The Enlarge spell is a Level 2 Alteration that requires
2 and costs 20 Fatigue; or, if you're absolutely desperate,
1 and 1
. It's a short-range "point buff" (an AOE-1 buffing spell) that applies the following effects for the remainder of the battle:
Size +1 ← If the unit is already Size 6, the spell fails to take effect!
HP +30% ←
This increases both current and maximum HP!
-
Defence -1 ← This simulates being a bigger target, or just not being used to bigness.
Map Move +2 ← This is never utilized in battles.
If the jump is from Size 3 to Size 4, the Weapon Length of non-intrinsic attacks is increased by 1.
Since Size determines projectile hits within your square, this increases your chance of being hit by them.
A maximum of six Size points can fill each square, but this spell doesn't cause units to displace each other; for example, three Size 2 Archers will remain in the same square when made Size 3, at least until they decide to move.
Enlargement has a couple of other sources, most of which involve the path of Nature:
-
The
Larger Bless applies an Enlargement effect to all
Sacred units, and is normally how you'll make use of that Map Movement bonus. It requires
4
3 on your Pretender, and is in effect even for Sacred units that aren't Blessed. It also applies to your Pretender, if they're Size 5 or smaller.
The
Amulet of Giants is a
Magic Item a
1 mage can make at
Construction Level 4 with
5
. It provides Enlargement while worn (even outside of battle), but only to units Size 3 or smaller. This kind of Enlargement stacks with other sources of it, but not with other Amulets of Giants.
Last-but-not-least, the
Crown of the Titans is a Construction Level 6 Item that
2
1 mages can craft for
10
5
, giving someone the regular variety of Enlargement along with some Leadership bonuses.
Enlargement has an effect that opposes it, of course, and that effect is Shrink. It has the exact-opposite effects of Enlargement, but is permanent; there is no way to permanently return a Shrunk unit back to their original size, and it can only be temporarily counteracted with Enlargement. On the bright side, Magic Resistance negates its application.
Two spells apply Shrink:
The
Shrink spell is a Level 4 Alteration that requires
2 and costs 20 Fatigue; or, again,
1 and
1
. It has twice the range of Enlarge, but that's still not a lot, though it does scale with overcasting. It also has an AOE of 1.
The
Army of Rats spell is a Level 9 Alteration that requires
7 and costs
5
; or, if you don't have that high of a level,
6 and 6
. It Shrinks the entire enemy army, AND applies Battle Fright (an essentially-permanent 5-point Morale penalty) to everyone Shrunk. Only one MR check is made here; you either resist both effects, or you succumb to both.
There are also bad events in Laboratory-boasting provinces that can Shrink commanders.