[FE - Book of Nature]

from Elemental Forums

Ideas for a book of nature, perhaps a book of Magic that only the Tarthans can receive at game start.

Book of Nature contains spells that affect the plants and animals of the forest. You can cause plants to grow and summon animals. You can give plants movement and cause summoned animals to group into large packs and direct the movement of insect swarms. Under your command wood can warp or become as hard as steel.

This may be an expert spell book for other races or perhaps it is a book that can be discovered via a quest or a random tech trees branch.

Sovereign with this book requires a unique AI to maximize the tactical advantage that these spells offer.

Level 1

  1. Iron Wood (tactical) - Targeted unit's wooden shields gain +5 AC and wooden weapons (clubs and staffs) do +5 damage
  2. Bee Swarm (tactical) - Target unit makes morale check
  3. Squirrel Swarm (tactical) - Summons 1 squirrel per forest terrain tile. Useful for slowing up enemy advance, high dodge rating, does zero hp damage,  successful attack prevents defender from moving, but can still attack. (thanks to crystalshake for enhancing my rate swarm)
  4. Summon Wolf
  5. Heartwood Canopy (tactical) - all units in a forest tile receives +10 dodge bonus vs ranged attack

Level 2

  1. Grabber Vines (tactical) - Targeted unit can't move unless it resists
  2. High Grass (tactical) - Grass 8 fee high grows in one title, attack range of units in this tile is reduced to zero
  3. Butcher's Bramble (tactical) - 6x6 tile that reduces movement rate of units by 1 unless they resist, and does 1hp of damage per tile moved through
  4. Summon Bear
  5. Control Mounts (tactical) - All enemy mounted units (horses, wolves) refuse to move until it resists.

Level 3

  1. Blight (stategic) - Targeted city's food production is reduced by 3 until dispelled.
  2. Summon Wolf Pack
  3. Animate Forest (tactical) - Friendly units in forest tiles recieve +10 AC bonus & +5 attack bonus when defending.
  4. Warp Wood (tactical) - Range of targeted archer unit is reduced to 1 unless they resist
  5. Water Absorbtion (tactical) - Negates water based enchantment or spell

Level 4

  1. Call Treants (tactical) - targeted Forest tile spawns a tree monster unit that takes double damage from fire based attacks.
  2. Summon Giant Eagle (tactical) - Giant Eagle can fly over terrain and enemy units to attack. Can only be attacked by defending unit or ranged attacks.
  3. Summon Giant Bear (tactical) - summons a gaint bear, four times as large as a normal bear.
  4. Hedge Wall - Creates a wall of hedges 1 wide that extends in all clear tiles from the top to the bottom of the tactical map with sharp thorns and pits that causes 4 points of damage per member to any unit entering it.
  5. Summon Unicorn (tactical) - A fearsome fast moving horse (move 4) with a magical horn that heals the damage it receives and protects it from magic. It must be killed in one turn or it heals itself.

Level 5

  1. Greater Blight (strategic enchantment) - Targeted cities food production is reduced by 10 until dispelled. I saw this on the TV Show Merlin: The city of Camelot was cursed - their springs dried up and their crops died - until the curse was lifted.
  2. Summon Wolf Horde - Special Ability: Triggers morale check in defending unit.
  3. Druidic Circle (strategic enchantment) - Targeted city is protected from the effect of Air, Earth, Fire and Water Magic spells while tactical battles for the city or on adjacent tiles occur on maps covered with a large number of forest tiles. Special: This spell creates tiles of trees around the city borders. You see a city surrounded by forests and you know that it is protected by a Druidic Circle.
16,204 views 8 replies
Reply #1 from Elemental Forums Top

Not sure, but if it could be set up, you could have the hedge wall end their turn when they enter it, and have them as not targetable while in it (which would make an interesting additional defensive option- not sure if the damage is too much or not) definitely a cool spell.

Also the tree shield could be renamed something like Heartwood Canopy, as the canopy would be the part to provide the majority of the protection from ranged attacks. Im guessing that spells are a different category and would be unaffected by it.

I wonder if the rat swarm coud be reskinned red/brown and be squirells. Could have them less combat based and have high evade and their successful attack on a unit prevents them from moving (but can still attack?)

The giant eagle would probably go better in a mountain or air theme.  What about a killer rabbit (Mad Hare), could have it be 'lightning quick and full of sharp pointy teeth' (ie keep the bypass terrain, change it so it has high dodge on all attacks (but lower on the target attacked), have it have a high crit ratio on its attacks, and only a few HP).

Grabber vine to Shackle vine? Or something trapper/snare related? It sounds like the kind of plant that works similarly to a fly trap, it imobilizes prey (which die from exhaustion, exposure, dehydration, etc. while trapped) and then flourishes off of the nutrients in the remains (and perhaps attracted scavengers for extra prey) Probably polinating with flies or something.

Thorn grass to Butcher's Bramble? (ie a name representing the fact that it does damage, and leaves you horribly exposed and vulnerable to ranged attacks) for extra fun, could have the spell graphic by rusty or glistening red thorned vines. Could grow well with something found in blood, or absorbing it thru the surface area more than the roots?  May have some kind of fruit, flower or edible part to attract prey (such as grazing animals) or hunting animals seeking the smaller birds and mamalls (rabbits) taking shelter in it from predators.  May spread by having outlying sections being sticker and easy to break off on something brushing past and then attempt to take root wherever they are deposited from there (probably pretty hardy biologicly).

Water Absorbtion has a bland sounding name to me but cool effect.  I think there was a technical term for it in biology, but can't remember.  It strikes me as a fun spell like Naturalize in MtG (green spell that destroyed artifacts and possibly enchantments as well). perhaps have a blooming flower effect to show consuming the water to promote growth? 

The greater blight one could be something to do with a mold outbreak or lack of polination if you are searching for a different name.  Or something like a draught (though Im pretty sure that is the wrong spelling).

Perhaps the great bear can knock foes around the field.  Potentially tie it into lore (Lady Umber maybe?) or Forest King.  Probably want him to be a 1 per battle type at most, at 4x size he could potentially be swapped with the wolf horde for the cast level depending on their relative combat performance.

Lots of great stuff here! Go Planet?

Reply #2 from Elemental Forums Top

Man, you really don't like archers!

Offworld Trading Company
Reply #3 from Elemental Forums Top

Not so much not liking them as ensuring that the wielder of the Nature book is going to have some pretty good air superiority going for them if they have archers.  Like the Tarth...?

edit: Regarding the giant bear he could be Roxar son of Roxbin.  His heart is big too. ;) 

Reply #4 from Elemental Forums Top

Note that of the 23 spells there are 20 tactical spells and 3 strategic spells

  • 2 spells only affect wooden armor and weapons
  • 8 are summoning spells (Squirrels, Wolf, Bear, Wolf Pack, Treant, Eagle, Wolf Horde, Unicorn).
  • 2 are strategic city enchantment spells (Blight and Greater Blight)
  • 1 is a strategic terrain spells that protects a city from magical transformation and ensures that tactical battles for this city occur in forested terrain.
  • 3 spells protect the unit from archer attacks or limit the range of archer units
  • 2 spells offer greater protection for a unit defending in forest tiles.
  • 2 trigger a morale check (Bee Swarm and Wolf Horde)
    • Note that in an earlier post I suggested the morale rating based on the unit's training. Elite units and sovereigns would have a morale rating of 100 and never break, whereas untrained peasants would have a morale rating of 50.

Idea: Should the nature summoning spells require the presence of a forest tile on the battlefield? This would render them useless in rocky desert terrain that is devoid of trees.

Reply #5 from Elemental Forums Top

Spell: Create Lush Forest.

:ninja:

Reply #6 from Elemental Forums Top

Regrowth - Strategic; all roads in a 5x5 area on the map are engulfed by a rush of greenery.  Trade routes are severed until the vegetation is cut back or burned (fire magic, anyone?).  Does not work in Desert areas.

Quill Spray - Tactical; caster fires a spray of deadly thorns in a cone that inflicts light damage and poison on enemies.

Entangling Roots - Tactical; Only works in a Forest tile.  Huge, thick roots explode from the ground underneath an enemy unit, forcing them to resist or become trapped.  If trapped they must force their way out of the roots (as if they were attacking them and they had HP) every turn until freed.

 

Reply #7 from Elemental Forums Top

Absolutely love it. I've always been a big nature fan so I've love to see these ideas make their way into the game. :bebi:

Reply #8 from Elemental Forums Top

I would like to see the next FE update add a Book of Nature Spell Book to the Magic Research Branch.