Tips

[Reddicediaries]

Hey everyone. I'm a fairly novice player and wold like some tips in building a viable forcemaster. Solo doesn't seem the way to go, but buddy builds are difficult to figure out to. Tips?

[DaveW]

If you do want to try solo, you probably want to avoid conditions. The Colossus Belt gives Tough -2 so that helps a bit. Otherwise, you might want 1-3 solid out-of-school creatures backing you up... though rumor has it that someone put together a Thoughtspore and Psylock book that has done reasonably well.

I'd say... do what you think is fun and go from there. I started my FM book essentially as Solo with no supporting creatures at all, and now it's up to 2-3 Thoughtspores only. It's just the way I like to play her.

[Reddicediaries]

Thx Dave. Solo and buddy fm are my favorites.

[bigfatchef]

I prefer playing her with a buddy and 1-3 thoughtspores for support. Borg made a good fm book that concentrates on the build-in force pull ability, a teleport trap -> spiked pit and finally a jelly and a grizzly in the deadly zone with you. Do you fl is mainly there for positioning.
Anyway other good buddies are: Cervere, grimson sniper, sir corazin, vampiress, .... And a lot more depending on how you want to play. I prefer a level 4 one over level 3 for staying alive longer.

[Reddicediaries]

Yeah, I've seen the spiked anchor and think it's cool.

[Puddnhead]

Hi Red!

My favorite buddies are [mwcard=MW1C26]Necropian Vampiress[/mwcard] and [mwcard=MWSTX1CKC01]Bridge Troll[/mwcard].  I know that [mwcard=MW1C34]Steelclaw Grizzly[/mwcard], [mwcard=MW1C07]Cervere, The Forest Shadow[/mwcard] and [mwcard=FWC09]Iron Golem[/mwcard] have been other people's favorites in the past.  The reason I like the other two better is that you don't have to play creature support as much since they can take care of themselves with the regeneration and the vampirism.  Granted, the troll could really benefit from a [mwcard=MW1E36]Rhino Hide[/mwcard].

The important thing to look for in a buddy for the Forcemaster is efficiency to spell book cost.  Triple for non-Mind creatures is very steep--and everyone knows it!  5 dice or more is really the tipping point, Cervere gets a pass because of Defense, Fast AND Elusive.  This is also where Bridge Troll really shines.  Everyone (except Beastmaster) pays at least 5 to put it in their book.  Forcemaster only pays 9!  Which is not even double what other people pay.

Some other tips for the Forcemaster:

Your Deflect ability is nice but there will be games where it fails every single time.  If you have space and actions you may want to try [mwcard=MW1J09]Temple of the Dawnbreaker[/mwcard].

Your Force Pull ability is amazing.  Use it to separate your target from his guards or give one of your own creatures an 'extra move' for the turn.  It can also be very handy in testing for Jinx as a Jinx can stop ANY quick spell.

Whatever book you build ask yourself if you can find room for Galvitar, Forcefield and Mind Control.  These spells are feared by some and at the least irritating to your opponents.  Academy has Arcane Ward that can make it an even bigger pain to get rid of these powerful spells.

Thoughtspores are fragile!  Only put a range 1 spell on them in extreme circumstances.  Range 2 is better.  If your spore can protect itself with its attached spell that's even better.

As such a specialized mage you really need to put effort into understanding your opponent's strategy and eviscerating it with a precise strike.  You cannot afford to waste actions!  It is better to spend extra mana to not waste actions.  Look to 2-for-1 spells and figure out if you can hack out a space for them: [mwcard=MWBG1I01]Cascading Force Wave[/mwcard], [mwcard=FWI04]Force Wave[/mwcard], [mwcard=MW1I20]Purify[/mwcard], [mwcard=MW1I21]Purge Magic[/mwcard] and maybe even [mwcard=MW1I11]Explode[/mwcard]!

If you plan on playing a bunch of upkeep spells make sure you buff your channeling and bring along a [mwcard=FWQ07]Psi-Orb[/mwcard]

Hope at least some of that helps.  Forcemaster is my favorite lady.  May you win the Mind games!

[Halewijn]

Or, use the invisible stalker. He's useless against wizards, but he can be very deadly for most other mages. Below, I show one of my forcemasters with the stalker. She's not the typical bashing forcemaster (no battleforge) but will rely a lot on her enchantments. The angel is probably a bad choice but I keep it in because I like it against necromancers. A better choice would probably be the tower of light.

My typical opening:
1: force ring + psi orb
2: stalker + enchantment

[spellbook]
[spellbookheader]
[spellbookname]Jedi[/spellbookname]
[mage]A Forcemaster Spellbook[/mage]
[mage]built by the OCTGN SBB[/mage]
[/spellbookheader]
[spells]
[spellclass]Attack[/spellclass]
[mwcard=FWA02]2 x Force Hammer[/mwcard]
[mwcard=FWA05]1 x Invisible Fist[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNA01]2 x Acid Ball[/mwcard]
[spellclass]Conjuration[/spellclass]
[mwcard=MW1J16]1 x Mordok's Obelisk[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MWSTX1CKJ01]1 x Enchanter's Wardstone[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MW1J21]1 x Suppression Orb[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MW1W04]1 x Wall of Thorns[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MWBG1W01]2 x Wall of Force[/mwcard]
[spellclass]Creature[/spellclass]
[mwcard=FWC08]1 x Invisible Stalker[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MW1C31]1 x Samandriel, Angel of Light[/mwcard]
[spellclass]Enchantment[/spellclass]
[mwcard=MWSTX2FFE04]1 x Brace Yourself[/mwcard]
[mwcard=FWE05]2 x Forcefield[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MW1E10]1 x Decoy[/mwcard]
[mwcard=FWE04]1 x Force Crush[/mwcard]
[mwcard=FWE07]2 x Mind Control[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MW1E29]1 x Nullify[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MW1E01]1 x Bear Strength[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MW1E34]1 x Reverse Attack[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MW1E28]1 x Mongoose Agility[/mwcard]
[mwcard=FWE03]1 x Falcon Precision[/mwcard]
[mwcard=FWE01]2 x Charm[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MW1E16]1 x Force Hold[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MW1E36]1 x Rhino Hide[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MWA01E02]1 x Arcane Ward[/mwcard]
[spellclass]Equipment[/spellclass]
[mwcard=FWQ01]2 x Dancing Scimitar[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MWSTX1CKQ06]1 x Eagleclaw Boots[/mwcard]
[mwcard=FWQ03]1 x Force Ring[/mwcard]
[mwcard=FWQ04]1 x Galvitar, Force Blade[/mwcard]
[mwcard=FWQ07]2 x Psi-Orb[/mwcard]
[spellclass]Incantation[/spellclass]
[mwcard=FWI03]1 x Force Bash[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MW1I20]1 x Purify[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MWPRO1]2 x Dispel[/mwcard]
[mwcard=FWI07]1 x Repulse[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MW1I12]2 x Force Push[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MW1I15]2 x Knockdown[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MW1I26]1 x Sleep[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MWSTX2FFI03]1 x Disarm[/mwcard]
[mwcard=FWI09]1 x Steal Equipment[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MW1I07]1 x Dissolve[/mwcard]
[/spells]
[cost]Total cost: 120 pts[/cost]
[/spellbook]

[Reddicediaries]

The first hardcore forcemaster I ever built included a guardian angel and a gargoyle sentry. Basicly use an early reverse attack to shift tempo and make a kill zone.

[Borg]

Basicly use an early reverse attack to shift tempo and make a kill zone.

I suggest not to put any Reverse Attacks on creatures with a Defense, chances are more likely they are going to be attacked with unavoidable attacks making your RA a waste of mana, action and sbp's.

[Reddicediaries]

Agrre, was putting it on the sentry and use 1-2 transfuse to move it around depending on attack.