A hexagon.[1]
A Hexagon is a geometric polygon with six sides and six edges. Hex comes from the Greek, and means six.[2] Why games like Civilzation V, Elven Legacy and Warlock: Master of the Arcane use a game board constructed of hexagons is because hexes, squares and triangles are the only polygons that can make up a field without adding a second polygon. Hexes are also good because they have borders into six other hexes, while squares just border four (though eight including diagonally), and triangles border just three, making a strategy game more advanced. One hexagon consists of six smaller triangles and three rhombuses. In video games hexes are often referred to as Tiles.
Terrain Types[]
In Warlock, all tiles have a terrain type that can limit the movement units. For instance, Ocean tile can only be passable by ships, amphibious and flying units, ground tiles are impassable for ships, and mountains are only passable by flying units. Advanced gameplay involves strategies that take advantage of tiles, since they gives bonuses and weaknesses to certain units, and cost different amounts of movement points to traverse.
| Terrain | Type | Movement Cost | Defense Modifier | Unit Perks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| City Improvement | 0.5 | City Fighter | ||
| Plains, Desert | 1 | |||
| Hills, Forest, Forest Hills | Dense, Hilly, Dense & Hilly | 2 | +25% | Highlander, Creature, Forester, Cover Specialist |
| Swamp, Lava Fields | Poor | 3 | -50% | Reptile |
| Mountains, Volcano | Impassable, except to units with Flying |
- Desert includes "Barren Desert", "Sandy Desert", and "Ashen Desert".
- Plains includes "Barren Plains" and "Icy Plains".
- Forest includes "Dead Forest", "Icy Forest", "Charred Forest" and "Jungle".
- Hills includes "Barren Hills", "Snowy Hills", and "Lava Hills".
- Units Perks give a 25% combat bonus, reduce movement costs to 1, or do both.
- Defense Modifiers only apply to the defender in a battle.
Other Modifiers[]
Aside from the perks and spells that can affect unit power in combat, a few other modifiers can come into play:
| Name | Combat Modifer | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| On Guard | +34% | |
| Uphill Battle | -50% | Applies when a unit is attacking from a lower elevation |
| Bad Terrain | -50% | Applies to any unit in a swamp or lava field |
Combat[]
The Basics[]
Units attack either in melee or in ranged. A melee attack is indicated by a sword. A ranged attack is indicated by either a bow-and-arrow or a glowing wand.
Melee[]
- Melee battles are divided into an Attacker and a Defender. The Attacker assaults the enemy's position while the Defender tries to hold their ground.
- If an attack is successful, the Attacker kills or drives away the Defender and moves to their hex.
- If the Defender is badly injured it may retreat to an adjacent hex. This is out of the player's control.
- If an attack is unsuccessful, both units go back to their previous position.
- Melee units can only attack units on an adjacent hex that is on land.
Ranged[]
- Units with a ranged attack can attack any unit within their reach, even those on water.
- Ranged attacks do not give the enemy an opportunity to counterattack, even when on an adjacent hex.
- Units attacked by ranged will never retreat.
- A ranged unit that kills an enemy will not move into their hex.
Damage[]
- In melee combat, both the Attacker and Defender damage each other's hit points according to their Attack stats.
- In ranged combat, only the Attacker's damage and the Defender's resistance is counted.
- If a unit has Resistances against a specific type of damage, the damage will be reduced by a certain factor.
- If a unit does more than one type of damage, each is calculated separately according to the enemy's resistances.
- When a unit's hit points reach zero, it is dead.
The Details[]
- Attack damage is lowered when a unit or building takes damage, but this isn't indicated in their attack stat, unlike unit power debuffs like Weakness.
- A unit that inflicts a bane, like rats, can only inflict it when performing an attack, and not dying in it. If it is an attack affecting multiple units (like Skilled Cleave of the Grand Stubborn Master, with Baton of Marshal Frost equipped) - the bane will only be inflicted on the one unit attack was centered on.
- When a unit attacks or uses an ability, they can't perform another action for the rest of the turn, with the exceptions being units with the Frenzy, Hit and Run and The Terminator perks.
- A unit can move and attack in the same turn, but will only be able to attack or use an ability if it has remaining movement points.
- Flying units can have a melee attack, like Green Bats, or a ranged attack, like Wild Serpents. Ground units cannot attack a flying unit in melee, but when a flying unit attacks another unit in melee, they are able to counterattack.
- Flying units can't be targeted by an AoE ability of a ground unit, but they can be hit by the splash damage.
- Units can always counterattack no matter how many units attack them in melee in a turn, even if stunned.
- Melee naval units can't attack units on land.
Local Resources[]
These have no effect in combat, but can provide resources, perks, or units of great strategic value.
See also: Buildings
- Dragon Eggs and Gold Dragon Eggs can only be found in the Underworlds.
- Adamantium and Nevril can sometimes be found in Ardania, but are often guarded by monsters. They are much more common in the Underworlds.