LongBlade: Hmmm.

Hmmm, hmmm, hmmm.

As of Turn 38 our four-player Warlock game suddenly became a three-player game. Bartheart had the misfortune to be crushed by MetalDog. It was tough to watch but these things do happen.

You you may recall, dear reader, Bartheart had sent a request for help to Tuna. Tuna couldn’t figure out how to conduct trade for a turn, and while that delay was costly, probably most costly was a probable distraction between the other two players. Allowing MetalDog free reign to go one-on-one against any other player is likely to only feed MetalDog’s success.

So let us turn our attention to the north and see what has preoccupied Tuna from helping a possible ally in Bartheart.

Turn 34

The Command Tent declares war on Tuna.

Here a picture can tell a thousand words. In this case it probably tells the outcome of the game even though three players still wander the land. On Turn 32 Bartheart lost the city of Unceraculum. It’s now blue, indicating MetalDog has conqured it (in the lower center of the above image).

More interestingly, however, is the fact that The Command Tent and Tuna are going after each other hammer-and-tongs. They should be able to see that MetalDog is crushing Bartheart. Will they call a truce and attempt to gang up against MetalDog? Or will they stay locked in a deathgrip with one another and ignore the threat from their south?

Some good news for Tuna – he’s founded a new city and building an infrastructure to get some higher quality archers.

To his northeast he’s found several lairs of monsters. These can sometimes leave you alone and don’t always attack. If he’s lucky he won’t be distracted by them and he’ll focus on his opponents to the west and south. I also note that he has founded several cities. This is a great move – if he can survive long enough to build their infrastructure to get troops pumped out.

As his last two actions of Turn 34 he sends some imps to perform some recon to the south, then he summons a healing spell in anticipation of healing some casualties that he expects to be inflicted next turn.

Turn 35

Tuna opens Turn 35 by attacking Tent’s melee troops with his archers. This is a good move as they have a ranged attack and the melee troops won’t get a counter attack. The only thing I might have done differently would have been to retreat them. Tuna could still move them back a space or two and conduct a ranged attack. Right now being next to melee troops, they’re sitting ducks for Tent’s next turn.

Remember that Greater Healing spell Tuna summoned last turn? He uses it now on his battered melee troops and sends them into Tent’s territory to bring the fight to the enemy. One thing I note: Tent has a lot more troops hanging around than Tuna does. Not sure this is going to go Tuna’s way.

Turn 36

You may recall that during Turn 33 Bartheart requested a trade of gold so he could get some mana. Tuna couldn’t figure how how that worked for a few turns. Now he does.

Tuna has constructed a Magic Tower near Tent’s border and now he reigns some destruction onto Tent’s troops who have gotten a bit too far from their own border. He also has some bowmen (difficult to see) in the same hex as the Magic Tower and also pounds Tent with them.

Tuna then tries to summon a Firestorm spell, but what’s this?!? He has no mana! Perhaps that trade with Bartheart wasn’t such a good deal after all….

As a final act of Turn 36 Tuna attempts to contact Tent and arrange a truce. However, it appears as though the AI won’t let them communicate for a couple more turns

LongBlade: here I’m not sure what’s happening as Tuna hasn’t made it clear in his report to me.

News then breaks to Tuna that Tent and MetalDog (aka Stophro) have cemented an alliance!

Turn 37

Not to be left out, Tuna offers to make peace with MetalDog, too. How will it be received?

Tuna then turns his attention to ridding his southern flank of some monstrous cockroaches.

Turn 38

Turn 38 opens with a major battle raging between Tuna and Tent.

Tuna invests in a Mana Trap to gain more mana and then a granary to feed his troops, but is then delivered some grim news: MetalDog has rejected the offer of peace! It seems Tent got there first and MetalDog, finishing off Bartheart, is looking for more victims.

Tuna then pushes yet further to the south and east. He has a lot of budding cities, but has he created too many settlers at the expense of not enough troops? I wonder if this isn’t a strategic error.

And on that note we will close Tuna’s adventures in Warlock. Keep watching our front page for more on this ongoing saga. Things are getting quite interesting.