Elemental: A Preview of Magic & Sorcery

from JoeUser Forums

In Elemental BETA 2, the strategic objectives are strictly limited because the player does not have access to magic. The goal is to see what the strategic strengths and weaknesses of Elemental’s mechanics are when magic has been restricted.  Elemental Beta 2 is Elemental: Mundania.

In Elemental: Mundania, food is the critical resource. Materials are fairly easy to come by and metal can be found. But ultimately, food is the key strategic element. Food allows for larger populations which in turn allows for more city specialization which allows for larger armies and so forth.

But Magic changes everything.

The Power of Sorcery

A few points to consider:

  • Magic is already needed to revive the land enough to build on. With an even greater essence sacrifice Sorcerers can revive the land to become fertile.
  • Citizens default to only 5 hit points. Far too few points to bother spending money equipping such fragile beings. Spells, Shards, and Essence sacrifices can vastly change this. In The Silmarillion, Morgoth sacrificed much of his inherent strength into his minions. Players can choose to do this as well via Sorcery.
  • Potential Champions wander the world. What makes them special? What makes an Adventurer or Loremaster worthy to stand out from the average peasant? The difference is that they have the rare gift of being potential Sorcerers. You can imbue them with some of your essence and then they too can start to contribute to your Kingdom of Magic.

The Strategic Elements

Food is important in a mundane world. The shards, however, are the most important resource in a magical world.

These things and more you will see during the Beta 3 series. Stay tuned!

294,315 views 89 replies
Reply #1 from Elemental Forums Top

Interesting... I can't wait to see how we can imbue our citizenry... with multiple arms and fangs... :grin:

The Political Machine 2024
Reply #4 from Elemental Forums Top

That video was... short.o_O

Weren't shards to be used for only some spells or do we enter a phase of they becoming a "must have" for most spells except the most basic and/or harmless?

Reply #5 from Elemental Forums Top

Magic is already needed to revive the land enough to build on. With an even greater essence sacrifice Sorcerers can revive the land to become fertile.

If I am not mistaken, fertile land are the ones where you could build farms ...

Reply #6 from Elemental Forums Top

Hmm can't get the video to work. Probably just my settings.

Quoting larrypeters, reply 2

Um.. ok then.

I not sure how helpful that comment was!!

Quoting Froggie,

Citizens default to only 5 hit points. Far too few points to bother spending money equipping such fragile beings. Spells, Shards, and Essence sacrifices can vastly change this.

Do these methods extend to the mundane as well as the magical?

I beta 2 we can improve HP with veterancy levels but it's small stuff - do these bonuses improve?

Quoting Peace,

If I am not mistaken, fertile land are the ones where you could build farms.

Neat - if that's what Brad means that's cool.

 

EDIT: ARRG! Broken quotes.

EDIT 2: Sorta fixed

 

Reply #7 from Elemental Forums Top

Quoting Eldorad, reply 6
I not sure how helpful that comment was!!

That was on purpose.  No offense, but there didn't seem to be any real point to this thread other than to say "Yup, magic is still going to be totally awesome."

Later,
LAR

Reply #8 from Elemental Forums Top

Quoting larrypeters, reply 7

Quoting Eldorad, reply 6I not sure how helpful that comment was!!
That was on purpose.  No offense, but there didn't seem to be any real point to this thread other than to say "Yup, magic is still going to be totally awesome."

Later,
LAR

Ah I see. You were maybe hoping for more Beta 2A news like me? Lol.

Reply #9 from Elemental Forums Top

Quoting Peace, reply 5

Magic is already needed to revive the land enough to build on. With an even greater essence sacrifice Sorcerers can revive the land to become fertile.
If I am not mistaken, fertile land are the ones where you could build farms ...

 

Well... it looks like we might be able to create Fertile Land?  It already costs 1 essence to revive forsaken land to build a town upon.

Reply #10 from Elemental Forums Top

Correct me if I am wrong but where not many fortunes made and much influence exerted(through loans) by Italian and Baltic merchant republics in the real world during the renaissance? Through this they where able to exert much larger influence than they would traditionally exert.

The world that you described above seems too narrow without this possibility. It seems that the evident strategies would be to

  1. become huge
  2. control a lot of shards
  3. both

What about the nations that are limited in size by geography and suffer from a lack of shards? Is it just game over then?

Reply #11 from Elemental Forums Top

Are you sure that was the video you meant to post? I was expecting to see magic or something, not some guy standing there fidgeting. o_O

Reply #12 from Elemental Forums Top

I just thought the shard was cool. 

Reply #13 from Elemental Forums Top

He's fidgeting, because he's waiting for Beta 3 to be able to use magic.  ^_^

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Reply #14 from Elemental Forums Top

Citizens default to only 5 hit points. Far too few points to bother spending money equipping such fragile beings. Spells, Shards, and Essence sacrifices can vastly change this. In The Silmarillion, Morgoth sacrificed much of his inherent strength into his minions. Players can choose to do this as well via Sorcery.

This excites me. Somthing I was hoping for since before the beta started.

Reply #15 from Elemental Forums Top

Quoting Nathaniel, reply 10
Correct me if I am wrong but where not many fortunes made and much influence exerted(through loans) by Italian and Baltic merchant republics in the real world during the renaissance? Through this they where able to exert much larger influence than they would traditionally exert.

The world that you described above seems too narrow without this possibility. It seems that the evident strategies would be to


become huge
control a lot of shards
both

What about the nations that are limited in size by geography and suffer from a lack of shards? Is it just game over then?

 

Agreed.

 

Small Nations should still be able to be important.

Reply #16 from Elemental Forums Top

Quoting AdmiralDan, reply 15

Quoting Nathaniel Richter, reply 10Correct me if I am wrong but where not many fortunes made and much influence exerted(through loans) by Italian and Baltic merchant republics in the real world during the renaissance? Through this they where able to exert much larger influence than they would traditionally exert.

The world that you described above seems too narrow without this possibility. It seems that the evident strategies would be to


become huge
control a lot of shards
both

What about the nations that are limited in size by geography and suffer from a lack of shards? Is it just game over then?

 

Agreed.

 

Small Nations should still be able to be important.

 

Shards don't grow on trees.  But yea, if you're turtling in some corner of the world with no resources, you're going to get wiped out if you try to win through brute force. You would need to focus on quests.

Reply #17 from Elemental Forums Top

Quoting Spicy, reply 9
Well... it looks like we might be able to create Fertile Land?
That's my reading.

Reply #18 from Elemental Forums Top

I came for a feast and got a light snack at best! <X3

Not that I am not grateful for the light snack, but I guess magic is going to be kept pretty tightly under wraps until Beta 3 at least.

Reply #19 from Elemental Forums Top

Quoting Denryu, reply 18
I came for a feast and got a light snack at best!

Not that I am not grateful for the light snack, but I guess magic is going to be kept pretty tightly under wraps until Beta 3 at least.

Elemental magic in action. (may take a while to load)

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Reply #20 from Elemental Forums Top

"Shards don't grow on trees."

Given this was said by Frogboy, it does sort of bring up the question: How do I pick my Shard based Magic Books, which is done pre-map generation, with any kind of consistent knowledge they will actually see any use at all?

Why would I spend valuable creation points if uncertainty becomes a factor?

 


Reply #21 from Elemental Forums Top

Quoting Wintersong, reply 19

Elemental magic in action. (may take a while to load)

I cant help replacing the guy in the gif with Will Wright.

Reply #22 from Elemental Forums Top

Quoting MagicwillNZ, reply 1
Interesting... I can't wait to see how we can imbue our citizenry... with multiple arms and fangs...

 

With Tzeentch as your sovereign, anything is possible.

 

"Tzeentch, improve me!"

Reply #23 from Elemental Forums Top

Quoting Spicy, reply 13
He's fidgeting, because he's waiting for Beta 3 to be able to use magic. 

 

lol. yup

Reply #24 from Elemental Forums Top

Quoting Frogboy, reply 12
I just thought the shard was cool. 

It's cool but we want to see AWESOMELOOKINGSPELLSOFMASSDESTRUCTION in action! :X ;)

Quoting kyogre12, reply 14

Citizens default to only 5 hit points. Far too few points to bother spending money equipping such fragile beings. Spells, Shards, and Essence sacrifices can vastly change this. In The Silmarillion, Morgoth sacrificed much of his inherent strength into his minions. Players can choose to do this as well via Sorcery.


This excites me.

Yep. Same here. It's a good concept. :)

Reply #25 from Elemental Forums Top

Quoting Denryu, reply 18
I came for a feast and got a light snack at best!

Not that I am not grateful for the light snack, but I guess magic is going to be kept pretty tightly under wraps until Beta 3 at least.

Snack? That's naught but crumbs on the hors d'ouvres tray. Someone's getting a nosh, but not us...