The synergy between your Physical Form, Society Traits, and starting Tomes defines your early-game momentum and late-game scaling. To optimize your Godir, you must balance immediate economic bonuses with long-term combat capabilities.
Physical Form and Traits
While Physical Form (e.g., Human, Elf, Dwarf) is purely cosmetic, your Form Traits provide permanent passive bonuses to every unit of your starting race. For aggressive builds, Mount: Nightmare or Mount: Wolf adds significant HP and unique status effects to scouts and heavy cavalry. Defensive builds should leverage Resilient (-2 counts to negative status effects) or Hardy (+10 HP) to outlast early skirmishes.
Society Traits: The Economic Engine
Society Traits dictate your empire’s macro-logic. Unlike Form Traits, these impact your city management and diplomatic standing:
- Imperialists: Grants +20 Gold and +20 Stability in the Throne City, making it the premier choice for rapid city expansion.
- Mana Channelers: Reduces the Mana cost of summoning units by 50%, essential for builds relying on the Tome of Beasts or Tome of Horde.
- Ruthless Raiders: Grants Gold and Draft upon defeating units, ideal for maintaining a high-tempo offensive.
Tier 1 Tome Selection for Starting Builds
Your first Tome dictates your initial Research path and your Tier 1 unit roster. Select a Tome that complements your Society Traits:
- Tome of Zeal (Order): Perfect for aggressive expansion. Provides the Fanaticism buff for increased damage and the Zealot unit, which excels in early-game clearing.
- Tome of Evolution (Nature/Chaos): Best for "unit-pumping" builds. It provides the Shepherd skill, increasing XP gain for Tier 1 units, allowing them to evolve into powerful Higher-Tier forms quickly.
- Tome of Enchantment (Materium): The premier choice for martial builds. The Sundering Blades enchantment reduces enemy Physical Resistance, while Seeker Arrows adds +1 Range to all ranged units.
- Tome of Souls (Shadow): The foundation for Necromancy. It introduces the Soul resource mechanic, allowing you to reanimate fallen foes and settle cities without using traditional population growth.