I Come From The Water: A Guide to Mirefolk

Discussion in 'Forglar Swamp' started by doubtofbuddha, Feb 5, 2016.

  1. doubtofbuddha

    doubtofbuddha I need me some PIE!

    Introduction

    FS is blessed with a number of fun and distinct themes, and Mirefolk is both one of the most fun and one the most distinct. Its play style sets it apart, resulting in a distinct experience that is fun to play.

    A few things of note:

    1) Mirefolk are heavily terrain dependent. While there are a few mirefolk that are amphibious, and thus able to do well away from water, most mirefolk are semi-aquatic, requiring them to be within 3 spaces of a water space at the start of their turn or have a net -2 to speed and take 3 points of damage.

    2) Mirefolk have a large number of come into play effects (the Mirefolk abilities) that provide you with consistent momentum. When combined with FS’s spell set this puts mirefolk in a good position to win the early game, and probably win the game as a whole, but this means that if the game ends up going long then you are probably in trouble.

    3) Mirefolk rely on a core of berserker melee units for their melee. These generally have abilities that help mitigate the negative impact of this ap consumption, but this still makes them worse in stand-off. Mirefolks non-berserker melee units are usually pretty good, but the sheer power level of the berserkers means that they frequently make their way into Mirefolk decks.

    4) Mirefolk have a strong set of ranged units. They provide them with a variety of damage types and additional capabilities beyond the core “hit things from a distance” role that give semi-aquatics an extra edge.


    A Note About Semi-Aquatics

    I start this guide intending it to be a guide to semi-aquatic battlegroups, but over the course of play I came to the conclusion that any additional power provided by semi-aquatics (and frankly there was not a ton) was over overshadowed by the additional bonuses that the Mirefolk come into play abilities provide. There are some good semi-aquatic units (the most noteworthy of which is the Elder Murkwurm), but they are better in other sorts of battlegroups.


    Mirefolk Abilities and their Impact on Deploy Order

    Mirefolk Resurgence

    When this unit is deployed, friendly champions have +2 damage for 4 turns. If the affected champion is a Mirefolk, it also gets +1 AP.

    Champions who have it: Circadian Songmaster, Circadian Templar

    Mirefolk Revival

    When this unit is deployed, friendly champions are healed for 8 HP. If the affected champion is a Mirefolk it is also cleansed.

    Champions who have it: Circadian Enchantress, Circadian Forcemage

    Mirefolk Transcendence
    When this champion is deployed, friendly champions get Attack: Magical for 3 turns. If the affected champion is a Mirefolk, opposing champions within 3 spaces of it take 3 magical damage. This damage ignores defense.

    Champions who have it: Circadian Arcanist


    Use of the Mirefolk… abilities is pretty straightforward. Mirefolk Resurgence is great early and fantastic late. It can be a power turn enabler, or help you to win a side font battle. Generally I find that I want to bring out at least one Circadian Songmaster early and delay deploying the Templars until later, when I can use them to help me win a key exchange.

    Mirefolk Revival is an ability that I try to save for when I am overcoming key enemy crowd control or have a large number of injured mirefolk. This is the only source of in-faction spot cleanse and is really powerful for that reason alone, particularly since getting a similar effect in ST (Cleansing Storm) costs 40 nora by itself. As such, it is usually better not to load up on Revival champions, as the ability (at 8 nora) is costly enough you want it to be meaningful.

    Mirefolk Transcendence is cheap enough, that it is usually less of a big deal to waste it. The exception is if you are fighting a battlegroup with a lot of incorporeal champions. In those situations you want to deploy them such that they allow your front line, who largely lack magic attacks, to deal with strong incorporeal creatures or battle groups or to do the additional damage required to finish off an enemy creature. Otherwise, it is generally not necessary to save her for her ability for key turns like it is with Mirefolk Revival and, to a lesser extent, Mirefolk Resurgence.
     
    Last edited: Feb 5, 2016
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  2. doubtofbuddha

    doubtofbuddha I need me some PIE!

    Champions of a Mirefolk Battlegroup

    In this section I will talk about champions that can effectively make up a mirefolk battlegroup, with a star rating somewhere between * and *****. Champions with a star rating of *** or higher will get a breakdown of potential upgrade options. The meaning of the ratings follows:
    ***** Auto 2x include. If you do not include two of these champs in your mirefolk battlegroup, you are hurting your chances to win.

    **** Strong choices. You are not going to kill yourself by not including them but you should always think about including them when putting your battlegroup together.

    *** Fair choices. These are reasonable options that are worth considering but may not be a good choice for all builds or circumstances.

    ** Weak choices. There are specific circumstances where this choice may be useful, but for the most part you are going to make your battlegroup worse by including them.

    * Bad Choice. Do not include these in your battlegroup. They do not belong in your battlegroup.



    Upgrades indicated with an asterisk are those that should be chose in most situations. In case of a relative tie, multiple options are indicated.

    Water Generators

    So first things first, you are going to need water, and a fair bit of it. It is a good idea to have a combination of cost-effective non-spot sources that give you a bit more value and spot sources that allow you to deal with emergencies. Generally your spot sources are going to come from equipment, relics, and spells while the more cost-effective persistent sources are champions.

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    Boghopper Mentor [Trail: Water]
    Rating: *
    Boghopper Mentor provides essentially nothing to Mirefolk battlegroups outside of Trail: Water. It is weak and generally unimpressive and the benefits it does provide are designed for other sorts of battlegroups.

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    Boghopper Paladin [Water Front]
    Rating: *

    I love Boghopper Paladin in Boghoppers, but he is definitely a Boghopper rune. He adds almost nothing to Mirefolk bgs except for Water Front, and you are much better off choosing other runes.

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    Circadian Songmaster [Water Front]
    Rating: *****
    UP 1: Flourish*, Bastion of Will, Dazzling*
    UP 2: Water Veil, Water Front*, Weaken Spells

    Circadian Sogmaster is a core Mirefolk unit thanks to her combination of Water Front and the most generally relevant of the Mirefolk… abilities. She serves as a great 2nd round (or later) deployment choice as she can either accelerate your early position while also providing the water source required to keep your game going or enable power turns and serve as a back-up water source as your primary ones falls apart.

    For upgrade path 1, you can either go with the expensive (75 nora) build that includes a strong debuff/defense against melee champions or the much cheaper version that includes a less persistent crowd control that costs AP. I tend to prefer Dazzling, but Flourish is also a strong choice, and potentially allows you to get an additional early champion deploy.

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    Elder Murkwurm [Trail: Slime]
    Rating: ****
    UP 1: Jolt 2*, Chain Lightning
    UP 2: Fry*, Cleave, Death Sentence

    Elder Murkwater is largely a champion that works best in dedicated Fry battle groups, but who can find a place in mirefolk decks too. He isn’t a mirefolk, so he doesn’t get a benefit from the Mirefolk… abilities, but he generates water with Trail: Slime, has good crowd control thanks to Cast: Hungry Mire, and some large range direct damage with Fry. He is not an auto-include by any means, but he is strong enough that he is one of the few non-mirefolk champions that is actively a good choice for mirefolk battlegroups.

    Upgrades are pretty straightforward. On UP 2, you are going to pretty much always going to want to use Fry. You have tons of water generation, and direct damage is pretty useful. With Fry you are going to have no reason to use Chain Lightning, and Jolt 2 is going to be useful when you do make an attack.

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    Glowing Slider [Trail: Slime]
    Rating: ***
    UP 1: Transfer Life 1, Transfer Life 2*
    UP 2: Subsume*, Life Siphon
    In most FS bgs, Glowing Slider basically exists only to heal other champions. In mirefolk battlegroups, Glowing Slider exists to provide healing and another source of water. He isn’t bad, and can heal a total of 90 hit points before he dies, but that is pretty much all it does. If you do include it, it should probably be used in a non-champion spot. It is a mobile source of healing, and should not be counted on to provide anything that champions normally do. Even there it competes directly with Font of Restoration, which will probably provide less total healing, but has the advantage of providing it when you need it, without the need to decide you want to use it until you need it.

    Upgrade paths are pretty straightforward. If you are using Glowing Slider you want to maximize the amount of healing it can provide, and Life Siphon is not going to be useful for a Lumbering creature that you want to keep away from the front lines

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    Marsh/Moog Gargantua [Trail: Water]
    Rating: ***
    UP 1: Resistance: Magical (2), Resistance: Magical (3)*, Resolute
    UP 2: Sustain*, Mobility*, Opportunistic Assault

    Moog is one of the few out-of-theme champions who it might, might be worth including. His biggest advantage is his sheer tankiness. Mirefolk lack any real tanks, and Moog’s combination of Physical and Magical resistance helps a lot. His pull ability allows you to set up Drown, Undertow, or just bring champions in range to enable power turns.

    On the down side he is really expensive and loses out on half the benefits you get from the Mirefolk abilities. As a result, he can be a good choice, but is probably not the best choice. Use him with care.

    For upgrades you should take Resistance: Magical (3) on the first upgrade line. It is only a 2 point difference from Resistance: Magical (2) and the effective increase in protection from a common source of damage is significant. On UP 2 there is a real choice. Both Sustain and Mobility have their advantages, with a minimal difference in cost. I tend to prefer Mobility, as it allows me to get Moog where I need him to be much more effectively than you would expect for his large size, but Sustain’s efficient and cheap healing is also good. Opportunistic Assault is also an interesting option, but it is probably not worth it thanks to its price and the fact that it is more useful on more mobile champions.

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    Princess Ctharia [Water Front]
    Rating: ****
    UP 1: Constriction, Pawn, Righteous Shield*
    UP 2: Dive 1, Water Front*, Dive 2
    The Mirefolk hero, Princess Ctharia’s big things going for her are Regal Presence on base, Water Front, and a pretty solid stat line. With the recent removal of Mirefolk Featly her cost has dropped to a pretty solid 80 (or 81 with Righteous Shield), which makes her a competitive choice for most Mirefolk battlegroups.

    I particularly like her with the Righteous Shield + Water Front combination. Short of Dispel or True Nature, it provides you with a defensive option that is largely absent from FS. Pawn is also a reasonable choice, but there is insufficient in-theme synergy to make it a reasonable choice, and she is not expensive enough to require extensive protection.

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    Razorfin Slider [Trail: Water]
    Rating: **
    The big thing holding this guy back is the fact that he is aquatic. Trail Water does not help him very much there, and the fact that he is 30 hit points means he basically lives to move into, battle, hit maybe once or twice, and then explode and die. On the plus side, he is cheap, but he does not really fit into the mirefolk game plan well, and is mostly just completely overshadowed by other options.

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    Swamp Thing [Trail: Water/Water Front]
    Rating: *****
    UP 1: Domain: Water, Clamp, Tidal Wave*
    UP 2: Water Veil, Water Front*, Trail: Water

    Swamp Thing is one of the best mirefolk, and is strong enough that he is not only a good choice for Mirefolk, but also ends up being an effective key component for battlegroups like mixed meta and fry too. The sources of his advantages are several. The first of which is that he has both persistent and spot water generating abilities. Tidal Wave (which is the clear best choice for UP 1) provides the ability to create drown, slipwater, and undertow opportunities from a distance, while also allowing for other semi-aquatic mirefolk to extend their treat range. It gets steadily bigger and beefier as more champions are in water, and when combined with Leech Vitality (which works with Tidal Wave, yes) you can end up with some alarmingly tanky Swamp Things.

    Upgrade Path 2 presents several choices, but I think they are ultimately false ones; Water Front is the clear best one. Water Veil can provides some nice spot water but the uses of this sort of spot water are narrow enough that it is not ultimately worth it. Trail: Water produces rough terrain, but the different between aoe 3 water and aoe 0 water are pretty big. You can’t even claim cost savings with Trail: Water, so there is literally no reason to take it.

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    Tide Master [Water Front]
    Rating: ***
    UP 1: Leap 1, Leap 2, Leap 3*
    UP 2: Domain: Water*, Surge: Boghopper, Amplify: Poison
    The main reason that Tide Master exceeds the rating of other water generating champions is that he has built in water synergy. Domain Water means his stat line will be consistently will have three stats with the battle group, and he is one of the four FS champs with Tidal Wave. The combination of these two factors makes him an option worth considering, but he suffers from the lack of benefit he gets from the Mirefolk… abilities that prevents him from being a top choice.

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    Sludge Wurm [Trail: Slime]
    Rating: *
    Sludge Wurm is a poison champion with Trail: Water tacked on. Do not run Sludge Wurm.

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    Voodoo Shamfie [Trail: Water]
    UP 1: Soul Mason, Iron Will, Trail: Water*
    UP 2: Detection*, Power Attack 1, Power Attack 2
    Rating: ***

    Voodoo Shamfie isn’t bad. He is a mirefolk, and is a source of persistent water, but has 20 points sunk into the Soul Siphon ability. Something that costs that much should be something you are getting a lot of value out of, and you generally won’t in mirefolk battlegroups as you are a) trying to keep your mirefolk alive and b) if you kill enough champions that Soul Siphon makes him huge then you probably have won already. That being said, he is big and beefy, so you aren’t going to actively hurt yourself by running him, but there are definitely better choices.

    For upgrades you should run Trail: Water on UP 1. You have a little more choice on UP 2, but I think the combination of the usefulness of Detection and how it is the least expensive option means it is probably the best choice.

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    Wavecrusher [Trail: Water, Water Front]
    UP 1: Multiattack 1, Multiattack 2*, Multiattack 3
    UP 2: Water Front,* Trail Water
    Rating: ***

    Wavecrusher is one of the better non-Mirefolk options for Mirefolk decks, based almost entirely on his cheapness (37 nora for an idea build!) and his cheapness. Of course, he suffers a bit from the fact that he is short lived, and will only have a total of 15 nora in his existence. This prevents me from fully endorsing him, but if you consider him a spell that you have to plan ahead for then, he ends up being a pretty reasonable option. This reasonableness is enabled in part due to the sheer amount of water you have to take advantage of, which enables him to get around easily. Of course you will probably only use Deep Dive once so you want to use him in a situation where you expect to be fighting for multiple turns and can get him in, hit your opponent a few times, and hopefully capture a font in the process. The question is if this is worth a slot. I generally find it not to be, as I tend to prefer more flexible options, but with careful play it can end up having a big impact on the board.

    For upgrades you should be taking Water Front, for much the same reasons as Swamp Thing, and Multiattack 2, because you want to maximize your AP and the odds of Multiattack 3 ever being relevant are pretty low.
     
    Last edited: Feb 8, 2016
  3. doubtofbuddha

    doubtofbuddha I need me some PIE!

    Mirefolk Front Line
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    Cecaelia
    Rating: ****
    UP 1: Charm 2, Charm 3*, Stun*
    UP 2: Empathy, Regeneration 2*, Bastion of Will

    Mirefolk, like most FS themes lack true tanks, but what they do combine is good pools of hit points combined with big healing. Cecaelia is an example of this, with her healing coming in the form of Regeneration 2 + Enlightened for a massive 10 hps a turn of regeneration. Combined with 55 base hit points, means that she takes more effort than normal to take down and can recover rapidly in the event she is hurt. Her damage is not great, but she does have some good crowd control, in the form of Charm 3, Stun, and her built-in Constriction, all of which make her a good front-line choice.

    You have some good choice for Upgrades in path 1. Both Charm 3 and Stun allow for different but equally effective builds for the same cost, and I shift back and forth about which one I like better. For Upgrade Path 2, Regeneration is the clear winner, as it allows her to trigger her own Enlightened ability.

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    Circadian Templar
    Rating: *****
    UP 1: Rebuke*, Detection*, Shatter
    UP 2: Fellowship*, Purified, Defensive Stance

    Circadian Templar is a tank in the same vein as Cecaelia, though he has slightly more defense, and a lot less capacity for healing. In the best build he will have 6 hps of healing whenever you deploy, however, which will frequently be enough.

    What pushes him to a five star rating is that he has Mirefolk Resurgence. I sang the praises of this ability earlier, and when you combine it with his solid statline (particularly speed 8 when within 3 of water) means that you are going to want two of him in any mirefolk battlegroup you are running.

    For Upgrade Path 1, I find Rebuke and Detection to be equally valuable. Detection is a useful ability, and running it on the Templar means that you don’t really need to run emergency kit. Rebuke is good simply because of how powerful and prevalent AP generation is, being able to smack them for 3 every time an opponent gets an AP is some useful utility. I usually run one with each, but I could see strong arguments for other configurations too.

    For Upgrade Path 2, Fellowship is the best choice, but I could see some strong arguments for Purified. In fact, if it was in any other FS theme but Mirefolk, I think I would end up valuing Purified more than Fellowship, but since Mirefolk do have powerful sources of it, then I think Fellowship is the more consistently useful choice.

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    Corrupted Overlord

    Rating: **

    Corrupted Overlord is overpriced and covered with sandbags, and is mostly not worth running. For the ~100 points it costs to bring Corrupted Overlord out you could play for most of a champion and an Undertow for much more immediate benefit,

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    Fentek Servant
    Rating: ***
    UP 1: Poison Shield 2, Poison Shield 3*, Pace
    UP 2: Defender*

    Fentek Servant only barely made it past 2.5 stars. His stat line is unimpressive and he really just does not do all that much, except in situations which enable a strong Marsh Awakening. The only thing that makes him even remotely worth running is Defender, and that is not enough to make him a viable choice.

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    Frenzied Pirahnid
    Rating: ****
    UP 1: Rend 1*, Rend 2, Rend 3
    UP 2: Surge: Aquatic, Life Siphon*

    Frenzied Pirahnid is a solid choice in the line of Mirefolk melee beaters, with a combination of multiattack, to minimize the downsides of berserker, and Life Siphon to keep its hit point total topped off. Rend itself is not that great on Frenzied Pirahnid. Generally, if you are engaging with something you are going to kill it, so the dot after the first hit is largely irrelevant.

    With that in mind the choices for upgrades are pretty clear. Rend 1 reduces the point impact of being forced to take a dot ability, and Life Siphon on such a high damage champion is a significant bonus. Surge: Aquatic is a reasonable choice as well, and will let you easily hit 20 or more damage, but pushes your deck even more into being about momentum. Life Siphon gives you more midgame staying power.

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    Pirahnid
    Rating: *****
    UP 1: Multiattack 1*, Multiattack 2*, Multiattack 3
    UP 2: Surge: Aquatic*

    Pirahnids are cheap, fast, hit really hard, have multi-attack and, unlike the other primary semi-aquatic beatsticks, can actually store AP, making them a lot more useful even during rounds when you are unable to set up an alpha strike. You want two of them in any mirefolk battlegroup.

    You have no choice for upgrades in path 2. Luckily Surge: Aquatic is really, really good on them, so the restricted upgrades are not really a downside. For the first upgrade path you could reasonably take any of the three levels of multiattack but you are probably best off select 1 or 2. The amount of advantage gained from 3 is not sufficient to make up for the increased cost.

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    Pirahnid Bloodfiend
    Rating: ****.5
    UP 1: Enrage 1*, Enrage 2, Enrage 3
    UP 2: Berserker 1, Berserker 2*

    Most of the Pirahnid Bloodfiend’s value comes from the interaction between life siphon and blood rage. They enable you to either move up to 4 spaces (or more with Mirefolk Resurgence or Slipwater) and gain a double attack or move up to 7 (or more, once again with Resurgence or Slipwater) and a single one. And since it has built-in life siphon and high damage, most of the time it will be immediately recovering most if not all of the damage it does to itself. It is also tanky enough that enrage is going to be relevant sometimes, pushing its potential damage and healing even higher.

    Theoretically you could reasonably get higher ranks of enrage, but functionally it is just not worth the extra cost. Similarly, you could theoretically pick berserker 1 over berserker 2, but that is in reality a horrible idea. Do not do that.

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    Pirahnid Tempest
    Rating: **.5

    The Pirahnid Tempest mostly suffers from how expensive his kit is. He pays a lot for a combination of abilities that are only situationally useful, and ends up costing about 10 points more for his best build. He does bring some functionality that is uncommon in semi-aquatics, but none of it is so unique to justify paying that much for him.

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    Pirahnid Warrior
    Rating: ***.5
    UP 1: Melee Specialist 1*, Melee Specialist 2, Melee Specialist 3
    UP 2: Commander*, Battlemaster, Vigorous Cry

    Pirahnid Warrior is a solid choice in mirefolk decks but is generally outclassed by the other options. He is about as fast the other melee choices, but does not hit as hard as they do, lacks a lot of the utility and durability of the Cecaelia or the sheer speed of the Circadian Templar. What it does have is the ability to provide a consistent damage buff and is amphibious instead of semi-aquatic, providing a good options for battlegroups which feel some level of water pressure. If either of these things are valuable to you, then the Warrior can be a solid option.

    I suggest going with Melee Specialist 1 because the additional points for higher ranks are largely not worth the cost due to the amount of control your opponents have over its ability to trigger. Similarly, Commander provides the cheapest build and the most overall utility.

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    Revolting Fentek
    Rating: *

    Revolting Fentek is a poison bg unit, and only just happens to have Mirefolk as a race. He provides almost nothing to a dedicated Mirefolk battlegroup, and should not be played.
     
    Last edited: Feb 5, 2016
  4. doubtofbuddha

    doubtofbuddha I need me some PIE!

    Mirefolk Artillery

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    Circadian Arcanist
    Rating: ****.5
    UP 1: Adept Arcanist*, Magic Blast, Magic Acolyte
    UP 2: Grant: Magical Aura *, Illuminate

    Circadian Arcanist with Adept Arcanist is really, really inexpensive. For 66 nora she provides a long range attacker, who can produce a variety of damage types, as is convenient for the moment, and the ability to grant an aura that provides either additional damage or the means to counter abilities like perseverance that would otherwise save a champion for an additional round of attacks. Her Mirefolk… ability is a bonus. Though it is a one that can win games, letting you deal with battlegroups that have lots of incorporeal champions or the ability to deal with whatever resistances you have that are most common.

    Upgrade paths are straightforward. Take Adept Arcanist to keep her cost down and Grant: Magical Aura in order to provide the benefits of Aura Champions. Illuminate is potentially a strong choice if you are concerned about getting through defense, but there are spell options to deal with that, and her magical aura provides an additional avenue to deal with high defense champions so it is probably not useful.

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    Circadian Forcemage
    Rating: *****
    UP 1: Mirefolk Revival*, Magic Blast, Gale
    UP 2: Stat Bonus: Damage 2, Multiattack 1*, Telekinetic Thrust

    For quite a while Mirefolk Revival was attached to otherwise less compelling champions. With the recent reduction in quantity of champions that had Mirefolk… abilities, the Circadian Forcemage was given Mirefolk Revival, combining a strong frame with an ability that is vital for keeping mirefolk battlegroups going. Multiattack on ranged champions is almost always good, and she adds to this a good lock-down ability, Force Barrier, which provides the potential to lockdown melee super champions, while you pelt them with your circadians.

    Upgrade choices for the Circadian Forcemage are straightforward. You want Mirefolk Revival and you want Multiattack 1. The other options are not really worth considering.

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    Collective Ambassador
    Rating: **

    The Collective Ambassador just does not provide enough to make her worthwhile in Mirefolk decks. She was clearly designed to be utilized in collective decks, and can be quite strong in them. Unfortunately, nothing she has or does make her actually good in mirefolk, so she should not be use in them.
     
    Last edited: Feb 5, 2016
  5. doubtofbuddha

    doubtofbuddha I need me some PIE!

    Mirefolk Utility

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    Circadian Chronologist
    Rating: ****
    UP 1: Swap 3*, Hydrate, Invigorate 2
    UP 2: Noble Sacrifice, Nora Shield*, Heal Champion 3*

    The Circadian Chronologist is built around using ripples to allow her to use her cooldown-based abilities more frequently. She is expensive and her statline is unexceptional, but the abilities she does have are very good, allowing for extended nora generation, repositioning, and similarly strong combinations. Her built in Deep Dive is also particularly handy in Mirefolk decks, allowing her to jump from the font or shrine deployment zones to the front lines immediately, allowing her to drop an attack or an ability the round after she is deployed.

    For upgrades, hydrate and invigorate 2 while very useful are also extremely expensive, and push the Chronologist outside of what is a reasonable cost range. Swap 3 is very useful anyway, particularly with a large number of berserker champs, and can enable high damage double attack rounds. For upgrade path 2 both Nora Shield and Heal champion 3 are very useful, and are close enough in cost that it might be worth running either one. I tend to choose Nora Shield for her, because of the large amount of inherent healing available for this battlegroup, but it is very difficult to have too much healing.

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    Circadian Enchantress
    Rating: ***.5
    UP 1: Premonition*, Water Veil, Splash
    UP 2: Invigorate 1, Hydrate, Invigorate 2*

    Circadian Enchantress is mostly a source of on deploy healing/cleansing from Mirefolk Revival followed by a consistent source of AP and inconsistent source of damage. She was used frequently before Mirefolk Revival started appearing on other champions, but has now largely been outclassed. That being said, it is still potentially worthwhile to use her as a source of Invigorate 2, but it is now a luxury to include her rather than a need.

    Neither Water Veil nor Splash provide enough of a bonus to justify running over Premonition on Upgrade Path 1, and Invigorate 2 is enough better than Hydrate and Invigorate 1 that it is the clear choice for Upgrade Path 2.

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    Circadian Merchant
    Rating: ***.5
    UP 1: Cleanse, Cleansing Aura*
    UP 2: Disbelief*, Shatter*

    Circadian Merchant is mostly a utility piece that will probably be very good in certain environments and decks, but is mostly exceeded in power level by other options. Her aquatic armaments ability is quite useful if you are inclined to run a lot of equips, but you are generally better off leaning harder on spells. Cleansing Aura is useful if you are facing an environment that is heavy on dot or status effects, but in other situations champions with Mirefolk Revival are better. Disbelief and Shatter are both very good in certain situations, but are narrow enough that that they may not be worthwhile when dealing with a broader play environment.

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    Mirefolk Stalker
    Rating: **

    Mirefolk Stalker is too limited by water restrictions to really be worth running. He isn’t just weaker without water, he is almost completely useless. You would need to run a large amount of water, just for him, to work, and that is mostly just not viable.

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    Mirevixen
    Rating: ***
    UP 1: Heal Champion 1, Heal Champion 2, Heal Champion 3*
    UP 2: Invigorate 1, Invigorate 2*

    Mirevixen is aquatic, but is able to deal with the limitations of that much more effectively than other champions. She is still restricted to essentially following your water generating champions around, or at least staying in the vicinity of a water generating relic, but her range and abilities largely do not require her to get close to be useful. She can run invigorate on ranged champions or her attending water front champion, and does not need to get closer than 4 to heal or 7 to attack.

    She is cheap enough that you want to go for the best upgrade options available: Heal Champion 3 and Invigorate 2.

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    Quagmirran
    Rating: ***
    UP 1: Grant: Flight, Splash, Nora Shield*
    UP 2: Water Veil, Vitalize*, Revere: Hydraxor

    Quagmirran overlaps a lot with the Circadian Chronologist, serving as a means of providing Nora Shield and a way to deal with water issues. His Vitalize ability is a subtle bonus, as it turns a lot of your base speed 5 ranged attackers into speed 7 dynamos when within 3 of water, which he can generate periodically. I think ultimately the Chronologist is superior, however, due to her extended reach and her ability to power her abilities more frequently.

    For Mirefolk decks you are best off using Nora Shield and Vitalize. None of the other upgrades provide nearly the same utility.
     
    Last edited: Feb 5, 2016
  6. doubtofbuddha

    doubtofbuddha I need me some PIE!

    Non-Champion Runes of a Mirefolk Battlegroup

    For the most part when choosing non-champions runes, you are going to pick the spells that you use in any strong Forglar Swamps battlegroup. However there are a few non-champion runes that are more difficult to run in such battlegroups that you should be running or considering because of their power level in the very water-centric mirefolk battlegroup:

    Spells

    Drown
    ****.5
    Drown is really expensive, one of the most expensive spells in the game, but its ability to deal with annoying super champions is powerful enough to make it very worthwhile. You should run at least one of them in every mirefolk bg, and even 2 of them is worth considering.

    Feeding Frenzy
    **

    Feeding Frenzy suffers from being completely overshadowed by Pygmy Hippo Stampede (PHS). Yes, it costs 5 nora less, and provides an instant +5 damage to your Surge: Aquatic champions, but the additional reach provided by the Pygmy’s charge means you are on average going to do as much or more damage with PHS than you will do with Feeding Frenzy. The fact that all the champions are aquatic makes it even worse, meaning that unless the entire area is covered in water the champions have a really low chance of getting into combat. Don’t run this spell.

    Slipwater
    ****.5

    Slipwater is a high utility spell that essentially provides 4 ap for movement for all of your champions, but only if they are moving through water. Considering your general use for water in general, this effect is strong, both for moving your champions into range for a big power turn, or for allowing to retreat after you have hit your opponent’s forces and are ready to fall back and prepare for the next engagement.

    Undertow
    *****

    Undertow is one of the strongest spells in FS and may be one of the strongest spells in the game. A one-sided spot relocate for 40 essentially should pretty much always allow you a kill

    Equipment

    Aquatic Talisman
    ***
    Aquatic Talisman is cheap and has a pretty strong effect. Unfortunately, Pox Nora is a game focused pretty strongly on one-rounding, so the usability of Aquatic Talisman is limited by that, and that is sufficient that it is not strongly recommended.

    Scimitar of the Deep
    ****

    Scimitar of the Deep can cause your champions to get a remarkable damage boost, or allow a ranged champion to make a melee attack, as long as you are in water. Since you are going to want to be running a lot of water anyway, this equipment can enable power turns or allow you to get a kill when you normally would not.

    Tidemaster’s Bandoleer
    ****

    Tidemaster’s Bandoleer is primarily a good source of spot water generation, as it gives the equipped champion spot Trail: Water. There are a few other secondary bonuses that the Bandoleer provides (Domain: Water, Amphibious, and Amplify Poison), but the only one of those items that is really relevant to semi-aquatic battlegroups is Domain: Water. Amphibious is actually

    Relics

    Circadian Vault
    *****

    Circadian Vault has a lot going for it, and you definitely should be running one and I would strongly consider running a 2nd. The biggest, and most immediate impact it provides is spot water, but Circadian Rites gives a good amount of healing and situationally-appropriate alt damage. The fact that it is difficult to just snipe with ranged attacks is just an added bonus, which helps this relic add up to an excellent choice in most all mirefolk battlegroups.

    Flood Generator
    ***

    Flood Generator is solid, and will eventually cover much of the board with water, but does not provide enough of a benefit to justify using regularly. Water generation is plentiful enough from other Mirefolk sources to make it so that this unit’s capabilities are unnecessary.
     
    Last edited: Feb 5, 2016
  7. doubtofbuddha

    doubtofbuddha I need me some PIE!

    Mirefolk Deck Building

    So with five star champions being mandatory, and other champions providing options, I consider this to be a good core to build Mirefolk decks off of:

    1 Circadian Arcanist
    2 Circadian Forcemages
    2 Circadian Songmasters
    2 Circadian Templars
    2 Pirahnids
    1 Pirahnid Bloodfiend
    2 Swamp Things

    This leaves you, essentially, with 3-5 different slots to play with for champions. These should mostly be using champions who are 4 or 4.5 stars in the previous list, though if you want to experiment with 3s, it may not necessarily hurt you except against the best opponents.

    For non-champions slots you definitely want:

    1 Drown
    1 Slipwater
    2 Undertow
    1 Circadian Vault
    1 Spirit Altar

    Though bumping any of those 1s up to 2 would work (and I definitely recommend trying out 2 Vaults).

    This covers up 17 of your 30 slots, leaving you with some level of choice. For the most part you should be running some of the better general-purpose FS spells and such (Backfire, Pygmy Hippo Stampede, Twisted Emerald, etc.) in your remaining non-champion slots, so most of the choice there is picking which of these work best for you.

    Enjoy!
     
    Last edited: Feb 5, 2016
    Tiefling, Gnomes, lifetaker and 3 others like this.
  8. Cydna

    Cydna Forum Royalty

    Typo in the first post for what Mirefolk Resurgence does.
     
  9. doubtofbuddha

    doubtofbuddha I need me some PIE!

  10. IMAGIRL

    IMAGIRL Forum Royalty

    OH, you finally got around to fulfilling that poll you made a while back. Good on ya. Let me know when you finish it, and I'll sticky it.
     
  11. doubtofbuddha

    doubtofbuddha I need me some PIE!

    It's done.
     
  12. Glaring

    Glaring I need me some PIE!

    ooooo swanky
     
  13. Tweek516

    Tweek516 I need me some PIE!

    Nice :D

    Couple typos etc I noticed:

    - Boghopper Paladin description, you say Boghopper bgs when I think you mean mirefolk.

    - The Thing UP1 comment, you say drain vitality where I think you mean leech vitality.
     
  14. doubtofbuddha

    doubtofbuddha I need me some PIE!

    Fixed! Thanks!
     
  15. Tweek516

    Tweek516 I need me some PIE!

    Take my likes.
     
  16. doubtofbuddha

    doubtofbuddha I need me some PIE!

    Thanks! I need more likes to ever move beyond being King of Potaotes. :-/
     
  17. Keku

    Keku The King of Potatoes

    awesome post, looking forward to building my own deck. Do you run ANY aquatics?
     
  18. Keku

    Keku The King of Potatoes

    been away for a long time, aren't soak the earth and monsoon viable?
     
  19. doubtofbuddha

    doubtofbuddha I need me some PIE!

    No. A little. And a little, but I don't bother with it.
     
  20. Keku

    Keku The King of Potatoes

    hey so you mentioned "the generic stuff" but i'm really unfamiliar with it :(... my bg has the core dudes plus the princess but i don't know what to add, stuff like corrode, erode etc?
     

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