Right now the slime tree (that have some weird stuff put together, plus the awesome slime roots) can be only acquired once you finish the antimagic quest and "save" an arcane type escort. So to maximize the odds of getting the right type of escorts in the first dungeons and old forest (where is easier to lead then alive), you do the first level of the start dungeon and leave to do others areas (without escorts) to come back after you get antimagic.
In my opinion this is both tedious and makes the access to a core tree, again in my opinion, for antimagic users a luck dependent event.
I think a trainer should be added to Zigur, accessible only if you got antimagic, that teaches the slime tree unlocked for a fee (for the cause, of course ) or it after you finish a quest.
The Slime tree seems kind of awful anyway. The only talent that offers true utility (Slime Roots) has a considerable downside; it's notable only because you can't use teleport or phase door runes with Antimagic. The rest seem like variations on minor themes (a ranged attack, a melee attack, aura damage). It should probably be retouched before it is brought back into the game. I'm basing this entirely off the "ideas" files, but it does look like there will be a whole slew of mold/slime/fungus-themed talent categories.
Sorry about all the parentheses (sometimes I like to clarify things).
I've read about the new fungus tree in a git comment after I posted this. The new tree is about heal and regen. If slime is removed, there is no way of getting out of tight situations for antimagic users.
To avoid the adverse effects of slime roots, I prefer to have the tree taught (at 1.0 not 0.7 as adverted), and then pump it to level 3 at least. The range increases with level, and both the radius and the duration of "cannot use skills" effect reduces.
I think the real issue is that we try to take away options (runes for Antimagic, infusions for Undead) and then we have to scramble to find ways to replace what are essentially core gameplay skills (Slime Roots for Antimagic, the ungodly powerful Undead racial talents and attributes). Better to look at classes that need talents like Slime Roots and figure out why that class doesn't have an at least sufficient escape option already.
Sorry about all the parentheses (sometimes I like to clarify things).
Movement Infusions are generally sufficient if you're aware of your surroundings and don't let yourself be put in situations where you're cornered. I know sometimes that's unavoidable but I don't personally feel that teleport is something everyone is required to have.
I've never used slime roots. I'm a big fan of antimagic and my only winner was an antimagic wyrmic. Granted, the game has changed a lot since the last time I've won.
Am I the only one who uses movement infusions as an escape? Sure, you have to make sure you don't get surrounded but that doesn't seem like an unreasonable caveat. Plus there are many talents that allow you to get away using movement infusions even while surrounded: Overpower, Inertial Shot, Heave, Switch Place, Burrow, etc.
Poor mobility is a weakness of antimagic users, yes, but it's not one without viable workarounds.
Movement infusions are indeed an option. By level 2X were most of my wyrmics die, I always use one (1 regen, 2 wild, 1 movement). But it is almost unavoidable, at least for me, to get surrounded (necromancers in general, the Master in particular) by enemies or stuck in trees, were burrow do not works.
As near as I can tell, AM is basically a bolted on skillset that you get, with some downsides in other areas as your tradeoff. While it's starting to get upsides with the AM artifacts and their boosts if you're an Antimagic user, fundamentally it is, on base, not really a gain directly, so much as a lateral move. It's only as good as the options it provides your character.
Like, take Antimagic Shield. It is a great barrier, definitely. It runs off Willpower, though, which a character may or may not have build up, and it eats up some Generic points, which a character may or may not have other uses for. Between the two issues, it requires careful decisions of build; Both the points you're going to put towards Willpower and the points of Generic you are placing into the skill could go other places.
Antimagic not only needs to be a good choice relative to other options, but it needs to be good enough within that to make up for the flat rate downsides of no Runes, arcane equips, etc. And you can't make it too good, or else it becomes a new standard; Everyone just uses Antimagic. So the best option, then, seems to be to add as many options as possible. So that way, more builds see it as an advantage, while few see it as a dominating one(since there's only so many points in the game.).
Honestly, if it were just me, I'd go for making Slime a Class tree with a trainer for it in Zigur and no Category point to unlock(Or, alternatively, perhaps some kind of reward for the Breeding Pits? Eat the Orc Mother's heart, gain Slime if you're AM! Maybe not.). Its entire skillset fits reasonably well with Class. There are Mage-Hunters in the East, so obviously people making a profession out of Equi-related Antimagic skills isn't outlandish. And it furthers the "AM is about adding odd options" feel.
Random related ideas; The Spores attack would be very interesting if it was either partially or entirely acidic, probably partially-it is a very good attack on paper, but too much resists Nature to make it work as well as it feels like it ought. Acidic Skin probably ought to be based off some stat instead of being entirely flat rate, or be Passive, one; It is a very boring skill, but not actually bad, as it stands. And Slime Spit needs a bit of a retool, it feels like it ought to be a low cooldown low Equi attack skill, but somehow it's high on both, especially the rather odd 30 Cooldown. All fairly minor though, relatively.
Not that I'm saying any of my ideas should be done or anything. For all I know, this could be entirely different from the intended idea for AM, or that Slime's just not felt to be worth the effort, etc., which would be fair enough. Just tossing out thoughts off the top of my head.
Wow, that turned into a wall of text fast. >_> Sorry about that.
) or it after you finish a quest.