another pro for unicorn is that opponent targeting this creature will trigger your Holy Avenger effect while IIRC the conjuration must be holy to do the same.
Good point. I think my main motivator right now, though, is the combined traits that [mwcard=MW1C20]Highland Unicorn[/mwcard] costs 13 mana (e.g. 2 turns worth) + full action (e.g. can't attack the turn it's played) while [mwcard=MW1J15]Mohktari, Great Tree of Life[/mwcard] is 8 mana (e.g. 1 turn worth) + quick action (e.g. can still move + attack that turn), making Mohktari a lot easier to play in the late game - e.g. at the end of the turn when [mwcard=MW1E16]Force Hold[/mwcard] gets revealed.
I made a few tweaks - or rather, didn't make all the changes from a previous iteration to the one posted in the OP - and used this spell book in a demo last night against a Druid. Because I was playing against a new-ish player (a beginner-level player who hadn't played in many months), I decided to play it a little slower than a pure aggro strategy, despite facing a slower mage type, to allow her some set-up time.
As you can see below, I started with a Battle Forge and Guardian Angel, and the Angel and Priest got separated (lots of
snatching going on). We only had time to play 6 rounds, during which I killed a Thornlasher and a Raptor Vine but took about 14 damage to my Priest in return, and never got my "Avenger" Gray Angel out because I never quite had 16 mana available - partly because I wanted to deploy something from my Forge every turn and partly because I spent a lot of mana in a big "Retaliate + Bear Strength" reveal to pull off a powerful surprise counterstrike.
I won initiative (odd rounds) and my turns went like this:
1 - 19: QC [mwcard=MW1J13]Mana Flower[/mwcard] in starting corner; moved + [mwcard=MW1J04]Battle Forge[/mwcard] NC
2 - 16+1: Deployed [mwcard=MW1Q09]Enchanter's Ring[/mwcard]; [mwcard=MWSTX1CKC06]Guardian Angel[/mwcard]; QC [mwcard=MWSTX2FFE04]Brace Yourself[/mwcard] FD on the Angel
3 - 12+1: Deployed [mwcard=MW1Q03]Crown of Protection[/mwcard]; QC [mwcard=MW1J08]Hand of Bim-Shalla[/mwcard] in a corner; moved to NC + [mwcard=MW1E01]Bear Strength[/mwcard] FD on the Angel, who revealed Bear Strength and moved and melee attacked a [mwcard=DNC21]Thornlasher[/mwcard] that had been deployed in the NC zone (via bonded [mwcard=DNJ12]Vine Tree[/mwcard]/vine marker)
4 - 13+1: Deployed [mwcard=MW1Q27]Dawnbreaker Ring[/mwcard]; QC [mwcard=MW1I02]Battle Fury[/mwcard] on the Angel, who finished off the Thornlasher; both Priest and Angel got snatched by Thornlashers, pulling them in opposite directions (south and north, respectively); my Priest moved west and cast [mwcard=MW1E01]Bear Strength[/mwcard] FD on himself
5 - 15+1: Deployed [mwcard=MW1Q29]Staff of Asyra[/mwcard]; moved priest to FC + [mwcard=MW1E33]Retaliate[/mwcard] FD on the Priest... who was then attacked by a [mwcard=DNC10]Raptor Vine[/mwcard] => reveal [mwcard=MW1E01]Bear Strength[/mwcard] and [mwcard=MW1E33]Retaliate[/mwcard], plus used Malakai's Fire to "burn" the Raptor Vine (1 mana) during the counterstrike (which rolled 7 dice!); Angel guarded to heal 2 (kept getting attacked/snatched by a Thornlasher north of NC)
6 - 10+1: Deployed [mwcard=MW1Q11]Gauntlets of Strength[/mwcard]; QC [mwcard=MW1I12]Force Push[/mwcard] on the Angel, then had the Angel move + attack the Raptor Vine (with additional +1 attack from Hand of B-S); attacked the Raptor Vine with Priest to finish it off.
7 - 15+1: out of time, but agreed it was a fun demo!
At this point, my plan was to deploy armor and Force Push the Druid from her starting zone through her own [mwcard=DNW01]Bloodspine Wall[/mwcard], then immediately move and attack with Priest (throwing 9 attack dice incl Hand of B-S), then move + guard with Angel (to hopefully prevent the Priest from getting snatched). This would save enough mana to finally cast the Gray Angel "Holy Avenger" in round 8... or just keep attacking, perhaps deploying a Mage Wand of Teleport to keep the Druid from running away... or Force Hold + Mohktari?
After the match, the revised spell book looks like this:
[spellbook]
[spellbookheader]
[spellbookname]Variable Speed Priest v1.1[/spellbookname]
[mage]Priest[/mage]
[/spellbookheader]
[spells]
[spellclass]Attack[/spellclass]
[mwcard=DNA01]2 x Acid Ball[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1a11]2 x Pillar of Light[/mwcard]
[spellclass]Conjuration[/spellclass]
[mwcard=mw1j04]1 x Battle Forge[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1j08]1 x Hand of Bim-Shalla[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1j13]1 x Mana Flower[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1j15]1 x Mohktari, Great Tree of Life[/mwcard]
[spellclass]Creature[/spellclass]
[mwcard=mw1c06]1 x Brogan Bloodstone[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1c19]1 x Gray Angel[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MWSTX1CKC06]2 x Guardian Angel[/mwcard]
[spellclass]Enchantment[/spellclass]
[mwcard=MWSTX1CKE01]1 x Armor Ward[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1e01]2 x Bear Strength[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MWSTX2FFE04]2 x Brace Yourself[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1e05]1 x Cheetah Speed[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1e11]1 x Divine Intervention[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1e12]2 x Divine Protection[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1e16]1 x Force Hold[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MWSTX1CKE03]1 x Healing Charm[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1e28]1 x Mongoose Agility[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1e30]1 x Pacify[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1e33]2 x Retaliate[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1e36]1 x Rhino Hide[/mwcard]
[spellclass]Equipment[/spellclass]
[mwcard=mw1q03]1 x Crown of Protection[/mwcard]
[mwcard=FWQ01]1 x Dancing Scimitar[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1q27]2 x Dawnbreaker Ring[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1q06]1 x Dragonscale Hauberk[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1q07]1 x Elemental Cloak[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1q09]1 x Enchanter's Ring[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1q11]1 x Gauntlets of Strength[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1q15]1 x Leather Boots[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1q19]1 x Mage Wand[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1q29]2 x Staff of Asyra[/mwcard]
[mwcard=FWQ10]1 x Storm Drake Hide[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MWSTX1CKQ01]1 x Sunfire Amulet[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNQ07]1 x Veteran's Belt[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNQ09]1 x Wand of Healing[/mwcard]
[spellclass]Incantation[/spellclass]
[mwcard=mw1i02]2 x Battle Fury[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MWSTX2FFI06]2 x Defend[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1i06]2 x Dispel[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1i07]2 x Dissolve[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1i12]2 x Force Push[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1i13]1 x Group Heal[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1i17]2 x Minor Heal[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1i24]1 x Seeking Dispel[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1i28]1 x Teleport[/mwcard]
[/spells]
[cost]Total cost: 120 pts[/cost]
[/spellbook]
I didn't get a chance to make use of the Crown of Protection, but that's mainly because my Priest and Angel got separated. Had they stayed together, I planned to use its ability to give her at least a couple tokens. Similarly, the Gray Angel could benefit from the Armor +1 tokens had I managed to get him in play, so I think I'll keep it around - at least for now.
I'm debating whether or not I should keep a [mwcard=MW1I20]Purify[/mwcard] or not. It saves actions (vs. playing Dispel + casting and using Wand of Healing) against a cursing mage, but I imagine the Priest would rarely have the mana available to use it efficiently.
Also, not sure Armor Ward is worth its 3 sbp in this book. I've used it in other melee-based spell books to good effect (e.g. Forcemaster), but there are so many things the Priest needs to do with his minimal resources. Besides, I already include second copies of Staff of Asyra and Dawnbreaker Ring for insurance. On the other hand, it might help me hang on to that Wand of Healing when up against the aforementioned cursing mage...
Do I need a second copy of Battle Forge? I intend to protect it with my Guardian Angel + Priest vs. players who go after it, at least until I get sufficient use out of it (e.g. 3 or 4 deployments), then abandon it in favour of all-out attack on the opposing mage. A guarding Angel can even Intercept an incoming Force Hammer/Surging Wave/Geyser!
