The army reaches Elensefar...

[Elvish_Pillager]

In my first game of HttT, I maintained no advanced units.
Then I maintained 4 advanced units.
Then I became skilled enough to accumulate advanced units, and ended up with a dozen or so a good deal of the way into the campaign.

Then I played No Losses, and ended up with a ton of advanced units that just piled up due to their inability to be killed. Despite this, I still wasn't very good at levelling up by normal means. So I decide to become skilled in this way.

I now am at the Siege of Elensefar, and I have:

• 0 instances of AMLA
• 1 Lord (Konrad)
• 1 Elvish Shyde
• 1 Elvish Sharpshooter
• 1 Elvish Marshal
• 2 Elvish Captains
• 2 Elvish Heroes
• 1 Elvish Druid
• 1 Knight
• 15 Losses

How am I doing?

[darksteel]

rather good

[Ankka]

In my first game of HttT, I maintained no advanced units.
Then I maintained 4 advanced units.
Then I became skilled enough to accumulate advanced units, and ended up with a dozen or so a good deal of the way into the campaign.

Then I played No Losses, and ended up with a ton of advanced units that just piled up due to their inability to be killed. Despite this, I still wasn't very good at levelling up by normal means. So I decide to become skilled in this way.

I now am at the Siege of Elensefar, and I have:

• 0 instances of AMLA
• 1 Lord (Konrad)
• 1 Elvish Shyde
• 1 Elvish Sharpshooter
• 1 Elvish Marshal
• 2 Elvish Captains
• 2 Elvish Heroes
• 1 Elvish Druid
• 1 Knight
• 15 Losses

How am I doing?

I suppose this was on easy?

And, I suppose Delffy got one AMLA, since he starts with 500 exp and 80 is required for AMLA to happen..

[Elvish_Pillager]

I suppose this was on easy?

No, Normal. I'm not sure there's enough experience available on Easy, or at least enough that I'd be able to collect...

And, I suppose Delffy got one AMLA, since he starts with 500 exp and 80 is required for AMLA to happen..

Yeah, but I don't have him at this point.

[DavidByron]

I guess I'm on my second time with HttT, this time on "Hard". Coincidentally I've just reach the Elensefar and I had a pretty similar stuff except nothing level 3 apart from Konrad. Nine level 2 guys. But how did you manage to NOT get a merman or two leveled up?

I figured it was better to have units that were nearly leveled up than units that were already there - for the tough battles. Although I'm not sure Elensefar is going to be tough. The exception is the loyal guys. But Hadriel takes a lot to level up to 3. I have two loyal level 2 mermen. Doubtful more than 2 will see much action.

Looking at the list I haven't got them close enough to be tactical yet. One is 5 XP off level 3 which is about right. Five others are 10 to 30 XP off level 3.

[Elvish_Pillager]

But how did you manage to NOT get a merman or two leveled up?

I lost the sea battle. One of the mermen did level up; however, all my mermen were killed, although three Elves took out all enemies remaining in the water.

I would probably have won if it I was a bit more lucky and/or a bit less eager to help out in the land battle. The mermen ended up luring the Orcs up against and into the water, where they were completely masssacred by the land-based army.

[DavidByron]

Well how do you tackle the sea battle, because that always seemed the key to victory.

I send three mermen directly to the North West cage and for the trident. One merman goes to liberate the other big cage. I assume that it and the ones it frees will all die (all four) for maybe a couple of bats. But they lure the main force of Nagas South/West. The lead merman going for the NW cage lures off the two naga guards to the south along the extreme West part of the map and they end up killing it but after that they don't move anywhere so that's two for one. That leaves me two mermen to liberate the NW cage and the trident. That's usually enough to beat up the Sea Orc because his Nagas are usually heading for land by then so he's all by himself or maybe has one or two guards.

A couple of loyal leveled mermen with tridents are very useful later on.

[dtw]

Bout the same as me EP

[Ankka]

Well, since I am playing HttT too, and approaching Elensefar, I will now reveal my recall-list too:

• 0 instances of AMLA
• 1 Lord (Konrad)
• 1 Elvish Shyde
• 2 Elvish Marksmen
• 1 Elvish Captain
• 2 Knights
• 1 Elvish Ranger
• 1 Red Mage
• 12 Losses

Looks like EP favors those fighters a lot more than I do.

[Rhuvaen]

In the beginning of the campaign I still took great care about my units (not so in later scenarios). Here's my list from that time (on medium):

• 1 Commander (Konrad)
  1 Elvish Captain
  1 Elvish Druid
  1 Elvish Hero
  1 Elvish Ranger
  1 Elvish Sorceress
  4 Knights
  1 Merman Warrior
  1 Red Mage
  1 White Mage
  14 Advancements
  9 Losses
  131 Kills

I'm definitely not out for level 3 units so early in the campaign, but rather trying to get a broader base of units ready to level at this stage. And I seem to favour knights much more than the others !
EDIT: how do you get the funky dots in your list?

[Elvish_Pillager]

EDIT: how do you get the funky dots in your list?

• blabla
• omgomg
• lalala

becomes:

• blabla
• omgomg
• lalala

[Elvish_Pillager]

Woohoo! In Elensefar, I advanced two Knights, a Red Mage and a White Mage, another Druid and another Hero! I also picked up Kalenz and Reglok, although I lost the rest of the theives when I used them in a silly rush to capture the Elenesfar villages. It worked very well though; it's like every strategy I picked turned out to be the perfect one.

[DavidByron]

Why take an Elvish Sorceress over a Druid???

[Rhuvaen]

Why take an Elvish Sorceress over a Druid???

More offensive firepower? I wasn't so convinced by the sorceress line during the rest of the campaign, but they are more independent than mages because they'll survive a few attacks in forest.

[Disto]

Konrad at level 3
2 Elvish Captains
1 Elvish Druid
1 Elvish Sorceress
3 Elvish Hero's
1 Elvish Ranger
1 Elvish Marksman
1 Knight
1 Lancer
2 Merman Warrior
2 White Mages
1 Red Mage

This was at Siege of Elensefar on Normal, 132 kills for 6 losses.