The West: of Spearheads & Micro
The West division is a classic TVK spearhead division in that it triangulates the highest military offense of the dryad, the highest cast percentage of the elf and highest sabotage success rate of the halfling. The downside of the spearhead is that it is brittle and subject to the classic counters of Assassinate Wizards and Expose Thieves. Still, the features are undeniable and we need them to break the toughest opponents the kingdom will face. The faery heretic is here because they have both Invisibility and Mages Fury to offer more reliable overall execution. The avian war hero serves in the ability to cast Pitfalls and take unambushable acres through War Spoils. The avian can run interference with biddable speed, great offensive augmentation and dragon immunity.
The micro comes from the ability to approach tough opponents from 3 facets of high octane reliability. For instance we might probe an enemy faery to check defenses, the least of which will accumulate the lions share of attention. Instead of having the elf carry the majority of runes we can feed runes through aid to reduce losses via theft or Lightning Strikes. How is this micro?
In conventional waves there are logistical "truths" that dictate the engagement of targeted enemies. The doctrine dictates a Mystic Vortex opening followed by Nightmare and Nightstrikes which is then followed by an attacking chain. So you have 25 players online with orders to follow based in the success of the previous action. I've seen waves stalled and squandered by wave captains not anticipated as simple a thing as dwarves spamming Mystic Aura or preemptive strikes against key mystics. All attacker actions pend on the accomplishments of ops and sabotage. In this way the elliptical division system only differs in the abbreviated actions and reactions. The advantage is in the speed of strategic and tactical implementation and adaptation. The attackers, mystics and rogues intermingle fluidly without lengthy stall time endangering armies at home.
By micro we also mean the ability to shift focus on a dime, say if we experience pressure from enemy attackers, we can deploy a defensive posture and call in reinforcements from the Expeditionary South. We can also ask for help from the Southwestern division to shape opponents prelude to attacking. Remember, we are talking about 5 players who know each other and have operated with each other, now in real time unfettered by full wave drag and rigid strategy.
The Southwestern division is without a doubt a vulturing division, but can participate in very utilitarian fashion. Oftentimes Nightmare is not seen for the versatility it can provide outside wave dynamics. In the protective interest of the West division we might anticipate an enemy wave to break the elf and halfling. What if Nightmare is cast on an opponent, army home, during wave prep? Sure, we all know about army in/out but waves do have a window of prep time that an observant player can exploit. It follows that Nightmare use then obligates us to chain the victim, but this is an option not the rule. If our interests are in preserving as many difficult to break provinces as possible we can use our abilities any way we choose and not be dragged to isolated tactics of tradition or expectation. In this case the intent of Nightmare is to reduce offense, and the byproduct of reducing thieves and dspecs can enhance the option to Nightstrike or attack to push the opponent out of optimum range.
Originally Posted by Bishop
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