So having completed the CM 1hp quests, I thought I'd share builds and strategies. I think it's more fun to tackle these top level challenges without looking at other's approaches, but I'll share mine for those who get stuck or just would rather get some help before trying it themselves. I make no promises that any of these approaches were optimal, and sometimes an easier strategy is staring you right in the face and you just miss it. This is simply an account of what I used to get there. The Spreading Blight Spoiler: Battles 1-3 The Spreading Blight was relatively straightforward, so much so that I didn't think to save the build. So just a brief description from memory in this case: I used 2 priests and a warrior. The priests were maxed nimbus and would try their best to stay out of the engagements. Their whole purpose was to hang back and nimbus the warrior. The warrior for the first 2 battles had Town Ravager's Hide for the 2 Monster Hides (Juggernaut Hide would be a decent non-legendary substitute). These were important because if you were nimbused and got hit by a purging strike it didn't kill you. You simply reapplied nimbus and carried on. The key is simply getting to that hide and not running out of nimbus... Ready to strike is a good offense option here as well. Final battle - load up on The Inquisitions, don't worry about the armor, and just let nimbus win the day. In all battles, boots with Flanking Move on the priests were good for gaining priority at the end of the round.
Svitlanas Inquisition Spoiler: Battles 1 & 2 Used the same build for the first 2 battles. In battle 1 I left my wiz out in the open with a nimbus on her every turn, while my priests hid in the "slot" near the opening spawn points after it was vacated by the townsfolk. The AI likes to go after whoever is nearby (and who's back is turned), you can use this to your advantage to get all the enemies clustered around the wiz. Most of the rounds no one even moved next to the priests. This maximizes nimbus so you only need 1 a round in general. Make sure you one-shot the towns folk (punishing early, grudge when their decks get smaller later in the match). They don't seem to play howl unless they have taken damage, one-shoting them prevents them from drawing Monstrous Hide. Battle two is similar. Run the priests to the back map edge and move the wiz up to attract the mob, so as to only need one nimbus per round. Make sure not to attack anyone with Bats so they don't jump over to the priests. Use flank to gain priority when necessary. St Gertrude of Nivelles Level 24 Dwarf Wizard Heartripper Heartripper Bimson's Death Moat Vial Of Spite Vial Of Spite Bimson's Death Moat Poltergeist's Cape Pergop's Slippers Apprentice Ferocity Focused Electromancy 12 x Punishing Bolt 2 x Blind Rage 5 x Ancient Grudge 1 x Officer's Harness 4 x Flash Flood 1 x Unreliable Block 2 x Force Cannon 1 x Toughened Hide Strips 3 x Spark Generator 3 x Telekinesis 2 x Violent Spin St Denis of Paris Level 24 Human Priest x2 Duality Mace Duality Mace Inspirational Mail Streaked Shield Lt. Buckwell's Boots Shielding Token Shielding Token Shielding Token Advanced Flexibility Focused Piety 1 x Fright 1 x Officer's Harness 2 x Leadership 2 x Flanking Move 3 x Altruism 2 x Chop 4 x Touch Of Death 1 x Slowed 3 x Consuming Spear 2 x Inspiration 3 x Lifesaving Block 1 x Mail 10 x Impenetrable Nimbus 1 x Hit The Deck Spoiler: Battle 3 This one will likely take some retries. Two paths to victory, burning to push off NEB or greater heals. Don't forget to take advantage of absorbing block (rad bolt is great for triggering it). Generally keep 1 guy at the stairs with nimbus on, the others hiding out of sight (but with LoS to your character at the stairs). You're on a clock with Traveling Curse. Ignore the mobs and just take the Shades as quick as possible. If you can't kill a shade, and only have a couple of heals/attacks, its better to save them rather than do damage, because the shade might heal it all back with curses at the beginning of the next round. Ideal is to blitz them down from full to 0 health in one round. Important note: Nimbusing a shade will trigger absorbing block! And I have been able to kill an already nimbused shade with heals, or an absorbing block hit because NEB converts to damage after the nimbus check! St Gertrude of Nivelles Level 24 Dwarf Wizard Red Flame Red Flame Wym's Fiery Bangle Flame Warper Avakiria's Cup Avakiria's Cup Robe Of Lightness Lt. Buckwell's Boots Raging Rock Focused Pyromancy 6 x Instant Burn 4 x Flame Jet 1 x Toughness 1 x Officer's Harness 2 x Hover 1 x Cloth Armor 2 x Blind Rage 2 x Flanking Move 1 x Accelerate Time 6 x Ember Burst 5 x Glob Of Flame 3 x Firestarter 2 x Flame Spit St Denis of Paris Level 24 Human Priest Duality Mace Duality Mace Inspirational Mail Streaked Shield Lt. Buckwell's Boots Shielding Token Shielding Token Shielding Token Advanced Flexibility Focused Piety 1 x Fright 1 x Officer's Harness 2 x Leadership 2 x Flanking Move 3 x Altruism 2 x Chop 4 x Touch Of Death 1 x Slowed 3 x Consuming Spear 2 x Inspiration 3 x Lifesaving Block 1 x Mail 10 x Impenetrable Nimbus 1 x Hit The Deck HPr 20.3 Level 24 Human Priest Duality Mace Duality Mace Inspirational Mail Streaked Shield Lt. Buckwell's Boots Medical Kit Medical Kit Medical Kit Advanced Flexibility Advanced Piety 1 x Fright 1 x Officer's Harness 2 x Leadership 2 x Flanking Move 2 x Altruism 2 x Chop 4 x Impenetrable Nimbus 1 x Slowed 2 x Inspiration 3 x Lifesaving Block 4 x Touch Of Death 1 x Mail 3 x Radiation Bolt 7 x Greater Heal 1 x Hit The Deck Spoiler: Battle 4 Stock up on gold and be ready to run this quite a few times. This is the only build I came up with that got even close, but it still took a fair amount of retries (a number of them being relatively close to victory, but just not quite making it.) Be aware, a successful run with this strategy will likely take up to an hour. Step 1: Move wiz to have LoS, and flash flood zombie priests into their room (this is temporary, but it buys you time.) Step 2: Find out which way the shade is going to go, and hope to stack up some greater heals. Step 3: Move the priests in the direction of the shade, while moving the wiz away from the werewolf (ideally same direction, but sometimes its not). Step 4A: Nimbus healer priest and get the shade dead - if you lose either or both of the priests in the process you're still in decent shape. If you can get the shade at or below 8hp and lose both priests you can hope that when the shade comes after the wiz you can 1-shot into an absorbing block, but you're more likely than not done. Step 4B: If any priests are alive after the shade dies, go after the other mobs. Don't be reckless but there's no point in running away either. The longer you can keep them alive the more damage you can deal, and the more time you give the wiz to set up (see 4C), but both priests will die to traveling curses sooner or later. Step 4C: Get the wiz over to a map-loop corner and start flash flooding one direction at a time. As long as one path remains open for the mobs to come to you all the mobs will circle the whole map to go that way, once they get a fair amount around you can flood that path and let the previous one open to get them circling back. This can be done indefinitely to buy you lots and lots of time. Step 5: Get and keep both enchanted harnesses and an officer's harness/arcane shell in hand. If you draw these at any point from the beginning of the match you cannot discard them. Secondly you need to prioritize keeping Toughness until you draw the armor combo. The reason is Traveling Curse. You must be able to tank 5 damage at all times. Once you get the combo, let traveling curse be your offense. Keep your flash flood circus going and the mobs will slowly die away. If you get an enemy in sight and happen to have offense, by all means take a shot. But don't get fancy, your goal is just to keep the mobs away and save defense. You can't save floods, so you need to place them whenever you have them. PANIC MODE: If the mobs are getting too close and you can't get them to circle, the last ditch option is to get into a corner and flood the 3 square around you. This will lose you the circling option, but only takes one FF every 2 rounds. Step 6: Final step is kill the werewolf. Its armor will make it immune to traveling curse, so whenever you have the option (even early if the priests are alive after killing the shade) try to do damage to the werewolf. This ultimately is why you brought Silver Bolts. In the end you have to toy with the wolf, getting it within range, but keeping a FF between you and it so when you draw silver you can do damage. I think it was around 20hp when I started step 6, but I pulled it off! St Gertrude of Nivelles Level 24 Dwarf Wizard Boxton's Razorstaff Repelling Feystaff Twizel's Water Talisman Twizel's Water Talisman Twizel's Water Talisman Twizel's Water Talisman Hylithia's Robes Nasrum's Moccasins Perfect Toughness Novice Teleportation 1 x Arcane Shell 2 x Toughness 2 x Officer's Harness 4 x Path Of Knives 1 x Rusty Armor 1 x Dangerous Maneuver 2 x Force Bolt 2 x Enchanted Harness 2 x Dimensional Traveller 2 x Penetrating Zap 14 x Flash Flood 3 x Silver Bolt St Denis of Paris Level 24 Human Priest Duality Mace Duality Mace Inspirational Mail Streaked Shield Lt. Buckwell's Boots Shielding Token Shielding Token Shielding Token Advanced Flexibility Focused Piety 1 x Fright 1 x Officer's Harness 2 x Leadership 2 x Flanking Move 3 x Altruism 2 x Chop 4 x Touch Of Death 1 x Slowed 3 x Consuming Spear 2 x Inspiration 3 x Lifesaving Block 1 x Mail 10 x Impenetrable Nimbus 1 x Hit The Deck HPr 20.3 Level 24 Human Priest Duality Mace Duality Mace Inspirational Mail Streaked Shield Lt. Buckwell's Boots Medical Kit Medical Kit Medical Kit Advanced Flexibility Advanced Piety 1 x Fright 1 x Officer's Harness 2 x Leadership 2 x Flanking Move 2 x Altruism 2 x Chop 4 x Impenetrable Nimbus 1 x Slowed 2 x Inspiration 3 x Lifesaving Block 4 x Touch Of Death 1 x Mail 3 x Radiation Bolt 7 x Greater Heal 1 x Hit The Deck
Assault on Castle Mitternacht Spoiler: Battle 1 Two elf priests and an elf wizard. Teleport to the vp with a priest, camp with nimbus. Not easy, but straightforward. Spoiler: Battle 2 Wizard needs to get resistant hide and start burning skeletons, priests have to work on spirits, take out shade as it presents itself. Takes some luck and retries. Got close once and ran out of nimbus against remaining skeletons. But a couple tries later got an early resistant hide draw and made it all the way. St Joseph of Cupertino Level 24 Elf Wizard Wym's Lavastaff Wym's Lavastaff Reflex Stone Reflex Stone Reflex Stone Reflex Stone Firehide Robes Blinking Boots Cautious Mobility Focused Pyromancy 10 x Firestorm 3 x Firestarter 4 x Penetrating Zap 8 x Reflexive Teleport 4 x Volcano 1 x Mimetic Armor 1 x Scouting Run 2 x Elven Maneuvers 2 x Telepod Jaunt 1 x Resistant Hide *EPr 20.1 Level 24 Elf Priest Glinting Eye Hammer Duality Mace Cleansing Shroud Bullseye Shield Blinking Boots Shielding Token Shielding Token Shielding Token Cautious Mobility Advanced Piety 1 x Sacred Shroud 1 x Lifesaving Block 1 x Scouting Run 1 x Chop 3 x Consuming Spear 1 x Powerful Bash 1 x Mimetic Armor 2 x Catch Arrow 8 x Impenetrable Nimbus 1 x Raging Strike 2 x Elven Maneuvers 2 x Telepod Jaunt 1 x Cleansing Ray 1 x Purge 1 x Missile Block 2 x Touch Of Death 1 x Healing Rays 2 x Mighty Bludgeon 2 x Altruism 2 x Greater Heal EPr 20.2 Level 24 Elf Priest Glinting Eye Hammer Glinting Eye Hammer Cleansing Shroud Bullseye Shield Blinking Boots Shielding Token Shielding Token Shielding Token Cautious Mobility Advanced Piety 1 x Cleansing Ray 1 x Mimetic Armor 1 x Scouting Run 3 x Consuming Spear 2 x Powerful Bash 1 x Sacred Shroud 2 x Healing Rays 6 x Impenetrable Nimbus 2 x Raging Strike 2 x Elven Maneuvers 2 x Telepod Jaunt 1 x Missile Block 2 x Purge 2 x Altruism 2 x Catch Arrow 4 x Mighty Bludgeon 2 x Greater Heal Spoiler: Battle 3 This build has one goal, get the wizard to one of the single square walled-in spaces across the map with a Reliable Mail in hand as fast as possible (usually you need to get there round 1 or 2). Don't wait to draw Reliable Mail if you can get there, but it's best to have it already. Then you're relying on a bit of luck to use Walpurgis to draw Monstrous Hide... and from that point on it's pass-to-the-win because Traveling Curse does all the work for you. My victorious run was 62 rounds, but it was super satisfying. I like to wait until Walpurgis before using inspiration to get the wizard to draw more cards. If you get either Werewolf or Vamp you're hoping to draw Hide or Bats. The nice thing is if you need restarts, they come quick. You know by round 2 if you're getting to the camping spot or not. St Joseph of Cupertino Level 24 Elf Wizard Staff Of The Inferno Rowan Magestaff Reflex Stone Reflex Stone Reflex Stone Reflex Stone Mantle Of Instinct Quellic's Boots Advanced Evasion Electroporter Initiate 2 x Surging Bolt 2 x Firestorm 1 x Bash 1 x Skip 1 x Spark Generator 1 x Slippery 1 x Thick Hide Armor 4 x Penetrating Zap 1 x Devastating Spark 1 x Elvish Scamper 1 x Teleport Self 3 x Reliable Mail 11 x Reflexive Teleport 2 x Combustible 1 x Penetrating Bolt 2 x Ember Burst 1 x Flanking Move *EPr 20.1 Level 24 Elf Priest x2 Aureate Mace Aureate Mace Inspirational Mail Streaked Shield Galvanized Zombie Boots Amulet Of Inspiration Amulet Of Inspiration Amulet Of Inspiration Superb Evasion Focused Piety 1 x Lifesaving Block 4 x Bash 1 x Mail 1 x Creature Of The Night 3 x Altruism 4 x Devastating Blow 1 x Hardy Mail 1 x Hit The Deck 2 x Elvish Scamper 1 x Lunging Bash 1 x Flanking Move 1 x Fright 15 x Inspiration Spoiler: Embarrassing Funny Story I actually successfully got the wizard to the camping spot on my second try with this build. I had a Reliable Mail in hand and got a Monstrous Hide just a turn or two later. I knew I was golden. I got about 15-20 rounds in and had now upgraded my Reliable Mail for a second Monstrous Hide. I drew Firestorm and had enemies in range, I figure why wait solely on traveling curse, I can do some damage now. So I unleash my burning barrage, only to get the defeat screen!!! Only then did I realize I had Combustible. I ended up having to run probably about 10 more retries to get back into the camping spot for the winning run.
Nice job. http://forums.cardhunter.com/threads/ai-hard-missions-and-their-quests.9182/ - 1 hp quest builds are in here.
