Phoenix Elves in 4 Player Games

[darkbladecb]

We played three four player games today. The first was Dwarves and Elves vs. Orcs and Goblins, the second G and E vs. O and D, and the last was G and D vs. O and E.

Basically, in the four player format, Elien seems to be much more exposed--because of the multiple directions that he can be attacked from--and, because of his frailty, has become quite the target. In the first two games, before any other Summoner was even wounded, Elien fell, resulting in the player on the Phoenix Elves' team to get crunched.

In the game with the Tundra Orcs on the Elves' side--playing a lot of Ice Walls defensively, particularly after Elien took three wounds from Thorkur--the Elves' side still lost, though Grognack fell first (but only because the Tundra Orcs used so many resources trying to keep Elien alive that Grognack ended up exposed and took three hits from a Sneeks that used Sly to get a turn of attacks in).

So, this is more of a question than anything. I've read lots (though more on BGG than here) about the Phoenix Elves being so over powered, so I'm just looking for strategies and ideas for success with them in four player games to bring back to my group, because I don't want our four player games to devolve into, "Who has to lose this afternoon because they're playing the Elves?"

[killercactus]

Well, I would think if just one army is coming after Elien that the Elves can defend him just fine. If 2 armies come after him, I'd use the Elves' partner to ambush one of the enemy Summoners, and make them focus on defending him rather than bum-rushing Elien.

That's all in theory though, and I've only ever played one team game.

[Jexik]

I've played around a dozen team games, but I haven't noticed the Phoenix Elf team being any weaker than the other factions. I have seen the Goblins seem a little better than usual, as they don't seem to get focused on as often, and being able to Goblin Rush from lots of different places is pretty sweet.

From that PE strat article, you might want to use Warriors (and their blaze step) a little more often, as at the very least they can be used to plug holes in your wall line that they might use to Goblin Rush or Fury through towards Elien. If the Guild Dwarves are on your team, a well placed Defender or two (often behind a wall like the Dwarven Gauntlet) and directly in front of Elien can slow down their advance. I've found that the whole wrap-around of the team game can actually make it harder to corner Elien and Oldin, because you often need to attack them from two directions. Also, you may need to use your own events, like SotP and Burn/GBurn in more of a defensive manner than usual... and STAY AWAY FROM THEIR WALLS!

I'm not sure what else to say. The Phoenix Elves still seem rather adept at accumulating a magic advantage, which is a nice thing in a team game. I had a team game just yesterday where Elien never got hit (was using that GD blocking strategy) and they won.

[Quintaton16]

More theory, but the fact that the Elves are extremely specialized might help them considerably in 4-player. Their weaknesses can easily be ameliorated by a good choice of an ally or by the extra shot selection stemming from more opponents. For example, Archers used with a Dwarven Gauntlet can mean that the Archers cannot be attacked by any units, including ranged. Warriors blaze stepping around a double board means crazy mobility that the opponent would find very hard to anticipate. The very specialized Guardians have a much higher chance of finding something to kill effectively.

On a side note, I find it funny that all four factions have now been declared both completely broken and underpowered by somebody or other. Ironically, this is about the best tribute possible for the balance of this game, because first, its impossible for all the factions to be better than the others, and second, it demonstrates that if you play a faction badly you lose.

[darkbladecb]

I do want to say that I don't think the Elves are underpowered--they've contended fine in 1 vs. 1 games (though they've gotten unlucky... silly Fury). It was just all of a sudden in the four player environment, the Goblins seem to do better and the Elves have seem to done worse. We had another (2+ hour) game yesterday and the Elves held their own, though the Elves and Dwarves eventually fell to the Orcs and Goblins, but the last four cards on the table were the Summoners (and half the walls were destroyed, too).