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Release #20: THESE PHANTOM ILLUSIONS...
(01/25/2003)
In no game (as far as I remember) has an entire magical direction been devoted to illusions. Of course, there have been quite good spells, but they were isolated and often attributed to other schools. But this isn't quite right. Although, in terms of effect, Illusions are closest to the Mind school. Only they are specifically designed to deceive it. Accordingly, the Inhabitants of Hell (the Inferno faction) and Illusionist Mages have excelled in deception.
In general, this direction may seem weak. There will be no attacking or defensive spells here. The main emphasis is on indirect advantages gained by your side. The main thing is to be able to use them in time, not to miss the opportunity (often, the only one). With a decent army and skillful leadership, Illusions can work wonders.
Exchange
all units on the field change places and appearances (the truth is revealed only after a direct attack). The attacking unit deals damage (the appearance disappears), receives a retaliatory strike (the appearance disappears from the second). And as a result, it turns out that both are yours. The effect cannot be predicted in advance: because a complete confusion begins - the enemy can move with your warriors, and you - with theirs. It works well against a stronger army - there is an opportunity to win a decisive battle with insignificant forces. But then the risk of losing a valuable hero will also greatly increase. Skill development affects the probability of casting and duration.
Image
it is applied to a friendly unit; during melee attacks, the enemy freezes and does not respond to the attack. However, this does not prevent enemies from attacking them first. Skill development affects the duration of the effect.
Phantom
summons a group of ghostly creatures with zero attack, but a very impressive defense. They cannot harm the enemy, but they can serve as a "living shield," protect fragile units, or help hold out in battle. Skill development affects the size of the group, defense, and other parameters (except attack) of the summoned creatures.
Mirror Image
you can create an image of any unit that will fight for you. The enemy risks getting his own soldiers. But the image is extremely short-lived - it can crumble from any scratch (as in HMM2). Skill development only affects the "lifespan" of the creature.
Camouflage
I decided to make this spell a little different. Let all the units in your army on the map look more numerous, and part of the reserve - invisible. Then, depending on the situation, you can either scare the enemy with your "coolness" or, conversely, hide a surprise in the "gray zone," and put some weaklings on display! Skill development affects the size of the "gray zone" (how many groups you can hide from prying eyes) and how many times the apparent size of the visible part of the army will increase.
Invisibility
here, everything seems clear - the unit becomes invisible and cannot be attacked directly. To see it (and even then, only for a short time), the enemy must "guess" its location by attacking an area. This is a little easier than looking for a needle in a haystack, but if there is no other way... So, when receiving any damage, the invisible unit becomes visible for one round, unless it immediately moves to another location. And whether the enemy will look for it with arrows, lightning, fireballs, or force his units to beat the air nearby is up to him. Skill development affects the duration of the effect.
LSD
a completely narcotic spell. The images of each of your groups separate from the body and begin to live their own lives. The warriors themselves become invisible. The enemy will only see false targets, which he will attack. Only after the "death" of the image will the original appear. But our Illusionist will have enough entertainment for a long time. The original and the image move in turn, like two different units. Killing the illusion, in this case, requires as much effort as killing the original. Skill development affects the duration of the effect.
Sandcastle
you lived quietly and peacefully on your ancestral territory, did not bother your neighbors, and only cared about the prosperity of your city. But suddenly, an aggressive army burst out of the darkness and headed straight for your ancestral home. And there is nothing left to do: you can still hire soldiers to defend the castle, but in terms of fortifications, it's a "gateway." The last hope is magic. This spell is cast (on the map) on the area of your castle, and all fortifications are increased to the maximum (for a given architectural type). The effect lasts for several days. Agree, for the enemy, it will be a big surprise that just before his attack, an ordinary village will turn into a powerful outpost. Of course, this illusion can be easily removed in battle - with earthquakes or a simple dispel, but this takes time and mana. But the archers in the towers will not wait! Skill development affects the duration of the effect.
Phantom Gold
if you are a little short of buying/building a desperately desired object, you can cast a spell on your supplies. On the map, next to the mage, a pile of the selected resource will appear, and when you take it, one counter will temporarily increase. But the next day, a terrible reckoning will come - everything that was illegally obtained will be reduced by twice as much! So, you can't call it a freebie. If you are too greedy, then you will have to do without this resource for almost the entire game. I would even suggest increasing the penalty: if the player goes into the negative, then every turn they are charged a penalty percentage. The "counter" is ticking! Suppose 10% per day can deprive him of the ability to buy or build using this resource for a long time. But if you are just a little short, and you need to hurry (end of the week/sudden attack), then this spell is simply invaluable. Skill development affects the size of the pile and the penalty. I don't know to what extent an absolute specialist can reduce the penalty: to zero (complete freebie) or to one (1:1 - simple loan).
Presence Effect
a rather controversial point. The unit gains the ability to attack the enemy at a distance. It teleports to him, deals damage, receives a response (if it is allowed to respond), and returns to its place. A very good opportunity to beat the enemy through the walls of the castle or other obstacles. Skill development affects the duration of the effect and the distance of the possible attack.
Mirage
a trick added literally at the last moment. I would like to separately thank Paladin, U-Gin, and Pikovy Valet for their help. According to all legends, a mirage is a ghostly, alluring image (gold, resource, artifact, source). Let it remain so. It can be applied to any cell on the map. The object located there is replaced with a more attractive image. This can lure the enemy where you need it. It is also interesting when a hero casts a mirage on an empty cell and then stands on it with his army. The enemy will simply be happy! Skill development affects the duration of the effect.
As you can see, the spells are not divided into levels. But here it is not so important. A separate release will be devoted to spell levels and their values. For now, it is more important to understand the sets of spells themselves. I already have sketches for all schools, but you never know what else will come to mind. In the next iteration, I will present a set for the wanderer, but the Magic of Illusions can also be supplemented with something. I really hope for your suggestions.
(01/25/2003)
In no game (as far as I remember) has an entire magical direction been devoted to illusions. Of course, there have been quite good spells, but they were isolated and often attributed to other schools. But this isn't quite right. Although, in terms of effect, Illusions are closest to the Mind school. Only they are specifically designed to deceive it. Accordingly, the Inhabitants of Hell (the Inferno faction) and Illusionist Mages have excelled in deception.
In general, this direction may seem weak. There will be no attacking or defensive spells here. The main emphasis is on indirect advantages gained by your side. The main thing is to be able to use them in time, not to miss the opportunity (often, the only one). With a decent army and skillful leadership, Illusions can work wonders.
Exchange
all units on the field change places and appearances (the truth is revealed only after a direct attack). The attacking unit deals damage (the appearance disappears), receives a retaliatory strike (the appearance disappears from the second). And as a result, it turns out that both are yours. The effect cannot be predicted in advance: because a complete confusion begins - the enemy can move with your warriors, and you - with theirs. It works well against a stronger army - there is an opportunity to win a decisive battle with insignificant forces. But then the risk of losing a valuable hero will also greatly increase. Skill development affects the probability of casting and duration.
Image
it is applied to a friendly unit; during melee attacks, the enemy freezes and does not respond to the attack. However, this does not prevent enemies from attacking them first. Skill development affects the duration of the effect.
Phantom
summons a group of ghostly creatures with zero attack, but a very impressive defense. They cannot harm the enemy, but they can serve as a "living shield," protect fragile units, or help hold out in battle. Skill development affects the size of the group, defense, and other parameters (except attack) of the summoned creatures.
Mirror Image
you can create an image of any unit that will fight for you. The enemy risks getting his own soldiers. But the image is extremely short-lived - it can crumble from any scratch (as in HMM2). Skill development only affects the "lifespan" of the creature.
Camouflage
I decided to make this spell a little different. Let all the units in your army on the map look more numerous, and part of the reserve - invisible. Then, depending on the situation, you can either scare the enemy with your "coolness" or, conversely, hide a surprise in the "gray zone," and put some weaklings on display! Skill development affects the size of the "gray zone" (how many groups you can hide from prying eyes) and how many times the apparent size of the visible part of the army will increase.
Invisibility
here, everything seems clear - the unit becomes invisible and cannot be attacked directly. To see it (and even then, only for a short time), the enemy must "guess" its location by attacking an area. This is a little easier than looking for a needle in a haystack, but if there is no other way... So, when receiving any damage, the invisible unit becomes visible for one round, unless it immediately moves to another location. And whether the enemy will look for it with arrows, lightning, fireballs, or force his units to beat the air nearby is up to him. Skill development affects the duration of the effect.
LSD
a completely narcotic spell. The images of each of your groups separate from the body and begin to live their own lives. The warriors themselves become invisible. The enemy will only see false targets, which he will attack. Only after the "death" of the image will the original appear. But our Illusionist will have enough entertainment for a long time. The original and the image move in turn, like two different units. Killing the illusion, in this case, requires as much effort as killing the original. Skill development affects the duration of the effect.
Sandcastle
you lived quietly and peacefully on your ancestral territory, did not bother your neighbors, and only cared about the prosperity of your city. But suddenly, an aggressive army burst out of the darkness and headed straight for your ancestral home. And there is nothing left to do: you can still hire soldiers to defend the castle, but in terms of fortifications, it's a "gateway." The last hope is magic. This spell is cast (on the map) on the area of your castle, and all fortifications are increased to the maximum (for a given architectural type). The effect lasts for several days. Agree, for the enemy, it will be a big surprise that just before his attack, an ordinary village will turn into a powerful outpost. Of course, this illusion can be easily removed in battle - with earthquakes or a simple dispel, but this takes time and mana. But the archers in the towers will not wait! Skill development affects the duration of the effect.
Phantom Gold
if you are a little short of buying/building a desperately desired object, you can cast a spell on your supplies. On the map, next to the mage, a pile of the selected resource will appear, and when you take it, one counter will temporarily increase. But the next day, a terrible reckoning will come - everything that was illegally obtained will be reduced by twice as much! So, you can't call it a freebie. If you are too greedy, then you will have to do without this resource for almost the entire game. I would even suggest increasing the penalty: if the player goes into the negative, then every turn they are charged a penalty percentage. The "counter" is ticking! Suppose 10% per day can deprive him of the ability to buy or build using this resource for a long time. But if you are just a little short, and you need to hurry (end of the week/sudden attack), then this spell is simply invaluable. Skill development affects the size of the pile and the penalty. I don't know to what extent an absolute specialist can reduce the penalty: to zero (complete freebie) or to one (1:1 - simple loan).
Presence Effect
a rather controversial point. The unit gains the ability to attack the enemy at a distance. It teleports to him, deals damage, receives a response (if it is allowed to respond), and returns to its place. A very good opportunity to beat the enemy through the walls of the castle or other obstacles. Skill development affects the duration of the effect and the distance of the possible attack.
Mirage
a trick added literally at the last moment. I would like to separately thank Paladin, U-Gin, and Pikovy Valet for their help. According to all legends, a mirage is a ghostly, alluring image (gold, resource, artifact, source). Let it remain so. It can be applied to any cell on the map. The object located there is replaced with a more attractive image. This can lure the enemy where you need it. It is also interesting when a hero casts a mirage on an empty cell and then stands on it with his army. The enemy will simply be happy! Skill development affects the duration of the effect.
As you can see, the spells are not divided into levels. But here it is not so important. A separate release will be devoted to spell levels and their values. For now, it is more important to understand the sets of spells themselves. I already have sketches for all schools, but you never know what else will come to mind. In the next iteration, I will present a set for the wanderer, but the Magic of Illusions can also be supplemented with something. I really hope for your suggestions.
