Smaug and the ring

[kai69]

I was thinking, Smaug doesnt really fit in any faction of the Misty Mountains, he didnt support nor fight or command any so why not make him a summon from the 10 points power, that way he comes to the battlefield, not being bound to any faction, to unleash death, so when you give him the ring he becomes a permanent hero with some new abillities. Is it possible to do this? I know that maybe having two summons for the 10 powers may be too much (Balrog and Smaug) and that some people may want him as a permanent hero from the start but I cant picture Smaug being bound to one faction of the Misty Mountains thats why  I think this is the best way for Smaug to fit in.

Maybe making him recruitable from any faction would solve this, as he wouldnt be bound to only one faction, but I still think that the idea of Smaug coming from one of the factions is weird.

P.S: Sorry if this suggestion has been made before.

[DrHouse93]

Quoting an old comment of mine on ModDB:

Smaug is a dragon. A proud dragon. He would never accept to fight for such a scum like Orcs and Goblins. They can summon him just temporary with the spellbook power "Attack of the Dragon", but otherwise, they cannot count on him.

UNLESS they can offer him something really precious...the One Ring
Smaug would be definitely caught by the Ring, and he would surely fight for those who offer him. Therefore, if the Goblins manage to bring the One Ring to the Treasure Trove, they can recruit Smaug PERMANENTLY.

To balance its difficulty to be obtained, his attack is now devastating: whenever he attacks while flying, his attack is the same of "Attack of the Dragon", burning everything in the area, EVEN allied troops. On the contrary, when he attacks from the ground, his breath will be just as hot as that of the Balrog, also in this case it will affect enemies as well as allies

IMO, this makes Smaug even more dangerous and frightening, and he requires particular attention by any player: the one who controls it must be careful to don't nuke his own or allied troops, while enemy players should ensure he does NEVER take the Ring

If the match is played without ring heroes and the Misty Mountains player needs that extra power, well, there's still the Balrog

So definitely agree with you^^

[kai69]

I also thought to make him permanent with the same system or a similar one that was in 3.8.1 but in this case it would be a permanent hero instead of a summon. Even so it feels odd for Smaug to fight for you with one offering (his greed after all and wont stay to fight just for that little offering) so maybe the best way to make him "permanent" is making him a summon from the fortress after you give him the first offering (like in 3.8.1), but you have to keep giving him gold to make him stay and fight for you, so everytime you make an offering his time in the battlefield extends. I think it fits well this way, for the greedy dragon to fight for you, you need to give him constant offerings so he keeps helping you. Maybe to make this possible you keep making carts with gold, and send them to Smaugs lair, like when you send dwarves to Khazad Dum, you have an ability on the cart that sends it to his lair and when it arrives his time extends. The cart should only be made in the Moria fortress, as they have this huge mine with a lot of treasures to give to Smaug and by having the other two supporting-fractions the price for the cart could lower, as they too contribute with some resources for this offering. Or maybe make him recruitable and permanent (if possible a summon as it fits better) with the offering (I think this is a must for Smaug to come and help) but every X minutes you loose X resources, that supposedly are the offerings you give to Smaug  for him to stay and fight (and extend his time in the battlefield if his a summon). Or keep him as a summon from the spellbook (this fits even better than recruiting him from one of the factions) but he drains your resources as an offering (with the possibility to make him disappear with one of his abilities) or by giving him gold with the cart to extend his time in the battlefield with the supporting-fractions lowering the price for it.

But also I like a lot your idea, especially the part when Smaug attacks everyone because I think with the ring in his power, the ultimate treasure, he doesnt care anymore if he kills his allies or not. But the part of "he would surely fight for those who offer him" it feels odd, I cant picture Smaug fighting for some orcs that are like ants for him only because they gave him the ring, the offering system should be a must to make him stay.

[DrHouse93]

Indeed I prefer the 3.81 tribute mechanic more than the Spellbook Summon (also because that would save a spellbook slot for another power). But I still think he should remain permanent if the Goblins give him the Ring for a simple reason:
It's the fucking Ring of Power, the One Ring of Sauron XD
Smaug is not stupid, he certainly knows what is that (he even suspects Bilbo is carrying a very powerful treasure, even if he never saw him before nor he knows Bilbo actually has the Ring)
Also, speaking from a technical point of view, if you keep the Tribute mechanic active once you give him the Ring, what happens when Smaug runs out of time and disappears, and with him the Ring? It would be a waste to use a Ringhero just for a small amount of time (that's not the case of Boromir, for example, since he remains longer on the battlefield and when he runs out of time, he simply dies. And by the way, he has a different role: he's a tank, while Smaug is a mass slayer and building destroyer)
So, I think the Tribute mechanic is perfect for his character, but it should be gone when he gets the One Ring for two reasons:
1. Having to wait for his return to use a Ringhero/collecting again the Ring if you choose to make him drop when he leaves the map would make the game very frustrating and unbalancing
2. He has acquired the ultimate destruction weapon, why should he leave the battlefield, which is also full of enemies to murder?
(I also like the idea of sending tribute carts in a similar way to the Dwarven Expedition camp, but I think that can't be implemented, just because it's been already used by the Dwarves, indeed)

[kai69]

Ok, you convinced me, he should be permanent once he has the ultimate treasure, the One Ring of Power, but once he has it his attacks damage his allies as you said, a little corruption of the ring affects Smaug (or not, but he is a creature of evil, so I dont think the corruption of the ring wont affect him, even if its a little) and he feels almighty and powerful and he shows this by attacking his enemies with brutal attacks and his allies in the process. Maybe its not necessery for him to damage his allies too but for now I like where this is going.

[Fredius]

Actually making him able to damage even his allies would be pretty wise. I think that if Smaug got the Ring, he wouldn't see the Goblins as allies, but more like "not-enemies". He wouldn't care if a couple of them would be killed during his attacks, that's what I think.

[kai69]

I really like that idea of "not-enemies". It fits well in with his newly achived power.