glosrick: I have had three attemps at this episode and I must confess I tried to build up my troops in each one but apparently this gives Artica time to do the same hence the numbers of Ice Dragons she manages to summon.
Trying for the moving quickly approach leaves my cities vunerable due to the lack of trying to build up my resorces.
You say you don't recall having to deal with any Ice Dragons but believe me ,taking time to build up and you will see plenty.
Unfortunatly there is no power leak spell in this section which gives Artica unlimited spell points to summon these monsters. When yuor cities are attcked by four stacks each one consisting of at least three Ice Dragons it's time to wave the white flag.
I'm not going to give up but I am wondering just what approach will work.
My answer from before applies: Don't stop to build up. :)
Also, what difficulty are you playing at? I think I played through on Normal; if you're playing through on a higher difficulty, you may need to adjust some.
I had a quick look over the map, and I recall a few things about it. There is one Ice Dragon sitting on a reflecting pool, but I don't think it moves even though it is assigned to Artica; I would have killed that one, probably using the Air Galley and heroes.
You have an Air Galley. Make extensive use of it. 1) It is a very strong combat unit in its own right, especially because it is a ranged flyer. This means it can attack melee walkers with complete impunity. You only need to worry about flyers, ranged attackers, and spells. Abuse this. 2) When the Galley is moving, units riding in it don't use their own move. You can send a stack of units with the Galley, have it move near an objective, and send one passenger to run over, claim the site (mine, node, whatever), then run back, and everyone continues the ride. You can save a fair amount of move this way.
Expand North and East at the same time, splitting some of your forces. Your cities don't need guards unless they are going to come under attack, whether because they are on the front line in some fashion or because the AI has access to a teleporter that drops stuff off nearby. Even then, don't waste too many units on guard duty.
Fangir is basically only going to be a source of new spells for you. Don't bother saving him, don't bother helping him, just trade for the spells he knows before you finish the map. If he learns an exceptionally good one, consider trading for it then.
Don't worry about maxing out infrastructure in your cities. That's a trap. Decide what you want your city to do, and focus production in that direction. Most cities should be looking to make T2 or T3 units, depending on what is available. Also, make use of hurrying production when it could save you a turn (for example, if you only need another 10-20 hammers, but your city normally makes 30-50 hammers each turn).
Unlike AoW1, in this game Tier 1 units (swords, archers) are usually terrible. Don't spend resources making them if you can do better. Make sure to use the various abilities of your units as well. Mostly surround an enemy unit with cavalry then Taunt it with a Swashbuckler; watching it die to the free attacks from the cavalry is a wonderful thing. If you have something that can inflict poison, use that unit to shoot first; if the poison is applied, all later units will have an easier time.
Cavalry is a solid Human unit, combining decent stats, excellent mobility, and low cost. Swashbucklers are an excellent utility unit, though not as mobile. Knights are very powerful units. If they didn't need so much infrastructure, Air Galleys would be amazing.
Don't get too attached to your cities. If you keep pushing and capture three cities while an enemy captures one you previously captured, then you've still come out ahead.
There is a central island area that will be under fairly constant threat from Arachna. You may need to keep a stack of units here to defend it, but make it a mobile stack that can move around to guard the whole area. Don't try to place guards in each individual city.
When planning the protection of your cities, consider NOT putting up walls and such. Instead, focus your efforts on a stack of units that can protect the area. Let the enemy take a city, then send your mobile defense force to take it back. If you didn't add walls, it will be easier for the enemy, but it will also be easier for you when you take it back. Feel free to not defend the city in the first place; saves on unit maintenance.
