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Report RSS The Road to Edain 4.5: Spellbook of Rohan

The new spellbook for Rohan has been finished after a couple of complications and is now much more focused and organized.

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Edain Mod 4.5: The Spellbook of Rohan

Greetings, companions of Edain,


Today we want to present you the next overhauled spellbook:

SPELLBOOK OF ROHAN


In our opinion Rohan always had a messy and unfocussed spellbook: Many spells either had no clear purpose or their purpose was overlapping with that of other spells. For example, we always disliked that Rohan had four temporary summons but not one of them emphasized Rohan's cavalry focus - even while the supposed horseman faction had two very similiar archer summons!

In the end Rohan lost 2 old spells, gained one new one and 6 spells have been reworked to varying degrees. Additionally the spells have been repositioned and adjusted to the new spellbook structure.

You can read more about the new spellbook structure in general, including the new long-term and short-term strategic trees, in our first Edain 4.5 spellbook Update.

THE FIRST ROW


Like Gondor, Rohan lost its healing-spell, Simbelmyne. The reason is the same as with Gondor. There are other, more fitting spells for Rohan. Additionally, we want to preserve the unique aspect of a direct healing spell for a different faction.

The biggest change among the Tier 1 spells concerns the Draft. It's an iconic mechanic of Rohan but we had two problems with it. First, wanted two equally important starting spells in the left and the right tree - but Draft is so central that it always would have overshadowed the other spell.

Second, it has never been very interesting from a strategic point of view. It's a spell you'd pretty much always use as soon as it came off cooldown, rarely waiting for the perfect moment or target. This made it more of a passive spell to upgrade peasants which you just happened to have to click on regularly. Because of that we divided the spell into two different possibilities to enhance peasants - one offensive, the other defensive.

Attack Order: Allied units in the target area inflict +30% damage for 30 seconds. Nearby peasants additionally are permanently equipped with emergency armaments.

Fundamentally, it's the classic Rallying Call spell, but now with an additional effect that's sepcific to Rohan. The left tree offers an alternative way to equip your peasants with basic weapons:

Draft Order: The selected farm or mill will now permanently recruit peasants with emergency armament. In addition it will be guarded by armed peasants. Each building under the effects of a Draft Order lowers the cost for Banner Carriers.

The first thing you'll notice is that the two spells are going in completely opposite directions. On the left side you get the prospect of upgrading a building with defenders, as well as recruiting better peasants and cheapening Banner Carriers. This is clearly a spell with long-term effects, making it more efficient as the game goes on if you're able to defend your farms.

The right side, on the other hand, gives you the prospect of instantly upgrading way more peasants at once. It also grants an attack bonus to all troopsm making this spell a better fit for fast, agressive strategies. It was also important to us that both spells are useful even if you don't plan to primarily use peasants.

Dividing the old Draft into an offensive and a defensive variant makes for a much more interesting choice between the two starting spells in Rohan's spellbook. The important mobilization of peasants in Rohan at the time of the war is now considerably more present in the spellbook. However, the Horns of Rohan and its sound aren't completely lost: The effect is now used for the Attack Order.

THE SECOND ROW


We decided to move the Druedain and a completely new spell into the second row of Rohan's spellbook. The Druedain also got a new function to make them more distinct from the other archer summon, Haldir, and to better tie them into the defensive tree.

Aid of the Woses: Allows the creation of Púkel-men statues and Drúedain ambushes.

Buying this spell actually unlocks two connected abilities:

Drúadan statue: Builds a Púkel-men statue of the Drúedain that reveals the surrounding area in a wide radius and detects cloaked enemies. Drúedain may be summoned at any statue to defend it. The more statues are on the battlefield, the faster the Druedain ambush recharges.

Assault of the Drúedain: Ghân-buri-Ghân and two hordes of Drúedain archers appear to defend the selected Drúedain statue and automatically attack enemies in range.

The Woses now have a defensive role in Rohan's spellbook: They can't be summoned everywhere anymore, only near their statues. In exchange you now can summon them more often because, if either you are good at defending the statues or your enemy doesn't manage to destroy them, you can create more and more statues over, resulting in a faster recharge time for the ambush. Additionally, the Druedain inflict more damage than before.

For the offensive tree, we created an entirely new spell:

Rohan Vanguard: Summons two bataillons of Rohan's Vanguard to the battlefield. The vanguard is fragile, but can trample enemies without slowing down. Trampled enemies gain -30% attack and defence for 30 seconds.

This very offensive new spell is designed to better represent a central aspect of the faction. Rohan was famous for its cavalry, which should also be reflected in the spellbook. If used correctly, this spell can severely damage the enemy early on. As opposed to other damaging spells like the arrowstorm or barrage however, there are also strong counterplay options, as the vanguard is more vulnerable than regular riders and can be brought down if used recklessly. In our opinion, it is a very fitting addition to Rohan's spellbook.

You have probably noticed that Grasslands of Rohan are missing. This spell has been removed from Rohan for the same reasons it has been removed from Mordor. This kind of territory spell has to be rare so that it's getting used. In addition the land spell always felt like unncessary filler for Rohan, which is now no longer needed.

THE THIRD ROW


You can find four familiar spells from the old spellbook in the third row, two of which have been changed. Highborn Warhorses especially was moved from the second to the third row and had to be enhanced accordingly. Cloudburst and the Aliance between elves and men remain unchanged.

Cloudburst will be one of the weather effects that remain in the spellbook. We think it's reminiscent of the battle for Helm's Deep and Rohan's arrival at the Pelennor and thus iconic to the faction. Similiarly, the Alliance between elves and men was flavorful and fitting, so it stays as well.

The changed spells work as follows:

Highborn Warhorses: Rohan cavalrygains horses from the royal stud at level 3 that have 30% more hit points and lose 50% less speed while trampling. Rohan studs now permanently produce resources. Their cavalry price reduction now also counts for heroic units.

This spell also underlines the core cavalry aspect of the faction in different ways.
On the one hand, it permanently strengthens cavalry.
On the other hand it helps Rohan's economy in the later phases of the game because studs now yield resources like a farm. This makes upgrades and expensive cavalry easier to access and Rohan gains a little compensation for the small amount of building plots in their fortress.
Finally, we thought it was unfortunate that the royal guard saw so little usage because of their high price. If you buy this spell, the cavalry price reduction of studs also counts towards heroic units.

The Three Hunters: The three hunters fight alongside Rohan against their foes. You now can recruit the three hunters in the citadel.

This spell has been drastically altered. With its old form, we thought that Rohan had too many temporary summons. So we decided to move the three hunters into the left, long-term tree and make them permanently recruitable heroes through the spell. However, they should be different from their regular forms the other factions could recruit. Thus we decided to turn them into one combined hero battalion with their own abilities, similar to the fellowship of the ring in Rivendell. This spell therefore provides Rohan with a powerful long-term advantage. As the hunters have to be bought for money though, Haldir's elves are a better choice if you need quick and powerful short-term reinforcements. This creates a much more significant strategic difference between the two spells than before, when both just were temporary summons.

THE CENTRAL SPELL


For Rohan's central spell Glory of the King, the liberation of Theoden, is the obvious choice. It reflects a central point in Rohan's history in Middle-earth that should be emphasized accordingly. Moreover, it would've been impossible to make the spell available in only one of the two trees. It's such an important spell from a gameplay point of view that the player would more or less be forced to chose the path where it appeared. Glory of the King actually was the spell that first made us think that there should always be a central spell that's independent from either of the two trees in the first place.

Additionally, the bonus now grants every hero of Rohan +15% damage, 15% faster skill regeneration and 30% more experience. This is to compensate the loss of the exile bonus of heroes banned by the corrupted Theoden. We didn't want Theoden's liberation actually resulting in disadvantages for the player because his heroes got weaker. On top of that we also weakened some of corrupted Theoden's skills, while increasing the liberated Theoden's hit points and leadership bonuses.

THE FINAL SPELLS


We didn't change any of the two final spells. We think that both of them couldn't fit better with Rohan's history and character and decided to keep them in their current form. Even their positioning within the trees was a no-brainer because Last march of the Ents clearly is an offensive spell, a nice finisher to crack open the fortress, while the Camp offers long-term support to the player and summons a building that has to be defended.


We think that the new spellbook better reflects Rohan's history and its unique strategic focus. We hope you enjoyed the update and look forward to your feedback.

Your Edain Team

Post comment Comments
dan54
dan54

Always glad to see news! Will 4.5 soon come out?

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ThePrussianMink
ThePrussianMink

Awesome! I can't wait! :D

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GrandSerpent
GrandSerpent

No words, just perfect!!

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AulëTheSmith
AulëTheSmith

Magnificent ;) it's very impressive and now look more ordinate and logical than before. Love the idea of the three hunters as battalion...simply ingenius and very fitting :)

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Canis-carcharothias
Canis-carcharothias

You are right, it was a complete mess wit no paths and an "obligatory" spell. You have completely fixed it, nice work.
I also love the depth that you are giving to each spell, there are less and less fillers and the temporary summons are getting lots of love.

Again, a really good job!

PD: Is the Rohan Vanguard a temporary summon?

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FG15 Creator
FG15

Yes it is.

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saruman_the_wise
saruman_the_wise

By making the studs produce resources like a farm (which they already do), you mean the stables don't you?

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FG15 Creator
FG15

Yes

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GrandSerpent
GrandSerpent

Yea, walking towards the stairs for Mod of the Year 2017 :D
Great guys :)))

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Starwarsfan8
Starwarsfan8

So what's the next Spellbook reveal going to be? I am guessing its Dwarves assuming you guys are going in order of faction release.

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GrandSerpent
GrandSerpent

I am thinking the same :D

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Lord_of_Mordor Creator
Lord_of_Mordor

Yes, we're planning the Dwarves to be next :)

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GrandSerpent
GrandSerpent

Great, beer and beard time :D

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kingsjewel
kingsjewel

Yes :)

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lordoflinks Online
lordoflinks

Why is the central spell only 4 power points instead of 5?

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FG15 Creator
FG15

Because it is not as strong as other central spells.

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Starwarsfan8
Starwarsfan8

Couldn't you simply buff the power further to make it worth 5 points?

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FG15 Creator
FG15

I guess as Theoden is really important for Rohan it is good that he is available quite early. And not all central spells habe to cost 5 SP.

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MrTodd
MrTodd

The best spellbook rework so far! I'm really impressed, there is so many possibilities now, each spells seems really unique and useful, I can't wait for the next version!

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GrandSerpent
GrandSerpent

Is it possible to make some improvement in visual changes to the Royal Guards in terms of adding horse armor ( barding ) after the central spell is purchaced ? By this I mean to make them look more wealthy and elite and give them the real status of true noble guards that protect the King of Rohan and his marshals. It should be an armor that is similar to the one that Theodreds or Theodens horse have to represent the medieval anglo-saxon and later frankish barding of using leather and metal strips. Also because with the Highborn Horses they get the advantage of discount and maybe some health buffs, this could serve as their ultimate visual look. I have seen that you are doing well with horse armor ( Morgul riders, Rohen Sul, Brego ) so my point is to give a little flavor to this unit since they are also resembling the most iconic part of Rohans cavalry and the touch with the nordic mithology in Tolkiens World :D

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FG15 Creator
FG15

If we have a graphicer again, who has time to do it, it is definetly possible.

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Starwarsfan8
Starwarsfan8

I have a few questions about the Rohan Spellbook,

1. Druadan Statue,can you can place this map anywhere on the battlefield. If so wouldn't that mean you could hypothetically use the Assault of the Druedain power to summon archers anywhere on the battlefield as well since you could jsut simply place a statue near enemies? Even though you expressed in the article that the power being defensive should not be able to be used everywhere on the battlefield.

2.I hope the three Hunters aren't too expensive since a 6-cost power is a huge investment as it is. But it seems to me the Highborn Warhorses are the better choice not only because it costs less but its a safer investment since it reinforces a strategy that Rohan was always good at which was spamming cavalry.
I will say it was a good call to have the Three Hunters serve as a way of accessing the combat tree.

3. You mentioned how the Royal Guard are rarely used, wouldn't it also be good to buff the unit to make it more worthwhile?

Anyway I am sure there will be further balance testing once the patch comes out. Great work as always

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FG15 Creator
FG15

1. The statue has a much longer cooldown than the ambush itself. Therefore a player only using it offensively will loose a lot of potential.

2. While the Warhorses is a Cavalry focused spell, the 3 Hunters are better if you prefer a melee tactic with Rohan. So the other one might often be the better choice, but nonetheless they are usefull and pretty cool.

3. We believe that the Royal Guard is at a good spot statwise, they are just too hard to get for Rohan.

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Starwarsfan8
Starwarsfan8

Will the Draft artwork also get changed, I know its suppose to look like a peasant arming himself but I always found it difficult to see the background. Maybe thats just me.

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FG15 Creator
FG15

No current plans to do that.

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DiamondBorne
DiamondBorne

Of all the spellbook rework. Rohan spellbook is the only one i like from the first glance.

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Potysvk
Potysvk

Wouldn't Rohan Vanguard summon overlap with Vanguards from royal camp? Name is almost the same. Otherwise, good job - best overhaul so far.

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FG15 Creator
FG15

The name is similar, but they are completly different.

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GrandSerpent
GrandSerpent

Are the Royal Archers going to be a temporary summon via hero as they are right now or they got some changes in terms of temporary/permanent summon for the next version ?

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FG15 Creator
FG15

They will stay the currentway.

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GrandSerpent
GrandSerpent

Thank you for the answer :D

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Glorfindel23 Creator
Glorfindel23

Wow I really like the first row and the three hunters.

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Guest
Guest

I hope one ability is aragon throwing gimli at the enemy^^

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DieWalküre
DieWalküre

That would perhaps be one of the best homages to the films that someone could ever do :D

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FG15 Creator
FG15

That was one of the first things I tried for them, but it doesn't work with hordes.

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JungmasterCZ
JungmasterCZ

I like the new Three hunters spell :3 Now you can have the most badass heroes together.. "must have" spell! :D

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Stahlrim
Stahlrim

Great work, as usual! The new spell trees are shaping up to be fantastic!

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joelockard
joelockard

Just a small request concerning Helegwen: I kinda think Traxex's voice set from DOTA 2 would fit her more. Since they're both archers that utilize ice as powers lol XD

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FG15 Creator
FG15

It isn't a good idea to use voices from ongoing games.

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joelockard
joelockard

Good point. Copy Rights and stuff. Forgot about that too bad though haha

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Belgareth
Belgareth

Hi, Massive fan of the work you guys do. Couple of questions:
-Regarding the Three Hunters power, are the three heros going to be locked in formation like the fellowship of the ring from Imladris faction or Loose like a regular troop?
-What do you think about the possibility of making an addition to the highborn war horse power that would involve buffing Rohan's Heros when they are mounted? it may not be possible, but It would be a great way of giving them some late game scaling even if it was just movement speed.
Many Thanks and keep up the great work!

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JjForcebreaker
JjForcebreaker

Very promising spellbook tree!

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Guest
Guest

Always loved the Rohan faction! Can't wait to try out the new spells!

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