection 1, Skirmisher, Timber Wolves
War-Enchanted Groble 76/1/10/19/8(9 w/ Faction)/11/47 Spellswallower, Resistance-Fire 3, Resistance-Physical 1, Construct Immunities, Adaptive-Ironfist, Loyalty
Spells
Ancestral Anger
Butterfly Wings
Glorious Charge
Grimlic's Mirror
Hammer Strike
Light as a Feather
Repair x2
Righteous Deflection
Spontaneous Growth
Equipment
Full Plate
Seed of Potential x2
So I'm glad I have the free units at start, because I only pull Centaur Skirmisher in my initial draw. I also have Butterfly Wings, Light as a Feather, Full Plate, and Glorious Charge. I use the Charge and Light as a Feather to get my Rangers tight up on the demons to the left and right of the shrine, and chew through them as quickly as I can. I drop the Timber Wolves once I secure a font, and they bite their way through the demons assaulting the font, though they don't do enough damage to get a kill before one of the three wolves falls. I get a Groble out on the west side and run him around, and bring out a few Centaur Skirmishers as well. However, I'm simply not inflicting sufficient damage to kill the demons fast enough. By the time I've cleared the first new wave I'm already trapped facing a second. My Medics do their best to heal, but I don't time my abilities properly in terms of addressing Inhibited Champs. It's another loss for team rock.
So I go again.
My second time, I draw Elven Archer, Timber Wolves, Righteous Deflection, Seed of Potential, and Spontaneous Growth. The Growth was a spell I never once saw last game, and I think it will really help here. I play out my Archer and set to cutting down the first rank. I give Menalaus the Seed, because he's really the one to kill in this game; no regen and vulnerability to fire means he gets hurt, and hurt bad, and hurt fast. Grimlic is tricky because many of the best ways to deal with fire exist in Wrath factions. I throw the Full Plate on Grimlic, since he's a teleporter and doesn't need normal movement. Then I realize that you can't teleport if you're lumbering, and things get a little less awesome- I'm waiting for my Lodestone to appropriate the item.
Another fun interaction lesson is that Spontaneous Growth doesn't override Scorch the Earth. These are the kinds of things it's hard to know without trying. My wolves and Groble push me up to just past the river, but a Gahlroon and fully three damn Imps drive me back. These Imps have fully 15 speed. That's just madness. It ends up being just the brothers, two Medics, a Mogaslicer at my font, and eight Ash Demons, an Imp, a Rust Demon, and a Scorpic. I'm afraid that, at present, I have to declare this experiment a sad failure.
Deck Construction: Gunning for Grimlic 2- Initial Testing
Game 1- Beginner Forsaken Wastes Normal
I open Archer Commander, War-Enchanted Groble, Elven Archer, Dwarven Medic, Spontaneous Growth. I lead with the Elven Archer and manage to also deploy the Groble...then realize it's because I misclicked and deployed the Commander instead of the Elven Archer. I always enjoy playing new runes and being surprised by things; like how the Lodestone Construct is a large-base. My mechanical men stomp their way over the broken bones, and I only lose one Timber Wolf the whole match! Medics are a nice cheap healer, and Immunize saves one of the wolves. Other than that and the need to heal a War-Enchanted Groble one time, there's no notable challenge.
Game 2- Beginner Savage Tundra Normal
I open to Centaur Skirmisher, Groble, Groble, Full Plate, Dwarven Mogaslicer. I drop the Skirmisher, and a second one two turns later; Speed 12 means they're still getting 7 ap on ice, which is nice. I put Full Plate on a Mogaslicer and he becomes fully immune to most of the enemies on the screen. I briefly consider just destroying the shrine, but instead I let my Centaur run around and throw spears into things, while my Mogaslicers mow through the northern shrine's defenders.
I'm once again going to shift my play over to the Trials, because I don't think I learn a ton playing against the Beginner missions.
Game 3- Trials of the Ironfist Stronghold Normal
I open all three archers, Timber Wolves, and Glorious Charge. I drop the Wolves since I know I'll be running into dogs when I spring the Mead Trap. I take the first font and clear the first wave with no real difficulty, though all my aura guys get bunched up when I'm fighting the Earth Golem- I only have an Outcast of the Flame for non-physical damage. That means my Slicers are weakened enough that when I cavalierly charge into an Earthmover/Barbarian Commander, they die pretty quickly...both go down in one round, actually. That misplay costs me, because now I'm facing down a horde of melee fighters with a bunch of...archers. And a wizard. I slap Full Plate on a Centaur Skirmisher, using him to clog the entrance for a couple rounds. That actually works pretty well; with Mobility and Speed 7 he's able to shift and attack without worry. He goes down and my Seed of Potential-Bearing Archer Commander dies when I forget that Ancestral Rage sets your Range to 1. The War-Forged Groble, however, is a true champion. He's got a Seed on him, and then I also slap the Righteous Deflection down. Since he's bolstered by Ironfist spells, and he's a Spellswallower and Adaptive-Ironfist, with the AI spamming Unobstructed View, his damage is well over 20. Every time I heal him with Repair, too, that increases his hp by a further 5. Sadly, he can't survive Stone Dragon/Groble Pulverizer/Ghoulhunter. The Lodestone's just a big sack of dying, and then it's two Medics facing...everything. A Full Plate-wearing Groble tries to assist, but I pay the price for my hubris and go down bleeding. The Groble puts up a great fight though; Defense 45 and Resilient means he's really not being hit by anything.
Game 4-Trials of the Ironfist Stronghold Normal, Redux
I'm shamed by my previous misplay so I decide to run this map again. I definitely feel that it had been my game to lose. Sapelah and his gang are back for blood, and I pull Groble, Archer Commander, Outcast of Flame, Grimlic's Mirror, Repair. It's my 11 Speed Outcast of the Flame, so he hits the ground first. I use a Medic to trigger the mead trap (he ends up very dramatically in the center of all three dogs. My Mogaslicer tears up the Beastmaster, and then I drop a delicious Repair to take him from 10 hp to 48. I'm much more careful with my auras this time, and they let me avoid a lot of attacks by killing creatures on the end of my turns. I manage to get the War-Enchanted Groble out early on, and it's glorious. He's getting +2 Damage, +1 Attack, and +1 Defense with every useless Unobstructed view my opponent casts.
The pass is clearer this time, meaning I can move my small base figures up while the Outcast deals with the Earth Golem. One of the Slicers spends a big chunk of time stuck away from the enemies because there's no room for him, but I do get to put a Barbarian Commander between 3 Aura 3s at one point. Two War-Enchanted Grobles (thanks to Grimlic) can kill the Dwarven Sharpshooter in a single attack each. Even my standard Groble is doing 20 damage by the time the AI starts spawning purple-base champions. My War-Enchants have over 100 hp and are regenerating 4 hp a turn, and I wipe everything the turn it lands.
Obviously most games won't work out that same way with the War-Enchant, but that was sure fun. A full-faction group sounds even more appealing; I can't say that I was drawing a ton of benefit from the K'Thir end other than the speed boost, but I think it'll prove more valuable in a more challenging game. The Ironfist Map bunches things up and lets a few big melee characters really hold their own- mobility isn't much of a factor.
Spending XP, I buy Rend 3 for both Mogaslicers. My Groble without Pulverize 2 gets it. I increase the Lodestone's Speed to 8, and buy Speed 9 and Immunity-Fire for the unleveled Outcast of Flame. Both Medics pick up Cleanse, which heals as well. Keeping an eye on the goal of beating Grimlic, I buy Resistance-Fire up to 2, looking longingly at the Resistance-Physical I will one day purchase. Four games is also where I like to consider what is and isn't working within the bg, and make the necessary changes. Unfortunately, I don't see any rune that demands to be removed. I'm keeping the Commander in until she can get the ability to grant Rain of Arrows, and will decide if that's awesome once I get a chance to use it. Similarly, I haven't had a cause to summon the Dwarven King, but can easily see benefits in doing so at some point. I leave the bg completely unchanged for now.
Champions Cost/Level/Attack/Defense/Speed/Damage/Hp/Range
Archer Commander 56/1/13/12/7(8 w/ Faction)/10/38/3-6, Commander:Archer
Centaur Skirmisher x2 70/1/14/11/11/7(8 w/ Faction)/7/42/2-4, Mobility, Blitz
Dwarven King 97/4/14/22/9(10 w/ Faction)/14/58/1, War Cry 3, Divine Favor 3, Melee Specialist 2
Dwarven Mogaslicer x2 71/1/15/12/9(10 w/ Faction)/12/48/1, Damage Aura 3, Rend 3, Charge 2
Elven Archer x2 83/3/13/11(12 w/ Faction)/11/12/30/4-7, Barrage 1
Groble x2 86/3/10/25/9(10 w/ Faction)/10/42/1 Immunity-Fire, Pulverize 2, Siege, Fury
Lodestone Construct 57/1/10/18/7(8 w/ Faction)/11/46/1 Blacksmith, Construct Immunities, Pilfer
Medic x2 45/1/5/12/7(8 w/ Faction)/5/37/1 Immunity-Disease, Cleanse, Heal Champion 2, Passive, Immunize
Outcast of the Flame 65/13/11/8(9 w/ Faction)/14/37/3-6 Fire Aura 3, Incinerate 1, Dissipate, Confuse Attacker
Outcast of the Flame 84/2/13/11/10(11 w/ Faction)/14/37/3-6 Immunity Fire, Fire Aura 3, Incinerate 2, Dissipate, Confuse Attacker
Timber Wolves 83/2/10/10/9(10 w/ Faction)/9/24/1 Detection 1, Skirmisher, Timber Wolves
War-Enchanted Groble 64/1/10/19/7(8 w/ Faction)/11/45 Spellswallower, Resistance-Fire 2, Construct Immunities, Adaptive-Ironfist, Loyalty
Spells
Ancestral Anger
Butterfly Wings
Glorious Charge
Grimlic's Mirror
Hammer Strike
Light as a Feather
Repair x2
Righteous Deflection
Spontaneous Growth
Equipment
Full Plate
Seed of Potential x2
I open Archer Commander, War-Enchanted Groble, Elven Archer, Dwarven Medic, Spontaneous Growth. I lead with the Elven Archer and manage to also deploy the Groble...then realize it's because I misclicked and deployed the Commander instead of the Elven Archer. I always enjoy playing new runes and being surprised by things; like how the Lodestone Construct is a large-base. My mechanical men stomp their way over the broken bones, and I only lose one Timber Wolf the whole match! Medics are a nice cheap healer, and Immunize saves one of the wolves. Other than that and the need to heal a War-Enchanted Groble one time, there's no notable challenge.
Game 2- Beginner Savage Tundra Normal
I open to Centaur Skirmisher, Groble, Groble, Full Plate, Dwarven Mogaslicer. I drop the Skirmisher, and a second one two turns later; Speed 12 means they're still getting 7 ap on ice, which is nice. I put Full Plate on a Mogaslicer and he becomes fully immune to most of the enemies on the screen. I briefly consider just destroying the shrine, but instead I let my Centaur run around and throw spears into things, while my Mogaslicers mow through the northern shrine's defenders.
I'm once again going to shift my play over to the Trials, because I don't think I learn a ton playing against the Beginner missions.
Game 3- Trials of the Ironfist Stronghold Normal
I open all three archers, Timber Wolves, and Glorious Charge. I drop the Wolves since I know I'll be running into dogs when I spring the Mead Trap. I take the first font and clear the first wave with no real difficulty, though all my aura guys get bunched up when I'm fighting the Earth Golem- I only have an Outcast of the Flame for non-physical damage. That means my Slicers are weakened enough that when I cavalierly charge into an Earthmover/Barbarian Commander, they die pretty quickly...both go down in one round, actually. That misplay costs me, because now I'm facing down a horde of melee fighters with a bunch of...archers. And a wizard. I slap Full Plate on a Centaur Skirmisher, using him to clog the entrance for a couple rounds. That actually works pretty well; with Mobility and Speed 7 he's able to shift and attack without worry. He goes down and my Seed of Potential-Bearing Archer Commander dies when I forget that Ancestral Rage sets your Range to 1. The War-Forged Groble, however, is a true champion. He's got a Seed on him, and then I also slap the Righteous Deflection down. Since he's bolstered by Ironfist spells, and he's a Spellswallower and Adaptive-Ironfist, with the AI spamming Unobstructed View, his damage is well over 20. Every time I heal him with Repair, too, that increases his hp by a further 5. Sadly, he can't survive Stone Dragon/Groble Pulverizer/Ghoulhunter. The Lodestone's just a big sack of dying, and then it's two Medics facing...everything. A Full Plate-wearing Groble tries to assist, but I pay the price for my hubris and go down bleeding. The Groble puts up a great fight though; Defense 45 and Resilient means he's really not being hit by anything.
Game 4-Trials of the Ironfist Stronghold Normal, Redux
I'm shamed by my previous misplay so I decide to run this map again. I definitely feel that it had been my game to lose. Sapelah and his gang are back for blood, and I pull Groble, Archer Commander, Outcast of Flame, Grimlic's Mirror, Repair. It's my 11 Speed Outcast of the Flame, so he hits the ground first. I use a Medic to trigger the mead trap (he ends up very dramatically in the center of all three dogs. My Mogaslicer tears up the Beastmaster, and then I drop a delicious Repair to take him from 10 hp to 48. I'm much more careful with my auras this time, and they let me avoid a lot of attacks by killing creatures on the end of my turns. I manage to get the War-Enchanted Groble out early on, and it's glorious. He's getting +2 Damage, +1 Attack, and +1 Defense with every useless Unobstructed view my opponent casts.
The pass is clearer this time, meaning I can move my small base figures up while the Outcast deals with the Earth Golem. One of the Slicers spends a big chunk of time stuck away from the enemies because there's no room for him, but I do get to put a Barbarian Commander between 3 Aura 3s at one point. Two War-Enchanted Grobles (thanks to Grimlic) can kill the Dwarven Sharpshooter in a single attack each. Even my standard Groble is doing 20 damage by the time the AI starts spawning purple-base champions. My War-Enchants have over 100 hp and are regenerating 4 hp a turn, and I wipe everything the turn it lands.
Obviously most games won't work out that same way with the War-Enchant, but that was sure fun. A full-faction group sounds even more appealing; I can't say that I was drawing a ton of benefit from the K'Thir end other than the speed boost, but I think it'll prove more valuable in a more challenging game. The Ironfist Map bunches things up and lets a few big melee characters really hold their own- mobility isn't much of a factor.
Spending XP, I buy Rend 3 for both Mogaslicers. My Groble without Pulverize 2 gets it. I increase the Lodestone's Speed to 8, and buy Speed 9 and Immunity-Fire for the unleveled Outcast of Flame. Both Medics pick up Cleanse, which heals as well. Keeping an eye on the goal of beating Grimlic, I buy Resistance-Fire up to 2, looking longingly at the Resistance-Physical I will one day purchase. Four games is also where I like to consider what is and isn't working within the bg, and make the necessary changes. Unfortunately, I don't see any rune that demands to be removed. I'm keeping the Commander in until she can get the ability to grant Rain of Arrows, and will decide if that's awesome once I get a chance to use it. Similarly, I haven't had a cause to summon the Dwarven King, but can easily see benefits in doing so at some point. I leave the bg completely unchanged for now.
Champions Cost/Level/Attack/Defense/Speed/Damage/Hp/Range
Archer Commander 56/1/13/12/7(8 w/ Faction)/10/38/3-6, Commander:Archer
Centaur Skirmisher x2 70/1/14/11/11/7(8 w/ Faction)/7/42/2-4, Mobility, Blitz
Dwarven King 97/4/14/22/9(10 w/ Faction)/14/58/1, War Cry 3, Divine Favor 3, Melee Specialist 2
Dwarven Mogaslicer x2 71/1/15/12/9(10 w/ Faction)/12/48/1, Damage Aura 3, Rend 3, Charge 2
Elven Archer x2 83/3/13/11(12 w/ Faction)/11/12/30/4-7, Barrage 1
Groble x2 86/3/10/25/9(10 w/ Faction)/10/42/1 Immunity-Fire, Pulverize 2, Siege, Fury
Lodestone Construct 57/1/10/18/7(8 w/ Faction)/11/46/1 Blacksmith, Construct Immunities, Pilfer
Medic x2 45/1/5/12/7(8 w/ Faction)/5/37/1 Immunity-Disease, Cleanse, Heal Champion 2, Passive, Immunize
Outcast of the Flame 65/13/11/8(9 w/ Faction)/14/37/3-6 Fire Aura 3, Incinerate 1, Dissipate, Confuse Attacker
Outcast of the Flame 84/2/13/11/10(11 w/ Faction)/14/37/3-6 Immunity Fire, Fire Aura 3, Incinerate 2, Dissipate, Confuse Attacker
Timber Wolves 83/2/10/10/9(10 w/ Faction)/9/24/1 Detection 1, Skirmisher, Timber Wolves
War-Enchanted Groble 64/1/10/19/7(8 w/ Faction)/11/45 Spellswallower, Resistance-Fire 2, Construct Immunities, Adaptive-Ironfist, Loyalty
Spells
Ancestral Anger
Butterfly Wings
Glorious Charge
Grimlic's Mirror
Hammer Strike
Light as a Feather
Repair x2
Righteous Deflection
Spontaneous Growth
Equipment
Full Plate
Seed of Potential x2
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Deck Construction: Gunning for Grimlic
For my next build I'm looking at putting together a construct-heavy bg. This is partially to take advantage of the Repair spell, which is a massive 40 healing to a select construct, and partially because I want a Protectorate bg that can handle the first level of Grimlic's Descent on Hard. Grimlic's Descent swarms you with Ash Demons, Rust Demons, and the occasional Imps, Gahlroons, and Waroggs. There's also liberal use of lava, and the Ash Demons are monsters for Inhibiting champs. Also, the AI pops its champs wherever it wants; so as you're pushing over the river toward its shrine, it can just spawn three Ash Demons at yours.
So I'm looking for a bg which has resistance/immunity to fire, the ability to navigate lava, cleansing ability and healing, high damage, and shrine defense. Is that a tall order? Probably, but there's nothing for it but to try. I'll experiment with a full-faction build first, but I imagine I'd do well to consider mixing; I'm thinking specifically here of adding K'Thir Forest, so I can pick up Light as a Feather for my heavier constructs like Earth Golem and Catapult/Siege Engine. I'd also be able to run two Outcasts of the Flame, which can ignore the Ash Demons and slaughter anything else.
Okay, that actually convinced me to consider the split faction first.
As before, let's start with the full-on list of all my available runes. First, I consider Ironfist options. The fact that Mogaslicers count as constructs mean I'll probably take two of them for mobility alone. Full Plate is also a good combination with Light as a Feather. Obviously I want two Repairs, since they're a major draw for building the deck in the first place. I consider at least one Righteous Deflection and one Hammer Strike standard choices for any IS deck that isn't firmly anti-spell; I also like Glorious Charge because I believe it should give Lumbering units cheaty movement. I'm tempted to also include Strip Armor, since I'll be primarily dealing in physical damage. I may want to come back later for an Impervious as well, since that would help with shrine destruction. If I plant a creature with Siege next to someone's shrine, one turn's worth of Impervious might make all the difference.
Having at least one Nora Mine grants a significant advantage, and this bg might actually be expensive enough to warrant two. However, the IS side is already getting pretty full, so I'm going to try running the deck without nora gen for the moment. Most of my construct pieces are unleveled and thus should be fairly cheap; hopefully once they're in play their resilience will keep them there.
Cuts are tough, and I begin to think seriously about abandoning the half-faction concept and going full IS, so I can pack in more constructs (Earth Golems, specifically, and some siege engines) more healing, and a few hardy dwarves. I'm hoping to make up for the lacking elements on the KF side though, with a focus on range and speed.
Champions
Dwarven King
Dwarven Mogaslicer x2
Groble x2
Lodestone Construct
Medic x2
War-Enchanted Groble
Spells
Glorious Charge
Hammer Strike
Repair x2
Righteous Deflection
Equipment
Full Plate
The Forest has some ground to cover. I know I want both Seeds of Potential, since it provides healing and a trail effect I can use to build a path over lava for non fire-immune creatures. I can also drop it as a font defender in a pinch, then pick the relic up before it's destroyed and redrop a few turns later. I'm considering a Prismatic Crystal as well, since i have some passive units who can self-heal and use the Crystal to clog an area. I don't know that I have the space for it, though, so I move on to spells. Butterfly Wings got a boost when they added Mobility, which is useful for a shrine end-run. Ancestral Anger speeds my units while increasing their damage, so I'll take that as well. Spontaneous Growth is a heal that can also undo a lava spell.
Where Champs are concerned, I'm looking seriously at range. Given that the map I'm building for does grant a couple Elven Archers already, and I have two of my own, Archer Commander will provide some serious benefit. The Outcasts of the Flame were one of the major reasons I went K'Thir, so I'm obviously taking two of those. Timber Wolves provide a quick boost on the board, though they'll crumple fast against UD. With two spots left I toss in a pair of Centuar Skirmishers; they're a new rune I haven't played much, but they have range 2-4 and several mobility options.
Champions
Archer Commander
Centaur Skirmisher x2
Elven Archer x2
Outcast of the Flame x2
Timber Wolves
Spells
Ancestral Anger
Butterfly Wings
Grimlic's Mirror
Light as a Feather
Spontaneous Growth
Equipment
Seed of Potential x2
As it stands, then, the final build is then:
Champions Cost/Level/Attack/Defense/Speed/Damage/Hp/Range
Archer Commander 56/1/13/12/7(8 w/ Faction)/10/38/3-6, Commander:Archer
Centaur Skirmisher x2 70/1/14/11/11/7(8 w/ Faction)/7/42/2-4, Mobility, Blitz
Dwarven King 97/4/14/22/9(10 w/ Faction)/14/58/1, War Cry 3, Divine Favor 3, Melee Specialist 2
Dwarven Mogaslicer x2 69/1/15/12/9(10 w/ Faction)/12/48/1, Damage Aura 3, Rend 2, Charge 2
Elven Archer x2 83/3/13/11(12 w/ Faction)/11/12/30/4-7, Barrage 1
Groble 82/3/10/25/9(10 w/ Faction)/10/42/1 Immunity-Fire, Pulverize 1, Siege, Fury
Groble 86/3/10/25/9(10 w/ Faction)/10/42/1 Immunity-Fire, Pulverize 2, Siege, Fury
Lodestone Construct 57/1/10/18/7(8 w/ Faction)/11/46/1 Blacksmith, Construct Immunities, Pilfer
Medic x2 38/1/5/12/7(8 w/ Faction)/5/37/1 Immunity-Disease, Heal Champion 2, Passive, Immunize
Outcast of the Flame 65/13/11/8(9 w/ Faction)/14/37/3-6 Fire Aura 3, Incinerate 1, Dissipate, Confuse Attacker
Outcast of the Flame 84/2/13/11/10(11 w/ Faction)/14/37/3-6 Immunity Fire, Fire Aura 3, Incinerate 2, Dissipate, Confuse Attacker
Timber Wolves 83/2/10/10/9(10 w/ Faction)/9/24/1 Detection 1, Skirmisher, Timber Wolves
War-Enchanted Groble 61/1/10/19/7(8 w/ Faction)/11/45 Spellswallower, Construct Immunities, Adaptive-Ironfist, Loyalty
Spells
Ancestral Anger
Butterfly Wings
Glorious Charge
Grimlic's Mirror
Hammer Strike
Light as a Feather
Repair x2
Righteous Deflection
Spontaneous Growth
Equipment
Full Plate
Seed of Potential x2
I'll run this through the standard testing gamut of four beginner matches, four trial matches; but then I'll be taking it into Grimlic's campaign instead of PvP.
So I'm looking for a bg which has resistance/immunity to fire, the ability to navigate lava, cleansing ability and healing, high damage, and shrine defense. Is that a tall order? Probably, but there's nothing for it but to try. I'll experiment with a full-faction build first, but I imagine I'd do well to consider mixing; I'm thinking specifically here of adding K'Thir Forest, so I can pick up Light as a Feather for my heavier constructs like Earth Golem and Catapult/Siege Engine. I'd also be able to run two Outcasts of the Flame, which can ignore the Ash Demons and slaughter anything else.
Okay, that actually convinced me to consider the split faction first.
As before, let's start with the full-on list of all my available runes. First, I consider Ironfist options. The fact that Mogaslicers count as constructs mean I'll probably take two of them for mobility alone. Full Plate is also a good combination with Light as a Feather. Obviously I want two Repairs, since they're a major draw for building the deck in the first place. I consider at least one Righteous Deflection and one Hammer Strike standard choices for any IS deck that isn't firmly anti-spell; I also like Glorious Charge because I believe it should give Lumbering units cheaty movement. I'm tempted to also include Strip Armor, since I'll be primarily dealing in physical damage. I may want to come back later for an Impervious as well, since that would help with shrine destruction. If I plant a creature with Siege next to someone's shrine, one turn's worth of Impervious might make all the difference.
Having at least one Nora Mine grants a significant advantage, and this bg might actually be expensive enough to warrant two. However, the IS side is already getting pretty full, so I'm going to try running the deck without nora gen for the moment. Most of my construct pieces are unleveled and thus should be fairly cheap; hopefully once they're in play their resilience will keep them there.
Cuts are tough, and I begin to think seriously about abandoning the half-faction concept and going full IS, so I can pack in more constructs (Earth Golems, specifically, and some siege engines) more healing, and a few hardy dwarves. I'm hoping to make up for the lacking elements on the KF side though, with a focus on range and speed.
Champions
Dwarven King
Dwarven Mogaslicer x2
Groble x2
Lodestone Construct
Medic x2
War-Enchanted Groble
Spells
Glorious Charge
Hammer Strike
Repair x2
Righteous Deflection
Equipment
Full Plate
The Forest has some ground to cover. I know I want both Seeds of Potential, since it provides healing and a trail effect I can use to build a path over lava for non fire-immune creatures. I can also drop it as a font defender in a pinch, then pick the relic up before it's destroyed and redrop a few turns later. I'm considering a Prismatic Crystal as well, since i have some passive units who can self-heal and use the Crystal to clog an area. I don't know that I have the space for it, though, so I move on to spells. Butterfly Wings got a boost when they added Mobility, which is useful for a shrine end-run. Ancestral Anger speeds my units while increasing their damage, so I'll take that as well. Spontaneous Growth is a heal that can also undo a lava spell.
Where Champs are concerned, I'm looking seriously at range. Given that the map I'm building for does grant a couple Elven Archers already, and I have two of my own, Archer Commander will provide some serious benefit. The Outcasts of the Flame were one of the major reasons I went K'Thir, so I'm obviously taking two of those. Timber Wolves provide a quick boost on the board, though they'll crumple fast against UD. With two spots left I toss in a pair of Centuar Skirmishers; they're a new rune I haven't played much, but they have range 2-4 and several mobility options.
Champions
Archer Commander
Centaur Skirmisher x2
Elven Archer x2
Outcast of the Flame x2
Timber Wolves
Spells
Ancestral Anger
Butterfly Wings
Grimlic's Mirror
Light as a Feather
Spontaneous Growth
Equipment
Seed of Potential x2
As it stands, then, the final build is then:
Champions Cost/Level/Attack/Defense/Speed/Damage/Hp/Range
Archer Commander 56/1/13/12/7(8 w/ Faction)/10/38/3-6, Commander:Archer
Centaur Skirmisher x2 70/1/14/11/11/7(8 w/ Faction)/7/42/2-4, Mobility, Blitz
Dwarven King 97/4/14/22/9(10 w/ Faction)/14/58/1, War Cry 3, Divine Favor 3, Melee Specialist 2
Dwarven Mogaslicer x2 69/1/15/12/9(10 w/ Faction)/12/48/1, Damage Aura 3, Rend 2, Charge 2
Elven Archer x2 83/3/13/11(12 w/ Faction)/11/12/30/4-7, Barrage 1
Groble 82/3/10/25/9(10 w/ Faction)/10/42/1 Immunity-Fire, Pulverize 1, Siege, Fury
Groble 86/3/10/25/9(10 w/ Faction)/10/42/1 Immunity-Fire, Pulverize 2, Siege, Fury
Lodestone Construct 57/1/10/18/7(8 w/ Faction)/11/46/1 Blacksmith, Construct Immunities, Pilfer
Medic x2 38/1/5/12/7(8 w/ Faction)/5/37/1 Immunity-Disease, Heal Champion 2, Passive, Immunize
Outcast of the Flame 65/13/11/8(9 w/ Faction)/14/37/3-6 Fire Aura 3, Incinerate 1, Dissipate, Confuse Attacker
Outcast of the Flame 84/2/13/11/10(11 w/ Faction)/14/37/3-6 Immunity Fire, Fire Aura 3, Incinerate 2, Dissipate, Confuse Attacker
Timber Wolves 83/2/10/10/9(10 w/ Faction)/9/24/1 Detection 1, Skirmisher, Timber Wolves
War-Enchanted Groble 61/1/10/19/7(8 w/ Faction)/11/45 Spellswallower, Construct Immunities, Adaptive-Ironfist, Loyalty
Spells
Ancestral Anger
Butterfly Wings
Glorious Charge
Grimlic's Mirror
Hammer Strike
Light as a Feather
Repair x2
Righteous Deflection
Spontaneous Growth
Equipment
Full Plate
Seed of Potential x2
I'll run this through the standard testing gamut of four beginner matches, four trial matches; but then I'll be taking it into Grimlic's campaign instead of PvP.
Rolling Update: K'Thir Forest Collection
This post is a continually updating display of the runes I have in the Savage Tundra. Last update 1/03/10
K'Thir Forest Champions
Archer Commander
Centaur Archer x2
Centaur Regulator x2
Centaur Skirmisher x2
Circle Messenger
Colossal Boa
Elven Archer x2
Elven Artisan x2
Elven Blademaster x2
Elven Mage x2
Elven Treecaller
Enraged Grizzly x2
Falconer x2
Garu Chosen
Garu Hunter x2
Garu Hurler
Garu Shaman
Gnarlwood Grappler
Great Eagle x2
Mountain Garu x2
Nectar Faerie
Nymph x2
Outcast of the Flame x2
Sapling
Solitary Garu
Sporegill x2
Sprite
Timber Wolves
Treant Launcher
Tree Spider x2
Veasel Druid x2
Warcaller Fiorn
Wild Elf x2
Wilderkin Snakedancer x2
Winged Lerper x2
Wisp
Woodland Jester
K'Thir Forest Spells
Ancestral Anger
Brambles x2
Butterfly Wings x2
Carnivorous Vines x2
Devolve
Fuel x2
Grimlic's Mirror
Herbal Antidote
Light as a Feather
Occlusion
Rally the Herd x2
Recall
Reclaim x2
Sabotage x2
Spontaneous Growth
Swiftwind x2
Thorn Collection
K'Thir Forest Relics
Counterbalance
Elven Trading Post x2
Nature's Balance x2
Pride of K'thir
Prismatic Crystals x2
Throne of the Circle x2
K'Thir Forest Equipment
Barbed Vine Leash x2
Forest's Embrace x2
Hunter's Charm
Rejuvenation Ring
Seed of Potential x2
K'Thir Forest Champions
Archer Commander
Centaur Archer x2
Centaur Regulator x2
Centaur Skirmisher x2
Circle Messenger
Colossal Boa
Elven Archer x2
Elven Artisan x2
Elven Blademaster x2
Elven Mage x2
Elven Treecaller
Enraged Grizzly x2
Falconer x2
Garu Chosen
Garu Hunter x2
Garu Hurler
Garu Shaman
Gnarlwood Grappler
Great Eagle x2
Mountain Garu x2
Nectar Faerie
Nymph x2
Outcast of the Flame x2
Sapling
Solitary Garu
Sporegill x2
Sprite
Timber Wolves
Treant Launcher
Tree Spider x2
Veasel Druid x2
Warcaller Fiorn
Wild Elf x2
Wilderkin Snakedancer x2
Winged Lerper x2
Wisp
Woodland Jester
K'Thir Forest Spells
Ancestral Anger
Brambles x2
Butterfly Wings x2
Carnivorous Vines x2
Devolve
Fuel x2
Grimlic's Mirror
Herbal Antidote
Light as a Feather
Occlusion
Rally the Herd x2
Recall
Reclaim x2
Sabotage x2
Spontaneous Growth
Swiftwind x2
Thorn Collection
K'Thir Forest Relics
Counterbalance
Elven Trading Post x2
Nature's Balance x2
Pride of K'thir
Prismatic Crystals x2
Throne of the Circle x2
K'Thir Forest Equipment
Barbed Vine Leash x2
Forest's Embrace x2
Hunter's Charm
Rejuvenation Ring
Seed of Potential x2
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