Dominions 6 MA Phlegra Strategy at a Glance

A Dominions 6 guide to MA Phlegra and other nations
It is built on theory, experience, and quick testing.

If you have other ideas or suggestions on playing the nation, please write them in the comments below for others to see and discuss!

Shoutout to Sturm for creating the viewable summons at the pretender screen mod

Here are also some discord guides from ExasperatedCultist, a fantastic dom6 theory crafter.

Thugging 101:   / discord  

Okay, Pretenders!:   / discord  

Fort Placement:   / discord  

00:00 Summary
00:32 Units
01:38 Commanders
03:55 Minigame
04:52 Summons
06:11 National Item
06:27 Spell Recommendations
07:35 Pretender Design
09:40 Gameplay Strategy

Here are my written notes if that helps too

MA Phlegra

Summary:
Tyrannical giants cursed and deformed for their hubris against the gods, and their kingdom of enslaved humans. Human taskmaster mages enforce and expand the slavery.
The nation focuses on masses of pitiable humans, magical slavery, and giants powerful enough to take on armies by themselves.

Unit Summary
Come in three flavors
Enslaved humans -- good at dying and flaming arrows
Cheap Cyclops -- High damage gold sink
Limited, but powerful Gigantes -- beasts

Commander Summary
Not the best leaders, rely on taskmaster
Flimsy, but cheap shackled mages & oppressors to lead them
High health cyclops mage
Priestly fanboys
Consistently good mages
Two different super combatants from the capital.
Tyrant
-- Super Combatant / Super Caster
-- Enslave Axe Helotes
Cyclops to forge, and occassionally magic phase.
-- Worth empowering A2 cyclops to A3 for air helmet & draconians

Staff of Elemental Mastery Minigame
F3 Cyclops - Fire Helmet
W1 Cyclops - Water Bracelet
W1 Cyclops + Bracelet - Robe of the Sea
F2W1 Cyclops + Fire Helmet, Water Bracelet, Robe of the sea = Staff of Elemental Mastery
A2 Cyclops + Staff += Air Helmet = Horn of Storms

Summons Summary
Spartae are fantastic.
Ker can break you into blood
Lampads provide astral magic
Hounds of Twilight are best boys
Khalkatoros is okay

Non-National Summon -
Scorpion Beast
Fire Drake
Black Hawk
Green Lions
Draconians

National Item
Oppressors Headband -- autocommunion item

Spell Recommendations (10)
Ignite Arrows+
Strength of Giants+
Fireball
Magma Eruption
Invulnerability
Soul Vortex
Phoenix Pyre
Rain of Stones
Acid Storm
Fire Storm

Pretender Design
The nation needs gold, gems and research. (growth, luck, magic)
-- No need for rec points and resources
-- No real need for bless

Telkhine
-- Provides foul vapors access
-- Can get very high air/water/earth magic.

Mother of Monsters
-- Provides lategame sorceries
-- rehabilitate maimed tyrants & tartarians

Great Archon
-- Provides excellent research bonus
-- Adds high astral to communions
-- Can transmute 10 fire gems into 700g


Gameplay
(Early)
Expand with Gigante Warriors and archers
Don't forget Gigante's need to be lead by cyclopes.
A second or third fort will be necessary on a province near the capital to shelter all the unrest causing tyrants, use cyclopes to feed them.
Forge items with the cyclope smiths, consider trade with other players.
Armies of cyclopes backed by fire arrow archers, and potentially tyrants casting evocations can be strong.
Alternatively, can enslave axe warriors instead of recruiting archers.

(Midgame)
The nation is CP and gold restricted, so spam forts. You'll need them for the limited gigante and for many shackled mages
Each fort should be recruiting 2 gigantes per turn, setup a logistics chain of giants if needed
Focus on super combatants during this time, as they will be at their strongest.
Most gems should go to spells and items instead of summons on this nation,
but greenlions and hounds of twilight are still good.
Prioritizing alteration and construction
Expand toward astral and nature if possible, you'll need these paths later. (lizard shamans!)
Decide early if pursuing blood via ker's, or astral via lampads

(Late)
Become more careful with lone supercombatants, start using groups or armies to assist them.
Prepare armies supported by powerful turn 1 spells like the various battlefield wide spells,
or even long range spells like pillar of flames.
Armies tend to be quite heavy investment, so be mindful of remote attacks and gembaits.