What is the best way to play the Allayi?

[queenelise9830]

So, this faction is interesting. Costs pearls to build districts, but the districts are better in every way, and their units are amazing. They have really good combat perks too, Battlefield Symbiosis with units equipped with Glory or Death can mean amazing things, especially Monks in winter form.

From what I can see they want to defend and build up their capitol and maybe one other city into massive centers of production, which through use of Blessing buildings and Cold Operator heroes can reach near-Cultist levels of amazing during winter. Problem is, that expansion disapproval makes things tough for a military game, and the extra food requirements make it tough to grow into a strong enough empire for a peaceful win before others do.

Also, just because the Allayi are better at collecting Pearls doesn't mean others can't use them too, and that could be a problem if Cultists start building those same blessing buildings in their city as the +1 district level cap the Cult has is really OP.

Luxury Alchemists is an interesting tech, and I'll take the Influence cost reductions from Mercurial Diplomats any day. I've heard the Allayi faction quest can get tough at times though, and seeing as they primarily want to play a peaceful game that could be a problem.

[Stabs]

The starting units and hero are among the most powerful so you should definitely go for the Visionary Leader deed which will be a big help for the rest of the game. Micro your first few fights so your cavalry travel as many hexes as possible (and if you can spare the Dust give them the movement trinket).

For example the game I just made has the version of the deed: be the first to kill 10 armies. I would plan to get this off roaming mobs so the following tactics may work:

Retrofit the Seeker cavalry with armour. Maybe train a third one after the town has done Founders and Mill.

Do ruins with the hero and take the movement skills.

Don't kill villages. I need them to spawn monsters.


From there the hero stack should just snowball, you cover a lot of terrain, get 15% health regen when everyone else is at 5% and have pretty powerful units that debuff attack. Getting the pearl bonus exp trinket should be the first thing you buy from the Altar of Auriga.

Luxury Alchemists is a great skill and a snowbally one. In the middle of the second age you want to take this and Imperial Coinage and start working through every luxury in the world activating it. I had 13/15 in my recent game for a booster duration of around 40 turns (4 times normal). When you get such a long booster duration the resources it gives you from the booster bonuses far outweigh the dust cost.

You will also get a ton of happiness from luxuries letting you go fairly wide. Your squirrel people might disapprove in principle of spreading all over the map like some damned humans but give them enough great drugs and they no longer care enough to rebel.

Skyfins are great pearl collectors in era 2-3. You can send them into dodgy territory and so long as you finish each turn on a resource you're pretty safe. You get one from the quest and you probably want to build at least one more, maybe two.

Remember your diplomacy modifiers. Winter is for war, summer is for alliances.

[queenelise9830]

Originally posted by Stabs:

The starting units and hero are among the most powerful so you should definitely go for the Visionary Leader deed which will be a big help for the rest of the game. Micro your first few fights so your cavalry travel as many hexes as possible (and if you can spare the Dust give them the movement trinket).

For example the game I just made has the version of the deed: be the first to kill 10 armies. I would plan to get this off roaming mobs so the following tactics may work:

Retrofit the Seeker cavalry with armour. Maybe train a third one after the town has done Founders and Mill.

Do ruins with the hero and take the movement skills.

Don't kill villages. I need them to spawn monsters.


From there the hero stack should just snowball, you cover a lot of terrain, get 15% health regen when everyone else is at 5% and have pretty powerful units that debuff attack. Getting the pearl bonus exp trinket should be the first thing you buy from the Altar of Auriga.

Luxury Alchemists is a great skill and a snowbally one. In the middle of the second age you want to take this and Imperial Coinage and start working through every luxury in the world activating it. I had 13/15 in my recent game for a booster duration of around 40 turns (4 times normal). When you get such a long booster duration the resources it gives you from the booster bonuses far outweigh the dust cost.

You will also get a ton of happiness from luxuries letting you go fairly wide. Your squirrel people might disapprove in principle of spreading all over the map like some damned humans but give them enough great drugs and they no longer care enough to rebel.

Skyfins are great pearl collectors in era 2-3. You can send them into dodgy territory and so long as you finish each turn on a resource you're pretty safe. You get one from the quest and you probably want to build at least one more, maybe two.

Remember your diplomacy modifiers. Winter is for war, summer is for alliances.

Alright, yeah that sounds about right. Would you consider it worth it to try and get winter effects that hinder my opponents more than me? The Allayi's troops have built-in winter vision and movement immunity when in winter form, after all. The only issue I can see with this strategy is other human players might catch onto what you're doing and try to disrupt by praying for a different effect.

Also, what about the wonders? If there are no particularly savvy Wild Walkers or Cultists around you might be able to sneak in a Legendary Building or two by means of having rivers near your city and building an Ice Works, would you say that's worth doing?

Also, speaking of Cultists, I've just recently learned how OP Necrophage governers with Slavery are for those guys... Slavery works with converted villages, meaning you could theoretically get absolutely massive amounts of "Per worker" Food and Industry just from that one capacity, and Necros already make good governers cause of their level up skills. You could even swap in a Cultist governer for when you need the other boosts if you so choose.