Caster of Magic Release thread : latest version 6.06!

[vicwaberub]

You know, I've never actually seen those 3 screens. *goes and checks* yup, there they are. I've just never realized you could right click on those. Neat!  I think that's a fine place for the info to be, but, as per my own lack of experience, I can easily see many new players not finding those.  Which is fine.  That's part of the 'look for more detailed information' that I was talking about.

I would much rather leave it exactly as it is.

Master of Magic is one of the first games with an in-game-help. But: Who know about a rightclick on a sword icon to get help?

As I read masterofmagic.wikia.com my first time, I was surprised. MoM seems to be an easy strategy game, but the mechanics in the background a not so easy. Roads and gold income or Multi-Figure-Unit-Attacks are examples of the complexity.

[Umbral Reaver]

You can right click on nearly anything in the game and it will explain it.

[Seravy]

4.01 released!

This introduces a new algorithm for placing initial monsters in encounter zones. Most important changes are "many" monsters no longer being limited to 6 or less, and naturally invisible units always being in the secondary slot so scouts don't report them. Maps should also be more balanced toward using Sprites, with fewer maps providing over-, or underwhelming amount of possible targets.
It also fixes several major bugs, including some in unit ratings and strategic combat.
Finally, it improves the early game of the Chaos realm somewhat and adds a new spell to the realm.

4.01
-New monster placing algorithm for map generation.
-It's now possible to have any amount of primary monster, up to 9.
-The more expensive monster will always be the primary (displayed when scouting), except for Air Elementals and Night Stalker, who are always secondary because of invisibility.
-Monster treasure values have been readjusted.
-Fixed : AI requires to have books from at least 3 realms to pick Astrologer instead of Omniscient randomly.
-Great Wyrms cannot appear alone or paired with War Bears or Earth Elementals
-Monsters with a “treasure value” of 301+ cannot appear in places with a total bugdet below 1500. Chimeras cannot appear if the total budget is below 800.
-”weak” lair max budget is now 300 higher on both planes.
-Building an outpost with a settler now forces a recalculation of resource producion in all cities. New shared tiles can result in loss of gold/food, and disbanding units without an advance warning otherwise.
-Strategic combat magic effect “Attack” weight is 6 times higher
-The AI will no longer fail to produce enough mana to maintain their spells and summons during Sorcery conjunctions.
-Fixed EXP3 bug : Units get a singificant bonus to their ranged strategic combat rating when they shouldn't.
-Fixed bug : random city enchantments were applied to strategic combat (usually ward, reducing the power of summoned creatures massively) - even in battles not at a city.
-Fixed bug : Strategic combat uses overland casting skill instead of combat casting skill, so banished wizards can cast spells and spellweaver increases skill.
-Adjusted AI difficulty level advantages - each difficulty level should be somewhat easier now. Largest reduction is in the production bonus.
-Chimeras casting cost is reduced to 215, upkeep to 4.
-Research cost of Gargoyles reduced to 200.
-Fireball strength raised to 12. However, Fireball cast by nonhero units through the Fireball Spell ability or otherwise is only strength 10.
-Fire Elemental gains +1 defense.
-Weapon Immunity now grants +8 defense instead of +7.
-Warp Wood now costs 5 MP.
-Hell Hounds gain +1 fire breath.
-Flame Blade is now a common spell.
-Eldritch Weapon has been removed from the game.
-New Uncommon Chaos spell : Mystic Surge. Combat only unit enchantment. The enchanted unit gains 3 movement, 2 defense, additional random buffs, but loses 2 resistance, counts as fantastic for the duration of the battle, cannot be healed during the battle, and is lowered to 1 remaining hit point at the end of battle.
-Fixed AI bug : AI fails to pick Gargoyles as their guaranteed uncommon.
-Guardian Spirit no longer prevents melding nodes, instead it adds a Heavenly Light effect - units protecting the node are buffed and the node produces an extra 3 power.
-Fixed bug : Strategic combat ending in a tie might crash the game.
-Fixed bug : AI units sometimes disregard enemy ranged presence when deciding to stall or not
-Fixed bug : AI fails to use Gaia's Blessing, decision might corrupt memory (v1.1 bug)
-Flame Strike is now strength 32 instead of 30
-Divine Order now makes combat spells 20% more expensive instead of 25 (23)%.
-Sage Master now provides an additional +5 RP instead of +9.
-Fixed bug : when a fantastic unit has Heroism, and it is removed, the unit doesn't lose the gained levels. (Lycanthropy, Mystic Surge)
-Fixed bug : Fantastic units with Heroism benefit from Warlord and Crusade.
-The AI will now try to keep a minimal 5 units on nodes
-Each additional level of a hero raises its hiring cost by 33% instead of 25%.

[Seravy]

4.01a
Fixed : AI casts Mystic Surge as an overland spell (still thinking it's Flame Blade/Eldritch Weapon)

[Nelphine]

I have a theory about the late game, and why my experience is often different to what other people have posited.

I consider the single most important task to winning a late game war, is to make sure the majority of your offensive troops can take out a city every turn. This effectively means you must have speed 5+ windwalking, or the equivalent, for your offensive doomstacks. And you must be able to do it with multiple stacks.

For each point of movement you slow down (or heaven forbid, being restricted to ground speed, and double ugh, ground speed without pathfinding), the AI will become noticeably more dangerous, and will make the problems inherent with the AI summoning defensive/offensive mix less of a problem.

To the point that if most of your doom stacks ate speed 2 regular ground movement, the AI should have enough time to summon enough units to be able to use some of its best units on offense.


I'd like to hear other peoples thoughts on this, and what your standard movement is.

[GermanJoey]

I have a theory about the late game, and why my experience is often different to what other people have posited.

I consider the single most important task to winning a late game war, is to make sure the majority of your offensive troops can take out a city every turn. This effectively means you must have speed 5+ windwalking, or the equivalent, for your offensive doomstacks. And you must be able to do it with multiple stacks.

For each point of movement you slow down (or heaven forbid, being restricted to ground speed, and double ugh, ground speed without pathfinding), the AI will become noticeably more dangerous, and will make the problems inherent with the AI summoning defensive/offensive mix less of a problem.

To the point that if most of your doom stacks ate speed 2 regular ground movement, the AI should have enough time to summon enough units to be able to use some of its best units on offense.


I'd like to hear other peoples thoughts on this, and what your standard movement is.

Pretty much agreed 100%. Slower-moving stacks aren't completely useless, as you can sometimes use those to hit spots in parallel to your main stack(s), and there's niche-situations w/ spells like Earth Gate and Astral Gate.  But yeah, in general your main stack needs to be hitting cities nonstop once you're at war, especially after a wizard is banished.

[zhantul]

My standard movement depends on how I play. Usually it is 2 water walking (javelineer stacks). Combined with war ships if they are available. If I have high elves, 4 movement pegasai stacks. I do play on normal power generation so summoned units are usually too late to include in real doom stacks. Sometimes I use a stack of shadow demons with endurance (3 speed).

Hitting the enemy fast isn't really important with my style. Hitting many fronts at the same time works for me. If I can take out the enemies fortress, then speed is great. I usually go for the weaker cities first as the fortress is too well defended. If I can take out the fortress, enemy stacks and nodes are just as high on my list as cities. Sure, spell of return might happen. That just means I have a second chance to steal spells.

Side note. Early and mid game, I hit with settlers (lizardmen preferred for speed). I place one next to outposts or weak cities in peacetime and as soon as war is declared, I hit with them. They can survive a psionic blast, fire bolt or life drain. A fire elemental or life siphon takes care of defender. Mid game, flame wave, wave of despair or earth elementals do the same. It works as long as there are no ranged troops. Engineers are too fragile and too high on the target list. Settlers get ignored most of the time. Since I've learned that there is no diplomatic effect for them, I've started experimenting. Even during war, they get free passage from most troops.

[coldsteel]

A minor bug-looking incident on 4.01a.  AI city troops came through  their wall of fire to chase my horsebowmen but when they retreated back through their wall of fire it singed them.  singe, sing, language needs a mod.

[Seravy]

Not a bug, the AI has no better option.
They either return through the fire, or they leave the city undefended and the player can walk inside with their faster units and damage the buildings. (which they can't do if the units returns as they'd be in range for an attack)

I guess if they never tried to chase the horsebowmen to begin with, that would have been better, but there are cases when they manage to corner the attackers if there are enough units so I don't want to disable that.

[Nelphine]

Given that a wall of fire let's attackers in from any direction, and horsebowman are ranged, I font think they could stop the attackers from getting in, and it doesn't help their own attacks.

I think if a wall of fire is present and no city walls, the AI shouldn't return into the wall of fire.