The Magic Screen (
) allows you to:
- Sacrifice to the gods to learn their myths
- To build temples/shrines to the gods
- To perform heroquests.
This article describes the general Magic Screen. Further details can be garnered from the relevant sections which will be link to further.
Center Stone[]
Prominent in the center is a great stone. While on the Magic Screen, this stone indicates which Heroquests you have finished (colored blue). This may get reset depending on the short game/long game, and visits by Einarth Milk-Eyes.
Deity[]
To the left side of the Magic Screen you will see a list of deities. These are the various gods and goddesses you can interact with during your game. By moving your mouse over the deity, and clicking on it, you can get a little more information about the deity. Greater information can be found on the Gods page.
Be aware that there are a few deities that you have to discover in the course of the game such as Kero Fin, Tarard Riel, and Wind Spirits.
If you wish to do something more with a given deity, then you you can press the Sacrifice button (to the left of the center stone), or Build a shrine/temple/great temple (to the right of the center stone)
Sacrifice[]
Once you have chosen a deity, you can choose the Sacrifice button. This allows you to try to learn a specific Blessing from that given deity, a heroquest myth, or, if you already know the Blessing, to activate it.
Sacrificing[]
The first thing to be aware of is that just because you sacrifice to the gods, it doesn't guarantee success. The following factors have a great influence:
- Magic Skill: Your basic chance of success is based on which member of your clan ring has the highest Magic skill. The higher, the better.
- Game Level: If you are playing on easy, you are obviously more likely to succeed than playing on hard.
- Sacrifice Size and Type: Most gods have no problem whether you sacrifice in cows or goods. If you have a large amount of both, you are probably better off sacrificing in goods. However, certain deities have a preference for certain types. Chalana Arroy prefers to be honored with goods, while Maran Gor prefers blood. Additionally, the size of your sacrifice will influence success or failure. Giving 6 cows worth of goods and cattle is more likely to succeed than if you are stingy and only give 2 goods worth.
- Devotees: If you have a worshipper of a certain deity on your clan ring, then a sacrifice to that god/goddess is more likely to garner success.
- Clan Magic: The higher your clan magic, the greater the chance of success.
- Treasures: Certain treasures can greatly help your sacrifices, such as the Speaking Cone.
- Sacred Time Omens: During Sacred Time, you are given a new omen. Some of them aid in learning a specific deity's blessing. See List of Omens for greater detail.
- Human Sacrifice: The gods really aren't picky, and if you have thralls, then you can engage in human sacrifice. Each human is worth roughly 10 goods/cows, but realize indulging in this activity can anger the other clans.
Mysteries[]
You can greatly lower the sacrifice cost for Mysteries if you spend magic on Mysteries during Sacred Time.
Divination[]
Divinations, whether to Lhankor Mhy or to your Ancestors are cheaper, so you don't have to sacrifice as much.
Learning Unknown Blessings/Heroquest Myths[]
If you wish to learn an unknown blessing or a heroquest myth, it is quite simple. Pick the deity, and look for the Mysteries category in on the Sacrifice screen.
Choose the amount of sacrifice (cows/goods/thralls), and press sacrifice. Success will gain knowledge. Failure will be a loss of cows/goods/thralls. Additionally, whichever you learn (blessing or myth) is rather random, so if you don't get the blessing/myth you want, you will have to sacrifice again. Repeated sacrifices tend to cost more in cows and goods, at least until the next Sacred Time.
Be aware only a few deities teach you specific heroquest myths. These include:
Activating a Blessing[]
If you already know a blessing, but wish to gain its effects, simply pick the deity who controls the blessing. Go to the Sacrifice screen for that deity, pick which blessing you which to choose, and choose the amount of sacrifice, and what kind. Success will give you a blessing which lasts for 5 seasons, while failure is a loss of time and the cows/goods.
Building[]
This is the option which, once you learn a blessing from a given deity, and if you wish to make its effects permanent, then you can opt to build a shrine/temple/great temple. What is the difference?
- If you know only one blessing from a deity, you can only build a shrine (Level 1). This allows only one permanent blessing.
- If you know two blessings from a deity, you can opt to build a temple. (Level 2). This allows you to have two permanent blessings.
- If you know three blessings from a deity, you may decide to build a great temple (Level 3). This allows you to have three permanent blessings.
Be aware that some deities allow only one a shrine or temple to be built (Maran Gor may only have a Level 1 shrine, for example, or Uralda a level 2 temple).
Also, some deities like Orlanth can have more blessings than the temples can cover. In this case, if you have a Level 3 Great Temple, you would have to sacrifice
Each shrine/temple/great temple has a cost associated with it. If you lack the cows, goods, sheep, or pigs, then you will be unable to build it.
Additionally, even after the shrine/temple/great temple is built, there is also a maintenance cost associated with it. If for some reason you lack the appropriate cows, goods, sheep, or pigs, then, when the next Sacred Time comes across, one of your buildings will be reduced or disbanded due to the lack of maintainence.
Something else to bear in mind is that the population of your clan also determines just how many shrines/temples/great temples you can build. The greater the population, the more buildings you can support. Additionally, if you are in a tribe, then you will find this population restriction is removed. However, you still have to have the appropriate cows/goods/sheep/pigs to sustain them.
Quest[]
Just below the Sacrifice button is the Quest button. This is the option to pick if you wish to undertake a heroquest. By clicking it, you are than taken to a screen that has list of the heroquests you can participate in. There is a brief blurb mentioned what benefit a successful heroquest may grant you.
You can only undergo a heroquest if you learned the appropriate myth (from sacrificing to Mysteries mentioned above).
For greater, more in depth information, go to the heroquest page.
Leader[]
This button allows you to change who undergoes the heroquest. Certain individuals are better suited than others, and thus you may wish to change this.
Call On Allies/Favors[]
This button allows you to call on allies, or people who owe you favors, to provide additional worshippers. The greater the worshippers, the higher the chance of success.
Perform[]
Click on this button to attempt your desired heroquest, after deciding which specific quest, which leader, and whether you will have additional worshippers attend your attempt.