Frail finished his domain lord selection. But that was a mere speck in his possible upgrade options. With 2970 essences to spare…
Upgrades.
<table style="border-style: solid" border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top" width="100%">
Domain lord upgrade - Skeleton Eldritch lieutenant - level 10 - Tier 2 | Next tier: level 30.
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Attribute increase: Increases 1 attribute by 8. Costs: 1200 essences. Raises level by 1.
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Ability upgrade - Eldritch’s aura - 2 - Now adds +10 strength, magic, dexterity, and resilience. Magic shield now regenerates after 50 seconds of downtime. Costs: 3000 essences. Raises level by 3.
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Ability upgrade - Eldritch’s charge - 2 - Reduces cooldown by 5 seconds. Costs 3000 essences. Raises level by 3.
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Ability upgrade - Magic Blade - 2 - Attribute increase is raised to 20%. Heals 10% integrity when activated. Every blade swing generates a minor blade wave, dealing 40% of magic attribute as damage. Costs 2000 essences. Raises level by 2.
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Domain Skill upgrade - Spellblade’s standard - 2 - Changes spawn from Warriors to Guards. Increase wight’s count by 2. They are leashed to the room the domain lord is assigned. Costs: 5000 essences. Raises level by 3.
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Upgraded weapons(1) - Strengthens the domain lord’s weapons. The next level provides + 8 strength, +7 dexterity. Costs: 1500 essences. Does not raise the construct level.
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Upgraded armors(1) - Strengthens the domain lord’s armor. The next level provides + 8 resilience and +8 resistance. Costs: 1500 essences. Does not raise the construct level.
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
All the upgrades listed were incredible. Pricey, but it made sense, considering his domain lord’s upgraded tier.
He opened the construct fabricator menu.
<table style="border-style: solid" border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top" width="100%">
Construct unlocks | Tier - 2 | You must upgrade your construct Fabricator!
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
- Skeleton Wights | Tier 2 - common | Cost: 800 essence, two construct slots. Unlock cost: 1200 essences
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
Can’t do it yet… and it’s not worth it. Not now.
Wights filled a niche yet important role; it synergized with his domain lord and provided their only source of instant healing outside his domain’s regeneration. Useful… but each cost him more than twice the amount of essences compared to his tier-1 variants. Basically, Wights had to cover the role of two constructs for their price to be worth it.
Besides… he had other purchasing options for new construct types. The elite constructs, for example. Seeing his unused elite construct slots pushed him to save up for it. AT 15,000 essences, Frail would need a lot more goblins to show up.
Which coincided well with the incoming patrol. More would rear their ugly heads again come sunrise… meaning, more essences would funnel into his now-obvious domain.
Let’s fill out all the slots first.
[You spent 300 essences.]
[You have 2670 essences remaining.]
One last skeleton descended from the white blob, completing his array of undead constructs. The room barely held his numbers; any more, and he had to start separating his constructs into multiple groups.
<table style="border-style: solid" border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top" colspan="2">
CONSTRUCT MENU - Slots 0/30
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top" width="50%">
16x Skeleton warriors - lvl 4
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top" width="50%">
10x Skeleton archers - lvl 4
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
4x Skeleton Rogues - lvl 4
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
4x (D)Skeleton warriors - Domain locked
1x in recovery.
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
3x (D)Skeleton Wights - Domain locked
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
He spent another thousand on a warrior and archer attribute upgrades; improving their strength.
[You spent 1000 essences.]
[You have 1,670 essences remaining.]
<table style="border-style: solid" border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top" colspan="3">
Construct - Skeleton Warrior (Shielded) | Combatant | Tier - 1
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top" width="33.3333%">
Construct Level: 6
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top" width="33.3333%">
Integrity: 100%
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top" width="33.3333%">
Type: Undead
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top" colspan="3">
Attributes
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Strength: 15
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Dexterity: 3
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Resilience: 13(+5)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Resistance: 6(+4)
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Magic: -
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top" colspan="3">
Traits / Skills
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Skeletal Body
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Undead Veil
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Bone’s bulwark
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Wrath
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Upgraded Armors - 1
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top"> </td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<table style="border-style: solid" border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top" colspan="3">
Construct - Skeleton Archer(Longbow) | Combatant | Tier - 1
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top" width="33.3333%">
Construct Level: 5
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top" width="33.3333%">
Integrity: 100%
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top" width="33.3333%">
Type: Undead
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top" colspan="3">
Attributes
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Strength: 14(+3)
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Dexterity: 12(+5)
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Resilience: 6
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Resistance: 3
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Magic: -
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top" colspan="3">
Traits / Skills
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Skeletal Body
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Undead Veil
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Acid arrow
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Speed draw - Manual
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Upgraded Weapons - 1
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top"> </td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
The twilight of dawn baked the clouds with its red glory. It marked the arrival of another day. Like clockwork, gongs and cries immediately shattered the post-dawn tranquility. A lone skeleton rogue patrolled the outskirts of his crypt, imparting its vision into Frail’s mind.Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.
A line of black smoke trailed in the distance. They’re close.
As he expected… the goblins took no time to stumble upon his crypt. Tall shamans meandered alongside its lesser version, short goblins snorting about around them. Transparent silhouettes lurched. All the goblin types Frail had seen, huddled alongside each other, their eyes shining with greed.
They saw the open door and gleamed with glee. Treasure.
Frail shared the same glee. Essences.
###
Frail’s next defense was a one-sided slaughter.
The layout of his domain separated the goblins into two groups, each led by three shamans and an entourage of goblin mages. The rogues hid well—their cloaks and inherent covertness enabled them to hide in the corners of the barely lit crypts. His invaders strolled past them as if they never existed.
Their mirth faded when their feet stepped deeper into the unchanging rooms. A sobering silence drowned the rooms, the absence of life draining their focus. Sure, the goblins weren’t terrified, but he couldn’t say they ventured with peace either.
Two paths converged into a massive room. They came across a battery of skeletons, each clad in a ghastly azure aura wreathing their silhouettes and weapons. A wash of worry cascaded from their faces down to their feet.
One imperious figure stood above his constructs. Blue embers burned through the gaps of its helmet.
It raised its blade. Frail surrendered control of his main force to his domain lord and focused on his rogues.
Fireballs and necrotic blasts dispersed the darkness apart. The first, Frail learned to be wary of; the other, he ignored. Goblins rallied and blitzed through the dense rainfall of blue-tinted arrows. Their globe shields shattered after a single volley. Four magical flames burst and swallowed three goblins—courtesy of Frail’s combined eldritch blasts. Their bodies twisted and charred. Roaring flames spewed from the goblin shamans and mages in retaliation. Spellblade’s aura absorbed the brunt of the fireballs. Shields did the rest.
Transparent goblins slipped through the guard of his warriors. They attempted to disrupt Frail’s archers, but his domain lord caught their sleight before any real damage was done. Warriors swung their blades with their eyes burning with verdant embers.
Rogues backstabbed the array of mages and shamans. Prompt use of dark rush lengthened their range, and their daggers caught the necks of multiple before they retreated to the darkness. Chaos and panic dragged the goblins’ morale down.
The rest… went almost too well for Frail. Adding magic-imbued shields and attacks empowered his constructs beyond his initial expectations. Streaks of blood painted the walls of coarse slabs and the floor. Bodies upon bodies cluttered the space of his domain.
Gather the corpses. Bring them to me.
[Drain essence]
[You gained 150 essences.] x 45
[You gained 300 essences.] x 10
[You gained 500 essences.] x 7
[You gained 800 essences.] x 6
[You gained 18,050 essences.]
[You now have 19,720 essences.]
He had enough for a few choice upgrades. Next…
[Corpse extraction complete. You gained 6450 essences.]
[You now have 26 170 essences.]
[Extraction summary]
[45x goblin recruit. Total essence: 2250]
[7x goblin mage. Total essence: 1400]
[10x goblin nightblade. Total essence: 1000.]
[6x goblin shaman. Total essence: 1800.]
26,000 plus essences… Good.
Frail had enough for the elite construct fabricator... and its subsequent upgrades. Undeath legion further boosted the utility of elite constructs, slashing their slot cost to one, and that meant he’d have three elite constructs after he purchased both the trait upgrade and the elite slot upgrade.
[You spend 15,000 essences.]
[You can now create elite constructs!]
[You now have 11,170 essences.]
Frail immediately accessed his elite construct fabricator.
<table style="border-style: solid" border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top" width="100%">
Elite construct unlocks | Tier - 1
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
- Grave guard | Tier 2 - Elite | Cost: 2000 essence, Two Elite construct slot. Unlock cost: 4000 essences
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
- Grave lancer | Tier 2 - Elite | Cost: 2000 essences, Two Elite construct slot. Unlock cost: 4000 essences.
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
- Cold lich | Tier 2 - Elite | Cost: 2000 essences, Two Elite construct slot. Unlock cost: 4000 essences.
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<table style="border-style: solid" border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top" colspan="3">
Construct - Grave Guard (Shielded) | Combatant | Tier - 2
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top" width="33.3333%">
Construct Level: 10
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top" width="33.3333%">
Integrity: 100%
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top" width="33.3333%">
Type: Undead
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top" colspan="3">
Attributes
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Strength: 25
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Dexterity: 5
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Resilience: 35
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Resistance: 35
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Magic: -
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top" colspan="3">
Traits / Skills
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
skeletal Body
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Undead Veil
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Shield Ward
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Grave Barrier
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Shield Bash
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top"> </td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
[Shield ward: All constructs within 30 meters take 20% less damage from all sources.]
[Grave Barrier: Select one friendly unit and place a barrier around it. Nullifies all damage it takes until the barrier breaks. Shield health is equal to 3x this construct’s resilience. Cooldown: 1 minute.]
[Shield bash: Shoves any enemies within its reach away from Grave Guard. The affected units will take 20% extra damage when hit by a physical attack. Cooldown: 20 seconds.]
Extremely defensive. Frail’s first thought upon scanning its status page. 35 on both resilience and resistance; this construct wouldn’t falter unless it bore the strongest of hits. Barrier safeguarded his other constructs. Shield ward protected its closest allies. All in all… a fantastic option if Frail sought after defense.
Next.
<table style="border-style: solid" border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top" colspan="3">
Construct - Grave Lancer | Combatant | Tier - 2
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top" width="33.3333%">
Construct Level: 10
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top" width="33.3333%">
Integrity: 100%
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top" width="33.3333%">
Type: Undead
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top" colspan="3">
Attributes
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Strength: 30
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Dexterity: 30
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Resilience: 20
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Resistance: 20
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Magic: -
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top" colspan="3">
Traits / Skills
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
skeletal Body
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Undead Veil
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Lance rush
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Evasion
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Grave thrust
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top"> </td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
[Lance rush: Charges forward in a straight line, dealing damage along its path. Receives a 20% damage buff for 15 seconds after skill activation. Cooldown: 15 seconds.]
[Gravely Evasion: Blurs and automatically evades one melee strike every 4 seconds, releasing a blinding mist afterward. The blinding mist blinds all units nearby the elite lancer, lasting for 3 seconds.]
[Grave thrust: Charges its spear and skewers the target. This attack deals 2x bonus damage.]
Extremely offensive. A complete 180 of the previous option, the lancer boasted high single-target damage output with excellent mobility and a method to avoid direct damage once in four seconds. This construct could handle enemies his other constructs couldn’t dream of scratching, especially if they went outside, where his domain lord wasn’t present.
Not only that. If they were together, the passive buffs from his domain lord further enhanced the lancers’ efficacy.
Frail turned to the last option: the Grave Lich.
<table style="border-style: solid" border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top" colspan="3">
Construct - Grave Lich | Combatant | Tier - 2
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top" width="33.3333%">
Construct Level: 10
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top" width="33.3333%">
Integrity: 100%
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top" width="33.3333%">
Type: Undead
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top" colspan="3">
Attributes
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Strength: 15
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Dexterity: 5
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Resilience: 20
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Resistance: 20
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Magic: 40
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top" colspan="3">
Traits / Skills
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
skeletal Body
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Undead Veil
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Grave chill aura
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Cold barrage
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">
Frost shield
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top"> </td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
[Grave chill aura: Any enemies within 40 meters will have their speed and elemental defenses reduced by 20%. This aura does not affect those with higher resistance than its magic attribute. Grants the lich a projectile cold-based basic attack.]
[Cold barrage: Conjures a rain of ice at the target location, dealing damage based on the lich’s (1 x magic) attribute. Cooldown: 20 seconds.]
[Frost shield: Coats a friendly construct with ice, boosting its resilience and resistance by 20. Shatters when taking(1 x magic) damage, dealing the same amount to all enemies around the shielded unit. This is not a barrier spell. Cooldown: 10 seconds.]
Cold magic. He assumed it to be the same icicles Desmond cast before. If the lancer possessed overwhelming strength, and the guard, defenses, then this elite was best utilized against grouped-up enemies. Frost shield added a stratagem similar to the grave guard. It possessed a great deal of magic, so it wouldn’t be a stretch to say the ice it delivered would hurt.
Time ticked as Frail considered the new options.