[Domination] Ichthellid Necro?

[iNano78]

Brainstorming a Necromancer for Domination.  Zombies are too slow and generally aren't good guards, especially with their Bloodthirsty trait. Skeletons are OK and couple well with various "soldier" bonuses, but I can't help but wonder "why not just play Warlord and get all those 'soldier' bonuses for cheaper (not to mention cheaper [mwcard=MWBG1J05] Galaxxus[/mwcard], [mwcard=MWBG1J01] Altar of the Iron Guard[/mwcard], [mwcard=MWBG1J02] Gravikor[/mwcard], etc)?"  And undead creatures in general are harder to buff, since most creature-buffing enchantments require a living target.

Proposed idea:
Enter the [mwcard=DNC05]Ichthellid[/mwcard].  These guys are generally a challenge to get value out of in Arena mode.  But what about using Ichthellids to go after Sslak's?  They have built-in Piercing +1, which is perfect for quickly killing a (normal) [mwcard=MWBG1C05]Sslak, Orb Guardian[/mwcard].  Use them to infect a Sslak, use your Plaguemaster ability to deal direct damage to the Sslak, maybe finish it off with an attack spell if necessary, then when you kill the Sslak you get a fresh Ichthellid, and you can even [mwcard=DNI01]Animate Dead[/mwcard] or [mwcard=DNE02] Rise Again[/mwcard] the Sslak to give you a discount guard for your orb.  Get an Altar of the Iron Guard out early to make sure your Sslaks (and Ichthellids) show up ready for action.  Rinse, repeat... slowly building a small army of Ichthellids (or at least maintaining their number).  You can even make an Ichthellid your "Eternal Servant" to make sure you don't run low (and to give it Piercing +2 in case you have to take down an [mwcard=MWBG1C06] Usslak, Greater Orb Guardian[/mwcard]).  You can throw [mwcard=MWBG1E02] Plagued[/mwcard] on an Ichthellid (or a zombified Sslak) if you need to deal with swarms of cheap and/or hard-to-hit creatures - basically turn them into mini-Malacodas.  And Icthellids have built-in Climbing, so walls aren't an issue (although Tanglevine might be).

A downside to the strategy is that a "zombie Sslak" gets Bloodthirsty +0, which means they can't guard once damaged living enemy creatures are in their zone - unless you cast [mwcard=MWSTX2FFI06] Defend[/mwcard] on them (?)... so maybe they're not worth reanimating.  Besides, I don't intend to include [mwcard=DNI06] Zombie Frenzy[/mwcard] or anything else to buff them.

Thoughts?  Anybody try this?

[JasonBourneZombie]

A lot of what that build does is very interesting. Sending an icthellid after an 'opponent's' sslak so that killing it puts another icthellid down seems like a fun idea.

One thing to note, plagued has the poison subtype and can not target nonliving objects.

[iNano78]

One thing to note, plagued has the poison subtype and can not target nonliving objects.

Doh!  Forgot about that.  And for the same reason I can't put it on my Necromancer and just have him stand there.  Maybe I'm better off sticking to [mwcard=MW1J18] Poison Gas Cloud[/mwcard] if I need direct damage in a zone.

[iNano78]

How about something like this?

[spellbook]
[spellbookheader]
[spellbookname]Ichthellid Necromancer v1[/spellbookname]
[mage]Necromancer[/mage]
[/spellbookheader]
[spells]
[spellclass]Attack[/spellclass]
[mwcard=DNA01]2 x  Acid Ball[/mwcard]
[mwcard=FWA02]2 x  Force Hammer[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MWSTX2FFA02]1 x  Hurl Rock[/mwcard]
[spellclass]Conjuration[/spellclass]
[mwcard=MWBG1J01]1 x  Altar of the Iron Guard[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MWBG1J05]1 x  Galaxxus[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNJ04]1 x  Graveyard[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1j18]1 x  Poison Gas Cloud[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNW02]4 x  Wall of Bones[/mwcard]
[spellclass]Creature[/spellclass]
[mwcard=DNC05]4 x  Ichthellid[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNC07]1 x  Mort[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNC13]1 x  Skeletal Archer[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNC14]1 x  Skeletal Knight[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNC15]2 x  Skeletal Minion[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1c32]2 x  Skeletal Sentry[/mwcard]
[spellclass]Enchantment[/spellclass]
[mwcard=MWSTX2FFE04]1 x  Brace Yourself[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MWSTX1CKE04]1 x  Enchantment Transfusion[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1e19]1 x  Ghoul Rot[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1e27]1 x  Marked for Death[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MWBG1E02]1 x  Plagued[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MWBG1E04]1 x  V'Tar Force Sentry[/mwcard]
[spellclass]Equipment[/spellclass]
[mwcard=FWQ01]1 x  Dancing Scimitar[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNQ02]1 x  Death Ring[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNQ03]1 x  Deathshroud Staff[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1q07]1 x  Elemental Cloak[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNQ10]1 x  Meditation Amulet[/mwcard]
[spellclass]Incantation[/spellclass]
[mwcard=DNI01]2 x  Animate Dead[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MWSTX2FFI06]2 x  Defend[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1i06]1 x  Dispel[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1i07]1 x  Dissolve[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MWSTX1CKI01]1 x  Drain Soul[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1i12]1 x  Force Push[/mwcard]
[mwcard=FWI04]2 x  Force Wave[/mwcard]
[mwcard=FWI05]1 x  Mass Sleep[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNI03]2 x  Reassemble[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1i24]1 x  Seeking Dispel[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1i28]2 x  Teleport[/mwcard]
[/spells]
[cost]Total cost: 120 pts[/cost]
[/spellbook]

[rant]

Defend can only target living non mage ... so wouldn't work so well with this book.  Other than that, this is a really good domination book,

[Puddnhead]

I should point out that you cannot actually reanimate or rise again a neutral sslak.  They are obliterated and do not go into a discard pile.

[iNano78]

Bah!!  My creatures can't transmit Plague, can't Defend, and I can't reanimate Sslaks?! Really makes me want to play Warlord (or Beastmaster). There seems to be quite a lot of prejudice against the undead. I thought Defend was OK because most War-school incantations target Corporeal creatures (eg don't specify Living). That's usually Nature-school Bull(Endurance). At least Altar of the Iron Guard doesn't care what metabolic state your minions are in.

Hmmm. Will probably drop Animate Dead and Defends for more staples (forgot to include Tanglevines). Or maybe a Gravikor or Knockdown or some other way to deal with enemy flyers.
(Thunderrift Falcons are very efficient in this format; Darkfenne Bats significantly less so, as Rot isn't useful when tagging orbs)

[Puddnhead]

I think it's a strategy worth pursuing.  I hadn't thought of Icthelid Necromancer for Domination.  Might work well especially since your spawn point moves with you.  You might even be able to double spawn point and then use your mage to finish off sslak guardians.  Sacrificial altar will be helpful as well.

[iNano78]

I think it's a strategy worth pursuing.  I hadn't thought of Icthelid Necromancer for Domination.  Might work well especially since your spawn point moves with you.  You might even be able to double spawn point and then use your mage to finish off sslak guardians.  Sacrificial altar will be helpful as well.

It's a tough call between Libro and Graveyard.  On the one hand, Libro moves with you. On the other, Graveyard should benefit from all the creatures dying (especially in multiplayer).  I was thinking of dropping the Graveyard in a zone with an orb, then once an orb and Galaxxus are going, drop Altar of the Iron Guard so reinforcements arrive with a Guard token, then use a V'tar Orb Sentry to push them to neighbouring zones so they get a jump-start on the next Sslak/orb (alternative to Fast/Elusive... which I can't give to Undead creatures anyway).

I also like the idea of cursing the heck out of an (U)Sslak (with Marked for Death, Plagued, Ghoul Rot), then Enchantment Transfusion'ing the curses to the next (U)Sslak up to 2 zones away.  Not sure how well it works in practice, though, as it might be too action-intensive.

Oh, and Mass Sleep is the dirtiest trick in the book.  Quite often our matches end with a hot zone where all the action takes place as we guard and tag orbs to turn them off and on again. Wait till there's a zone under contest like that, then WHAM! Hit it with Mass Sleep and say "good night" to all the living creatures while the skeletons and ichthellids are unaffected.  It's quite the finisher!

[sIKE]

@iNano

Might take a look at [mwcard=MW1I04]Charge[/mwcard] it is 1 mana cheaper.

[ringkichard]

I have a soft, faintly stirring, spot for Ichthalids, and I really like this idea.

[sIKE]

Its right about there in the middle of your stomach, correct?

[ringkichard]

Oh hey! Baby photos!

[Kaarin]

I should point out that you cannot actually reanimate or rise again a neutral sslak.  They are obliterated and do not go into a discard pile.

This also means You can't get Ichthelid from infected neutral Sslak.

Obliterate (Effect)
When you obliterate an object, it is utterly destroyed, leaving no
trace. The object is destroyed, then it is removed from the game. It
does not become discarded or get returned to a spellbook. Any ability
or effect printed on that object, or attached to it (such as a marker or
enchantment), which triggers on destruction, is canceled. Other
destruction effects, not attached to or part of the Obliterated object,
can still occur.
Examples: When you obliterate a Goblin Bomber it will not explode.
When you obliterate a creature with an Ichthellid Larva marker, the
Larva will not hatch. If you obliterate an opponent’s creature, their
Valshalla still gains a Wrath token.

[Puddnhead]

DOH!