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| Thread: Academy: a thin line between unpredictability and confusion? | |
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Guardian
Tavern Dweller
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posted August 24, 2009 09:03 PM |
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Academy: a thin line between unpredictability and confusion?
hello guys,
I have heard so many people talking about the strength that lies in
the unpredictability of the academy playing style,true i guess but
sometimes it can get you confused and make you totally useless after
choosing all different perks and magic schools.
I was playing couple days ago and decided to play twice and follow
two paths in development to see if iam going as planned which makes me unpredictable to the enemy or if iam getting confused and wasting my time which leads me to failure eventually.
first path: building my town with priority to the magic guilds.i was building them so fast to see what spells i got so i can choose the right perks for them and the right magic schools as well.
second path: building my town normally without dying on getting the magic guilds while creeping at the same time and levelling my hero , choosing my fav perks and schools without even knowing what spells iam gonna get in the magic guild when i build it.
the way i see it like this :
first path: very good to know what spells your getting so you can choose your abilities and magic schools wisely.HOWEVER, it doesnt give you a freedom of choice or play.think about it, your playing according to what popped up in your magic guilds and not to what you desire and this is where you become unpredictable to both yourself and the enemy coz your playing and levelling stuff you didnt have in your mind in the first place !
second path: very good to pick up the perks and skills you want, you can mix the whole might and magic together through picking attack,deffense,dark,destructive..etc.HOWEVER , after levelling things up and picking your beloved abilities and schools you realize that you dont have the associated spells to your school or not those that you were hoping or CRAVING to get.and this is where things start to get really confusing.you wasted your time levelling and you didnt get what you want.
so , what is it after all?
is it the randomness of heroes tote , or is it the unpredictability of academy it self that even the player himdself seems lost among alot of random spells, or is it just another confusing weak town that by trying to master everything things got really hairy?
dont get me wrong, iam an academy lover and i would love to master this town but thats my biggest problems. the randomness in spells.
for instance, when i play dungeon i know spells are random between dark and destructive but i know for sure that at the fourth circle iam gonna get one damaging spell either chain lighting or meteor shower which i can rely on and buff with perks so it makes me feel comfortable to know what iam getting at least.
in academy, even if i want to go summon,destructive combo . my magic guild would be full of light and dark spells ! so what is it , am i restricted by the randomness of these spells?
hope to find some good answers from academy expert players .
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Arcax
Promising
Famous Hero
Its quite hot inside...
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posted August 24, 2009 09:40 PM |
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Academy mage guild contains spells from Light and Summoning magic. ALWAYS! Arcane library just give an +1 extra random spell for each circle. Its not hard to figure which spells will you get.
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Elodin
Promising
Legendary Hero
Free Thinker
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posted August 24, 2009 10:41 PM |
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The so called unpredictability of the Academy is somewhat overblown in my opinion. The extra spells may not be so good and it is easy to get a poor selection of summoning spells since some have little use for the academy in creeping (fist is weak early on, raise dead, earthquake, summon elemental, to a lesser extent arcane armor.) But most multiplay is done on fairly rich maps so you should be able to use miniartifacts to help you. It can be a hard decision to build the guild over creature dwellings.
If you build the dwellings over the guild it is best to stick with summoning and light magic rather than hoping you will get a good destruction or dark spell. If you chose the multi-magic strategy you may wind up with 3 magic schools. Some of the dark spells are woth it to pick dark magic for a single spell.
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Elvin
Admirable
Omnipresent Hero
Endless Revival
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posted August 24, 2009 11:55 PM |
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I have written a few things about my starting impressions until I started seeing the faction a little more seriously. Eventually wrote a guide you may find interesting.
But about the former link it shows how easily I was swayed at first at trying unintended builds. Getting attack at early level made me want to try flaming arrows(to good effect), or seeing a tome of destruction made me wanna try a full destructive build. Or go cold death if I found an icebolt. If I found firetrap I'd be certain to try summoning, it is simply a great boost to your creeping.
But here's the thing. Not all maps have the same creeping difficulty, in some I'd take any chance to get a head start, clear my area and move for center swiftly. In such maps I wouldn't much consider how effective each strategy is against my opponent, if you can rush your opponent with destructive/machines and superior level you can bet it will be fine.
Others require a more controlled approach about what skills you get. For instance against a long game against sylvan you bet you'd rather have stormwind. Against fortress destructive, dark and warmachines are quite risky for you to gamble it. Defense may not be as helpful in short notice but I'd pick it on sight for what is to come later.
About building your town I have some suggestions in the guide, up to the map and your gaming strategy. My tip is unless you plan to rush like crazy then be sure to get colossi, castle and guild 2 on week 2. Rakshasas you will not need that early.
Where leveling is concerned it's not that hard. You can always focus on enlightenment and sorcery until you make up your mind what you will do. You won't need more than a magic skill during creeping which you'll normally pick according to your available spells or what you hope to get. With arcane intuition you can learn some spells for sure from neutrals.
You just need to put some order in your playstyle 
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Cleave
Promising
Famous Hero
Raging Blood
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posted August 25, 2009 11:36 AM |
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I'm not a big fan of the Academy (I don't like the look of most units) but as far as I can see it's best to build up a Wizard without waiting for the Mage Guild (Light is always a good pick anyway).
Don't forget that many heroes have spells in their spellbooks that you can learn or spells they can get with some skills (teleport assault, secrets of destruction anyone?): Haste, Cleansing, Righteous Might, Teleportation, Weakness, Slow, Decay, Vulnerability, Confusion, Fist of Wrath, Fire Trap, Wasp Swarm, Raise Dead, Eldritch Arrow, Ice Bolt, Lightning Bolt and Fireball.
With Vault Mages, Dragon Utopias or Pyramids you will certainly get the high level spells you want.
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13 Heroes
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