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Blesses
When creating a pretender, a number of options are available for bless effects. These can be applied to sacred units, and are an important part of pretender design. Each magic path on the pretender above 4 confers a number of bless points equal to the corresponding path level. Having 3 in all elemental or sorcery paths also enables bless points for those paths. Bless points can then be spent on the effects listed below. Some effects require certain scale choices in addition to consumin bless points. Various options can be taken multiple times, which causes their effects to stack.
Additionally, the more powerful effects are incarnate only, activating only when the pretender god is present on the tactical map. These effects will be inactive both before the pretender awakens, and while the pretender is dead.
Sacred units can become blessed by a priest, by certain items, or when in a battle with a pretender or disciple in friendly dominion.
Priest Levels
Not all priests are created equal.
1 priests can bless small groups of sacreds (AOE 5) (+1 for every extra level of the caster).
2 priests can bless small groups of sacreds (AOE 6, since they get the +1 bonus).
3+ priests can cast divine blessing, which blesses all sacred units on the battlefield.
Indirect Magic Path Bonuses
Any pretender or commander that has magic paths will gain passive bonuses from those paths, provided they meet the criteria for the path outlined in the following table.
| Air | Shock Resistance +3 at  3 and +2 for every additional level, Magic Leadership +5 |
| Fire | Magic Leadership +10, Reduced Max Age |
| Earth | Protection +3 at  3 and +1 for every additional level, Magic Leadership +5 |
| Water | Cold Resistance +3 at  3 and +2 for every additional level, Magic Leadership +5 |
| Astral | Magic Leadership +10 |
| Death | Undead Leadership +30, +1 to existing fear (pretender gains fear 5 if they have  5) |
| Nature | Supply Bonus +10, Magic Leadership +5, Poison Resistance +3 at  3 and +2 for every additional level, Increased Max Age |
| Blood | Undead Leadership +5, Magic Leadership +5 |
For example, a pretender with 45 will gain +4 Protection, +20 Magic Leadership, +5 Fear, and +150 Undead Leadership (in addition to whatever bless effects they have).
Some of these matter more than others. Of particular note, the undead provided by death magic is a key component of undead armies, and the protection provided by earth magic can be used to create an awake expander.
Max age changes are done in 50% increments of the default max age, and depend on the type of creature: undead are affected by Death magic, inanimate creatures by Earth magic, demons by Blood magic and all others by Nature magic, in that order of priority. If your age is affected by Nature magic, every point in fire magic reduces your max age by 5%.
Bless effects
Fire
| Main Cost | Secondary Cost | Required Scale | Name | Effect | Incarnate | Repeatable | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 1 | Superior Morale | +1 Morale | Yes | ||||
| 1 | 1 | Wasteland Survival | Wastland survival trait | ||||
| 2 | Minor Fire Resistance | FR+5 | |||||
| 3 | Major Fire Resistance | Fr+10 | |||||
| 3 | Attack Skill | +2 attack skill | Yes | ||||
| 4 | Inspirational Presence | +1 Inspirational, +30 leadership | Yes | ||||
| 5 | Death Explosion | On death 10AP fire damage, 5Aoe | Yes | ||||
| 5 | Heat Aura | Heat3, FR+10 | Yes | ||||
| 6 | Fire Shield | Fire shield (6AP damage) | Yes | ||||
| 6 | Flaming Weapons | 6AP fire damage on all weapons except natural ranged weapons | Yes | 1 | |||
| 7 | Awe | Awe+1 | Yes |
Air
| Main Cost | Secondary Cost | Required Scale | Name | Effect | Incarnate | Repeatable | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Minor Shock Resistance | SR+5 | |||||
| 1 | Precision | Precision+1 | Yes | ||||
| 2 | Farshot | Weapon Range +30% (not for spells or natural weapons) | Yes | ||||
| 3 | Swiftness | Swiftness trait (+30% combat speed, +1 defence) | Yes | ||||
| 3 | Major Shock Resistance | SR+10 | |||||
| 4 | Charged Bodies | 10AN shock damage on first hit (also hits the charged guy) | |||||
| 5 | Wind Walker | Map Movement +6 | Yes | ||||
| 6 | Air Shield | Air shield 80 trait (Blocks 80% of all projectiles) | Yes | ||||
| 7 | Thunder Weapons | 1AN capped shock damage + 3AN fatigue damage on all weapons except natural ranged weapons. | Yes | 1 |
Water
| Main Cost | Secondary Cost | Required Scale | Name | Effect | Incarnate | Repeatable | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Minor Cold Resistance | CR+5 | |||||
| 1 |  1 | Winter's Gift | Snow Move trait (No movement penalties from cold climate) | ||||
| 1 | 1 | Swamp Survival | Swamp Survival trait | 1 | |||
| 2 | Water Walking | Swimming trait (Can cross rivers in heat dominion) | |||||
| 3 | Major Cold Resistance | CR+10 | |||||
| 4 | Defence Skill | Defence +2 | Yes | ||||
| 4 | 1 | Frost Weapons | 8 cold damage on all weapons except natural ranged weapons. | 1, 2 | |||
| 5 | Chill Aura | Chill aura 3, CR +10 | Yes | ||||
| 7 | Water Breathing | Water breathing trait | Yes | ||||
| 10 |  1 | Quickness | Quickness trait (2 attacks per combat turn, double combat speed, attack+2, defence+2) | Yes |
Earth
| Main Cost | Secondary Cost | Required Scale | Name | Effect | Incarnate | Repeatable | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mountain Survival | Mountain Survival trait | |||||
| 2 | Reinvigoration | Reinvigoration+1 | Yes | ||||
| 2 | Reconstruction | Inanimates don't have 'Never heals' trait | |||||
| 3 | Strength of the Earth | Strength +2 | Yes | 1 | |||
| 4 | Unbreakable | 75% Affliction protection | |||||
| 4 | 3 | Larger | +1 Size, +30% HP, +3 Strength, -1 defence, +2 Map Movement | 1 | |||
| 5 | Fire&Shock Resistance | FR+10, SR+10 | Yes | ||||
| 6 | Hard Skin | Natural protection +5 | Yes | ||||
| 8 | Fortitude | Pierce, slash and blunt resistant traits (50% damage reduction) | Yes |
Astral
| Main Cost | Secondary Cost | Required Scale | Name | Effect | Incarnate | Repeatable | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 1 | Minor Magic Resistance | MR+1 | |||||
| 1 | Arcane Command | +10 Magic Leadership | Yes | ||||
| 1 | 1 | Spirit Sight | Spirit Sight trait (can see in darkness, no penalty versus invisible) | ||||
| 3 | Major Magic Resistance | MR+2 | |||||
| 3 | 1 | Solar Weapons | 3AP damage, triple versus undead/demons, except natural ranged attacks | 1 | |||
| 4 | Magic Weapons | All weapons become magical except natural ranged weapons | |||||
| 4 | Far Caster | +50% combat spell range | |||||
| 4 | Arcane Finesse | +1 to magic resistance penetration, applies to spells and some magic natural attacks | |||||
| 6 | Twist Fate | Twist Fate buff (First successful attack is negated) | Yes | ||||
| 7 |  1 | Fateweaving | MR Save or suffer Cursed Luck debuff on striking blessed unit | Yes | 1 | ||
| 9 |  2 | Luck | Luck trait | Yes | |||
| 10 | 3 | Etherealness | Ethereal trait | Yes |
Death
| Main Cost | Secondary Cost | Required Scale | Name | Effect | Incarnate | Repeatable | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undying | Undying HP+2 (Additional HP Pool once HP falls below 0, non-undead that end a battle still on the field but with negative HP die after battle) | Yes | 1 | |||
| 1 | Undead Command | Undead leadership +20 | Yes | ||||
| 2 |  2 | Half Dead | Sacred units don't need to eat and can resist disease | ||||
| 4 | Withering Weapons | All weapons (except natural ranged ones) cause decay, MR resist | 1 | ||||
| 5 | Stygian Flesh | +10 Invulnerability | Yes | ||||
| 6 | Reforming Flesh | +10% regeneration for undead | Yes | ||||
| 7 | Reanimators | 50% to revive a killed enemy as undead minion | Yes | ||||
| 8 | Death Weapons | All weapons (except natural ranged ones) deal additional 2AN & disease, individually MR resisted | Yes | 1 | |||
| 10 | Fear | Fear 5 | Yes |
Nature
| Main Cost | Secondary Cost | Required Scale | Name | Effect | Incarnate | Repeatable | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Resilient | +1 HP | Yes | ||||
| 1 | Low Light Vision | 50% Darkvision | |||||
| 1 | Minor Poison Resistance | +5 PR | |||||
| 2 | Major Poison Resistance | +10 PR | |||||
| 2 | Forest Survival | Forest Survival trait | |||||
| 3 | 1 | Unaging | Sacreds age at 1/4th speed. Retroactive, except for certain commanders hard coded as Old | ||||
| 4 | 1 | Poison Weapons | +5 poison damage on attacks, except natural ranged attacks | 1 | |||
| 5 | Recuperation | Recuperation trait (recover from afflictions) | Yes | ||||
| 5 | Berserker | Berserker +2 | Yes | ||||
| 6 | Barkskin | Barkskin buff (10 natural prot, -5 FR) | Yes | ||||
| 7 | Regeneration | Regeneration +10% | Yes | 1 |
Blood
| Main Cost | Secondary Cost | Required Scale | Name | Effect | Incarnate | Repeatable | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 1 | Strong Vitae | +1 HP | Yes | ||||
| 3 | Strength of the Flesh | +2 Strength | Yes | 1 | |||
| 4 | Blood Surge | Upon killing, sacred gains temporary buff for a few rounds (+3 Att, +3 Str, +1 Def, +1 Reinvig). Does not trigger upon killing inanimates | 1, 2 | ||||
| 5 | Blood Bond | 50% of damage taken is transferred to other sacreds within 5 squares | Yes | 1 | |||
| 6 | Unholy Weapons | +10 AP damage, only affecting enemy sacreds and gods, on all weapons except natural ranged attacks | Yes | ||||
| 8 | Blood Vengeance | Attackers must make MR save or take equal damage | Yes | 1 |
Additional various notes
Weapon-bless-analysis by taorec
Thunder weapons
Thunder weapons can stun for 1 round (-75% defense skill). Good vs size 3+ units and single units (giants & thugs), though larger units have an increased chance to resist based on their HP (stun chance = 5% + [(1 AN + DRN vs resistance) / target HP] %). Countered by any amount of shock resistance.
Frost weapons
Frost weapon with it's 8 damage is usually not capable to getting through even the weakest of prot and generally not considered useful.
Strength boosters
Strength booster are often better damage bless effects compared to specific weapon blesses.
Withering Weapons
Withering Weapons is usually not fast enough acting to help in troop engagements, but it can ruin thugs/SCs.
Blood Bond
Blood Bond does not propagate 999 damage effects as they are considered special.
Undying
- A non-undead unit with Undying and a source of regeneration can heal in the after-battle-phase into positive HP-values to survive the battle even after dipping below 0 HP.
- Undying does not count as max. HP for the purpose of HP regeneration per turn.
- Luck on units with Undying only affects the initial hit bringing the unit to or below 0 HP. [TBD: Interaction with healing above 0 again to be determined.]
Swamp Survival
Swamp Survival protects agains MA C'tis disease dominion.
Blood Surge
Blood Surge is not a once-per battle effect but activates anew after each kill.
Fate Weaving
See cursed-luck
Blood Vengeance
Blood Vengeance damage is untyped and tagged as internal, meaning many special types of reduction such as twist fate or mistform don't apply to it.
Common Bless Templates
This section lists general bless templates that my be useful for a variety of nations. It is intended as a general starting point, not as a specific guide. See also pretenders.
- RegenFortyBBond: The combination of Regeneration, Fortitude and Blood Bond turns tanky sacreds into extreme damage sponges. A classic hellbless rush option.
- Full Resistances: Carrying Fire, Cold, Shock and Poison resist allows sacred troops - which already tend to naturally be superior to normal chaff - to be quite resilient to spells that are typically used kill these. Useful in combination with casting cloud spells in combat. Also useful for making thugs difficult to counter.
- Max Strength: Makes your sacreds hit like trucks. Can solve some issues that might otherwise be quite a problem. Get at least +6 strength, usually with magic weapons as well.