Citizens of the Confederacy!

You guys chill. Imma conquer the world by myself.

Play-through  (Turns 54-61)

Ceresa failed to intercept Boris on the way to Hagudst

Turns 54-56: Verga and Hannis were still hunting monsters.  All that fighting made Verga more accurate and Hannis more lethal.  While clearing a shrill lair, Hannis found an ivory helm that turned aside critical blows.  She decided to wear it until she could get it to Boris.  

Leadanna's party was cautiously exploring the Northern Wastes, clearing small groups of monsters and avoiding the more dangerous ones.  Leadanna's nature was definitely drawing her toward the path of the Governor.

The crow demon scout found a fertile patch of land beyond the wastelands.  Getting a pioneer there would have been very hard without magic.  The magelords decided to claim the land with monoliths, and maybe transport a pioneer when teleportation magic became available.  

The crow demon pushed further East, and spotted a Kraxis city.  The Empire of Kraxis seemed very powerful.  The Magelord spies made inquiries, and learned that Karavox controlled seven cities, and had the upper hand in a war with Altar.

This was good news for Boris.  With Altar and Kraxis locked in a war, it was more likely that he could subjugate Resoln before anyone else got involved.  He even managed to get Lena of Capitar to pay 159 Gildar toward the costs of the war.

As soon as the war was declared, Boris attacked the Urxen champion Karnius and his army of elementals.  Once again, it was a long, but uneventful battle.  By the time he had ground the last elemental to dust, Boris had had the time to work out the intricacies of casting Cloud Walk and Titan's Breath.  He pushed toward Hagudst, but was slowed down by a number of smaller armies blocking the road to the city.  On the way, he noticed Oracle Ceresa herself.  

She was hurrying to defend her city.  Boris did not want to risk injuring her.  He wanted her on the Magelords' side, just like Verga and Magnar, so he went around her, and attacked Hagudst before she could catch up with him.  It was yet another fight in which he could let his mind wander and work on the spells necessary to call himself a Life disciple.

When Ceresa saw the ease with which Boris overcame Hagudst defenders, she lost all will to fight.  Her spirit broken, she joined the Magelords.

Bound elementals are great at keeping Kingdom scouts and pioneers out

Turns 57-61: Hagudst was a valuable addition to the Confederacy.  Ceresa had been a very strict ruler, and had erected a set of gallows in her capital.  Once she had changed sides, she still saw herself as the ruler of her city, which helped to keep unrest low.  Furthermore, Hagudst had a brewing industry that was about to get an incredible boost from the newly opened markets of the Confederacy.  It looked as if the Wraiths would integrate into the Confederacy much easier than other Fallen.

Taking advantage of the brief period of peace, all Magelord champions concentrated on pacification.  Boris and Ceresa adventured in the former Wraiths lands, Verga and Hannis cleansed the former Quendar holdings.  While doing so, they found three lost libraries, and recovered enough ancient manuscripts to wrap up the research on Cooperation and move on to Education.  As for Leadanna, she was leading her army through the wastelands and picking off weaker enemies.  By selling her loot in the nearby Capitar cities, she became an even better merchant.

But the best scout of them all was the wolf Custos.  Somehow she found a path between Gildar's cities, outposts and resources, and discovered the lands of Pariden and Umber.  As soon as the location of Umber became known, Boris, Ceresa and Magnar headed there.  Custos went ahead, mapping two of three Umber cities, while the champions were trading equipment in preparation for the attack.  They had collected a number of interesting artifacts on their way to Umber: a serrated sword, a Boreal blade, a shrill shield and an amulet of warding.  Boris was convinced they had enough gear for a two pronged assault, but at some point realized that apart from himself, no one was able to take more than one solid hit.

Still, he didn't think that the assault on Umber could be postponed, and started writing his next speech.

Address to the Confederacy (Summer of 174)

Citizens of the Confederacy!

For the first time in years, our nation faces no direct threats.  The neighboring Kingdoms may hate us, but they do not seem inclined to declare war on us yet.  Whether they are wary of our champions, or whether they fear the backstabbing greed of their own neighbors does not matter.  The fact is that we have had the time to pacify our homelands and scout the wider world.

Unfortunately, this is only a temporary respite.  Our scouts have located the powerful Empire of Kraxis which is in the process of assimilating the Kingdom of Altar.  Sooner or later, we will have to deal with Emperor Karavox, but I think that some precautions must be taken before we attack him.

I am speaking of the Empire of Umber, which our scouts have located in the Southwest, between Pariden, Gilden and Altar.  Is Umber a danger to us?  In all honesty, not at all.  It is far from our lands, and surrounded by hostile Kingdoms.  Our diplomats expect that soon enough, Pariden and Gilden will attack Umber and probably split its lands amongst themselves.  But when this happen, our position will be much weaker.  A victorious war against Umber will leave the Ironeers on a war footing and much more likely to believe that they can overwhelm us.  The numerous shard shrines currently in Umber lands will be a threat to us as well.

No, we cannot afford to let Pariden and Gilden invade Umber.  Umber must fall now, and by our hand.  We must deny Kraxis an ally, we must deny Gilden and Pariden more resources, and above all, we must not allow anyone to forget what our military can achieve.

Thus, I have ordered most of our available forces to head toward Umber, and to locate all of their cities and valuable resources.  If, at that time, our neighbors still look non-threatening, we will swiftly add Umber to the Confederacy.  Of course, if our homelands were to be endangered by treasonous Kingdoms, I will use my Mastery of Air Magic to come back immediately and respond to any threat.  

The Future belong to us!  Magelords forever!

It's clear that the Magelords strategy can be summed up in one (short) word: Boris.  I have been trying to hint at his level up choices, but I think I should spell them out here:

At level 20, Boris has:

Potential I,II,III                  (Taken every time they were available, because assassins benefit from high levels)

Strength                             (There was nothing better that level)

Path of the Assassin            (Obviously)

Dodge I,II,III, and Acrobat  (This is what keeps Boris alive, and it was planned when I named the character)

Adventurer's Boon              (There was nothing better that level)

Quick, Fast, and Graceful    (Initiative is what Boris lives by)

Vital Strike I                      (There was nothing better that level)

Double Strike                     (There was nothing better that level)

Air IV, Life II, Earth II         (Magic is always useful)

At this point, I feel the Magelords have a chance, especially if Boris manages to take Umber before any Kingdoms attack.   Of course, the Confederacy is still absolutely vulnerable to attack, even if Boris keeps 80 mana in reserve for a cloud walk.  The other champions are fine against monsters, but a high end trained unit will wipe anyone but Boris on HPs alone.

Hannis has potential, but she needs "Haste" before she can go out on her own.  Which means research in magic.

Play-through (Turns 62-72)

Before trying to exploit the shards, the Magelords probably should pacify the area

Turns 62-63: The Magelord scholars formulated a new education strategy for all of the Confederacy, and shifted their focus on Craftsmanship.  New Conclave continued to prioritize building research facilities; the construction of a conclave began as soon a study was completed.

Hannis, Verga and Leadanna continued adventuring on the edges of the wastelands.  Hannis was refining her swordsmanship, Verga was slowly improving his accuracy, and Leadanna was concentrating on her mercantile skills.

Boris and Ceresa approached the closest Umber city, but just as they were about to attack, they received a message from Custos, who had discovered a shard rich region colonized by Umber.  The Magelords contemplated razing the outposts and erecting arcane monoliths instead, but the region was infested by slags, drakes, and obsidian golems.  In order to insure the shard shrines survived the change of ownership, Boris decided to pacify the area before attacking Umber.

The Umber sovereign is not to be trifled with

Turns 64-66: Boris attacked the slag, and had to do something he had not had to do for a while, namely pay attention to the fight.  The slag was quite good at finding the weak spots of Boris armor and its critical strikes actually threatened Boris's life.  Fortunately, the slag was sluggish, so Boris had no trouble dashing in and out, and bleeding the beast before it could riposte.

Next he took out yet another obsidian golem, and retrieved a razor broadsword from its lair.  It was nowhere as good as Boris's serrated shortsword, so he sold it to a local merchant.

Finally he destroyed a drake and its army, and retrieved a Tarth gladiator armor from its lair.  It wasn't much in terms of protection, but it was light enough to allow him to move very quickly.  With that last fight, the area had been pacified.  Boris was ready to start razing outposts and erect monoliths.  He paused for a moment to appraise what everyone else was doing.

Ceresa had been mapping Umber, until she ran across Urko himself.  He was no fool, and knew what to expect.  He had her immediately escorted to the border, and headed that way himself.  He was extremely well trained and equipped, but still no match for Boris.

Magnar was wandering the Kraxis lands, picking off weak monsters and exploring areas of interest.  A lost library yielded enough information for the Magelords to truly improve their Craftsmanship.  Satisfied with their production capacity, the scholars focused their effects on Sorcery.  Their goal was to teach every champion enough Air magic to cast Haste, as well as broaden Boris's magical knowledge.

On the edge of Pariden's territory, Custos spotted a Dragon statue.  It did not look like much, but the wolf still made sure to remember the location, because her instinct told her the statue was somehow important.  She then started exploring Pariden's lands.

Far in the Northwest, the crow demon scout met and hired the Tarth champion Uifnir.  The two joined together to block Tarth and Kraxis pioneers from settling on a fertile strip of land just out of the range of the nearby Magelord monoliths.

Meanwhile, Leadanna, Verga, and Hannis were penetrating deeper into the Titans' Battlefield, destroying stronger monsters, and getting better equipment.  Hannis once again proved to be especially lucky as she unearthed a pair of dancing boots in a shrill lair.  

Hannis strikes on her own, and does quite well

Turns 67-68: The preparations for war with Umber were complete.  Boris reviewed the messages from his diplomats.  Non-aggression pacts had been signed with Tarth and Capitar, and trade and technology exchanges had been negotiated.  Gilden was the only neighbor still making threatening noises, but Boris trusted that his mana reserves would be adequate to deal with a sudden attack.

Lady Irane sent 165 Gildar, asking that Boris destroys Umber.  Boris declared war and rushed toward the closest Umber city, Ventraken.  Its population was under two hundred, and its fall was unremarkable.

Urko had been ready for the attack.  Three Umber armies advanced on Ventraken.  One consisted of Urko, Lady Sculla and a throng of heavy infantry, the second comprised of three champions - Nikonus, Sothia and Diruna followed by scouts and pioneers, and third one was just a mass of Urxen.  Luckily for Boris, Urko had not taken into account the fact that he would have to travel through hostile dominion.  There were enough Magelord sympathizers to slow him down, and Boris managed to intercept two of the three armies.  As for Urko, a series of tremors made it impossible for him to remain on his feet, let alone to assault Ventraken.

While Urko was immobilized, Boris bypassed him, and assaulted Goldag.  Its defenses were considered epic.  In addition to the champions he had just defeated, Noshima and Kallus Hairto faced him at the gate.  It was all for naught.  Boris dodged most of the attacks, and even those that landed failed to hurt him much. 

Once the city fell, Boris needed to continue South, but his way was blocked by a throng of pioneers.  There were nearly a hundred of Urxen women, and Boris could not see himself murdering them in cold blood.  But Ceresa was nearby, and had no such compunctions towards the Urxen.  She grabbed her soul staff, and cleared Boris's path, while substantially increasing the Magelords mana reserves.

Hannis decided to separate from Verga's party.  She was grateful to Verga for his tutelage, but she felt it was time for her to adventure on her own.  In truth, she wanted to tackle stronger opponents, such as Verga could not face because of his broken spirit.  Her first target was a Fire elemental's army.  She renewed her "Regeneration" enchantment, and added "Stone Skin" and "Nature Cloak".  She won handily, and the experience made her an even more skilled and more lethal swordwoman.  

The mighty monoliths: dozens of enemy pioneers left with no land to grab

Turns 69-72: The scholars of New Conclave published their research on Sorcery.  As soon as she heard, Hannis tasked Leadanna with traveling to the nearest merchant, and buying a Air Tome.  Leadanna headed toward a nearby monolith, while Hannis she took on an air elemental, a number of shrills and an army of ophidians.  She was not even taking the time to loot her kills, leaving the job for Verga.  It was no surprise that she was becoming a quick, bloodthirsty killer.  Still, she wasn't forgetting her main task, and when she noticed a dragon statue, she noted the location on her map and for good measure erected an arcane monolith nearby.

Verga had resigned himself to playing a support role for Hannis long ago.  He searched the lairs of the monsters she had killed, and found a reinforced plate and a doom hammer.  He was supposed to bring the equipment to Hannis, but had to take a detour to help Leadanna who had gotten caught between a pair of shrill lords and an air elemental's army.  The battlefield was too dangerous for either of them alone, so Verga and Leadanna decided to stick together for the time being.  

Between Hannis, Verga, Leadanna, and Uifnir, the battlefield of the Titans was eventually cleansed of monsters.  There were dozens of Tarth and Kraxis pioneers waiting to split the resources between their nations, but the Magelords were no fools.  Moments after the last monster was dead, five arcane monoliths rose from the ground, claiming the area for the Confederacy.

Magnar had been exploring in the Northwest, when he was accosted by a group of Kraxis watchmen, and asked to leave the Empire.  He agreed, but instead of being courteously escorted, he was blindfolded, knocked out and abandonned out in the Lombard desert, surrounded by wildlings and shrills.  He did not know how to leave, so instead, he made sure that his "Regeneration" was refreshed, and started exploring his surroundings.  After defeating a group and shrills and a sand golem, he became an even better Fire mage.

Boris realized that he had no idea where Urko's last city was.  He send Ceresa and Custos to look for it.  While they were exploring, he attacked a shrill lord in its lair, and after defeating it found a spectral plate.  

It did not take long for Custos to discover Umber's capital and to destroy the outposts which hindered the champions movement.  Ceresa cleared the pioneers and scouts blocking Boris's path.  Boris smashed the gates and slaughtered the defenders.  When he saw the brutal efficiency of the
Magelord war host, Urko surrendered.

The Magelords were again victorious, but every single other faction hated them with a passion.  Boris felt that  it was time to address the citizens of the Confederacy again.

The magelords won't win any popularity contests

Address to the Confederacy (Spring of 177)

Citizens of the Confederacy!

Once again, we are at peace, with no enemy directly threatening us.  But in the Northeast, the Kraxis Empire was been growing more powerful as it has been absorbing the Kingdom of Altar.  Our scouts tell us that Altar will not last longer than a few years.  

It may be a long time the Confederacy comes to Emperor Karavox's attention.  He will have to conquer at least a few kingdoms before his armies are in position to strike at us.  It may be that a Kingdom alliance rises to oppose him.  But once the dust settles in the Northeast, there will be one powerful entity remaining, and that entity will be hostile to us.

I do not intend to allow Karavox to conquer the world, nor do I want to face a Kingdom alliance that will certainly exclude the Confederacy.  I intend to move all of our champions in a position to strike against Kraxis, and attempt to assimilate their cities as quickly as possible.

By crushing the last remaining Empire, we will remind our neighbors that our warriors are the most effective in the world, and will dissuade them from acting upon their hostility toward us.  Maybe the war against Kraxis is the last war we'll ever fight...  Maybe once the last practitioners of Death magic have been reformed and have embraced our cause, we will be finally able to live free of fear.

For the future of the Confederacy!  Magelords forever!

Play-through (Turns 73-88)

Even the smallest Krax cities are strongly defended

Turns 73-75: Magnar kept exploring the Lombard wastes.  The enemies he was fighting were too weak to be good training, but the manuscripts he kept finding were of great use to the Confederacy researchers.  The Magelords' understanding of Sorcery advanced significantly, allowing Boris, Hannis and Uifnir to finally cast "Tireless march".  

There was some discussion about the next research topic, but some of the recently conquered cities were running out of food, so the scholars in New Conclave concentrated on animal husbandry.  Urko headed south to explore the Pariden lands.  Queen Procipinee had not done a very good job at pacifying her holdings, but Urko did not mind.  He started destroying monster lairs, and experimenting with Air magic while doing so.

Uifnir entered Karavox's lands from the North.  He killed a corpse spider and found a obsidian shield in its lair.  He had spent the fight hiding behind his grave elemental, and decided that he liked it that way, so he chose the path of the Mage.

In order to reach the cities controlled by Karavox, Boris had to cross the lands of Altar.  He had recently started to hope that war with the Kingdoms might be avoided, so he instructed his diplomats to pursue every possible treaty with every known kingdom.  No one was willing to sign non-aggression pacts, but a number of factions agreed to exchange goods and knowledge with the  Magelords.  

These sure are a lot of wildlings

Turns 76-78: An unberdoth attacked and killed Custos in Altar territory.  Ceresa avenged her at once, improving her precision in the process.

Hannis and Uifnir were adventuring on the Northern edges of Kraxis territory, waiting for Boris and Ceresa to get across Altar.  Fortunately Karavox had not been playing too much attention to clearing the monster lairs, so they had enough to keep themselves busy.  Hannis even got to slay a juggernaut.

As she was examining the gear of the numerous Kraxis troops around her, Leadanna wondered whether the Empire wasn't running out of metal.  That was indeed the case.  She checked with Boris, who wrote "Gold for the Confederacy, trouble for Altar, and eventually practice for our troops. What's not to like?".  She managed to get 3 Gildars per load of metal, adding nearly three thousands to the Magelords' coffers.

Urko killed every monster he could find in Pariden, and swung back into Magelord territory to dispatch a bone golem and a harridan spider army.  He was slowly regaining his accuracy.

Magnar kept killing wildlings and exploring ancient libraries, when he got a glimpse of the elemental lord Torax.   The Quendar felt he was quick enough to run circles around the beast, and waited to see which way it would head.

Ceresa was having trouble getting across Altar.  She had chosen to travel through Avalan, and the road and fields were crowded with Altar and Kraxis troops.  As far as she could tell, Altar's troops were better trained and equipped, but woefully outnumbered.

Even Boris will be hurt when the enemy accuracy is increased by 50%

Turns 79-81: Karavox must have gotten tired of the Confederacy champions hanging around his borders because he declared war first.  Boris was already in position, and thought it was fitting that he strikes the first blow.  He attacked Claredsden, and was surprised by the prowess of the defenders.  He won, but had to work for it.  Feinted retreats, flanking, Krax blood and regeneration... he needed every trick in his repertoir.  He sent a message to all his champions - only Hannis and Urko were to engage the enemy, and even they should stay away from any major cities.  Everyone else should try to stay in friendly territory and only attack weak groups caught outside the enemy walls.

Hannis attacked Staltontal and took it without any problems.  There were two other Kraxis villages nearby, and well as a number of scouts, pioneers and even a few combat troops.  She methodically proceeded to neutralize the troops as she was moving towards Carundra.  

Ceresa patrolled in Altar territory, picking off the weaker Kraxis armies and letting Lord Relias take care of what she could not handle.  The invaders were slowed down, while she was enjoying the benefits of Altar's roads, so she could easily pick and choose her fights, and even use the staff of souls when her enemies were no threat.  

Magnar kept was circling around Torax, exploring libraries and killing wildlings.  He located the main library complex, and waited for an oportunity to explore it without getting caught by the elemental lord.

Urko and the Dragon

Turns 82-83: The Magelords made significant advances in Blacksmithing and started deciphering the letters of the ancient adventurer Beorn.  Many a scholar was wondering why Boris was interested in the documents, but the project was interesting, and everyone was happy to work on it.

Lord Relias of Altar shocked Ceresa by asking her to leave his lands.  She had been destroying Kraxis troops that directly threatened his cities, and instead of thanks, she got a ride straight into Karavox's lands.  Fortunately for her, Boris was nearby and took the city of Kerstey, allowing her to move faster than the nearby troops.  It did not take long for the two of us to clear the area of any Krax.

Harris reached the village of Carundra, and easily took it over.  At about the same time, an unit of Magelord pioneers founded the settlement of Curgen's Tomb.  At that point, the area around the former wastelands was fully under Confederacy control, with three villages surrounding it.  Harris set South to look for the enemy, and Karavox himself.  He was attempting to destroy a cluster of Magelord resources.  Hannis could have easily defeated him, but Boris prefered to neutralize him without hurting him.  One precisely targeted tornado, and Karavox found himself in the Northern Wastes, while Hannis picked him former escorts one by one.

A huge Storm dragon wandered close to the former Quendar city of Khaffara.  Fortunately, Urko was nearby.  He made sure sure he had all known enchantments and attacked it.  Three swings of Urko serrated greatsword found the dragon's vitals in quick succession, and it was all over.  Despite his broken spirit, Urko was combining warrior and assassin techniques to a terrifying effect. 

Altar and Kraxis fought over this city for years.  Urko and Hannis took it in one season.

Turns 84-85: On his way to the next Kraxis city, Boris cleared a drake's lair, and found a serrated greatsword.  Urko headed to Aegonford, and arrived just in time to see Magush the Adept defeat Lord Relias and his army.  Urko did not give Magush time to celebrate or rest, and attacked.  Magush escaped to the  nearby city, and Urko followed.  There were a lot of enemies on his way, and fighting them slowed him down.  

Fortunately, Hannis was close enough to take advantage from the path opened by Urko, and attacked Aegonford.  The battle was the hardest she had ever fought.  There were more than a dozen heroes in the city, and quite a few of them were disciples of Life magic.  She was only able to win because many attacked her before they had been healed, and were burned by her mantle of fire.  

Still, the fight lasted a long time, and taught Hannis much.  By the time Aegonford fell, Hannis was the most lethal swordwoman to have ever lived.

Magnar finally managed to search the main library complex without being disturbed by Torax.  He found manuscripts in a language that matched Beorn's letters.  The scholars in New Conclave uncovered the secrets of the letters, and let Boris know.  He instructed them to focus on literacy and higher education next.

Slaughter

Turns 86-88: According to the Magelords spies, Kraxis still held four cities.  The Magelords knew the locations of three of them, so Boris, Hannis and Urko each headed for one.

Magnar had mapped the whole desert, and even erected a monolith so that the Magelords could exploit some of the available ressources.  Torax was still chasing him, but Magnar was not worried.  He knew that once Kraxis was defeated, it would be very easy for Boris to cloud walk to the monolith and slay the elemental lord.

The greatest Magelord champions were in position: Boris at Goyarh Hedigah, Hannis at Dundlan, and Urko at Athurston.  It was time to crush Kraxis once and for all. 

Boris attacked first, and took the Kraxis capital, routing more than a dozen heroes in the process.  They flew to the nearest city, when Hannis was waiting for them, and made them run without giving them a chance to rest.  During the battle, Hannis received enough insight to grow to a master of Water magic.  She pursued the fleeing champions to the walls of Caldesbern.  

Meanwhile Urko took Athurston, which was not particularly well defended.  Still there had been three heroes in residence, and they all flew to join their fellows in Caldesbern.  There were a total of 18 champions when Hannis broke down the gates.  Once they were down, and the last Kraxis
city flew the Magelords' color, Boris asked for Karavox surrender, and Karaxis was no more.

There was no celebration, though.  Boris had just received a report from a scout near Tan-Ta-Kreet.  The Ironeers had finished constructing the Forge of the Overlord.  It was very likely that Lord Markin was already casting the Spell of Making.

Boris needed to address the Confederacy once again.

At this point (turn 89) a conquest victory is trivial.  Boris is level 30, Hannis is level 29, and Urko is level 19.  None of the AIs has more than three cities, which means that I can take any of them out in one turn.  All three of the major champions can use Cloud Walk if necessary.

The problem is that it's getting kind of boring.  Gilden is probably casting the Spell of Making, but they only finished the Forge on turn 88, so it will be a long time before they can win. 

When I started this game three weeks ago, I was not sure one could win on Insane, but by now I have done it a few times, so I do not see a point in continuing.  I'll be happy to answer any questions if anyone is still reading this... but for now I declare the story of Boris over. 

Or maybe I will just let him go through the master quest.  He should be able to wrap it up before turn 100, but I think that I should not be spoiling it for all those who have not done it themselves.

Well done with the thread buddy, keep it up!

I, for one, would totally read the AAR of the Magelords' Master Quest victory.