Necropolis Strategy

[kingcomrade]

If you would like to take a look at the original page visit this link:
https://www.celestialheavens.com/571

[kingcomrade]

There's one mistake I made. Naadir's ghosts are not permanent.

[MistWeaver]

I do not agree. Summoning magic and its Master of Life should be High Importance skills. Since it rises undead troops permanently.

[stijn]

very nice guide! few mistakes i noticed



- vladimir gets +1 spellpower when casting raise dead for every 3 levels.



- lucretia makes the vampires better every 2 levels.



- enlightenment only boosts only ONE primary stat.



- pathfinding doesn't care about roads or not but about rough terrain, like swamps. (not 100% about this one)

[Labyrinth]

500-800 Skeleton archers - or even a few more

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j91/p ... m_okay.jpg

[kingcomrade]

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f284/ ... rchers.gif

Here's a nice pic I have of an army right after a battle. I still had 800 or so archers but not many other troops left.

[Gaidal Cain]

Some comments: I can't agree with the comments about Silent Stalker. It's essentially über-Scouting, and since Pathfinding is your pre-req, there's usually no point in taking scouting instead of it.

Ghost: They can cross the field in one turn. If a stack of shooters are blocking what you need to build up, they're quite OK at storming. The enemy also likes to throw weak attacks at them, such as arrow towers, so they can prevent damage to Archers.
Spectres: Anti-spellcaster units. Of course, the spellcasters are going to get in at least one spell first, so they're not that good. Particularly useful against mages that only has physical attacks. They also has really great damage.

Finger of Death: The anti-summoner ability of choice. Removes pesky phoenixes and illusions.

Also, you've not covered Destruction Magic or Leadership...

[russianspy5727]

yeah I agree with this guy that raise dead is overpowered. With Vladimir at level 24 I could raise 1200 hit points, way less than a haven hero could do with level 5 ressurect

[Adicto]

This guide is full of mistakes and noob observations. It´s even worse than Infiltrator´s Dungeon Guide

[Bandobras Took]

This guide is full of mistakes and noob observations. It´s even worse than Infiltrator´s Dungeon Guide

Constructive criticism, please.

List some of the mistakes, so that the author has a chance to correct and/or respond. Offer alternatives.

"noob observations," indeed.

[asandir]

not bad, but have to mention the glaring .... "where dead dragons weren't worth more than dead." in the necromancy section of the skills

[baby arm]

Give the little guy a break. He hasn't been the same since....the Accident.

[Braxen]

Excellent!

[soupnazii]

"where dead dragons weren't worth more than dead."



i think he meant to put the word "peasants" at the end of that sentence. but you can never be sure....

[Zombie_Inc]

I totally disagree with this guide. What can be worthless about a unit that has a 50% chance of No Retaliation, that makes enemy stacks waste their attacks (even if they do die, you just raise them)?



And Sorcery is far fromworthless either. The Necromancer has very scarce mana, so abilities that reduce the cost and increase the regeneration of mana are vital. Combine that with inteligence from enlightment and you can wreak a lot of havoc with your limited knowledge. And increasing your heroes initiative is also very useful, since spells are the hero's, especially Necromancer's, strongest weapon.

[Lord_Haart]

Nice work

[stysio]

i disagree with some parts of the guide. for me the Sorcery skill (with Vladimir as a hero) was quite important, giving me the ability to Raise Dead more often... and despite of Necromancer's high Defence i took the Defense skill and then enjoyed watching 14 Archangels killing only 2 of my Wraiths. It was as useful for me as Luck (of course i always take Luck ASAP, but...). Also the buildings increasing ur high defence are useful (i always choose +2 defence at colloseum)



If we are talking about Ghosts:

they are very useful unit, comparing them to a Mercedes on war field was funny, but high-level creatures like to strike them, and u can count on their Soldiers Luck to avoid damage (otherwise, u can resurrect them easily with Vladimir) and make enemy creatures loose their retaliation strike.

But the best is that Ghosts (non-upgraded) look like they're dancing on a rave party



the author of the guide forgot to say 'bout useful artifacts for necromancer ( for ex. that amulet which adds 1 damage - considering that i finished one scenario with 2k+ skeletons, that sounds nice - not even mentioning Jerrie's crazy army ).

[Cleanpea]

This guide reflects ONE way of playing. And is goodly specialized in this way. No-one ever said that this is the ONLY way--- But it is an effective and interesting way--- you write well, kingcomrade:)

[Sir Charles]

Wow. Have you really even PLAYED Necro in more than one way? I must say that your skill section is WAY off base. Let me elaborate.



Banshee Howl: Not a weak skill. Your comment that it's only really useful against heroes who have leadership is totally wrong. It's even MORE useful against heroes who DON'T have it. Negative morale pops up much more often than you'd think. And it works wonders against neutral wandering stacks as well. A unit that gets negative morale will lose their turn until their next initiative turn pops up, so it's a huge bonus. Plus there's the fact that the Necro troops have some of the lower initiative stats in the game overall, so that initiative deduction to the enemy helps bring things to a more even match. A GREAT skill.



Next is your selections for HIGH priority skills, well you got one of them correct. Attack. As for the secondary abilities, cold steel and power of speed may seem tempting, but avoid them like the plague. You need all three of the basic abilities. Archery is a no-brainer with your 2 powerful archer stacks. Frenzy, again...you'd be an idiot NOT to select that. But Tactics is a sorely overlooked ability for Necro. That extra space allows you to better arrange your units to protect your liches. But it also allows you to move your Zombies, Spectres, Vamps, Wraiths & Dragons that much closer to the enemy.



As for Logistics...sure, it's a great skill. But definitely NOT a high priority one for the Necromancer. His next high-priority skill is one you placed in your "point better spent elsewhere" section. Defense. Yes, the necromancer will end up with a nice high defense stat. You need to capitalize on that. Not ignore it. While your troops aren't high-damage dealing units, they are very durable against physical attacks. But not magical ones. Hence Protection. But ignoring Defense will only allow high attack armies overtake your defense stats. Evasion is VERY useful against academy, inferno, sylvan...heck...against all the towns. Anything you can do to make your troops last longer is going to benefit you in the long run. And the biggest way to do that is with the most important ability in this set. Vitality. Sure, it's an obvious boon to your skeletons, but don't overlook the other troops either. In general, the necromancer will have larger stacks (all 7 stacks) than the other towns, so this will help tremendously. As for the secondary abilities of Chilling bones and Resistance...don't bother. The others are FAR more useful.



Next in your medium importance section you list the "magics". Dark and Summoning. First, I'll agree with the selection of Dark. The mass spells in this school are HIGHLY advantageous. As for the spell power issue, try Expert Dark magic in combination with Master of Pain and Decay. Excellent damage. But regardless, you're still correct in general with your assessment of spell power in relation to Dark Magic. As for abilities with Dark Magic I’d suggest going for Spirit Link as well, which means Master of Curses is required. The last one is a choice between Master of Mind and Master of Pain. Both are very useful, but with your high spell power, Master of Pain is the way to go here. Mass Slow is always a great selection, but Confusion has limited use…especially now that we’ve taken Defense and Evasion.



As for Summoning Magic. Yeah, it’s good too. A more potent Raise Dead, Phantom Forces, Summoning (elementals & phoenix). But this slot could be put to better use than Summoning magic. Raise Dead is a level 2 spell, so you can get this with NO magic skills at all. As for it’s potency, with the vast Spellpower you’ll get…potency with Raise Dead is rarely an issue. The 2 summoning spells are nice, but I’d much rather cast something else usually. Which leaves Phantom Forces. Level 3. Again, you don’t need Summoning Magic to learn it. Just Magic Insight. Hence MY choice for the 2nd medium importance skill. Sorcery. To put this skill in the “point better spent elsewhere” section is what led me to believe that you haven’t really played Necro very often. The most focused aspect of the Necromancer is his spell power. You need to capitalize on this. Sorcery solves NUMEROUS problems with the necro. Firstly it allows him to cast more often. MUCH more often. Thus, he’s allowed to vastly lessen the effectiveness of the enemy army…quickly. Second, low knowledge. (to be honest, I rarely have any problems with this due to the frequency of knowledge artifacts and adventure map boosts, but I digress). Arcane Training makes your spells cost less, and Mana Regeneration allows you to recoup those lost spell points at a MUCH quicker rate. But also with Magic Insight, you’ll most likely gain access to some valuable spells at level 3. Circle of Winter and Fireball (both devastating with the necro’s spell power). Righteous Might and Deflect Missiles…marginally useful without light magic, but I sure wouldn’t turn them away :O). Earthquake and Phantom Forces…both extremely useful.



So I’d say Sorcery is a definite priority for Necro.



But so is Enlightenment (which you put in low priority for some reason). With the huge army you’ll be developing, you’ll be able to take on armies much larger than your opponents would be able to at a much earlier time. So take advantage of that too. Extra experience should NEVER be turned down. But coupled with that are extra stat boosts and access to several prime abilities. Intelligence is a great boost for your necro’s low knowledge stat. So that leaves Arcane Intuition (ignore this like the plague), and Scholar. Scholar is quite useful for when you get Wasp Swarm in your magic guild. Hire Vlad and acquire his raise dead spell via scholar. :O) But the real reason for taking scholar is to gain access to Lord of the Undead. +1 knowledge (take as many of THESE boosts as you can with necro) and another 5% in necromancy. Need I say more? :O)



So now we’ve got all 5 of our skills selected. But what if you don’t get one of the one’s you’re shooting for? Here’s where your low priority picks come into play IMO. As a fall-back selection, these would be decent picks for necro….(but only if the above ones don’t come available)…



Logistics/Pathfinding/Death March/Silent Stalker

(scouting is redundant due to silent stalker/navagation is totally map-dependant)

Destructive Magic/Master of Ice/Cold Death/Secrets of Destruction

(you’ve just got to hope for ice bolt or circle of winter because Secrets of Destruction gives you +2 knowledge AND a free damage-spell previously unknown)

Summoning Magic/Master of Life/Haunted Mines

(if you do take summoning…don’t choose any other combination than this. Haunted mines will give you HUNDREDS of ghosts in a short period of time. Ghosts can be taken from the mines and added to your army)

Luck/Magic Resistance/Soldier’s Luck/Dead Man’s Curse

(Any magic resistance is a help)



As for skill to be avoided. I’d say War Machines, Light Magic, Leadership should be ignored. Reasons for that should be fairly obvious.



Recap: Attack, Defense, Enlightenment, Sorcery, Dark Magic is the skill set of choice here. With Destructive Magic, Summoning Magic, Logistics and Luck as fall-back selections. Say no to War Machines, Leadership and Light Magic.



In your troops section, there are a few comments I’d like to make as well. Firstly, regular skeletons are far from useless. With defense, evasion, vitality, attack and battle frenzy they can still pack a punch. Plague Zombies are much more useful than people give them credit for. With tactics you can get across the battlefield easier and their special attack is cumulative and can add up rather quickly. Ghosts/Spectres. Wow, I just love this unit. Although after seeing your skill selection, I can see why YOU don’t care for it. You need defense, vitality and protection. With these, your ghosts (and especially your specters) will last MUCH longer. With tactics they can cross the field quickly and block enemy spellcasters. Their mana drain will drain enemy mana to revive killed specters. For the most part you’re pretty accurate with the Vampires, Liches and Wraiths. Again, you (like most other people) tend to underestimate the Bone/Spectral dragons. Necro will, in general, have more resources than other towns (due to not having to purchase troops as often) so by the time purchasing level 7’s comes around…you’ll have the gold to spare most likely. And with a growth rate of one higher than other level 7’s (due to tombstone) their damage & hit points are on par with the other level 7’s weekly output. My suggestion is to build the dwelling and the tombstone, then ignore them until late in the game when they’ve built up into a formidable force and you’ve got the extra gold.



In terms of Heroes, it’s all about starting skills and specialties. So if the hero has a great special but a lousy skill…avoid him. Kaspar is a good example of this. War machines is a total waste of a skill slot for Necro. Other than Kaspar, the only other Necro hero I would suggest staying away from would be Zoltan. Enlightenment is a good skill, but with Arcane Intuition selected as well, that eliminates either Intelligence or Lord of the Undead. Raven and Naadir both take a second magic skill on board, but they’re still very useful overall.



Overall this is a nice strategy guide, but it shows the glaring fact that you haven’t really played with different styles here unfortunately. Sorry for the long post, but once I started…I felt like I had to finish. :O)

[kingcomrade]

Also, you've not covered Destruction Magic or Leadership...

Leadership is worthless with an undead army, and I did cover Destruction Magic. Individual spells are kinda worthless to review, though, because they're all basically self-explanatory.

i think he meant to put the word "peasants" at the end of that sentence.

Yeah, it got left off for some reason.

What can be worthless about a unit that has a 50% chance of No Retaliation, that makes enemy stacks waste their attacks (even if they do die, you just raise them)?

The fact that it costs a ton of money and if it DOES get it, you can kiss all of it goodbye because they are so easily damaged?

And Sorcery is far fromworthless either.

No, it's not worthless, but there are many better skills.

But so is Enlightenment (which you put in low priority for some reason)

Low priority compared to the other skills.
Edited on Tue, Jul 18 2006, 15:32 by kingcomrade