iamdork
Mortal
posted 16 June 2009 05:59 PM EDT (US)
I have a few questions about mercanaries, and although I am sure many could be answered by testing I have never really figured out how to do a good test. So I am hoping you all can help.
1. With Medjay people often refer to Ra getting "cheaper" mercs. I am assuming this is because you get more time on the mercs, and therefore more unless they die first?
2. Do upgrades/counters work against mercs (ie bragi ulfs vs merc cav, TA vs inf merc?)
3. Which is the better general unit, merc cav or inf? I know there are variables like pierce vs hack attack of opposing army, and distance to battle where speed of cav is better. But assuming pierce and hack are more or less the same, and the battle is right there?
4. A lot of late game converations say Ra is better than Isis mostly because of Medjay. In 3v3 would it generally be better for Isis to go Hathor, or would the higher chance of Titan make Nepth priests just as attractive in a 3v3?
Your input is appreciated,
Dork
Major_Rackham
Banned
posted 16 June 2009 06:12 PM
EDT (US)
1 / 35
1. I do not know why these people are saying they are cheaper as all it does it make them have a longer "lifespan".
2. Upgrades work on mercs and I'm fairly certain counters work on them.
3. Merc Cavalry > Merc Infantry in general although if the battle is right in front of a TC or you need the mercs ASAP! use merc infantry as they train much faster.
4. Lately I've gone Hathor over Nephythis in about 80% of games and I've found my rate has increased by about 20 points just because of this. And in answer to your question about going Hathor over Nephythis in 3v3, I'd do it anyways as with Roc drops you can basically make it unbelievable hard for your opponent to get a Titan in the first place. If they do, you got your own Titan to deal with this for + a wall of mercs, Thoth Ellies, and your Pharaoh and regular priests which are not bad anyways.
thisisntworking
Mortal
posted 16 June 2009 07:48 PM
EDT (US)
3 / 35
I have questions about mercs too. If you put them in a roc, do they lose their life while in the roc?
Also, can MU's use their special attacks on them?
And is medjay worth getting? Are they worth using in your army except for defense?
iamdork
Mortal
posted 16 June 2009 08:20 PM
EDT (US)
5 / 35
Major,
2. Has this been tested/verified?
4. What about without roc drop? I have never been efficient at that technique (although I am certain some practice would help).
Thanks,
D
iamdork
Mortal
posted 17 June 2009 04:36 PM
EDT (US)
9 / 35
I think all my questions have been answered except #2. Has anyone done testing about counters vs mercs as previously mentioned?
tools956
Mortal
posted 17 June 2009 05:40 PM
EDT (US)
10 / 35
they counter units (seige/Calvary) so logically they do
OPSwimKidd
Mortal
posted 20 June 2009 05:34 PM
EDT (US)
16 / 35
Troy, if you want the gold for merc spam and everything else, you gotta have lots of Market trade as well as some vills on gold. Not sure the exact numbers though ask major about that. Woot first post on this account ^^
iamdork
Mortal
posted 21 June 2009 00:06 AM
EDT (US)
20 / 35
@DragonQ and others. No where did I ask if mercs got armory upgrades. The question is whether counters apply. For example. If you are facing a horde of bragi ulfs would merc infantry be better than merc cav. And reversed, would using merc cav vs a bunch of TA be better than merc infantry.
I would assume that counters work; however, am looking for evidence of such (I suck at doing testing or I would do it myself). The answer to this question could make which merc you primarily use change depending on the circumstances (one type of merc would do more for the gold spent over the other). However, if mercs are for some reason out of the counter circle (like Hades shades?), then the stats of the mercs do not differ by a large extent so reasons for choosing one merc over the other would have as much to do with training speed and distance from tc to battle.
Thanks,
Dork
Major_Rackham
Banned
posted 21 June 2009 00:14 AM
EDT (US)
21 / 35
for the 10,000th time...COUNTERS APPLY!!!!
Major_Rackham
Banned
posted 21 June 2009 02:04 AM
EDT (US)
24 / 35
Dork,
The key word in your last post would be "Earlier".
iamdork
Mortal
posted 21 June 2009 06:53 AM
EDT (US)
25 / 35
Thanks HailtotheOboe,
I would guess this would make merc inf generally more useful, as normally you will facing a fair amount of cav counters due to ellies, and fewer inf counters.
Major_Rackham
Banned
posted 21 June 2009 10:58 AM
EDT (US)
29 / 35
No, you're post was 100% correct. I'm referring to iamdork thinking that counters play such a huge role when making mercs.
iamdork
Mortal
posted 21 June 2009 02:50 PM
EDT (US)
30 / 35
Major,
I agree that if the battle is far enough away you need the speed to keep the mercs time from running out. However, with Medjay and a battle relatively close to one of your TC's the mercs will get killed rather than run out. In that case I think my comment stands. This is true only for truly hard counters, which I would think would only be bragi ulfs or horus spears and maybe also katas or myrms.