DTX Studios: Pillars: Fire and Lightning strikes reach anywhere on the map (no range limit in the game)

2026-10-13T21:43:40Z

Pillars: Fire and Lightning strikes reach anywhere on the map (no range limit in the game)

← Older revision		Revision as of 21:43, 13 October 2026
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	=== Fire ===		=== Fire ===
	* Every 6 seconds for 5 minutes, a strike falls on the '''densest cluster of enemy buildings''' ~~within 500 metres of~~ the Pillar~~, which covers most of a map~~. The first strike falls at once.		* Every 6 seconds for 5 minutes, a strike falls on the '''densest cluster of enemy buildings''' anywhere on the map, however far it is from the Pillar. The first strike falls at once.
	* Each strike hits every enemy unit and building within about 9 metres for '''60 damage''' and sets them '''Burning''' (see [[Magic#Status effects\|status effects]]).		* Each strike hits every enemy unit and building within about 9 metres for '''60 damage''' and sets them '''Burning''' (see [[Magic#Status effects\|status effects]]).

DTX Studios: Pillars: a skirmish Pillar needs 60 mage-minutes (the table's 150 x the game's 0.4 charge scale), verified in code and in a capture log

2026-10-13T21:33:51Z

Pillars: a skirmish Pillar needs 60 mage-minutes (the table's 150 x the game's 0.4 charge scale), verified in code and in a capture log

← Older revision		Revision as of 21:33, 13 October 2026
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	\| Extra time once charging starts \|\| +5 minutes (once per location)		\| Extra time once charging starts \|\| +5 minutes (once per location)
	\|-		\|-
	\| Charge needed \|\| ~~150~~ mage-minutes		\| Charge needed \|\| 60 mage-minutes (a story mission can set its own)
	\|-		\|-
	\| Charging range \|\| 12 metres around the stone		\| Charging range \|\| 12 metres around the stone
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	== Charging ==		== Charging ==
	Only '''mage''' units charge a Pillar. Every living mage within 12 metres of the stone adds to the charge.		Only '''mage''' units charge a Pillar. Every living mage within 12 metres of the stone adds to the charge.
	* The charge is measured in '''mage-minutes'''. A Pillar needs '''~~150~~ mage-minutes''': for example, 30 mages for 5 minutes, or 15 mages for 10 minutes.		* The charge is measured in '''mage-minutes'''. A Pillar needs '''60 mage-minutes''': for example, 12 mages for 5 minutes, or 6 mages for 10 minutes. The charge grows in step with the number of mages in range.
	* '''Allies share one charge.''' The mages of every player on a team count together.		* '''Allies share one charge.''' The mages of every player on a team count together.
	* A charge bar above the stone shows its progress and whose charge it is.		* A charge bar above the stone shows its progress and whose charge it is.

DTX Studios: Wiki launch content: written from the game's code, data and story bible (Tools/wiki/content)

2026-10-13T21:13:50Z

Wiki launch content: written from the game's code, data and story bible (Tools/wiki/content)

New page

{{DISPLAYTITLE:Pillars}}
'''Pillars''', also called '''Points of Power''', are ancient stone obelisks that rise out of the ground during a match. Whoever channels enough magic into a Pillar unleashes its power: a barrage of fire or lightning on the enemy, or a protective blessing on their own side.

A Pillar does not belong to anyone. It answers the side whose [[Magic|mages]] channel it the longest.

== Overview ==
{| class="wikitable"
! Property !! Value
|-
| Pillars on the map || One at a time
|-
| First Pillar || 10 minutes into the match
|-
| Next Pillar || 10 minutes after the previous one is gone
|-
| Elements || Fire, Lightning, Earth, Water (chosen at random)
|-
| Lifetime if nobody charges it || 15 minutes, then it sinks and moves
|-
| Extra time once charging starts || +5 minutes (once per location)
|-
| Charge needed || 150 mage-minutes
|-
| Charging range || 12 metres around the stone
|-
| Effect duration || 5 minutes
|}

== Finding a Pillar ==
* When a Pillar appears, every player is told: the chat's System tab shows ''"A Point of Power has appeared: Fire."'' (or the element in question), and an alert sounds.
* The message names the '''element''' but '''not the location'''. The Pillar is hidden by the [[Fog of war|fog of war]] like anything else, so it has to be found by scouting.
* The stone rises out of the ground over a few seconds.
* A Pillar is placed well away from players' starting positions and from buildings. It never appears on water, and the game checks that it can be reached on foot from the starting positions. If the map is crowded, the spacing rules are relaxed step by step.
* You can click a Pillar to select it. Its panel shows its name, such as '''Pillar of Fire''', and its state.

== Charging ==
Only '''mage''' units charge a Pillar. Every living mage within 12 metres of the stone adds to the charge.
* The charge is measured in '''mage-minutes'''. A Pillar needs '''150 mage-minutes''': for example, 30 mages for 5 minutes, or 15 mages for 10 minutes.
* '''Allies share one charge.''' The mages of every player on a team count together.
* A charge bar above the stone shows its progress and whose charge it is.

=== Contesting a Pillar ===
Charging is a tug of war.
* The side with the most mages in range leads. Its net power is its mage count '''minus the second-largest side's''' mage count.
* If the leading side already holds the charge, the bar fills.
* If a different side leads, it '''pushes the bar back down'''. When the bar reaches zero, the charge changes hands and the new side starts filling it.
* If two sides have the same number of mages, the bar '''freezes'''. It does not drain while both sides fight over it.

=== Leaving a Pillar alone ===
* If no mage of any side is in range, the charge '''drains''' at 10 mage-minutes per minute. Leaving briefly costs some progress; it does not reset the bar.
* The panel then reads ''"Draining N% - nobody is channelling"''.

=== Panel states ===
{| class="wikitable"
! Panel text !! Meaning
|-
| ''Rising'' / ''Sinking'' || The stone is coming out of, or going back into, the ground.
|-
| ''Uncharged - bring mages nearby'' || Nobody has charged it yet.
|-
| ''Charging N%'' || A side is filling the charge.
|-
| ''Draining N% - nobody is channelling'' || No mages are in range; the charge is bleeding away.
|-
| ''Spent'' || The Pillar's power has been used.
|-
| ''Dormant - cold until woken'' || Story missions only: a Pillar that cannot be charged yet.
|}

== Lifetime and relocation ==
* A Pillar that nobody charges lasts '''15 minutes'''.
* The moment charging begins, it gains '''5 extra minutes''', once.
* If its time runs out before it is fully charged, it '''sinks into the ground and rises somewhere else''' with a '''new random element'''. The charge is lost.
* The relocated Pillar gets a fresh 15 minutes and can again gain the 5-minute extension.

== Unleashing a Pillar ==
When the charge is full, the Pillar is '''taken''':
* Every player sees ''"A Point of Power has been taken: Fire."'' (or the element in question) and hears a sound for that element, so even players who never found the stone know what is coming.
* The stone vanishes, and its effect runs for '''5 minutes''' on the side that charged it.
* The next Pillar appears '''10 minutes''' after the effect ends.

=== Fire ===
* Every 6 seconds for 5 minutes, a strike falls on the '''densest cluster of enemy buildings''' within 500 metres of the Pillar, which covers most of a map. The first strike falls at once.
* Each strike hits every enemy unit and building within about 9 metres for '''60 damage''' and sets them '''Burning''' (see [[Magic#Status effects|status effects]]).

=== Lightning ===
* The same barrage as Fire, but aimed at the '''densest cluster of enemy units'''.
* Everything hit is '''Paralysed''': it deals 30% less damage and takes 25% more damage.

=== Earth ===
* Once, when the Pillar is taken, '''every allied unit and building''' receives the '''Earthen Ward''' for 5 minutes: 15% less damage taken.
* Enemies who stand close (about 2.5 metres) to a warded unit or building are hurt by the ground itself ('''Stonebitten''').

=== Water ===
* Once, when the Pillar is taken, '''every allied unit''' receives the '''Blessing of Water''' for 5 minutes: it regains 1.5 health per second.
* Each blessed unit also heals allies standing close to it ('''Renewed''').
* Buildings and walls are not healed. Repairing them is the villagers' job.

=== Notices ===
* The player who charged a Fire or Lightning Pillar is told when the barrage begins, for example ''"Pillar of Fire unleashed - striking (player names)."''
* A player whose base is struck is warned, at most every 8 seconds, for example ''"Pillar of Fire strike! 3 building(s) and 5 unit(s) hit."''
* Each strike shows a ping on the minimap and a visual effect at the impact point.

=== Damage rules ===
* Pillar damage counts as the charging player's: kills are credited to them.
* The victims' armour, [[Disciplines]] and other defences reduce Pillar damage as usual.
* Pillar damage is '''not''' increased by the charging player's Combat Offense points or by the Mystic [[Callings|Calling]].
* Because a strike damages everything in its area, it is one of the few sources of area damage in the game. Normal unit attacks hit one target.

== Computer opponents ==
AI opponents look for, charge and contest Pillars. How hard they try depends on their [[AI difficulty|difficulty]]: '''Very Easy''' AI ignores Pillars, Easy and Normal look near their own base, and '''Hard''' and above find a Pillar anywhere on the map and start training mages before it rises. See [[AI difficulty#Pillars]].

== Story missions ==
Story missions can change the rules: some missions have no Pillars, some keep a Pillar '''dormant''' (it can be found but not charged until the story wakes it), and some need a smaller charge than normal.

== Planned or unconfirmed ==
* The owner's description of the Pillar cycle (first spawn about 10 minutes in, 15 minutes active, an uncharged Pillar sinks and moves, element fully random) matches what the game does today. The exact first-spawn time (10 or 15 minutes) is listed as an open question.
* The '''storm''' (lightning bolts from the sky that hit every side) exists in story missions only. No Pillar starts a storm in a skirmish.

Pillars - Revision history

DTX Studios: Pillars: Fire and Lightning strikes reach anywhere on the map (no range limit in the game)

DTX Studios: Pillars: a skirmish Pillar needs 60 mage-minutes (the table's 150 x the game's 0.4 charge scale), verified in code and in a capture log

DTX Studios: Wiki launch content: written from the game's code, data and story bible (Tools/wiki/content)