Table of Contents
LA Ulm, Black Forest
Lore
After years of civil war, the Iron Kingdom crumbled. During the Night of Treason a great Malediction was placed upon the kingdom. The forests became dark and hostile. Wolves and creatures even worse stalked the land. Slowly the kingdom recovered, but it was not what it once was. The knightly order was all but destroyed and the Master Smiths had disappeared. The secrets of blacksteel were forgotten. An order of Black Priests emerged in Ulm in the last days before the civil war. They formed an Iron Cult, consolidated their position and forbade the use of magic. Magic outside religion was announced to be sacrilegious and the few surviving Master Smiths were put to the flames. Although magery is forbidden, there are some fortune tellers and members of the Order of the Illuminated Ones who secretly ply their trade in the arcane.
Ulm of the later eras is inspired by, amongst others, Teutonic Knights and German Landsknechts. Late Ulm is an intended shift of style towards central and eastern Europe, southern Germany/Bavaria, and Transylvania. One of the classic ingredients of gothic novels is tainted bloodlines. Another feature common amongst the traditional, Anglo-Saxon and Protestant, gothic novel is that it takes place in some part of Catholic Europe, so making a Goethicized fantasy 'Bavarian' Ulm is a natural step, I think." - Illwinter
Overview
If you are considering picking this nation to play, what should you know?
National features
| Magic Access | Alt. Access | Unit Summary | Core Abilities | Buildings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 2  2 (rare 3)  1  1  1  1  1  2 | Heroes3 22 232 232 Summons 212 31 22 12 3 2 | Medium Infantry Stealthy Rangers Knights Ghoul Guardians |  Undead  Spy  Inquisitor  Forge Bonus |  Standard Forts Forts produce 25% more  resources. |
Capital Sites
Black Forest
Enables recruitment of
Wolfherd
Fortune Teller
Produces 1
1
per turn
The Ruined Keep
Enables recruitment of
Ghoul Commander
Ghoul Guardian
Produces 2
per turn
The Black Temple
Enables recruitment of
Hochmeister
Black Templar
National characteristics
Scales: +1 Turmoil limit, +1 Magic limit.
The Modern Ulmish are a proud, stiff-necked, and slightly narrow-minded people. Despite being humans, they have 12 HP instead of 10. Though disorder has broken most of the old classes and forms, many have 1 more Strength than their current station would suggest, and many have 2 Encumbrance instead of the standard 3. The Ulmish are still incredibly "magophobic" and have 9 Magic Resistance; and their Mage-Priests, keeping to their ancient word and avoiding non-religious magical practices, have 4 Encumbrance.
Units
Commanders
| Sprite | Unit Name | Special Attributes | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Ranger Captain  60 8  1 |  Stealthy (40)  Forest Survival | Stealthy commander, can be used to lead stealthy groups of Rangers of Ulm and packs of wolves. Also useable as a scout, although much cheaper indie Scouts are relatively easy to find in the Late Ages. |
| | Commander of Ulm 95 24 1 | Standard 100 leadership commander. | |
 | Black Acolyte 65 1 1 | 1 010%  Sacred Inquisitor | A weak priest and inquisitor, notable mostly for having a small chance at earth magic despite costing only 1 RP. Otherwise mostly redundant with indie priests and Black Priests. |
 | Illuminated One 105 1 2 Recruit Anywhere | 1 7 Stealthy (65) Spy | Illuminated Ones are cheap communion slaves, researchers, and spies. They can sneak, allowing you to construct surprise communions, reinforce existing ones or sneak away from dangerous situations. Can be recruited with only a lab in the province. 1 is also a great buff path for a weaker mage to have. As spies, they can reveal magic graphs due to their skill in magic. |
 | Member of the Second Tier 210 1 2 Recruit Anywhere | 21010%    11 Stealthy (75) Spy | Members of the Second Tier are stronger astral casters than Illuminated Ones and have a bit of blood magic, but are not great blood hunters without items (especially given their cost and non-sacred upkeep). Still, with a Sanguine Dowsing Rod and Blood Thorn they will perform well in that role, and they can also potentially be boosted to cast Send Lesser Horror. |
 | Black Priest 225 2 2 | 121100% 9 Sacred Forge Bonus (1) Inquisitor | A strict upgrade from the Middle Age, the Black Priests are now recruitable in all forts, making Iron Blizzard much more accessible, and granting virtually guaranteed access to the earth/astral crosspath and minor air magic. Their roles will depend on their randoms and they are important mages throughout the game. |
 | Wolfherd 75 2 1  Capital Only | Stealthy (40)  Animal Awe (2)  Uninspiring (1)  Beastmaster (3)  Mountain Survival Forest Survival  Summon Allies (Wolf) | Can summon two wolves per turn. Wolves are an excellent source of free patrol chaff, but have limited combat utility. |
 | Ghoul Commander 150 44 1  Capital Only |  Poison Resistance (25)  Darkvision (50)  Castle Defence (2) Undead  Need Not Eat | 50 undead leadership for leading Ghoul Guardians. Unfortunately does not have the native leadership to allow formations. |
 | Hochmeister 195 72 1 Capital Only | 1 Sacred  Skilled Rider (2) Inquisitor  Combat Caster | Heavy cavalry priest commander. Similar to MA Ulm's Black Lords, this can act as a light thug with a Greatsword of Sharpness and Burning Pearl, but also can bless itself to benefit from whatever your bless is. Competes for capital recruitment points with Wolfherds and Fortune Tellers. |
 | Black Destrier | Sacred  Animal |
|
 | Fortune Teller 135 1 2 Capital Only | 11100%  Fortune Teller (15) | Fortune Tellers provide very welcome access to communionable death and glamour, opening up more options for battle magic and site searching. Their paths are too low for most rituals in these paths, however. |
Troops
| Sprite | Unit Name | Special Attributes | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Villain 10 5 4 | Stealthy (40)  Undisciplined Mountain Survival Forest Survival | Undisciplined militia with a shortbow. Unlikely to be useful against the majority of Late Age threats. |
 | Pikeneer 10 20 9 | LA Ulm gets a few different medium infantry options. The Pikeneer is unlikely to be repelled, the Halberdier does the most damage, and the Infantry of Ulm has a shield to absorb crossbow fire. | |
 | Halberdier 10 22 9 | Castle Defence (1) |
|
 | Infantry of Ulm 10 23 9 | ||
 | Ranger of Ulm 12 8 14 | Stealthy (40) Forest Survival | Easily massable crossbows. They have better-than-average precision as well as a stronger melee attack than most ranged units. Consider using stealthy groups of rangers to take provinces as part of an initial strike. |
 | Zweihander 14 36 18 | With a protection value of 21 and a base damage of 22, these units are heavy hitters. Not having a shield means that they will suffer a bit against crossbows, but their high protection helps them survive until they meet the enemy. They are potent targets for buffs like Body Ethereal and Twist Fate, which can easily be provided by Illuminated Ones. | |
 | Ghoul Guardian 20 44 47 Capital Only | Poison Resistance (25) Darkvision (50) Castle Defence (2)  Corpse Eater (2)Max corpse bonus HP: 8 Undead Need Not Eat | Ghoul Guardians are an upgrade on MA Ulm's Guardians in many ways: they are poison resistant, they have more hitpoints and can gain even more through their corpse eater ability, and they have no encumbrance due to being undead. They have excellent map move, and their magic resistance is significantly better. However, they are very recruitment point-intense (particularly relevant due to LA Ulm's Order scale limit) and vulnerable to Banishment-type spells. Still, an excellent unit that hard counters enemy sacreds and matches up well into a variety of troop types. |
 | Black Templar 75 72 51 | Sacred Skilled Rider (2) | Very resource-expensive but also very heavily protected sacred cavalry. Almost identical to MA Ulm's Black Knights, but cost 30 more gold for the privilege of being sacred. |
| | Black Destrier | Sacred Animal |
Heroes
| Sprite | Unit Name | Special Attributes | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Ulrich Patrifagus - Ghoul Baron | Poison Resistance (25) Darkvision (50)  Halt Heretic (7) Castle Defence (5) Corpse Eater (3)Maximum corpse HP bonus: 10 Undead Need Not Eat Summon Allies (Ghoul x 5) | A fairly ordinary commander who is essentially a Ghoul Commander with a really high Halt Heretic score, making him pretty difficult to hit by enemy sacreds. Can perhaps act as an army thug, if provided with better gear. |
 | Member of the Third Tier | 23219 Stealthy (90) Spy | The Members of the Third Tier provide some nice paths at a higher level than is otherwise available to LA Ulm, allowing it to access a few more boosters and ritual spells. |
| | Member of the Third Tier | 32219 Stealthy (90) Spy |
|
| | Member of the Third Tier | 23219 Stealthy (90) Spy |
Magic
Summons
Ritual
LA Ulm doesn't have any recruitable mages with both 
Death and 
Blood, so a pretender is the best way to get Sanguine Heritage started. Most of the summons do have the right crosspaths, and with some boosters can continue casting Sanguine Heritage themselves.
: Unique, 
Cold Resistance (15), Poison Resistance (25), Darkvision (100%), 
Invulnerability (25), 
Immortality (1 Month Reform Time), Underwater Damage (100), 
Slash Resistance, 
Blunt Resistance, Undead, 
Cannot Cross River, Need Not Eat
| Summon Spell | Unit | Special Attributes | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sanguine Heritage (Blood 0) 33 and 44 |  Ludolf von Achenbach - Vampire Count or |  2213  Fire Vulnerability (5) Stealthy (+40)  Kills Population (10 per Month)  Reforming Flesh (10%)  Flying  Dominion Attracts Units (Thrall) | Commentary here. |
 Burkhard Nachtzehrer - Blood Marshal or | 29  Pillager (+20) Reforming Flesh (20%) Flying Dominion Attracts Units (Thrall) | Commentary here. | |
 Blood Countess or | 311 Fire Vulnerability (5) Stealthy (+40)  Blood Searcher (+2) Reforming Flesh (10%) Flying Female Dominion Attracts Units (Thrall) | Commentary here. | |
 Vampire Countess or | 1211 Fire Vulnerability (5) Stealthy (40)  Seduction (Morale vs. 9) Reforming Flesh (10%) Flying Female | Commentary here. | |
| Vampire Count or | 2213 Fire Vulnerability (5) Stealthy (+40) Reforming Flesh (10%) Flying Dominion Attracts Units (Thrall) | Commentary here. | |
 Vivisectionist or | 2221 Fire Vulnerability (5) Stealthy (+40)  Cause Unrest (1 per Month) Reforming Flesh (10%) Flying Dominion Attracts Units (Thrall) | Commentary here. | |
 Vampire Count or | 3113 Fire Vulnerability (5) Stealthy (+40)  Fear (+8) Reforming Flesh (10%) Flying Dominion Attracts Units (Thrall) | Commentary here. | |
 Blood Graf | 21215 Fear (+6) Reforming Flesh (20%) Regain Mount Dominion Attracts Units (Thrall) | Commentary here. | |
 Demon Steed |  Fire Resistance (15) Need Not Eat  Demon |
||
| Sloth of Bears (Conjuration 3) 2 and 6 |  Great Bear x 15+ | Undisciplined Animal Mountain Survival Forest Survival | Summons high strength blobs of hitpoints. Can work as evocation bait, as the bears have more HP than your troops and even lower MR, but otherwise unremarkable. |
Other Spells
Combat
- Iron Darts (Evocation 3)11
The signature spell of Ulmish Priests, firing a spread of 3 magic armor-piercing darts that deal double damage to magic beings. Massing Black Priests allows you to shower the enemy in shrapnel that ignores over half of enemy protection. - Iron Blizzard (Evocation 6)11
Trades some range and damage for a truly astonishing 20 darts per cast. Can be cast by all Black Priests, but with a high fatigue cost. This is a powerful evocation spell which is particularly lethal to magic beings. - Gift of the Moon (Enchantment 4)1
AOE 1 invulnerability for specifically wolves. Not particularly relevant. - Tempering the Will (Thaumaturgy 5)3
Battlefield-wide Antimagic that can be cast by some Black Priests, but only takes effect if friendly units fail a magic resist check. Ordinary Antimagic is probably more effective given LA Ulm's preponderance of astral mages.
Magic Items
- Black Halberd
(Construction 3) 1
Identical to the weapon wielded by Ghoul Guardians, but can be equipped by commanders. Pretty redundant given LA Ulm's easy access to unit-wielded Black Halberds, and overshadowed by the ubiquitous Greatsword of Sharpness as an elite-killing tool.
Magic Access
See Magic Access. These guides supplement the summaries at the top.
General Access
Elements
- 1 on one-in-four Black Priests
- 1 on one-in-four Black Priests
- No water magic
- 2 on one-in-four Black Priests
Sorcery
- 2 on each Member of the Second Tier
- 1 on one-in-four Fortune Tellers (capital only), or on roughly every fortieth Member of the Second Tier off-capital
- No nature magic (outside of a hero)
- 1 on one-in-four Fortune Tellers (capital only)
Rites
- 1 on each Member of the Second Tier
- 2 on Black Priests
Boosted Access
Although LA Ulm's mages only have 1 recruitable, they have heroes and summons with 2 and good crosspaths for making Blood boosters. Bind Heliophagus and Bind Demon Lord are both reachable and give powerful mages in all paths except 
Water. Both spells are late in the Blood research path and expensive though.
Cross-Path Boosters
Ring of Sorcery and Ring of Wizardry are reachable, although it's difficult. The Member of the Third Tier heroes have 3, which is a help. Black Priests can have the right paths for Staff of Elemental Mastery, but it requires a ton of boosters. The hero, Member of the Third Tier, is six total boosters away from a Robe of the Magi. Theoretically doable, but tricky.
Fire
Highest starting: 1 Black Priest (1 in 4). The hero, Member of the Third Tier has 2.
Bind Arch Devil Limited Amount
22 The hero, Member of the Third Tier +
The Arch Devils have at least 4.
The Forbidden Light Unique
23 The hero, Member of the Third Tier + 
The Fire boosters are the difficult ones to get.
Air
Highest starting: 1 Black Priest (1 in 4). The hero, Member of the Third Tier has 2.
Tome of High Power Unique
23 The hero, Member of the Third Tier
Water
No native access.
Summon Spectre
1 Fortune Teller (1 in 4) +
Spectre has a 7 in 16 chance of at least 
1
Earth
Highest starting: 2 Black Priest (1 in 4)
While a Black Priest has the right crosspaths for Staff of Elementary Mastery and Atlas of Creation (Unique), they require a ton of boosters to get.
Astral
Highest starting: 2 Fortune Teller (1 in 4) or Member of the Second Tier. Any of the Member of the Third Tier heroes has 3.
Coin of Meteoritic Iron
11 Black Priest (1 in 4) + 
Tome of High Power Unique
23 The hero, Member of the Third Tier
The Oath Rod of Kurgi Unique
21 Member of the Second Tier +
32 The hero, Member of the Third Tier +
The Void Sphere Unique
21 Member of the Second Tier + \\
Ether Gate
11 Fortune Teller (1 in 4) +
Ether Lord has at least 3, 1 in 4 has 4.
The Forbidden Light Unique
23 The hero, Member of the Third Tier +
The Fire boosters are the difficult ones to get.
Although LA Ulm has the crosspaths for The Trapped Dreams of Hruvur (Unique) and Atlas of Creation (Unique) they require a ton of boosters.
Death
Highest starting: 1 Fortune Teller (1 in 4)
Ether Gate
11 Fortune Teller (1 in 4) +
Ether Lord has at least 2, 1 in 4 has 3.
The Black Book of Secrets Unique
11 Fortune Teller (1 in 4) +
Sanguine Heritage requires 33, a crosspath difficult for LA Ulm to get outside of a Pretender. If cast, it has a 4 in 8 chance to summon a commader with at least 2.
Nature
No recruitable access. The hero, Member of the Third Tier has 2.
Glamour
Highest starting: 1 Fortune Teller (1 in 4)
A Fortune Teller may have the right crosspaths for The Trapped Dreams of Hruvur Unique but it requires a ton of boosters.
Blood
Highest starting: 1 Fortune Teller (1 in 4) or Member of the Second Tier. Any of the Member of the Third Tier heroes has 2.
Tome of Lower Planes Unique
21 Member of the Second Tier +
32 The hero, Member of the Third Tier
The Oath Rod of Kurgi Unique
21 Member of the Second Tier +
32 The hero, Member of the Third Tier +
Armor of Twisting Thorns Unremovable
22 The hero, Member of the Third Tier +
Sanguine Heritage requires 33, a crosspath difficult for LA Ulm to get outside of a Pretender. If cast, it is likely to summon a commader with 2.
Example Pretender Builds
Format for putting a pretender build in.
Chassis: Awake Titan of Crossroads
Paths: 457
Bless: MW/Arcane Finesse, Invuln 10, Regen.
Scales: 
6
2
0
3
1
2
3
Format for putting a pretender build in.
Chassis: Awake Titan of Crossroads
Paths: 457
Bless: MW/Arcane Finesse, Invuln 10, Regen.
Scales: 6203123
Weaknesses
What are the nation's weaknesses?
See More
- Dominions 6: LA Ulm Pre-game by Babel Builder
- Dominions 6 - LA Ulm - National Overview by Top Guides
