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| Thread: The Void Necropolis | |
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moonshade
Known Hero
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posted April 29, 2015 09:16 AM |
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The Void Necropolis (updated: roster complete, added Buildings)
Due to my interest in it, I've decided to give my version of Necropolis- my favorite faction alongside Dungeon- its own thread. So, here is my H8 version of Necropolis- the Cult of the Void.
Story-line wise, my H8 game will be set several (dozens of) years after Dark Messiah. Presumed to be destroyed for centuries, the Lich Sandro had returned from True Death, resurrected by the strange powers of the Void. As the Necromancers delved deeper into the mysteries of Life & Death, many came to realize everything came from the Void- and will return to it, eventually. By allying with this mysterious power (for only a fool would realisticly hope to control it) and learning its secrets, one could become Immortal- and much more than that.
In the span of a few years, a shadowy internal war nearly destroyed the Cult of Asha as the Undead moved their alleigance- and the source of their power and immortality- to the Void. In the shadow of Men's cities, in eldritch catacombs that never knew light and in charnel fields under the sickly light of a hideous moon, the Dead gather once more, as Sandro pulls their strings from the darkness and directs this dark tide to whatever nefarious ends he has in mind. While the Void-cults are much less cohesive and disciplined than the destroyed Cults of Asha, their common lust for power and appreciation of Sandro's ruthless ambition and prowess against the Necropolis' enemies somehow holds them together- though just barely.
Playstyle
Necropolis plays similarly to previous incarnations (except H6).
Their key units (Skeletons and Husks) are relatively slow and nearly all their units (except a few exceptionals like Vampires, Liches and Riders) are statistically inferior to other factions. However, as always Necropolis creatures have numbers, numbers, undead immunities and multiple debuffs and DoT spells and abilities to destroy and cripple the enemy. Starting from the Elite tier, they also have 3 fliers (Vampires, Grave Maidens and Elder Ones).
Basically, as a Necropolis you'd want to prolong the fight to fully utilize the unique abilities of your creatures and heroes. Similarly to Orcs, Undead are vulnerable to Light and Fire, and also induce a morale penalty when combined with troops of other factions. Another weakness is that many Necropolis abilities only work on Living creatures. That makes more vulnerable to armies with multiple non-Living creatures like Academy and of-course other Necropolis players- until you get Grim Riders, that is.
Another unique advantage of Necropolis is the Necromancy skill. While initially it only raises Zombies, whose main purpose is distracting the enemy from your "real" units, with higher levels you can raise Skeletons, Ghasts or Vampires. Necropolis Magic Heroes can also raise Undead mid-battle and become masters of Dark Magic and unique Prime Void spells, while Might Heroes get Dirges- Warcry-like abilities which become more powerful as the number of casualties on the battlefield mounts (on both sides).
One note: The colors for the new Necropolis are black, white (or silver) and purple. The eyes of nearly all their units glow purple, but it will still be much less prominent than H6 Dungeon's "50 Shades of...".
Roster
Affiliated Neutral Units:
Zombie (tank / fodder) : Zombies are Neutral units affiliated with Necropolis, unrecruitable in town but raisable through Basic Necromancy, hero and unit (Lich) spells. They are possibly the slowest and weakest creatures in the game, but can reach terrifying numbers. In end-game you almost don't see them, though, as Necropolis has much better options.
They appear as rag-wearing undead, their faces almost eaten by decay (making their previous sex unrecognizable), utilizing their slams and bites to attack. Like all Void-animated Undead, their eyes (or what used to be their eyes) glow with a hideous purple light- I originally wanted blue, but it would be too similar to Game of Thrones' Wights and WoW's Scourge.
Abilities:
Undead: Undead are immune to mind-effecting spells, Curse, poison and disease. They lack morale, and suffer additional damage from Light and Fire magic.
Necrotic Flesh: Zombies have 20% Physical resistance, but suffer 133%
Fire damage (instead of the regular Undead 110%).
Zombify: Living creatures killed by Zombies join their ranks. Works exactly like the Ghost ability from Heroes 2- balanced by the extreme weakness of Zombies.
Core:
Skeleton / Skeleton Guard (tank)- Skeletons form the backbone (pun intended) of Necropolis armies. As wars and the following sickness and famines ravage the face of Ashan, the dead pile up- providing ample opportunities for Necromancers to raise their armies. Unlike Zombies, who mainly exist to absorb enemy damage and serve as fodder for certain Necropolis unit-sacrificing abilities (Archliches' Last Rites), Skeletons are already true Core units, with average stats but frightening numbers (especially once you get Advanced Necromancy). Their abilities are on the defensive side, but their numbers also make them quite the damage dealers in mid to late game.
Skeletons are unarmored and carry rusty curved swords and bucklers, while Skeleton Guards wear some armor pieces (though obviously not as well-armed as H7 upg. Skeletons) and bigger, non-rusty swords and round shields, adorned with the emblam of the Void: either some strange rune or a pupiless eye grasped by a tentacle- both are cliche, but what can I do?:-). As with all Void-based Undead, their eyes glow purple. Skeletons are possibly are the best Core unit, considering their relatively-cheap price and the fact you can get them en-masse though Advanced Necromancy.
Abilities:
Undead
Skeletal (basic): Being made of bone and nothing more, Skeletons only suffer 50% damage from ranged attacks- but take 150% damage from Earth (aka crushing) damage.
Eternal Watch (upgrade): By Defending, Skeleton Guards can enter a Defensive stance. As long as they don't move, they become immune to Flanking and nearby friendly units receive 33% less damage from ranged attacks.
Husk / Hollow (shooter): Warning: possibly the most disgusting unit in the game! Husks start to demonstrate the hideous effects of Void magic on formerly-living flesh. These obese, monstrous-looking corpses are actually inflated not only by extra layers of necrotic flesh, but by swarms of hungry insects dwelling within them. They appear as corpluent and obese corpses, faces covered by bloodied bandages with sickly purple light shining in-between- except for their hideous mouths, filled with black crooked teeth and dripping with saliva. Insects are constantly seen crawling between their bandages, from their mouths and under their skin. They attack by spitting clouds of Void-charged flies and locusts, that also burst out of their bulbous hands when they attack in melee. While quite slow, they have high HP and Ok damage & Defense.
Abilities:
Undead
Large
Shooter
Infestation (basic): Creatures damaged by Husks (at either melee or range) will suffer low Dark damage (depending on the Husks' stack size) and lose some speed for 2 rounds. Stacks up to 2 times, non-Living creatures (aka Undead, Constructs and Elementals) are immune.
Hideous Revenge (upgrade): If a Hollow stack is destroyed in melee, all Living units surrounding are automatically Infested.
Ghast / Void Ghast (saboteur / anti-caster): Ghasts are strange Undead who exist only partially on this world. Together with Husks are the first distinct products of Necropolis Void magic. They feast on magical energy to feed the hungry Void lying where their souls once were. They appear as shadowy, hunched humanoids with barely-distinct features, except for purplish-glowing claws and teeth- think something like a cross between H6 Ghouls, Ghosts and Venom from Spiderman. Ghasts have average to low stats (though higher than Skeletons and slightly better than Husks), but high speed and Ok attack & damage.
Abilities:
Undead
Flicker (basic): There's a 33% chance that at the beginning of their turn, you can choose changing the location of Ghasts to all tiles around their current one- and then act normally. This basically grants them automatic Flanking.
Incorporeal (basic): Physical attacks have 33% chance to utterly miss Ghasts. However, they take 150% damage from Prime-based attacks.
Magic Drain (basic): Ghasts' attacks automatically drain some spell points from attacked enemy casters. For every buff dispelled this way, stack members are healed and resurrected up to their starting number (but don't remain after combat).
Magic Feast (upgrade): In addition to draining spell points from enemy casters, Void Ghasts' attacks automatically dispel one buff affecting an enemy unit. For every buff dispelled this way, stack members are healed and resurrected up to their starting number (and remain after combat).
Elite :
Vampire / Strigoi (flyer / damage dealer): While Asha's Vampires were given Unlife by Namtaru venom, Void-based Vampires are reanimated by vile energy, which also twists them into cavaderous monstrosities who are strangely bat-like. Some speculate they are evolved Void Ghasts, while others claim these are two distinct types of Undead. Whatever their origins are, drinking living blood is the only thing preventing Vampires' bodies from being destroyed by the Void energy empowering them.
Vampires appear as alabaster-skinned, bald humanoids with bat-like ears and holes where their noses once were. Their mouths barely contain their enlogated fangs and their hands end in curved talons, and they wear fetish-y rubber-like clothing (think American Horror Story's Rubber Man) adorned with Void symbols and pieces of armor (like shoulder pads and greaves). They attack by emitting several bloodsucking tentacles from their mouths (just pay The Strain's creators for copyrights, it's f*ckin cool!), and transform into glowing mist to move. Vampires have average stats for Elite units but high speed- and they drain life, of course.
Abilities:
Undead
Flyer
No Retaliation
Life Leech (basic): The familiar ability, though resurrected Vampires don't remain after combat.
Life Drain (uprade): Same as Life Leech, but resurrected Strigoi now remain permanently.
Mesmerize (upgrade): Enemies struck by Strigoi have some chance to miss 1 turn (in additon to not being able to retaliate).
Lich / Arch Lich (shooter / spellcaster): Becoming a Lich is a nearly inevitable step for every aspiring Necromancer (who didn't become a Vampire first). These Undead sorcerers are literally teeming with the destructive power of the Void. They appear as robed skeletal Undead, tentacled crowns resting on their heads, floating slightly above-ground and grasping a staff and a book of incantations. The air shimmers with energy around them. As always, Liches shoot greenish Death Clouds from their staff or strike with it in melee.
Abilities:
Undead
Shooter
Death Cloud (basic): As previous Heroes games- an AoE-attack affecting Living creatures.
Spells (basic): Plague, Frality, Raise Zombie
Spells (uprade): Plague, Frality, Raise Skeleton, Raise Husk
Last Rites (upgrade): Archliches can destroy a corpse or sacrifice a friendly Undead stack (perferably Zombies) to regain spell points.
Grave Maiden / Banshee (flyer / saboteur): In contrast to common lore, Grave Maidens are not the spirits of wronged women who died in grief but actually female-shaped gestalts of various Void-lost souls, united into a single horrific- and quite mad- being. They appear as tall and gaunt, incorporeal green-ish women, in a massive Victorian-style dress supported by bones. When they attack or utilize an ability, their mouths stretch to impossible sizes. Generally they have slightly below average stats for Elites (except speed & HP), but are also cheap. They make excellent debuffers- weakenning your enemies so your main damage-dealers- Skeletons, Ghasts, Liches and Vampires can finish them off.
Abilities:
Undead
Large
Flyer
Incorporeal (basic): See Ghast for details.
Cursed Touch (basic): Grave Maidens have a large chance to inflict a Curse (as the Dark Magic spell) on enemies struck by their regular attack (as opposed to one of the two Wails).
Wail of Death (basic): Once every 2 rounds, Grave Maidens can let out a Wail of Death, dealing Dark damage to all Living units surrounding them.
Wail of Sorrow (upgrade): Instead of using Wail of Death, Banshees can let out a Wail of Sorrow which greatly reduces morale to Living units in a cone-shaped area in-front of them.
Champion :
Elder One / Undying One (flyer / saboteur): Elder Ones enter Ashan in places where the borders between Void and reality become thin and nearly non-existant. While normally formless, they are assembled a body made of multiple corpses by their disciples, which they possess and twist to fit their whims. In appearance, they are towering beings made of multiple fused corpses (think Dead Space's Necromorphs or Resident Evil's various mutated zombies), with 2 pairs of bat-wings and multiple eyes and fanged maws. They attack by biting and flailing with their tentacle-arms. Despite an impressive appearance Elder Ones actually have average to weak stats for Champion creatures, but very powerful debuff abilities (being the spiritual successors to Bone Dragons).
Abilities:
Undead
Large
Flyer
Aura of Terror (basic): Elder Ones reduce the morale of all living creatures standing around them. While the morale reduction is less drastic than the Banshee's Wail of Sorrow, the aura's effect is constant and doesn't cost any spell points.
Void Rot (basic): Creatures struck by Elder Ones have a hefty chance to contact Void Rot. Void Rot deals moderate damage over time (considered both Prime and Dark-based) and makes Healing and Resurrection spells (icnluding the various Raise spells and Animate Dead) only 20% effective. It isn't considered Poison, and thus also affects Undead.
Undying (upgrade): Undying Ones take 33% reduced damage from attacks made by Living creatures.
Curse of Ages (upgrade): In addition to Void Rot, Undying Ones' attack have a chance (although much slimmer) to inflict a Curse of Ages on an affected Living creature- effectively halving its stats (like the old Ghost Dragon ability).
Ankou / Dread Ankou (walker / damage dealer): These horrific beings ride their spectral horses at the vanguard of the armies of the Dead, and Death follows in their wake. As with all powerful Void-based Undead, Ankou's origins are mysterious and frightful. Most say they are the former members of the Spider Cult's most devout Death Knight Order, seduced & transformed by Sandro's Void Magic and serving as his personal bodyguard for all eternity, only deployed in the most dire of circumstances. Others claim they were never alive in the first place, and are actually Void spirits wearing the forms of mankind's worst nightmares- specifically the fear of an early, unnatural death.
Ankous appear like the classical Grim Reaper- hooded beings astride billowing spectral horses, possessing leering skeletal faces and carrying gigantic scythes whose blades are adorned with glowing Void runes and drip spectral blood. Dread Ankous are much better armored, and wear horrific iron masks & jagged crowns- think something like LoTR's Witch King. Stastically Ankous are only slightly better than Elder Ones (with good attack & damage & ok speed, but lousy HP), but once more- possess powerful abilities, being one of the game's more dangerous & mobile damage dealers (second only to Stronghold Wendigo in their killing potential).
Abilities:
Undead
Large
Mortal Fear (basic): The lower the target's morale is, the higher the damage dealt by Ankous. This gives them good synergy with Grave Maidens & Elder Ones, as well as your heroes' spells.
Ashes to Ashes (basic): Once every 2 rounds, Ankous can perform a special attack dealing Prime damage to Undead or creatures who were subject to Resurrection, Animate Dead, Raise spells or Death Calls- with the two stacking.
True Death (upgrade): Dread Ankous are killing machines, and their standard attack also inflicts a Death Stare-like effect (like HOMM 3's Mighty Gorgon).
Raiment of Souls (upgrade): Once per combat, Dread Ankous can raise a Raiment of Souls around themselves. The Raiment completely absorbs 1 attack + 1 for every stack previously destroyed by the Dread Ankou.
Heroes
Might
Reaper (Offense)
Death Knight (Governance)
Void Gurdian (Defense)
Nethermancer (Offense)
Necromancer (Governance)
Alienist (Defense)
Necropolis Faction Skill: Necromancy
Necromancy is all about overriding the boundries between life & death, binding dead bodies and souls to the Necromancer's whim. This ancient Art was discovered by the rogue Archon Belketh and passed down to his disciples over the millenia, including the likes of Sandro, Markal and Arantir. In the past, most Necromancers revered Asha's Spider-godess aspect and saw their art as a form of worship. Nowdays, their eyes (or eye sockets...) were opened by Sandro's strange return from utter destruction and they research the secrets of Void Magic, or Nethermancy, casting down all faiths in the pursuit of true power and immortality. Necromancy is about all raising the Undead after combat, and masses of them. Its Perks support that function, but also provide additional powerful debuffs to those supplied by Dark Magic.
Basic Necromancy: Raises a certain percentage of slain Living enemies as Zombies. If Hero knows Basic Dark Magic, can cast Raise Zombie.
Advanced Necromancy: Raises a higher percentage of slain enemies as Skeletons or Zombies. If Hero knows Basic Dark Magic, can cast Raise Skeleton.
Expert Necromancy: Raises an even higher percentage of slain enemies as Husks or Ghasts (hero's choice, alongside Skeletons and Zombies). If Hero knows Advanced Dark Magic, can cast Raise Husk & Raise Ghast.
Note: The more powerful creatures you choose to raise, the less of them you'll get. They are ranked; Zombie -> Skeleton -> Husk -> Ghast -> Vampire -> Grave Maiden.
Perks:
Corpse Explosion: Explodes a corpse, dealing area of effect Dark & Earth damage to creatures surrounding it. Requires Basic Necromancy.
No Rest for the Wicked: Resurrects some of you (or the enemy's) slain Undead as part of your forces. Requires Advanced Necromancy & Basic Dark Magic or Basic Prime Magic.
Control Undead: Gains control of an enemy Undead stack for two rounds. Requires Expert Necromancy, Advanced Dark Magic or Advanced Prime Magic & No Rest for the Wicked.
Master Reanimator: Increases the potency of Raise spells & Animate Dead. If Hero knows Expert Dark Magic & Summoning, can cast Death Calls. If Hero knows Expert Dark Magic & Sorcery, can cast Hand of Death. Requires Control Undead & Expert Dark Magic or Expert Prime Magic.
Lament: Reduces morale & luck for all living creatures on the battlefield, gaining greater potency according to the amount of creatures killed (fills a kind of gauge). Requires Advanced Necromancy & Basic Tactics or Basic Offense or Basic Defense.
Requiem: Increases Attack & speed for all friendly Undead creatures present on the battlefield, gaining greater potency according to the amount of creatures killed. Requires Lament.
Dirge of Decay: Deals Dark damage & removes all positive effects from all living creatures on the battlefield. Works similarly to the Dark spell Unholy Word (besides the Negation effect), except the base damage is higher, it doesn't cost mana and grows more powerful the more creatures are killed. Requires Expert Necromancy, Advanced Tactics or Advanced Offense & Lament.
Sanguine Mysteries: Raises the highest percentage of slain enemies as Vampires or Grave Maidens (hero's choice, alongside previous creatures). If Hero knows Expert Dark Magic, can cast Raise Vampire & Raise Grave Maiden. Requires Expert Necromancy & Corpse Explosion, Expert Dark Magic or Expert Prime Magic or Expert Tactics or Expert Offense or Expert Defense & Master Reanimator or Dirge of Decay.
Necropolis Buildings:
Standard
Village Hall-> Town Hall->City Hall->Capitol
Fort->Citadel->Castle
Tavern
Marketplace->Resource Silo (Mercury- I'd like a return to the good old resources instead of all this Dragonblood cr*p)
Blacksmith (War Machines produced: Skutapult, Reanimator, Plague Meister)
Mage Guild- up to level 5, associated spell schools: Dark, Earth & Prime. Blocked spell schools- Fire & Light.
Shipyard (produces Ghost Ships)
Special
Charnel Grounds
Soul Beacon
Howling Watchers
Undead Transformer
-> Halls of Darkness
-> Nameless Statue
Grail:
Gates of Carcosa
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MattII 
Legendary Hero
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posted April 29, 2015 10:08 AM |
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Bolding the creature's names would do wonders for comprehension.
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LizardWarrior
Honorable
Legendary Hero
the reckoning is at hand
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posted May 12, 2015 08:10 PM |
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Yay, Void Necropolis  However, as Matt said, it would need better formatting, it's pretty hard to read
Quote:
Undead are vulnerable to Fire
It doesn't make sense. Humans are made up to 70% percent water and corpses absorbs liquids pretty well and bones don't burn that easy. The fat is most likely to catch fire, but it has to burn flesh until it gets there. The fact that fire works is so feared in real life warfare it's because it's very painful and it kills you slowly, a lot more painful than getting shoot or stabbed. Undead are well, dead so the pain wouldn't work and neither will they get intoxicated by carbon monoxide, so on the contrary, I'd rather add a increased resistance to fire
Quote:
One note: The colors for the new Necropolis are black, white (or silver) and purple. The eyes of nearly all their units glow purple, but it will still be much less prominent than H6
I'd rather use Oxford Blue than purple, this way it's also different from other games and it fits the void better IMO. Also, I think that they shouldn't glow, but the opposite, maybe a "radiating" black that sucks the light?
Quote:
Zombie (tank / fodder) : Zombies are Neutral units affiliated with Necropolis, unrecruitable in town but raisable through Basic Necromancy, hero and unit (Lich) spells. They are possibly the slowest and weakest creatures in the game, but can reach terrifying numbers. In end-game you almost don't see them, though, as Necropolis has much better options.
Pretty interesting concept, but I'd add more elements that links them to the void, like some extra appendages and such
Quote:
Skeleton / Skeleton Guard (tank)-
Pretty solid, but I'd recommend a more suggestive name and more void elements as well
Quote:
Husk / Hollow (shooter)
Very imaginative, I like them. They seem like a true hideous necropolis
Quote:
Ghast / Void Ghast (saboteur / anti-caster)
I'd suggest just keeping these units and scrap Grave Maiden/Banshee in favor of Tindalos Hounds which fit a lot better with the Void theme.
Quote:
Vampire / Strigoi
Hehe, I like that you got Strigoi as upgrade, seems pretty good.
Quote:
Lich / Arch Lich
A must, of course.
Quote:
Elder One / Undying One
Pretty good, fits with the Void nicely, tough I'd rather prefer a Lovecraftian beast with lots of cadaverous appendages and such, but this is one good creature anyway
Quote:
Grim Rider / Dread Rider
I'd recommend to name them to Ankou. And of course they must be skeletal
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Minion
Legendary Hero
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posted May 18, 2015 11:54 AM |
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@LizardWarrior
The undead can't have a resistance to everything though  Fire is good at destroying stuff, I'd rather not have units with a resistance to it other than certain (or all) demons and fire elementals. Resistance to Cold however would fit the undead more.
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"These friends probably started using condoms after having produced the most optimum amount of offsprings. Kudos to them for showing at least some restraint" - Tsar-ivor
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moonshade
Known Hero
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posted May 18, 2015 01:34 PM |
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About the Undead and resistances..
Remember Undead are already immune to Dark damage, Poison/Disease (through their Dark damage immunity), morale loss & mind-affecting magic, including Blind. Many of them (namely Zombies, Skeletons, Ghasts, Grave Maidens & Undying Ones) also possess resistance to physical damage. Do you really want to make them more powerful by also giving them Cold resistance? I don't think so.
Also, while LizardWarrior might be right scientifically, one must remember we're playing a fantasy game. Fire- also considering its religious symbolism as a purifier- was used in multiple shows, books & games as a great way to get rid of the Undead. So why not here? This also allows the other two evil factions- Dungeon & Inferno- who also somehow rely on Dark magic (especially Dungeon)- to have effective tools against Necropolis (Efreet Viziers can also burn corpses to regain Mana through the Charnel Pyre ability).
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LizardWarrior
Honorable
Legendary Hero
the reckoning is at hand
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posted May 18, 2015 02:49 PM |
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Minion said:
@LizardWarrior
The undead can't have a resistance to everything though Fire is good at destroying stuff, I'd rather not have units with a resistance to it other than certain (or all) demons and fire elementals. Resistance to Cold however would fit the undead more.
Not resistance, just no vulnerability. Also fire is very effective against any living being, so why undead got vulnerability and living units do not, even tough it would be logical for undead to get fire resistance.
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