Valvoie

*"Living peacefully in their sheltered vales, Valvoyards know better than any tribe how to thrive in mountainous environment. While looking for precious metals, they have learned to recognize certain minerals for what they truly are : Very alien, yet mostly charming living things : Bouldrocs.
With neighbouring tribes growing more restless each passing turn, the Valvoyards have increased their efforts to find more of those rocky allies."*

## Description

**Valvoyards** [valvwajar] make use of their brilliant mountain capabilities to firmly hold their ground, and strike down their enemies when the time is right. They can both gain terrain on the sea or create glacial lakes ; be it for food, trade or protection. Their rocky buddies are so strong that they have become the core of their armies... but a shaky one at times.
Not only are those prone to prolonged flowerpicking, inopinate naps, and unpredictable fits of playful yet deadly skylark, but they also are way too heavy to be carried by any ship, making them useless for overseas operations.

Valvoyards hunt and tame the da'mois'hu [damwazy], a weird quadrupedal mammal with hoofs on its knees that uses those to run along the steepest slopes almost normally (the uphill legs being bent so the da'mois'hu can be level). A most helpful auxilliary in such an environment.

Although their high moutains are bitterly cold and don't allow much wheat to be cultivated, **gerberon** [ʒɛrbəʁɔ̃] is plentiful in their vales. This russet-coloured grape is turned into one of the best wines of the Square.

They wear short pointy hats made of da'mois'hu skin (a bit like Yaddak), and their cities are made of logs (more specifically they look like chalets).

Their mountains look a lot like bigger Zephyrion's, with a more Tseliko's colour, more snow and a small lake towards the bottom of the mountain. Their trees are larches of different colours. And their fields, again, look like Tseliko's, but darker and greener.

## Resources :

++ Mountain
- Crop
+ Fruit
They should have more lakes, even tiny ones, than usually occurs. Especially next to mountains. (potentially, some of those are covered with ice)

## Special technology tree

Valvoyards don't have access to *Shields*. Howerver climbing unlocks a third technology called **Geology** that allows the construction of **Trimshops**. Trimshops must be built on a mountain ; they spawn **Bouldrocs** at a rate depending on the number of surrounding moutains, metal and mines. See calculations at the bottom.

Both *Geology* and *Mining* must be researched for **Engeneering** (smithery) to be available. Instead of swordsmen, it unlocks the **Landslide** and **Damming** abilities.
Landslide allows the transformation of a shallow water tile neighbouring mountains into a field. Surrounding ocean tiles become shallow water. Costs 5-10
Damming allows a field or forest tile sourrounded by moutains to be turned into shallow water. Costs 5-10 as well.

Detailed formula is shown below, but the game would display possible tiles when clicking a button.
Tu put it simply, the more a water tile has land and especially mountains surrounding it, the easier it is to fill it with rocks and stuff. And a lot of mountains with very few water means you're likely to be able to create some lake.

## Units :

**Dreadnough** : An enanced *battleship* that boasts *0.5 additional defense* stat.

*Da'mois'hu* **riders** and **knights** have the **Steady** ability : When already on a mountain, mountain tiles are counted as normal terrain. *Riders have 1.5 moves, and knights 2.5.*

### **Bouldroc**

* **Rock** forbids this unit to be carried in a ship.
* **Roll** allows additionnal moves and dash-like ability : When moving from a moutain down, it has a +1 mouvement allowance in straight line, ignoring zone of control, a momentary dash ability in (somewhat) straight line as well, and an enhanced attack value (+1).
* **Throw** enables this unit to use a feeble dash-attack with a range of 2 and a halved attack value. It allows retaliation against ranged attacks, but the damage it does is halved as well. (They are throwing rocks)
* **Weird** means the unit is prone to erratic behaviour and has a chance to do whatever pleases it (including attacking your own units, for hypotetical fun and actual damage). This can be avoided by making them roll, attack, and have mind benders around. But the exact way this works shall remain secret : They are just too alien to be completely understood.

### **Giant bouldroc**

**Dip** allows moving (roll included) into shallow water tiles. When in shallow water, they can't move further into water. They can use their ranged attack, or move back to a land tile.

### Bouldroc spawning

Mountains count as 1, metal as 2 and mines as 4. The spawning rate is equal to 1 every x turns, where *x = 10 - (total value of moutains, metal and mines)*.
Meaning 2 mines + a moutain spawn one each turn ; 8 mines could spawn 3 per turn.
All the more reason to research mining when you have geology, or the other way around.

## Landslide and damming

So, surrounding tiles have a given value depending on what they are, and the total must be equal or above some score.
For landslide that score is 0 ; mountains are worth 4, shallow water -1, ocean -2, and diagonally touching tiles' value is halved.
For damming, mountains are only counted as 1, and the sum must be => 2

## Strategy, rambling, and so forth

Defending, at leat in Valoyard territoy, should not be much of a concern. On the other hand, you don't have access to either defenders, swordsmen, or giants for your ships, leaving you with cheap frail warriors, very expensive knights, or the occasional veteran something. Hence the added plating on battleships.

A bouldroc could go down from a mountain with enemies all around, then roll on two roads and dash attack a unit with its 4 attack value. Powerful for sure, but not something you can use anytime nor anywhere.
As for a giant one, it could either go smash a battleship (even destroying a 15hp one, unless it as aquatism), but would then be quite exposed, or one-shot a warrior in a fortress. Its stronger-than-an-archer's attack could prove useful as well.

On the downside, though, it only has one move on roads, and rolling won't make up for that. You won't have 40hp battleships, and this childish behemoth could easily do something silly, including throwing huge rocks or even rolling on your own units if you don't keep it occupied and/or soothe him with mind benders. A huge blade with a tiny handle.

With no swordsmen nor defenders around, you will rely on them anyway, and they should go along really well with those mind benders : They are sturdy walls of rock, able to counter even ranged attacks dealing 4-5 damage to attackers they can reach. A wave of them supported by mind benders will be hard to stop indeed. Especially with a few giant ones among them !

An issue being that you cannot recrut them entirely at will. Just like polytaurs, they can make additionnal units, above the normal limit of a given city, and that you can buy on the same turn than another ; but you can also be deprived, especially in foreign, flatter land.

Valvoie's territory is maze-like by nature, and this can be improved by some landsliding and damming. Which can serve multiple purposes : One could settle a perfect customs house spot, or improve an existing one with an additional port or two. Lakes can be used as impenetrable walls inland, while fields can increase the distance between your cities and fearsome battleships...

Valoyards don't have as much metal as Xin-Xi, but they can shape their terrain to have better custom houses, smitheries, and can make use of even empty mountains with their trimshops.

Climbing is a decent starting tech with Xin-Xi, and it would be even more with 3 different and essential things to research from it. But that added to the above would surely make them overly powerful (and after all, poor Aquarions...).

## Other Tribes

If you liked this one, go take a look at the others here : Gradokko