Rise of the Zombies



Rise of the Zombies was a tower defense game made available for the 2019 Halloween event.

"The undead are stirring. Will your dragons be able to protect you from the hordes?"

Badge
Participating in the Rise of the Zombies event awarded users the 2019 Halloween Event badge.

Instructions


Via the Halloween 2019 event page:

''Place towers on the board to form your line of defense. Each breed has its own unique effect. Once you click “Survive”, you will be subjected to unending waves of zombies. A new round happens every five minutes.''

''Though it is not possible to win outright, try to make it through as many rounds as you can. You will gain XP based on how long you survived. As you level up, you will unlock new towers and be able to build bigger and more involved defenses.''

Zombie behavior
Zombies move one tile per turn in a straight line until they reach the player's side of the board, after which they begin to move left or right towards the keep. They can move and attack in the same turn they spawn. Because they can move immediately, the results board often displays them 1 tile ahead of their actual spawn point. They can attack any tile directly in front of or next to them. It appears that if they move before attacking, they will attack at the end of a turn, but if they are already in range they will attack at the start of a turn. This effectively means they can attack twice in a row before the player's dragons activate.

If a zombie is stalled (stunned by a Bolt, entangled by a Dark Green, etc.) the zombies behind it will also stop and won't move around it.

As the game progresses, zombies spawn more often and closer to the keep, and eventually deal more damage. The maximum difficulty is 4 zombies spawning per turn anywhere on the zombie field and dealing 2 damage per attack.
 * Rounds 1-5: One zombie spawns per round. They deal 1 damage each.
 * Rounds 6-30: Two zombies spawn per round.
 * Rounds 31-60: Three zombies spawn per round.
 * Rounds 61+: Four zombies spawn per round.
 * Round 101+: Zombies begin dealing 2 damage.

General information
XP farming: At game over, players gain 1 experience for every round, while Shallow Waters give 5 experience per Shallow Water tower (equivalent to 25 minutes of playing). Once the Shallow Water Dragon is unlocked, place several of them on the sides and add damaging dragons in front of the Shallow Waters to protect them, while leaving a wide path open to the keep. This will lead to quick game overs and experience due to the Shallow Waters' bonus.

The far left and right corners on the player's side of the board are always safe from zombie attacks due to their movement towards the keep.

Dragons may have an activation range that is smaller than their damaging or effect range. The queue for most dragons' actions are determined in order of tower placement, going from zombie side to the keep, then northeast to southwest. Dragons can activate every turn if fully rejuvenated by purples.

Clicking "Start Over" will not reset the game until the player clicks "Survive" to begin a new game. Players can use this to experiment with tower placement, plan their next games, or reread tower abilities.

Species-specific information
Green Dragon attacks can damage all sides and diagonally, though they may not attack if a zombie is only diagonal to them. They are good frontliners due to their high health and low cost.

Red Dragons can be placed behind frontliners to help kill zombies between cooldowns, though support dragons such as Purples or Whites often synergize better. They are too fragile to tank zombies after round 100.

Dark Green Dragons can ensnare multiple zombies when lashing out with vines, preventing them from moving or attacking for one turn. Dark Greens can also attack nearby zombies currently ensnared by another Dark Green. It is uncertain whether they are invincible while ensnaring a zombie, but they are vulnerable once said zombie dies. They are good frontliners due to their high health, low cost, and ability to prevent zombies from attacking.

Pink Dragons are rarely useful after better towers are unlocked, as their short range and two-turn damage is outclassed by other damaging towers or additional supports. Their charm also fails to work if they die before it activates.

Shallow Water Dragons are best avoided unless using an XP farming build.

Purple Dragons can affect dragons diagonal to them. Adjacent Purples will also lower each others' cooldown, causing a chain reaction if multiple are adjacent. A 2x2 square of Purples in sync will activate every round and lower the cooldown of any dragons next to the square by two per turn. When in sync, each Purple will be seen lowering the cooldown of 3 other Purples. Any Purples "resting" means they are currently out of sync and their effectiveness is lowered.

White Dragons can affect dragons diagonal to them. Unless zombies are prevented from hitting dragons entirely (extremely difficult as they can attack dragons three rows from the keep when spawned and may attack before dragons move), Whites are required for any long games. They will be one-shot by strong zombies.

Vampire Dragons do not seem to automatically attack every zombie next to them despite the lack of a cooldown. They will often advance to the front end of the player's board unless their movement is blocked off. While placed Vampires cannot move into the zombie area, turned ones can spawn in it. Although the stated health of placed vampires is 3 HP, turned Vampires spawn with only 1 HP. However, turned Vampires can be healed by whites to increase their HP up to 3 like placed Vampires.

Bolt Dragons will stun zombies for 2 turns, preventing them from advancing. Zombies can still attack while stunned.

Aeon Dragons only activate when there are more than 10 zombies on the board, similar to Sophrosynes. Their exact effects and duration have not yet been determined, but as they are often placed behind frontliners and thus activate later, their usefulness is debatable.

Sophrosyne Dragons will entirely clear the board of zombies when it activates. If a strategy relies on it to activate regularly, trios should not be placed to avoid summoning the Guardian of Nature, which will usually kill enough zombies to prevent it from wiping the board. Based on the highest zombie spawn rate, 4 Sophrosynes is the maximum that should be placed.

Ice Dragons chill zombies in a diamond-shaped range, which prevents them from advancing for one turn. Zombies can still attack while chilled.

It is uncertain what the activation criteria for Thunder Dragons is, but they do not automatically activate if there are zombies on the board. A board that relies on Thunders may find them failing to activate even when zombies are approaching the keep.

Magma Dragons are the most powerful attacker due to their wide range, high health, and ability to summon the Guardian of Nature.

Summoning a Guardian of Nature requires at least one Magma, Ice, or Thunder Dragon, though it does not need a full set. It randomly spawns in the zombie spawning area during the game and leaves after 10 rounds or once it runs out of health. It can also be summoned multiple times per game, usually 5-10 turns after it last left. When attacking, it releases a wave of energy that deals 2 damage to zombies in a 2-3 square radius, depending on whether it's on its first, second or third attack. It appears to need a certain amount of empty space on the zombie board to be summoned, as a very successful vampire run can temporarily prevent it from spawning.

Glitches
Dragons may fail to react to zombies and spend several turns doing nothing despite one being in range. They can also activate earlier or later in the round than they normally do.

Dragon actions

 * Green Dragon
 * Green Dragon slams the ground.


 * Red Dragon
 * Red Dragon breathes fire.


 * Dark Green Dragon
 * Dark Green Dragon lashes out with vines.
 * Dark Green Dragon attacks Zombie!


 * Pink Dragon
 * Pink Dragon charms zombies, causing delayed damage.
 * Pink Dragon's charm deals delayed damage.


 * Shallow Water Dragon


 * White Dragon
 * White Dragon releases a wave of healing energy.


 * Magi Dragon
 * Magi Dragon teleports away nearby zombies.


 * Purple Dragon
 * Purple Dragon releases a wave of rejuvenating energy.


 * Vampire Dragon
 * Vampire Dragon attacks Zombie!


 * Bolt Dragon
 * Bolt Dragon releases a bolt of electrical energy.


 * Aeon Dragon
 * Aeon Dragon predicts the future.


 * Sophrosyne Dragon
 * Sophrosyne Dragon casts "Remove Curse" on all zombies.


 * Ice Dragon
 * Ice Dragon chills the area.


 * Magma Dragon
 * Magma Dragon breathes fire.


 * Thunder Dragon
 * Thunder Dragon calls down a bolt of lightning.


 * Guardian of Nature
 * Guardian of Nature releases a wave of bright energy.
 * Guardian of Nature leaves to maintain the balance.


 * Zombie
 * Zombie attacks Dragon!

Other messages:
 * Dragon is resting.
 * Dragon regains 1 HP.
 * Dragon's cooldown reduced by 1.
 * The power of your Ice, Magma, and Thunder dragons summons a Guardian of Nature.
 * X new zombies rise from the earth.
 * Zombie is stunned.
 * Zombie is slowed.
 * Zombie cannot move.
 * A new vampire appears where the zombie once was
 * X damage dealt to Zombie/Dragon/Base
 * Zombie/Dragon is defeated!
 * You are defeated!

Flavor text

 * Before adding defenses
 * Prepare your defenses; the night is long, and the hordes of zombies are relentless.


 * Round 0
 * The winds howl and the moons are full; it will be a long night, but you trust your dragons to protect you.


 * Rounds 1-29
 * The undead rise from the earth, targeting your stronghold. But you hold steady in your keep.
 * The undead rise from the earth, targeting your stronghold. You remain, unwavering, in your keep.


 * Rounds 30-59
 * The swarms continue unceasingly. Your defenses hold, but for how long?


 * Rounds 60+
 * You have persevered through countless waves of risen undead, yet they keep coming. This is truly a war of attrition that is not in your favor.


 * Game over
 * You fought valiantly, but in the end the zombies proved inexorable.
 * You have been overrun. Though you had wits on your side, the undead came in endless numbers.
 * In a never-ending game of chess, you did not prevail. Perhaps another strategy will work better?
 * The undead have taken your keep, but all is not lost. It is time to rebuild and regroup.

Trivia

 * The Bolt Dragon tower originally had a stated cooldown of 1, though it always required 2 points.
 * The Sophrosyne Dragon tower was originally named the Soulpeace Dragon tower.
 * Rounds 31-60 originally spawned 2 zombies instead of the stated 3.
 * The Guardian of Nature is the only tower that causes 2 damage to zombies.
 * The grass on the board dies gradually as more zombies spawn or dragons are defeated.
 * A pair of eyes is visible in the intact keep, and a shadowy limb appears to reach out from the wooden door. Another eye appears in the destroyed keep peering out from the now-broken door.