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    Your Elvenar Team

Send in the Commander

Short Summary:
A new building that houses ‘Commanders’. These Commanders only influence the battle with unique special effects rather than being part of a squad (i.e., only buff/nerf effects). They can be leveled up with Experience.

Details:
A new building, let's call it the War Council and let's make it not too large, houses "Commanders". These are individuals that do not actually take up a squad or join the fighting 'physically'. They each have a unique ability that enhances friendly troops' performance or reduces enemy's performance in a fight (e.g. Xandar reduces all friendly defensive penalty by x%, or Sidhra reduces all enemy initiative by x%, etc.). The portrait for each Commander will become available for your profile when you get him/her to the max level (more details below).

In the fight setup interface, there will be a checkbox "Send in the Commander". If you select it, the Commander 'commissioned' (highlighted by you in the war council) will have his/her effect active during that whole fight. The check-box will then be disabled for a relatively long cool-down period (1 day). This cool-down can be reduced later with research/AW, and the effectiveness of a Commander could grow with leveling up through accumulating Experience (+1 for a victory). They can then be leveled up at Experience milestones with some resources like Ancient Wonders do. If you send in a Commander and lose the fight anyway, the next cool-down period is doubled as a penalty.

Benefits:
  1. Since the unit upgrades are all done by the end of the Elvenar chapter (i.e., all units are 3-stars), I thought it would be nice to have a new military-related line of research to invest in.
  2. It provides a rich menu of customized fighting bonuses that, if used wisely and effectively, can turn the tides in a seemingly hopeless battle.
  3. Each player can focus on a Commander they like best based on the fights they find most challenging.
  4. New profile pictures that need to be earned!
  5. The long-term growth of each Commander, the addition of new Commanders, and improving Commander effects and cool-down periods (e.g. potential AW integration) can provide endless fun!
Negative Effects:
  1. We already have 5-day unit enhancement buildings and Fire Phoenix to enhance fighting. This idea might be too much work for the devs since the effects are not simple. However, I think the diverse fighting that Commanders could bring will help players take more interest in knowing the details of different units and invigorate the competitive players to work on leveling up their Commanders. For those who like analogies, Commanders provide an opportunity of ‘sniping’ a single fight and moving on. Buildings and phoenix have very general effects that are basically used for ‘overpowering’ enemies for 1 or 5 days.
  2. Since caterers will have less reason to enjoy this, they might not like it. However, maybe some Commanders are specialized in logistics and affect catering cost.
  3. It adds additional complexity to the fighting system (although this could be seen as a benefit by some?)
The idea might seem like too much work, but as it provides a platform for a myriad of other easy implementations down the road, I hope it will be considered :)
 
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DeletedUser25841

Guest
What sort of cooldown for the commanders? A week, a day, or an hour? Is this only for big fights like the spire bosses or can be relatively useful in more frequent fights as well
 
What sort of cooldown for the commanders? A week, a day, or an hour? Is this only for big fights like the spire bosses or can be relatively useful in more frequent fights as well
I think 1 week is too long, and one hour would be too short. Other opinions are welcome! I am guessing starting at 1-2 days cooldown and maybe with some AW effect it will eventually be cut in half. So using them on easy fights would be a waste (unless for leveling them without worry), but getting too careless in hopeless fights and losing would also penalize their experience points. Spire bosses are a good example, though!
 

Alpha Lyrae

Well-Known Member
I've encountered this in another game (they were called Aesir). When activated, the bonus lasted for 1 hour and cool down (when the Aesir was maxed) lasted 2 days. I think that's pretty reasonable. That would cover a tournament round and could be used for 5 or 6 star provinces.

Though, this is beginning to feel a little like the Phoenix feeding effect, which doesn't require a cool down. I like the idea that this would be a permanent building available to all players, unlike the Phoenix, which new players likely will never have.
 

Henroo

Oh Wise One
I've encountered this in another game (they were called Aesir). When activated, the bonus lasted for 1 hour and cool down (when the Aesir was maxed) lasted 2 days. I think that's pretty reasonable. That would cover a tournament round and could be used for 5 or 6 star provinces.

Though, this is beginning to feel a little like the Phoenix feeding effect, which doesn't require a cool down. I like the idea that this would be a permanent building available to all players, unlike the Phoenix, which new players likely will never have.
It is possible to make Fire Phoenix in the Magic Academy. And in the last event you had the option of converting Coldfire artifacts into regular Phoenix artifacts. Which is what I did with every CF artifact I won in that event, so I can even evolve it somewhat. Assuming the stupid Magic Academy will ever co-operate and give me the option to craft it. I have been on the lookout for it ever since the Phoenix Cult event ended and it has not popped up in my crafting rotation once. And no, I do not have one in my inventory. I am aware that once you craft one, it drops out of the crafting rotation.
 

Alpha Lyrae

Well-Known Member
Yes, new players can craft the base Phoenix building, but evolving it will be near impossible. What's to say that the next conversion isn't for Coldfire artifacts and yet another new Phoenix? We just don't know. It's been discussed here on the forum, ad nauseum, if you're interested. A building that unlocks in research is a very different thing and would be available to all.
 

Henroo

Oh Wise One
Yes, new players can craft the base Phoenix building, but evolving it will be near impossible. What's to say that the next conversion isn't for Coldfire artifacts and yet another new Phoenix? We just don't know. It's been discussed here on the forum, ad nauseum, if you're interested. A building that unlocks in research is a very different thing and would be available to all.

I am going to use the artifacts I just converted to evolve it. The ratio to make them was 2-1, so I only was able to make 5 of them. But that will give me a half-way decent evolved Fire Phoenix. Certainly better than anything else I could manage since I was not yet playing in the original Phoenix event.
 

Alpha Lyrae

Well-Known Member
I am going to use the artifacts I just converted to evolve it. The ratio to make them was 2-1, so I only was able to make 5 of them. But that will give me a half-way decent evolved Fire Phoenix. Certainly better than anything else I could manage since I was not yet playing in the original Phoenix event.

Amen to that. Even a partially evolved Phoenix ain't bad if you can get it.
 
I've encountered this in another game (they were called Aesir). When activated, the bonus lasted for 1 hour and cool down (when the Aesir was maxed) lasted 2 days. I think that's pretty reasonable. That would cover a tournament round and could be used for 5 or 6 star provinces.

Though, this is beginning to feel a little like the Phoenix feeding effect, which doesn't require a cool down. I like the idea that this would be a permanent building available to all players, unlike the Phoenix, which new players likely will never have.
Thanks for sharing your perspective and information! There are definitely some similarities to feeding Phoenix, but also some major differences. First, the process of improving the effect of each commander will be long (like leveling up an AW), while the phoenix evolutions pretty much wrapped up within an event period. We can even have the portrait of a commander become available in profile portraits if they reach max level :) Commanders would level up quickest for active players who use them as often as the cool-down period allows, but also without being defeated.

Second, I was thinking each commander has a unique effect that can be useful when appropriate (unlike e.g. Fire Phoenix that has a very general effect). For instance, a commander who reduces initiative of enemies can be very effective when it gives the friendly troops the initiative advantage, turning the tides of the battle. But choosing that commander in fights with already slow enemies would make no difference. Therefore, each player can choose their favorite commander to focus on leveling up first based on the types of fights they find most difficult. This was just an example but I am trying to depict the richness of gameplay that could be achieved! -with proper beta testing of course :)
 

Alpha Lyrae

Well-Known Member
I'm a sucker for new avatars, so I love that idea! In that other game I mentioned, each "commander" affected a different troop type (in addition to other, minor bonuses). An example would be a commander that affects mage health, one that affects light melee offense, etc. So, maybe that's an option. There could even be permanent bonuses and activated bonuses. So, as you upgrade, the permanent bonuses are always in effect and the major bonuses only available when activated.

Really liking this idea. :)
 
I'm a sucker for new avatars, so I love that idea! In that other game I mentioned, each "commander" affected a different troop type (in addition to other, minor bonuses). An example would be a commander that affects mage health, one that affects light melee offense, etc. So, maybe that's an option. There could even be permanent bonuses and activated bonuses. So, as you upgrade, the permanent bonuses are always in effect and the major bonuses only available when activated.

Really liking this idea. :)
By the way I love your avatar, I should find myself a good avatar for the forum!
 

Henroo

Oh Wise One
Just a suggestion to maybe balance this idea out some more: if you do use your commander and you *STILL* lose the fight, then the cooldown of the commander is doubled.
 
Just a suggestion to maybe balance this idea out some more: if you do use your commander and you *STILL* lose the fight, then the cooldown of the commander is doubled.
I like that, it’s probably easier to implement than penalizing XP when commander loses, but still kind of serves the same function since it slows their growth (in addition to losing your chances for using them).
 

samidodamage

Buddy Fan Club member
please do comment
I think I like the idea, lol! This is the only game I've ever played using combat, so I don't know enough about the impact of the idea to offer anything constructive. I have been following along with the discussion and will continue to do so. Have you looked through the sticky on how to frame suggestions for maximum chance at getting it to a poll and then forwarded to the devs? That might help with polishing everything up.
 
I think I like the idea, lol! This is the only game I've ever played using combat, so I don't know enough about the impact of the idea to offer anything constructive. I have been following along with the discussion and will continue to do so. Have you looked through the sticky on how to frame suggestions for maximum chance at getting it to a poll and then forwarded to the devs? That might help with polishing everything up.
Thanks for the tip! I did read that thread before, but not carefully enough it seems :) I edited things again, this time no blue since there is too much change!
 

sam767

Well-Known Member
I voted against - pls send hate mail to my PM. It is an extremely interesting idea but too complicated for the level of development effort Elvenar can fund. I am involved in the endless beta test of a monster WWII game that never stops adding extremely complex features all to diminishing returns. There is too much low hanging fruit to implement this extremely expensive idea. (I am a retired dev).
 
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