None of Gelt’s spells are showstoppers, but when you rain molten death on the foe 10 times per battle, it makes a big difference. He can also cast a bombardment spell and an armor buff spell for just one wind. Gelt's specialty is extremely cheap spells - with the right skills, Gelt can make Plague of Rust (removes 30 armor from an enemy) literally free. One thing you must understand about Gelt is that despite his intimidating visage, he is very frail, since he is in fact a backline caster. Invoking the ire of one or the other is much more likely as Gelt than Franz, and war with the Dwarfs or Orcs before you get up and running can be disastrous.Īs others have said, Gelt is generally a stronger lord than Franz. Third, Karl is much further from the eastern mountains/badlands than Gelt - there lies your greatest threats: Thorgrim and Grimgor. Gelt starts on the doorstep of the hostile Vampire Counts, who corrupt the land so much that you might end up taking attrition in your own territory. Franz is also in a prime position to take Marienburg -the city itself and the special outriders it gives you are game-changers. Second, Franz has much better expansion opportunities than Gelt - Bretonnians are absolute pushovers both diplomatically and militarily in the early game and have a number of rich cities to fuel your growth. Meanwhile, Gelt starts in a mediocre province capital whose only real selling point is an ok income building. First, Karl Frank starts with Altdorf, the greatest city in the Empire with multiple powerful unique buildings.
Karl Frank has a much easier/stronger start location than Gelt for a number of reasons. I’m a bit late, but I’ll still throw in my two cents: Has a decent early start and a good middle ground between beginner play with Franz and difficult advanced play with Gelt. Cheap unbreakable heavy-hitting light infantry completely changes army comps for empire early-to mid game and Volkmar is a beast on the battlefield. Volkmar is quite fun too, though sadly overlooked in my opinion. Much easier in general but outclassed by Gelt later on. Brettonia is right there if you want to go aggressive, and you can always go to Marienburg, farm XP from Norscans, and build up Altdorf so you can turtle a little bit and wait to confederate on of the stronger provinces. You get a racial capital to start, so that is a power boost, and the early game isn't too hard. Doesn't do anything outstandingly well but buffs most of your army mid-game early game and lets you confederate a bit quicker. He is strong vs other lords, he gets a very powerful flying mount, his skills buff some state troops, he has great public order and diplomatic bonuses. With the aggressive vamps he is kinda an advanced pick, the early game is quite hectic, your starting province is terrible, and he really needs to use his magic to even the odds. Additionally, he can settle mountains without penalty, so you can capture all the random mountain settlements in the empire, as well as the dwarf holds. if you don't use magic much or well he is basically garbage, though he has a fun start position. Additionally, he acts like a magic battery, so sticking him in the army and leveling him up can make all your other mages more effective. Lore of Metal is kinda meh but he can cast for very cheap, very quickly. He does have some buffs to gunpowder units, but nothing super crazy that would affect how you use them.
Gelt is mostly strong because he is a very good caster.