Lore workings

Created with extensive input from my lore abiding citizen, the littlest guy I know, Huon Croucher

Hundreds of millions of years ago, when the Australian continent pulsed with molten fire, the Earth gave birth to ancient spirits. They sculpted life not with gentle hands, but with eruptions that split mountains with rivers of lava. Their creations were small, flame-tempered critters that thrived in the inferno. But when the seas rose to drown the land, the spirits spent their last embers shielding their favoured critters up onto tiny islands, before the spirits sank into the asthenosphere to dream.

Now, their slumber is restless. Their rumbling dreams seep into the land through cracks in the crust, twisting into songlines that hum in the bones of the critters above. These loyal critters collect shimmering minerals forged from the spirits’ dreams coursing through the earth, using them to carve new biomes atop the drowned island ruins of the old world. Each devoted critter thrives on the ego of its creator-spirit, its songline a warped hymn:

“I alone birthed life. I alone shaped the flame.”

The critters, drunk on divine dreams, fight with their terraforming claws. The land grows as a patchwork of half-truths, colliding myths, and buried fire that threatens to wake the slumbering spirits… and ending the world a second time.

The Spirits

So the idea is to have an option to play as a particular creator-spirit, humming songlines to control your critters for those inclined, rather than playing to a random set of powers.

1. Echidna (Gaia reborn)

Theme: “Life blooms from destruction” Instead of quills, its back blooms with volcanic orchids that thrive in ash. Their critters are symbiotic cultivators with petal paws that spread pollen during eruptions.

Strategy: Expansionist engine

2. Emu (Sky tyrant)

Theme: “The horizon is a lie” A deity who despises boundaries, able to run at a speed that its legs crackle with storm energy, lifting it into the sky. Their critters can float on air currents.

Strategy: Aggressive mobility

3. Tassie Devil (Furnace maw)

Theme: “Rage is the only truth” A spirit with a molten magma sac for a stomach. Their critters are crazed zealots who grow stronger near death.

Strategy: Aggressive disruption

4. Wombat (The tunneler)

Theme: “The earth remembers” A slow, armored spirit who carves protective tunnels. Their critters are industrial and value stability over expansion.

Strategy: Defensive/economic build

Power Grids

1. Echidna (Gaia Reborn) - Expansionist Engine

Theme: “Life blooms from destruction.” Thrives in ash, symbiotic cultivators. Strategy: Expansionist Engine This grid focuses on resource generation, efficient building (especially on new land), and resilience.

Level 1: Bountiful Resources (Essential for any engine to start strong) Path to L2A & L2B

Level 2: A) Crafty Critters (Buy multiple tiles, excels with volcanic soil – “life from ash”) Path to L3A & L3B (Central) B) Herding Critters (Bonus resources, defensive symbiotic groups) Path to L3B (Central) & L3C

Level 3: A) Sea Critters (Expand to new frontiers, life emerging) Path to L4A B) Volcanic Migration (Central: Critters survive eruptions, key to “life blooms from destruction”) Path to L4A & L4B C) Erosion (Uncover new land, create opportunities for growth) Path to L4B

Level 4: A) Extra Bountiful Resources (Further boost the economic engine) Path to L5 B) Converging Tectonic Plates (Reshape the land, major expansion/connection for life) Path to L5

Level 5: Super Volcanic Eruption (The ultimate destruction that catalyzes Echidna’s unique bloom, as her cultivators spread life during eruptions – a full-circle theme.)

2. Emu (Sky Tyrant) - Aggressive Mobility

Theme: “The horizon is a lie.” Despises boundaries, storm energy, air current critters. Strategy: Aggressive Mobility This grid prioritizes movement abilities, board reach, and powers that disrupt opponent positioning.

Level 1: Bountiful Resources (Fuel early volcano purchases to quickly access key mobility powers) Path to L2A & L2B

Level 2: A) Agile Critters (Core multi-move and ability to reach adjacent uncontrolled tiles) Path to L3A & L3B (Central) B) Flying Critters (Ultimate single-critter long-range movement) Path to L3B (Central) & L3C

Level 3: A) Pack Critters (Aggressive mobile groups to hunt and control territory) Path to L4A B) Landslide (Central: Forcibly move opponent tiles/critters, break their boundaries) Path to L4A & L4B C) Lateral Eruption (Aggressive, ranged area control, breaking opponent formations) Path to L4B

Level 4: A) Rift (Literally split islands, breaking established boundaries) Path to L5 B) Converging Tectonic Plates (Shift entire landmasses, ultimate expression of “horizon is a lie”) Path to L5

Level 5: Volcanic Winter (Impose their boundless nature by freezing others’ ability to act and move, asserting dominance over all boundaries.)

3. Tassie Devil (Furnace Maw) - Aggressive Disruption

Theme: “Rage is the only truth.” Molten magma sac, suicidal zealots, stronger near death. Strategy: Aggressive Disruption This grid focuses on direct damage, tile destruction, and making combat highly risky for opponents.

Level 1: Magma Bomb (Perfect for early, direct ranged aggression and disruption) Path to L2A & L2B

Level 2: A) Colossal Critter (A powerful, hard-to-remove “zealot” for aggressive plays) Path to L3A & L3B (Central) B) Lava Diversion (Control lava to disrupt opponent plans or even turn their own volcanoes against them) Path to L3B (Central) & L3C

Level 3: A) Pack Critters (Aggressive takeover units, reflecting the “zealot” theme) Path to L4A B) Lateral Eruption (Central: Double the destruction, embodying the furnace maw’s rage) Path to L4A & L4B C) Volcanic Migration (Own “suicidal” critters can be strategically saved or their loss mitigated, allowing for relentless attacks) Path to L4B

Level 4: A) Erosion (Directly remove opponent tiles, aggressive denial and disruption) Path to L5 B) Landslide (Create chaos, crush opponents, fits the disruptive rage theme) Path to L5

Level 5: Super Volcanic Eruption (The ultimate unleashing of the Furnace Maw’s rage, maximum board disruption.)

4. Wombat (The Tunneler) - Defensive/Economic Build

Theme: “The earth remembers.” Slow, armored, carves tunnels, industrial critters, values stability. Strategy: Defensive/Economic Build This grid focuses on steady resource accumulation, resilience, protecting assets, and building a strong, stable board presence.

Level 1: Exalted Sacrifices (Start with making sacrifices (storing value in the earth) more potent for long-term gain) Path to L2A & L2B

Level 2: A) Frugal Ritual (Make sacrifices cheaper, synergizing with L1 for a steady value engine) Path to L3A & L3B (Central) B) Bountiful Resources (Essential resource boost to fuel sacrifices and defensive structures) Path to L3B (Central) & L3C

Level 3: A) Herding Critters (Defensive critter groups that also provide bonus resources – stability and economy) Path to L4A B) Volcanic Migration (Central: Critters are resilient and can survive attacks, fitting the “armored” theme) Path to L4A & L4B C) Lava Diversion (Protect their established tunnels and structures from destruction) Path to L4B

Level 4: A) Crafty Critters (Efficiently build and expand their stable, tunneled domain, especially using rich volcanic soil) Path to L5 B) Extra Bountiful Resources (Further strengthen the economic foundation for a long, stable game) Path to L5

Level 5: Volcanic Winter (The ultimate expression of stability: the earth settles, everything freezes, and what the Wombat has built and “remembered” endures through the stillness.)