Ur came to be as a result of Trade & Taint, an earlier unfinished Illwinter project. I made the first Enkidus and Sobeks for that game. Shame, bone readers and reavers were some of the possible career paths for the Enkidu race. In Dominions 5 the Enkidus were given a nation influenced by Mesopotamian history. They had it in Trade & Taint as well, but in Dominions 4 it became more pronounced. After Dominions 4 was released we took up work on Trade & Taint again and ideas on the enkidus were developed. Last summer I found myself reading more on Sumerian cities and culture. The transfer of religious and temporal importance from Eridu to other cities during Sumerian times is an interesting process. Thus Uruk became the first new nation added in Dominions 5.
Hinnom is to some extent Sumerian, but I wanted the backstory of Ur to have a more Sumerian feel. I like the concept of a single center of civilization surrounded by lands inhabited by wild men roaming around tending goats and hunting game. This led to the development of the mechanic where some of a nation's units are recruitable, not in their home or fortresses, but in their surrounding lands. It gave the nation a troop rooster that accentuated the backstory of the nation. And of course, they had to have sirrushes, the wingless dragons of the Ishtar Gate.
The nations' shamans and bone readers are also influenced by some shamanistic concepts, Caananite ideas on veneration of the dead and probably a dose of some old RPGs. Ur develops into Uruk in the middle age and get access to armaments of iron. The Ensi priest king of Eridu will see his power diminished as civilization spreads and Ensis of other cities claim temporal and religious authority. In this new era the Entu of the Moon, inspired by En Hedu'anna, the daughter of Sargon the Great, becomes the unifying power of the kingdom and Uruk turns into a theocracy. - Illwinter
Uruk is a warm plain inhabited by Enkidus, large, hairy wild men with horns and unkempt hair. Since the founding of Eridu, the First City, civilization has spread and the kingdom expanded. Other cities were founded in the image of Eridu, each with its own character. Administrators from the City of Scribes aided local rulers, while traders and merchants from the City of Trade improved the economic infrastructure of the kingdom. But the Ensi of Eridu lost power and petty kings of the new cities rose to power and claimed the Ensi title. Strife and turmoil tore the kingdom apart. One of the new cities, the City of Gods was blessed by the Awakening God and saw the first Entu of the Moon erect a great temple in the city. It soon replaced the First City as religious center and the Entu priestesses of the First City moved to the City of Gods, no longer bound in marriage to the ruling Ensi. With the coming of the Awakening God, the city states have set their differences aside and joined a common cause. In the plains of Uruk the First City still stands as a symbol of civilization, although its temporal and religious power has diminished. Now each city has its own Ensi ruler. The wild men are no longer wild, and the shamans and Bone Readers of old have been replaced by the priests and mages of the cities.
Uruk is Ur transition to the MA, shoring up many of the troop weaknesses of the past. They trade their raw paths to be a communion nation of half-giants which is actually a boon for combat magic. They also fixed their arrow problem by making helmets to accommodate for their horns.
Although mages, troops, and infrastructure demanded a large increase in cost, they are powerful in numbers when back by Communions.
Uruk's god does not lose or gain magic paths when recalled from the dead (Does not work for disciples), and dominion score also cannot decrease. This is the same ability as Ur's, but is not (as of 5.51b) listed in their national summary.
Special Race Attributes | Military | Magic Access | Priests | Buildings |
---|---|---|---|---|
Prefer ![]() Half-Giants | Giant Medium Infantry Mushussu chariot | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Summons ![]() ![]() *can't be summoned Natively | Strong Priests (lv3) Good at recalling their god Recalled Gods don't' lose magic paths. | ![]() Can build Underwater Forts |
Great Temple of the Moon | The House of Water | The Swamps of Ur |
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![]() Enables recruitment of: * ![]() * ![]() * ![]() Produce 2 ![]() | ![]() Produce 1 ![]() ![]() | ![]() Enable recruitment of ![]() Produce 1 ![]() |
Uruk has a lot of mages; A lot. They all (except one underwater one) have priests levels. This means that they are generally more expensive than mages with similar paths on other nations. However, being priests means that all the mages are also sacred, allowing all the mages to bless themselves and benefit from Uruk's bless. It also means reduced upkeep, making it more feasible to mass mages late game.
Img | Unit Name | Abilities | Comments |
---|---|---|---|
![]() | Enkidu Scout![]() ![]() ![]() +Rec Foreign | ![]() ![]() ![]() | Giant scout. Crazy Ideas for gear it into a light raider. |
![]() | Enkidu Commander![]() ![]() ![]() | cheap national commander, but never seen as you have a superior mages commander. | |
![]() | Gala![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Female | Get if you plan on being back your pretender multiple times during the game. Spell Singer reduces their casting fatigue in exchange for longer casting times, but as only a 1 path mage, casting as many evocations as possible before the battle ends or the enemy is on you is more important. Use on your own judgment. |
![]() | Naditu![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Female | Cheap giant Communion Slave. giant make great slaves as they can take punishment and benefit the most from Regeneration |
![]() | Nin![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Female | a 1 path mage if the other girls don't look appealing. 25% are Gala without Spellsinger so faster with getting off their spells. 25% are more expensive Naditu. 25% can Spam Earth Gip and Fluff by Summon Earthpower with an Earth Gem. also cost-effective Kusarikkus Summoners. Water randoms spam Frozen Hearts. |
![]() | Gudu![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | Very situation as other mages now cover for the weaken Gudu. Could use as a Cheap light thug as its a giant with a single thug path of Air or Earth. if you don't like the 25% earth random on Nin, he has a 50% to be a Kusarikkus Summoner. |
![]() | Ashipu![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | The guy that removes deseises from your important units. Also the cheaper nature mage in your communions. |
![]() | Ishib![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | Exspensive for what they do but this is the guy you get a few to fish above water ![]() |
![]() | Ereshdingir![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() female | Stop bad events and a massable leader of Astral magic. Aready have enough paths to forge good Astral gear, and can cast Mind Burn and Paralyze without boosting. |
![]() | Ensi![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | 80 Commander and mage, He will be leading many of your armies. He will sit in the back and cast spells and prayers, or even thugs. You should replace his armor with something less fatiguing though. |
![]() | Entu![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Female | High Priestess, Activating the blessing on all sacreds on the battle field to free up scripting space in important battles. Your not going to see a lot of her when she is not needed since she is old. |
![]() | Mashmashu![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | The cap only master of astral. With Booster, his gets to ![]() |
![]() | Enkidu Shaman![]() ![]() ![]() +Rec Foreign Only | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | You recruit a lot of them as they don't need to pay 1600 gold extra in infrastructure to make. WIth a Thisle Mace they are ![]() Are your primary early game combat casters before you get a critical mass of communion mages. |
![]() | Kulullu Commander![]() ![]() ![]() +Rec Underwater Only | ![]() | Cheap under water Commander with more HP than most Indies. Don't need a Lab and Temple. |
![]() | Kulullu King![]() ![]() ![]() +Rec Underwater Only | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | Better 80Ld and provides additional battle field support with its water and Holy spells. |
![]() | Kulullu Sage![]() ![]() ![]() +Rec Underwater Only | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | Fast Researchers and Astral randoms can make Low-level Astral Items |
![]() | Kuliltu Queen![]() ![]() ![]() +Rec Underwater Only | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Female | Has underwater Nature and other situational Low-Level Crosspaths. |
Img | Unit Name | Abilities | Comments |
---|---|---|---|
![]() | Enkidu Archer![]() ![]() ![]() | Being half-giants, their arrows inflict significant damage at a far range but only human accuracy. Wind Guide fixes that problem. Has the option for more Armor to protect themselves from projectiles. |
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![]() | Enkidu Heavy Archer![]() ![]() ![]() | ||
![]() | Enkidu Spearman![]() ![]() ![]() | Your early lineman for expantions before the fort has the resources to give them hats. | |
![]() | Enkidu Soldier![]() ![]() ![]() | Spearman with better armor and hat. A preferred choice of Uruk Linemen if resources allow it. | |
![]() | Enkidu Warrior![]() ![]() ![]() Rec Foreign Only | Helemtless warriors with high damage axes. may only get 3-4 from most provinces but the best way to mass additional troops with how expensive making new forts are for Uruk. |
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![]() | Enkidu Royal Guard![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() | Enkidu Best used to guard your mages. |
![]() | Enkidu Iron Warrior![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() | Your elite damage-dealing troops, Bezerking with an Axe. Gets by a lot of prot. |
![]() | Maiden of the Moon![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() ![]() Female | Sacred Hoplites, able to fit 3 half-giantess in a square. Primes them to be a defensive wall with a giant bless and they take point buffing very well. |
![]() | Mushussu Chariot![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Limited recrutment(1) | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Female | Expensive monster chariot, helpful when dealing with problem indies that are not barbarians or human sized sacred ruches. They cost you a lot and hard to mass so only seen in small quantities. |
![]() | Kulullu![]() ![]() ![]() +Rec Underwater Only | ![]() | Uruk has a set of underwater infantry (and mages) called Kullulu, similar to their terrestrial counterparts: Lots of HP and strength, not much else. However, these troops are not strong enough to compete with any other amphibious nation. |
![]() | Kulullu Soldier![]() ![]() ![]() +Rec Underwater Only | ![]() |
Sprite | Unit Name | Special Attributes | Comments |
---|---|---|---|
![]() | Utnapishtim - Favored of Enki Hero Turn Arrival Limite: 5 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | Immortal nature mage. Make use of that Immortality as a thug but look out for Soul Slay. |
![]() | U'an - Apkallu Hero Turn Arrival Limite: 10 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | Power house researcher, Likly to zoom through some of your Reaserch goals when he shows up. Also a powerful mage in water and earth, getting to ![]() ![]() |
Uruks strongest and most plentiful path is Astral, able to Go up to 5 with boosters or
6 if you reach Conj 8. Enkidu Shamans give
2 and with available boosters can be a resting
4. Uruk may not have immediate access to high-level rituals but Uruks main combat power during wars is powering up with communions
Water, Air, and Earth are low level but have a place in spamming magic to stop rushes or being ramped up by communions.
If you can get a 3 you can then create more
3 Ugallus.
Boosting Water needs particular randoms on some above land commanders. Some may get 2 which is the first step towards for Sea King and Naiads. Can later turn into Water Queens if you can secure a lake.
Earth is at 1 unless you luck into a rare double Earth random so he can make Earth Boots to make himself
3, then climbed with Troll Kings for a boosted
4.
Troll Shamans can give you Death, and some with Skull Staffs are 3.
Can cast Stellar Focus
Have the paths to make thug items for your mages with Half-giant bodies. Kithaironic Lion Pelt is an efficient thug armor. give a Crystal Matrix to an indie mage you find so they can Communion.
It's Expensive but can make a Ring of Sorcery to make a Ring of Wizardry. Lots of boosting and likely only going to make the two.
Headdress of the Bull 5
1. Grant the user +2 strength and a retinue of a Buffalo. Great on a mage thug as it's a cheap item that boosts their damage, and gives them a trampling animal to buy him time for buffing. Also, Buffalos are able to run over any would-be assassin.
How to expand, potential pitfalls and how to get around them, obvious weakness strength, how much do you have to focus on war/infrastructure
what is the first big research rush, what is the first big powerspike, where do you shift recruitment to? what are the big magic diversity issues, are there particular globals you should gun for
How do you close out the game if you are in it, is the high-level research stuff you can do uniquely well, does your nation fall off, aka do you have to force things to conclude swiftly
Link here to guides for the nation, on and off(?) the wiki. This should likely include things like suggested pretender designs as well as strategy guides.