Meditation Lair

[Borg]

Meditation Lair is a Spellbook for my Straywood Beastmaster.

The idea behind the book is to use the [mwcard=DNQ10] Meditation Amulet[/mwcard] and the [mwcard=MW1J10] Lair[/mwcard] to quickly summon a "critical mass" of [mwcard=MW1C38] Timber Wolf[/mwcard] empowered by [mwcard=MW1C29] Redclaw, Alpha Male[/mwcard] and then rush the enemy Mage.

Contrary to a common swarm strategy which uses cheap creatures like [mwcard=MW1C04] Bitterwood Fox[/mwcard] and [mwcard=MW1C37] Thunderift Falcon[/mwcard] this book tries to summon more or less the same amount of creatures but of the more durable kind.

The Beastmaster's 9 Channeling + 2 mana from the Lair + 3 mana from the Amulet gives him 14 mana per round which allows him to deploy a Timber Wolf (9) and Quickcast a Bitterwood Fox (5) every turn while meditating for 3 mana per round.

The idea is to build up your forces for about 4 turns, then go on offense, including your Beastmaster.

If the opposing Mage closed in on you in the meantime, all the better, since this means you don't have to cover a lot of ground anymore with your dogs.

The book has a secondary strategy in that it runs very few Enchantments of its own and that is because it intends to lay down a [mwcard=MWSTX2FFJ01] Harshforge Monolith[/mwcard] near the battlezone to take away as much mana as possible from the opposing mage while he is under pressure from the dogs.

These two elements combined should be enough to down the opposing Mage.

Of course there is no guarantee as to how much Enchantments ( if any ) the opposing Mage will play, but looking around at all the various Mage books on the net tells you that most ( if not all ) use plenty of Enchantments.
Thus, building an enchantment-poor spellbook with the intention of slapping down a Harshforge Monolith at the most (in)opportune time makes sense to me, especially in a swarm book which rather casts a new Animal instead of empowering one with an Enchantment.

So in short, the book wants to Rushbuild, attack and manasuffocate the opposition.

This is where the build currently stands.

Please, feel free to comment and make suggestions.


[spellbook]
[spellbookheader]
[spellbookname]Meditation Lair[/spellbookname]
[mage]Beastmaster[/mage]
[/spellbookheader]
[spells]
[spellclass]Attack[/spellclass]
[mwcard=FWA04]1 x  Hurl Boulder[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNA01]3 x  Acid Ball[/mwcard]
[spellclass]Conjuration[/spellclass]
[mwcard=mw1j10]1 x  Lair[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1j22]3 x  Tanglevine[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1j03]1 x  Tooth & Nail[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MWSTX2FFJ01]1 x  Harshforge Monolith[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNJ03]1 x  Etherian Lifetree[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1j19]1 x  Deathlock[/mwcard]
[spellclass]Creature[/spellclass]
[mwcard=mw1c38]4 x  Timber Wolf[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1c04]6 x  Bitterwood Fox[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1c29]1 x  Redclaw, Alpha Male[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MWSTX1CKC02]1 x  Dire Wolf[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MWSTX1CKC03]1 x  Galador, Protector of Straywood[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1c36]1 x  Tarok, the Skyhunter[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1c37]1 x  Thunderift Falcon[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNC16]1 x  Spitting Raptor[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNC06]1 x  Kralathor, The Devourer[/mwcard]
[spellclass]Enchantment[/spellclass]
[mwcard=MWSTX2FFE07]2 x  Rust[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1e27]2 x  Marked for Death[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1e10]1 x  Decoy[/mwcard]
[spellclass]Equipment[/spellclass]
[mwcard=DNQ10]2 x  Meditation Amulet[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1q25]1 x  Ring of Beasts[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MWSTX1CKQ06]1 x  Eagleclaw Boots[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1q23]1 x  Regrowth Belt[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1q02]2 x  Bearskin[/mwcard]
[spellclass]Incantation[/spellclass]
[mwcard=mw1i06]2 x  Dispel[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNI04]1 x  Renewing Rain[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1i12]2 x  Force Push[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1i28]2 x  Teleport[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MWSTX2FFI06]2 x  Defend[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1i23]2 x  Rouse the Beast[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1i07]3 x  Dissolve[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1i15]2 x  Knockdown[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1i03]2 x  Call of the Wild[/mwcard]
[/spells]
[cost]Total cost: 120 pts[/cost]
[/spellbook]

Plan :

Lair in starting corner vs aggressive opposition ( eg Forcemaster, warlocks )
Play Lair 1 zone up vs medium aggression ( eg Priest )
Play Lair in NC or ( quite risky imo ) in FC vs defensive opposition ( eg Priestess, Wizard )

Personally I prefer to stay in my starting corner and cast Lair there as I want at least two uninterrupted turns to start the game.

T1 : 19
- Lair (4)
- Ring of Beasts (2)

T2 : 11 + 2
- Dep Pet Bitterwood Fox (6)
- Meditation Amulet (2)
- Meditate (5)

T3 : 14 + 2
- Dep Timber Wolf (7)
- Meditate (10)
- Bitterwood Fox (6)

T4 : 15 + 2
- Dep Redclaw (1)
- Meditate (4)
- Bitterwood Fox (0)

From this point on you're ready to advance the dogs and you can Dep a Timber Wolf every turn for a steady stream of pressure.
QC a Fox or use the remaining 5 mana to anticipate the gameboard situation.

Hurl Boulder is a finisher.

Acid Ball, Rust, Spitting Raptor, Tooth and Nail and Dissolve are supposed to keep the opposing Mage's as well as some lvl 3+ creatures armor at 0.
Different circumstances dictate which of these choices is the best answer.

Rust is an enchantment I'll gladly pay upkeep for, as well as Marked for Death.
Their benefits outweigh the small upkeep.

Tanglevine is especially useful early on for keeping the opposing Mage out of Dissolve range for 1 or two more turns so I can get the most out of the Amulet during my build-up.

Etherian Lifetree makes my critters even better vs non-living.

Deathlock comes into play vs regenerators ( Druid ) and Healing builds ( Priestess )

The Monolith, as explained already, is supposed to hit the game when my opponent is high on enchantments and low on mana

Dire Wolf makes a great Second Pet during midgame when damage has been dealt already ( and vs living opposition, of course ).

Tarok is a Flyer counter, while the Thunderift Falcon is supposed to go after small flyers like Felella or Thoughtspores.

Galador is an anti flyer counter, as well as a counter to Lightning +2 creatures.

Kralathor has Reach, thus can take care of Flyers and is a natural Necromancer counter.
He has to be played by the Beastmaster himself though but I don't consider that too much of a handicap as that is where the Rouse the Beasts are put to good use as well.

The Knockdowns can take care of Flyers and work around Defenses.

This turned out to be a longer than anticipated write up but I guess every spellbook deserves some explanation and clarification ...

[Borg]

I really would have enjoyed some feedback, but .... so be it.
Thanks for reading anyway.

[V10lentray]

You should try to include at least a singe copy of [mwcard=MW1J01]Rajan's Fury[/mwcard]. The charge +1 bonus to the fast fox will be huge. It will also provide an additional bonus to the Wolves beyond what [mwcard=MW1C29]Redclaw, Alpha Male[/mwcard] gives.

[Jon.Ambriz]

I would say with your current T1 - T4 plan, you are really slow to get the swarm going; I mean, really slow. Also, by playing the Lair in such a defensive manner, you give up a lot of potential board control. An aggressive solo mage could easily use one turn to get to OC and then move into attack the following turn, while your swarm hasn't even begun to gain momentum. I'd suggest trying to tighten up the spawn time of your swarm, assuming that your opponent does not have a Cheetah Speed in their book, or you're not playing against a Johktari Beastmaster.

[BoomFrog]

I think you will lose to another defensive buildup . A warlord with barracks construction yard, (armory), Battleforge and meditation amulet will have a better setup then you by the time you attack.

A wizard who plays suppression orb and Murdock's obelisk will tax you a ton of mana and then use that mana difference to blast you to death before your army can attack twice.

A falcon Beastmaster will be swinging 3+4+5 dice on your wolf on turn 3 and you can't attack the birds back, your wolves will die before you have an army.

In short summoning animals is an offensive strategy and meditating in the corner is defensive.  They do not combine well. Your only combo is redclaw and other swarms are getting more benefit from their combos.

Also on good opponent will never dissolve your meditation amulet, they will just melee you which makes your amulet no longer useful.

[Maverick]

Gotta agree with Boomfrog here. The Thunderrift falcons are actually more durable due to flying, faster and cheaper too. I am not saying your strategy is a bad one but I would consider banking the mana you would have used on the Lair and the Meditation amulet and just using it to summon your creatures instead. You will not have as nice of a late game but it is a rush build anyway. Played right there will be no late game and you don't need the extra action the lair provides with a Straywood Beastmaster.

Not a huge fan of swarm rush but I personally would do this.

Turn 1 (19Mana) - Red Claw Alpha Male (16) Ring of Beasts (2)
Turn 2 (10 Mana) - Bitterwood Fox (4) Bitterwood Fox (5)
Turn 3 (10 Mana) - Bitterwood Fox (4) Bitterwood Fox (5)
Turn 4 (10 Mana) - Bitterwood Fox (4) Bitterwood Fox (5)
Turn 5 (10 Mana) - Tooth and Nail (7) Face down Marked for Death (2)
Turn 6 (10 Mana) - Flip up Marked for Death (4) Acid Ball (5) Use mage to attack or Guard if able.
Turn 7 (10 Mana) - Hurl Boulder (8 ) attack with mage ect.

I think the Bitterwood Fox is better early game for a swarm strategy then the Timber Wolf. Keep them Close to Redclaw and they should last about 2 average hits each before dying. I would summon Timberwolves later in the game if you are forced into a long game and your creatures are getting killed off. Redclaw will probably die before you get a lot of use out of him but make sure you do not hold him back as some use is better then none. Only attack the mage without very good reason otherwise. Could instead use Call of the Wild twice on turn 5 if conditions are favorable.

[Charmyna]

I really like your strategy, especially the idea of not using Enchantments and surprising the opponent with a well played Monolith!

I think you can do well against another Spawnpoint build thanks to Redclaw increasing the efficiency of your creatures. With so many creatures you really need to be careful with their positioning though because of zone attacks. Your natural ennemy are conjurations like Idol of Pestilence, Obelisk etc. Hence I would include a second Hurl Boulder or Force Hammer to destroy those conjurations ASAP. Additionally I would include at least one Group Heal.
Maybe I would include 1-2 Enchants to protect Redclaw because he will be the main target if your opponent is smart. A Divine Protection or Regrowth can be really worth the SP and the upkeep in case you cast the Monolith later.
Since you use Rust already I strongly  advise to add a Shift Enchantment or  Enchantment Transfusion! The Reason is that if your opponent puts some Corrode Tokens on your Redclaw or your Mage you can cast Rust on your own Creature to remove the Rust Tokens. After that use Shift Enchantment or Transfusion to move Rust to your opponents mage or his strongest creature! That way your Mage/Redclaw can gain 2 Armor. If you combine it with replacing Bearkskin on your Mage you can actually remove 4 Corrode Tokens.
Even if the opponent uses no Corrode Tokens Shift Enchantment/Transfusion can be useful to move Marked for Death to a new target.

Hope that helped .

[Maverick]

Defensive use of Rust to get rid of Corrode?! That's... a really good idea!

[Biblofilter]

Hi!

Im going to try something like this out, soon.

I have a couple of questions:

1.Does the Beastmaster get left behind from the battleground sometimes? (trouble to cast Rust, Marked from Death, Acid Ball)

2. How do you mangage Redclaw? (to max the bonus)

3. How do you handle an early Idol of Pestilence/Supression Orb or similar? (this is a general BM/swarm problem, but larger the slower the build up?)

I love the basic idea - Lair for casting medium/strong animals and the qc for level 1 animals.

I hate your anti-enchantment strategy - i love enchantments and not taking advantage of the many awesome nature enchanctments (for your wolfs) and the spellpoint advantage over non-nature spellbooks seems - wrong. I am goint to try it out, but surely it would be better in a Necromancer or Warlord Book?

[Borg]

1.Does the Beastmaster get left behind from the battleground sometimes? (trouble to cast Rust, Marked from Death, Acid Ball)

Hi Biblofilter,

The idea was to summon a number of creatures and then advance altogether, so the Beastmaster should be around to effectively cast the abovementioned spells.

2. How do you mangage Redclaw? (to max the bonus)

- If you have to move to attack, attack with Redclaw first, then bring the others in to get the bonuses.
- If you don't have to move, attack with a bonused creature first and keep Redclaw unactivated.
- The Tanglevines are to be used to keep a target in Redclaw's square long enough to give the others the chance to attack in the same zone as Redclaw.

3. How do you handle an early Idol of Pestilence/Supression Orb or similar? (this is a general BM/swarm problem, but larger the slower the build up?)

Suppression Orb especially could be a problem, definitely if you're still in your corner.

If you expect a Suppression Orb or idol coming out in your matchup or to reduce its effectiveness greatly you could play the Lair in NC or better yet FC. From that point getting to the Orb and destroying it should not cost you more than the casting cost of the Orb itself.

An Orb, while still in your corner, yes, that would hurt. Probably time to get out Tarok and sent him over to try to take the orb down, in the meantime keep building up and maybe send one back-up for Tarok, but I agree, that would not be a great position to be in

[Biblofilter]

I´ve tried this deck ~10 times now and enjoyed it. 

Made a few adjustments before i even started. Took out the 3 Acid Balls and the Spitting Raptor and added 2 more Tooth and Nails conjurations, a Steelclaw Grizzly (for the Piercing+1) and a Lion Savagery enchantment.
That way the Beastmaster could stay behind and the distance to the battlezone would not be that big an issue.
( i advanced the pack to early i guess)

Later i put in 4 Wall of Thorns (those are really great for the Bitterwood foxes) added a Mage Wand and more "behind the scene" incation spells and a mage wand: more Force Push, Perfect Strike, Piercing Strike stuff like that.

I changed the renewing rain for renewing spring which is cheaper spellpoint and casting wise, not as situational and has flame immunity.

I removed one of the Meditation Amulet because i thought that if the opponent mage went for an early dissolve, that would mean he/she was in striking distance from lair, BM QC Fox and the BM himself.
After a few games i moved one to the "right" and casted the Lair in that zone in all the remaining games.
Preparing Wall of Thorns as the extra spell, often ending casting it between the NC and the FC.

I cut almost all other creatures than the canines, planning to use Mage Staff and the Beastmaster himself to handle flyes (which didnt go to well). I never met a BM or Druid, but i would have hated to play against Kralathor with thoose yummy foxes. Actually rather than run back and heal the foxes a better plan might be to feed Kralathor with the damage ones (without buffs it might be hard to get the first growth bonusses)

At OCTGN i added the enchantment Critical Strike (promo) which gives +3 piercing. The Grizzly (or Redclaw/Pet Timber Wolf) could then turn in to a pretty good can opener.

Harshforge Monolith didnt see much play, but in my game vs a Warlock it really made a difference.

Played vs a Necromancer with an early Idol of Pestilence. Very tuff!

Final change was another Hurl Bolder just because some mages are tough to kill, even on the brink of death.

[Borg]

Hi Biblofilter,

I like the changes you've made.

Putting a wall of thorns on the border between NC and FC certainly seems like a very good play as it makes the centre zones dangerous to reside in. This invites a couple of Force Pushes into the book as well imo.

Tooth and Nails instead of Acid Balls makes sense as does the addition of a second Hurl Boulder as Charmyna also already suggested.

Harshforge Monolith will not come out every game but is a very powerful card in the right situation.

Thanks for sharing your experiences