Archmage (Life)

## Attributes

* **Encourage**: This unit provides a leadership bonus to nearby allies. Units within range of both the Lord's aura and an encouraging unit will receive the larger of the two bonuses.
* **Hide (forest)**: This unit can hide in forests until enemy units get too close.
* **Martial Prowess**
* **Wounds**
* **Missile Resistance**: 15%. Damage of missile attacks is reduced by this amount.

**Archmage (Life)** is a  High Elves Lord unit introduced in *Total War: Warhammer II* with The Warden and the Paunch.

## Recruitment

* Selecting any Settlement and recruiting them in the Lord Recruit tab

## Description

The **High Elven Archmages** are amongst the greatest practitioners of Magic within the mortal realms. Through decades, and often centuries, of painstaking research and scrupulous study, they learn to master magic in its purest form, an art known simply as High Magic. Those who mastered this most challenging of lores hold the entire spectrum of magic at their command.

At a High Mage's word, shimmering fields of magical energy spring into being to protect his allies, and the fires of courage blaze anew within their hearts. The truly gifted can even becalm the Winds of Magic themselves, collapsing a raging tempest until naught but a gentle breeze remains. Yet it should not be thought that High Magic is reserved for defensive means alone. With but a wave of his hand, a High Mage can call down the wrath of the heavens, paralyze his foes, or immolate whole regiments with Asuryan's fire.

It is little wonder then, that in times of strife, the Phoenix King will beseech the Tower of Hoeth for aid. The Loremasters of Saphery never shirk from their duty, for they know that their gifts stand between Ulthuan and annihilation. Traditionally, mages fulfil an advisory capacity in addition to their battlefield roles, lending an insight that transcends mortal comprehension. Such knowledge has even led to mages being given command of whole armies, a state of affairs that is especially common when Ulthuan is beset by supernatural threats from the Realm of Chaos.

## Attributes

* **Wizard**
* ▲ **Spellcaster**: This unit can cast spells.

## Character Abilities

### Passive Abilities

* Martial Prowess
* Life Bloom

#### Campaign only

* Greater Arcane Conduit
* Loose!
* Darken the Skies

## Mounts

* Elven Steed (TWWH2 only)
* Barded Ithilmar Steed
* Ithilmar Chariot
* Great Eagle
* Moon Dragon

## Strategy

The Lore of Life is one of the best schools for an Archmage Lord for the high elves. She is most potent in an army focusing on single-entity units (heroes, phoenixes, and dragons), where she can find good targets to cast Regrowth on, but she can also get good value casting Earth Blood on elite infantry/cavalry and triggering map-wide heals with the passive. Use Shield of Thorns on clustered melee fights that justify the cost. Flesh to Stone is more situational to use, since most of your elite units already have good armor and it only affects a single target, but the duration is long and the cost is low so use it to win archer duels or for particularly important single engagements. The damage spells are both circular explosions, they are decent but it could also be beneficial to bring a Lore of Fire Mage hero to accompany the lord's army with more damage spells.