Order of Loremasters - advice, tips | Factions Total War: Warhammer II Guide
Last update: 22 November 2017
This chapter contains useful advice on playing the Order of Loremasters, led by Teclis.
Initial situation
Teclis begins the game as the ruler of the Turtle Island at the southern coast of Lustria. You first enemy will be a faction of the Lizardmen - Sentinels of Xeti. They control 3 settlements - one being a part of your starting province, and to on the mainland. Additionally, an army of 10 units will be located near your settlement. The third settlement within your province is ruined and needs populating. There are also lands of the Dark Elves nearby, namely the Blood Hall Coven. You're not at war with this faction yet, but it will change shortly. There's also the faction of the Dwarves from Spine of Sotek nearby, and a bit further - the High Elf faction of the Citadel of Dusk. These two factions will be friendly towards you. In close vicinity there are also the Greenskins and the currently hidden Skaven faction.
First turns
Begin the game by defeating the nearby army of the Lizardmen. They are superior in numbers, but you should be able to win. After doing that, head out to capture the subsequent lands and attack the Golden Ziggurat. Upgrade the military building in the city to a Rally Field. Don't forget about crafting positive relations with the surrounding, friendly factions - the Dwarves of the Spine of Sotek, plus a trade agreement with the Citadel of Dusk.
After capturing the Golden Ziggurat, build a Homestead there and upgrade the main building to level 2 - after the upgrade, use the free slot to build an Elven Craftsman. Your next target should be to populate the settlement on the Mud Isles in the south of your original province. After uniting the province, you should issue a commandment reinforcing the trade - considering the challenges of the opening turns, quick development of your province is crucial.
Now you will need a couple turns to contain the situation in the province. First of all, make sure to rebuild the ruined settlement, and then to build the port there. In the meantime, in the Golden Ziggurat upgrade the Homestead to a Manor. Assemble a considerable army, too - you will be under constant attack of the Lizardmen, and possibly the Dark Elves. So, a couple additional banners won't do any harm. You should recruit at least two units of The Sea Guard of Lorthern and an additional unit of archers (or their armored variant).
If you get surplus points, upgrade the main building on the Turtle Isles. In the meantime, you will probably have to repel a counteroffensive by the Lizardmen. After upgrading the capital, build a Plaza there - this will increase the public order. Don't forget about developing the other buildings in the remaining settlements. The buildings that increase the income and development should be prioritized. In the settlement on the Mud Isles you should construct a building that yields trade resource.
When the public order is basically sorted out and the economy is stable, you will be able to start conquering the Lizardmen. They will probably launch a few attacks on your lands - the ideal moment to attack them is right after repelling one of their own attacks. Attack the closest settlement - the Sentinels of Xeti- and seize it. Construct Plaza there as well. Then head out for the Golden Colossus - raze it after conquering it, because the climate there doesn't allow your race to efficiently populate the area; holding the settlement would be very difficult.
The next goal will be to capture the Chamber of Visions. Declare war to the Blood Hall Coven (if you're not already at war) and capture the settlement. After doing that, build an Ancient Waystone.
Remaining turns
Since you're probably going to be behind with the Ritual points, your chief task should be to seize another settlement with the ritual resource. After getting hold of the situation in the province, head out north. If you've forged an alliance with the dwarves, they will secure your eastern flank.
Now you have to get rid of the remaining of the Dark Elves. In order to do that, you need to capture the Blood Hall, which is their capital. Even though capturing this settlement will be profitable considering the trading resource that's there, it's going to be difficult to maintain control over and develop this city - the other settlement in this province is on the other side of Lustria.
Your subsequent coquests should be directed towards the Northern Spine of Sotek - watch out, however, because probably there will be some hidden Skaven there (you can discover the locations where their armies are hidden by sending a hero there or simply by approaching with an army). If you capture this province, you will get another resource - marble, and you will get closer to the next settlement, Tlaxtlan, which contains some ritual resource.
Then try to gain control over the whole northern Lustria. Here, you should be ready to fight the Greenskins and the Lizardmen. Then you can go back south to help your allies fight the Skaven and the Lizardmen in the central and eastern Lustria.
Much as in the case of Tyrion, you should develop the Maritime Empire (available after you construct a Shrine of Asuryan). This will reveal the world around all bodies of water, and hence many new factions, with which you will be able to trade (including the factions of High Elves on Ulthuan).