Queen Maldaria's Protectors
The first report on Queen Maldaria.
Sir,
My current assignment to report on the Phoenix Elves is probably easier than those scouting on more hostile forces like the Cave Goblins, but sometimes I wonder. While the Elves are usually willing to talk before attacking, it is a lot of work sifting through rumor, innuendo and bluster to arrive at the truth.
Anyway. As you know, the Phoenix Elves' new Summoner, Queen Maldaria, is the mother of their first Summoner Prince Elien. There is enough consistency in the talk about her for me to report that in battle she is a ferocious attacker, perhaps among the deadliest of the Summoners. Some say it is because her Summoning Stone is embedded in her sword, but I have not been able to confirm that. Yet in defense she is as fragile as her son, so to compensate she has focused her use of the Stone to frequently fetch units to her side to protect her. This also can protect the units she fetches, of course, and I have no doubt that she loves to send units in to strike and then vanish before the counterstrike, just like Prince Elien's Warriors.
Among her followers are units different from any I'd heard of before, and which should be carefully noted. Fire Dancers are rather the reverse of Elien's Warriors: they can skip around the battlefield, but rather than fleeing to safety they charge in and frequently wound their attackers. They dodge so skillfully that they are frustratingly hard to defeat.
They also have a creature they call a Fireling. Except for being native to their volcanic home, I cannot tell what sort of creature it is: it might be reptilian, or an elemental spirit for all I know. But I do know that they can harrass relentlessly, following and often burning anything that moves. Fortunately they are easily killed, and they can be lured out of their positions and so are not reliable guards.
The Queen must have an afinity for them, for she can summon several of them at once.
These units appear to be very annoying in battle. I hope they end up being on our side.
That is all I have for this report. Now to see what I can learn about the rest of their forces, especially their Champions.
