Posted October 29, 2022 1 hour ago, Kelkelen said: What do the Pinks DO, exactly? What is "charm" -- is it the same as stun or freeze? Do they deal offensive damage? Charm is just an attack but worse, since it takes a turn to kick in and it doesn't kill if the pink dies first. Unless you have someway of stalling the zombies from reaching the pink, it's just going to get hit, and it's too fragile unlike other frontliners. It's like... the hopeless child of red range and green damage. It's also too short-range to place behind other dragons since zombies are guaranteed to hit said frontliners and you need the row behind them to use on supports like pinks or purples. Pinks may become somewhat effective in very niche builds, but it's really not worth the points for serious attempts when you could just get a trio or healer instead. 10 minutes ago, missy_ said: Regarding the Aeons, I am including a bunch of screenshots so you can view some turns in a row. I'd appreciate if you could screenshot the board where the aeon activated. It's very hard to tell if an aeon is working at all since the order of zombie attacks versus dragons are inconsistent. I've had some attack at the beginning of rounds and some attack after everything else goes. Share this post Link to post
Posted October 29, 2022 (edited) 32 minutes ago, missy_ said: Now my theory is that charm is maybe like putting a hex on the zombies so that they take damage in the turn that the Pinks are resting. It works, and they do take damage; the main issues are the Pinks are squishy, plus their reach is two tiles -- although it is a two-tile "radius," which I hope means in any direction? (I'm not sure.) The good news is they do offensive damage. Regarding the Aeons, I am including a bunch of screenshots so you can view some turns in a row. It's difficult to know which Pinks and which Vines in the line are resting and which are attacking. I wish the text was more clear, but I guess there isn't a better way to do it. Yes! I see what you mean. It definitely looks like they do damage on their rest turn, much like the Vines do, only Pinks have the 2-tile radius as opposed to the Vines' 1-tile reach. I'd assume it's in all directions -- after studying them in action, I'm pretty sure the Ice radius covers diagonals as well as straight lines, and the nearer in-between tiles, too. And yes! The Aeon affects all your dragons. The usual turn order, roughly, is that non-damaging attacks go off (freeze, stun), then zombies attack (looks like it alternates down the line, zombies/Pinks), then damaging attacks go off (Magmas, Greens, Vines), then healing and rejuvenating down the line. After the Aeon sees the future, the dragons get to deal their offensive damage attacks before the zombies, and even heal and refresh before they attack. It could make a significant difference in staying alive! ETA: Also, this build started downhill FAST once the zombies started dealing 2 damage! Granted, I never expected it to hit Round 50... so, it performed beyond my expectations, but "go back to start or get burninated" was ultimately unsuccessful. So, I'm going back to try and perfect my second build, which was working beautifully until I realized it had been a mistake to drop the side Magmas back one square, as they were less effective at covering their comrades that way. I'm also going to try a couple of Aeons instead of a Sophrosyne, since the GoN and Thunders will already be helping to clear the field, and the Aeon's pre-emptive attack might be more useful than the Sophrosyne's battlefield-clearing since it can happen more often. I definitely LOVED how the Magma-Ice-White-Purple-Thunder team acted as a unit. There was one point left over for a sacrificial vampire, to cause mischief in the first 30 rounds. I will name him Silas. Edited October 29, 2022 by Kelkelen Share this post Link to post
Posted October 29, 2022 20 minutes ago, Kelkelen said: The usual turn order, roughly, is that non-damaging attacks go off (freeze, stun), then zombies attack (looks like it alternates down the line, zombies/Pinks), then damaging attacks go off (Magmas, Greens, Vines), then healing and rejuvenating down the line. I'm afraid I disagree with this. In my experience, zombies can attack at any time, but dragons usually (but not always) go in order of placement during a turn, starting from zombie-side and top left to bottom right in a sort of zigzag like this: Non-damaging attacks tend to have longer range, so that may be why they seem to trigger first. But with my placements below, the bolt always came last on the action log. Likewise, my sophrosyne always triggered after almost all supports but just before one final purple, which I assume to be the one beside the keep based on this action. I've bolded interesting actions regarding attack order. (Don't ask me why that first purple happened, I don't have a clue...) Two new zombies rise from the earth. Purple Dragon releases a wave of rejuvenating energy. Purple Dragon's cooldown reduced by 1. Purple Dragon's cooldown reduced by 1. Dark Green Dragon attacks Zombie! 1 damage dealt to Zombie Zombie is defeated! Dark Green Dragon is resting. Dark Green Dragon attacks Zombie! 1 damage dealt to Zombie Zombie is defeated! Dark Green Dragon is resting. Dark Green Dragon lashes out with vines. Zombie cannot move. White Dragon releases a wave of healing energy. Dark Green Dragon regains 1 HP. Dark Green Dragon regains 1 HP. Dark Green Dragon attacks Zombie! 1 damage dealt to Zombie Zombie is defeated! Dark Green Dragon is resting. Purple Dragon releases a wave of rejuvenating energy. Purple Dragon's cooldown reduced by 1. Purple Dragon's cooldown reduced by 1. Purple Dragon is resting. Zombie attacks Dark Green Dragon! 1 damage dealt to Dark Green Dragon White Dragon releases a wave of healing energy. Dark Green Dragon regains 1 HP. Dark Green Dragon is resting. Purple Dragon releases a wave of rejuvenating energy. Purple Dragon's cooldown reduced by 1. Purple Dragon releases a wave of rejuvenating energy. Purple Dragon's cooldown reduced by 1. White Dragon's cooldown reduced by 1. Bolt Dragon releases a bolt of electrical energy. Zombie is stunned. Zombie attacks Dark Green Dragon! 1 damage dealt to Dark Green Dragon Turn's actual board: Spoiler Share this post Link to post
Posted October 29, 2022 (edited) On 10/29/2022 at 4:42 PM, Shadowdrake said: I'd appreciate if you could screenshot the board where the aeon activated. It's very hard to tell if an aeon is working at all since the order of zombie attacks versus dragons are inconsistent. I've had some attack at the beginning of rounds and some attack after everything else goes. Here are the two rounds where the Aeon activated: I'm theorizing it applies to the whole battlefield, although it could be more limited, such as for a given row, and we just haven't figured it out yet. It gets more complicated to figure out an Aeon's exact influence when you have minions (1) on cooldown, and others have (2) a delayed attack instead of attacking on the same turn. Also, dragons that can attack from a range, such as Magmas, or those with a range that can affect zombies, such as Ice, will possibly not be affected in a noticeable manner, since they can sense zombies before the zombies are right on top of them. (Aeons may still affect Magmas and Ice, but we may not be able to observe it as easily.) I imagine an Aeon would affect a Dark Green Dragon much differently than a Pink, for example. ETA: I am also curious about whether placement of the Aeons makes a difference. For example, placing them in front of the other dragons, or perhaps directly behind a dragon. Edited October 30, 2022 by missy_ Share this post Link to post
Posted October 29, 2022 (edited) 37 minutes ago, Shadowdrake said: I'm afraid I disagree with this. In my experience, zombies can attack at any time, but dragons usually (but not always) go in order of placement during a turn, starting from zombie-side and top left to bottom right in a sort of zigzag like this: Non-damaging attacks tend to have longer range, so that may be why they seem to trigger first. But with my placements below, the bolt always came last on the action log. Likewise, my sophrosyne always triggered after almost all supports but just before one final purple, which I assume to be the one beside the keep based on this action. I've bolded interesting actions regarding attack order. (Don't ask me why that first purple happened, I don't have a clue...) Hide contents Two new zombies rise from the earth. Purple Dragon releases a wave of rejuvenating energy. Purple Dragon's cooldown reduced by 1. Purple Dragon's cooldown reduced by 1. Dark Green Dragon attacks Zombie! 1 damage dealt to Zombie Zombie is defeated! Dark Green Dragon is resting. Dark Green Dragon attacks Zombie! 1 damage dealt to Zombie Zombie is defeated! Dark Green Dragon is resting. Dark Green Dragon lashes out with vines. Zombie cannot move. White Dragon releases a wave of healing energy. Dark Green Dragon regains 1 HP. Dark Green Dragon regains 1 HP. Dark Green Dragon attacks Zombie! 1 damage dealt to Zombie Zombie is defeated! Dark Green Dragon is resting. Purple Dragon releases a wave of rejuvenating energy. Purple Dragon's cooldown reduced by 1. Purple Dragon's cooldown reduced by 1. Purple Dragon is resting. Zombie attacks Dark Green Dragon! 1 damage dealt to Dark Green Dragon White Dragon releases a wave of healing energy. Dark Green Dragon regains 1 HP. Dark Green Dragon is resting. Purple Dragon releases a wave of rejuvenating energy. Purple Dragon's cooldown reduced by 1. Purple Dragon releases a wave of rejuvenating energy. Purple Dragon's cooldown reduced by 1. White Dragon's cooldown reduced by 1. Bolt Dragon releases a bolt of electrical energy. Zombie is stunned. Zombie attacks Dark Green Dragon! 1 damage dealt to Dark Green Dragon Turn's actual board: Hide contents Thank you! I'm still trying to figure it out, so this is very helpful. I could tell it was going down the lines, but mistook attack type as a factor, just because of what dragons I had in those lines. I do see a difference in the rounds after the Aeons activated, in @missy_s screenshots -- their attacks were all the way down at the bottom of the action list. It seems like the Aeons only activate when the zombies are "in range" -- if there's no immediate threat of damage, do they still activate? I haven't seen that happen. Edited October 29, 2022 by Kelkelen Share this post Link to post
Posted October 30, 2022 What does the Bolt's stun action actually do? I see: Bolt Dragon releases a bolt of electrical energy. Zombie is stunned. But what does that mean? Is the Zombie prevented from attacking in that round? or in the next? or just what? It would be a lot easier to figure these things out if we knew which Zombie or dragon an action was taken on (or by!) when you have multiples on the board. Share this post Link to post
Posted October 30, 2022 1 hour ago, purplehaze said: What does the Bolt's stun action actually do? I see: Bolt Dragon releases a bolt of electrical energy. Zombie is stunned. But what does that mean? Is the Zombie prevented from attacking in that round? or in the next? or just what? It would be a lot easier to figure these things out if we knew which Zombie or dragon an action was taken on (or by!) when you have multiples on the board. I agree; it is hard to figure out exactly what is going on in a round, since if we have multiples of the same minion ... er, tower, it's hard to see what interacted with what. Especially when what we appear to be viewing is the aftermath of the round. I tried a Sophrosyne build which had a row of Bolts in front of a row of Purples (relying on the Sophrosyne to blast them), but I didn't keep screenshots of the battle. Wish I had. I believe they cannot move for the current round, but I don't know whether they can move the next round or not. It's hard to tell, since we can't put color coded collars around each zombie neck (it would be nice for testing! ) Share this post Link to post
Posted October 30, 2022 2 hours ago, purplehaze said: Is the Zombie prevented from attacking in that round? or in the next? or just what? They are unable to move for 2 rounds, though I'm unsure if they're able to attack while stunned. Share this post Link to post
Posted October 30, 2022 (edited) I made a new, random layout with a lot of different dragons to try and untangle which dragons fire before others (the Wiki covers this, but watching it in action, it still isn't clear to me). I did overlap on the Purples and Whites, using more than one, but the others I tried to use only one. Layout under spoiler: purplehaze, you may be able to check these screenshots to try and gauge how the Bolt is behaving with the zombies. To confirm what Shadowdrake stated, it seems they are stunned for the round they are stunned and the round after, and don't appear to move in those two rounds, unless they are killed. On round 8, the Bolt stuns two zombies. They are in the third and fourth tiles from the Bolt. On round 9, they are still stunned; they haven't moved and weren't killed by any other minions. A new zombie rises behind them in the same row. On round 10, the zombies are no longer stunned. The Thunder calls a bolt of lightning and kills two zombies. In round 11, the Bolt stuns two more zombies. Edited October 30, 2022 by missy_ Share this post Link to post
Posted October 30, 2022 Woke up to see that I've lost my first dragon! Oh no. But I'm getting closer to round 500! 👻 Share this post Link to post
Posted October 30, 2022 (edited) 52 minutes ago, Tiira said: Woke up to see that I've lost my first dragon! Oh no. But I'm getting closer to round 500! 👻 Awesome! Let us know if you pass it! My latest setup is holding fast at level 135, but... the night is young, and the zombie hordes are neverending. Eeek! Incidentally, I don't think my Aeons have needed to act, yet -- looks like the zombies haven't been able to come within attack range. Edited October 30, 2022 by Kelkelen Share this post Link to post
Posted October 30, 2022 I did! At round 507 currently but they are approaching my unprotected white, yikes! The greed dragon that I had in front of it was the first victim. Also, this is my first try with ice dragons. I haven't been reading the log at all so can't say if they've been useful or not. But I've never got this far before, so hmm, maybe... Share this post Link to post
Posted October 30, 2022 (edited) An update on my Aeon: Nothing until round 40 when a third of the line was wiped out and the zombies were one square away. 😬 I wonder if TJ should take a look at it to make sure it is working as intended? (The next round the Sophrosyne wiped everything out, the first time in this battle. Everything else was resting.) Edited October 30, 2022 by missy_ Share this post Link to post
Posted October 30, 2022 I have no idea why, but the dark greens in the lower right did not want to do anything despite being in biting range and off cooldown. Just let them chomp. Share this post Link to post
Posted October 30, 2022 (edited) 1 hour ago, missy_ said: An update on my Aeon: Nothing until round 40 when a third of the line was wiped out and the zombies were one square away. 😬 I wonder if TJ should take a look at it to make sure it is working as intended? (The next round the Sophrosyne wiped everything out, the first time in this battle. Everything else was resting.) Hide contents My Aeons haven't acted yet, in Round 151. I'm starting to suspect that they only trigger after 1) a Zombie has attacked and 2) the Zombie *remained* on the front line after its attack -- it wasn't killed or frozen or stunned, and would be able to attack *again* on its next turn. Basically, the Aeon may only trigger if an attack is imminent at the bottom of a Round, *before* the Zombies' next move. Is it looking this way to anyone else? * grumbles * I could have had a Sophrosyne... or more Purples... or more Magmas... or more Thunders... 😛 Augh! My Aeons just aren't activating! Maybe they have to be within a 2-square radius of a Zombie to go off? Because look at this round, starting with Zombie attacks and counterattacks, left to right: the first Zombie attacked, and the three dragons that could have counterattacked were all resting. So, it remained on the front lines, about to attack my Magma again. I thought (based on the screenshots of previous Aeon activity) that this was when the Aeon would trigger, so that my Magmas would get to attack first in the next round. But the two Aeons didn't trigger! And now that left-hand Magma is up to 4 damage! And the two Magmas on the right? They did nothing? There are Zombies within range! But they don't have any action, neither resting nor attacking. Edited October 30, 2022 by Kelkelen Share this post Link to post
Posted October 30, 2022 Love to see what everyone's strategies are and how they work out over time! I tried the Aeons last year time the game was around and they seemed to not do anything ever, so they did not make it in the party this year. The Sophrosyne does not get to do something often, but every now and then when enough zombies actually are on the board and no GoN is present it serves as a valuable lifeline. That Green dragon in the back is just chilling though. Probably learned some songs by now cheering the party on. I should not make up stories for them, I will be so sad if the zombies get them before the event is over. But I may actually go and get a CB Green and for once write a description for them. ^^° Share this post Link to post
Posted October 30, 2022 (edited) 3 hours ago, Reykur said: Love to see what everyone's strategies are and how they work out over time! I tried the Aeons last year time the game was around and they seemed to not do anything ever, so they did not make it in the party this year. The Sophrosyne does not get to do something often, but every now and then when enough zombies actually are on the board and no GoN is present it serves as a valuable lifeline. That Green dragon in the back is just chilling though. Probably learned some songs by now cheering the party on. I should not make up stories for them, I will be so sad if the zombies get them before the event is over. But I may actually go and get a CB Green and for once write a description for them. ^^° Give your Green a name! They're a survivor, I know it! SIGH. My wall is holding well, but the Aeons are officially dead weight. Do I continue with my so-far successful dragons, or do I reset and spend those points more wisely? Ugh, decisions! I'm up to Round 217 now, no thanks to those Aeons! Edited October 30, 2022 by Kelkelen Share this post Link to post
Posted October 30, 2022 (edited) I think i hit the sweetspot with my build - Elemental Trio - Full Heal - Boardwipe every 10 turns - 1 death (but it was just to use that single point i had left so it was accounted for) Edited October 30, 2022 by Yubelchen Share this post Link to post
Posted October 30, 2022 On 10/29/2022 at 5:48 PM, 0x08 said: I have restarted my build after ten rounds, it now looks like this: The Dark Green is now a Vampire. Because why not! Holding on fine as I approach 300. Share this post Link to post
Posted October 30, 2022 Okay so... the max I've made it has been 175 turns lol. Are the whites instrumental lasting a long time, then? What's the best front liner? I've tried greens and then vines and they only last so long... Share this post Link to post
Posted October 30, 2022 (edited) 10 minutes ago, Kaini said: Okay so... the max I've made it has been 175 turns lol. Are the whites instrumental lasting a long time, then? What's the best front liner? I've tried greens and then vines and they only last so long... A front line of Greens and Vines can survive really well IF they have a couple of Magmas helping clear the ground in front of them, and a dedicated row of Whites behind them for healing. Otherwise, once the Zombies start dealing 2 damage after Round 100, it's too hard for them to heal fast enough. The one formation that's lasted a LOOOONG time is a front line of all Magmas, then all Whites behind those, then a Thunder and a Sophrosyne behind that. Some players have passed 1000 rounds!! But others with the same formation have fallen anywhere between 300 and 800 -- it still depends on the Random Number Generators as to where the Zombies spawn. If you like Greens and Vines, I would recommend trying something like the following: Row 3 (from the left): Green, Magma, Vine, Green, Vine, Magma, Green Row 2: White, White, Purple, White, Purple, White, White Row 3: (blank), Purple, Thunder, Tower, Thunder Edited October 30, 2022 by Kelkelen Share this post Link to post
Posted October 30, 2022 Trying this strategy one more time since my vines kept getting 3 shot between heals, but greens have more health so it'll work out? hopefully? Also moved the side of the board they're on to try to improve the queue order. I didn't really want to go pure damager bc that messes with the soph trigger point but all the stallers failed one way or another iirc, and the vines seemed like they often killed the zombies in one turn anyway.. Share this post Link to post
Posted October 30, 2022 (edited) 1 hour ago, Shadowdrake said: Trying this strategy one more time since my vines kept getting 3 shot between heals, but greens have more health so it'll work out? hopefully? Also moved the side of the board they're on to try to improve the queue order. I didn't really want to go pure damager bc that messes with the soph trigger point but all the stallers failed one way or another iirc, and the vines seemed like they often killed the zombies in one turn anyway.. Do the Zombies ever just circle around to the open side of the tower? I'm curious to see this one in action! Greens should definitely prove more resilient than Vines! As for my build... the Aeons have done nOtHiNg. I'm at about 250 now. Itching to rebuild, so the Aeon points aren't wasted, but... I could also just see how far it goes. I really wonder WHY they haven't done anything. Is it a glitch? Or some factor we haven't figured out? Edited October 30, 2022 by Kelkelen Share this post Link to post
Posted October 30, 2022 (edited) 29 minutes ago, Kelkelen said: Do the Zombies ever just circle around to the open side of the tower? That's a good point... the vines used to block them from advancing too far, but the greens don't have the same ability... But no, in the past they never managed to reach the final row to attack the tower itself, since the zombies spawned in the farmost row always eventually came in range of the tower-row defenders when they began moving center-ward. Edited October 30, 2022 by Shadowdrake Share this post Link to post
Posted October 30, 2022 Welp, this got shot down in about 112 rounds. (Bolts and Vines, supported by Purples/Whites ... silly me forgot the Thunder would trigger a GoN) Folks, are we going to ask TJ to take a look at the Aeon? It seems broken. Share this post Link to post
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