User talk:Patashu/Auro v1.31 Advanced rulebook

This page is only accurate for Auro v1.31 (the version available on iOS and Android). Information here has been compiled by Patashu. This page is currently a WIP and subject to revision, correcitons and cleaning up.

Structure of a turn

 * Player Phase: cast any number of spells, then move. If you are frozen, this ends.


 * Monster Phase: in a semi-random order (see Monster movement order), all monsters get a turn one by one (see Monster AI).


 * Environment Phase: frozen, smokey flavour, floe, abomination, dim, segment timers tick down.

If the Prince ever drowns, skip the remainder of all Phases, then respawn him (no Environment Phase for example).

Scoring
At the start of the game the multiplier is 4 with 6 segments.

You don't lose segments if Prince drowns (see structure of a turn).


 * 5: segment max 4, lose 2 per turn.


 * 4: segments max 6, lose 2 per turn.


 * 3: segments max 8, lose 1 per turn.


 * 1 (2 on easy): segments max 8, lose 1 per turn.

Killing a monster that gives points also gives 6 segments.


 * The multiplier increments between simultaneous kills.

Ending the game
On the turn where you get enough points, monsters all still act. In the event of a double KO, you still win and get points.

The opposite isn't true; If you run out of barrier, no further monster movement occurs (preventing monsters from killing themselves and turning the loss into a win).

Monster AI
Monsters activate based on turns ended within radius 3 of them. Usually 0 turn delay, but sometimes 1, even 2, maybe 3. (Note Lich and Trickster spent first turn awake dimmed.)

Bumping sleeping enemies doesn't wake them up.

If a monster has two ways of stepping adjacent to you, it prefers to step on the tile closer to the direction you're moving in. (Examples: Monsters that were next to you tend to maintain their orientation rather than chasing behind you, monsters that weren't next to you and now have two ways of stepping next to you pick the tile closer to in front of you rather than closer to behind you, 'intercepting' you) Test in tutorial 4. If it can't step next to you this turn, it picks randomly between the two equally close tiles.

There is an exception to the above - fliers prefer the non water tile when picking between two tiles that are adjacent to you (if non-adjacent, they can pick the water tile). Test in tutorial 7.

Aside from the above rules, monsters don't have any particular aversion to making suicidal moves (walking onto springboards, moving to places where they can be pushed into water, moving into the path of a charging Troggle, etc).

Monster movement order
Monsters move in the following order: Jellies first, everything else second, Tricksters last. Within each tier, break ties by distance from Prince, then randomly.

This rule is not 100% consistent; Once a Brute to my SW threw me before a Jelly to my SE could bump me. Under what circumstances exceptions occur is currently unknown.

Charles are not Jellies and have normal priority.

Default bump
Stunning, flattens Jellies (even if they don't move).

Can't be used if it wouldn't cause any movement, flattening or killing.

Can't bump heavies unless they are on vortex or floe. This is the ONLY kind of bump that has this restriction, so it will not be mentioned again!

Note that you can't bump enemies past the edge (walls) of the map!

Bumping bug: You can bump a frozen Jelly on floe into a Bat on water, even though nothing moves (and obviously the jelly doesn't flatten). Test in tutorial 7.

Bounce
Caused by: non-flier entering/exiting vortex (uses vortex up), object entering springboard (turns springboard into a stunned Jelly immediately), non-heavy bounce ending on object (except for flier over water), Brute attack, suplexes (Yeti and Abomination), entering Squid tile (unless it already bounced once this turn)

Basic bounces cause the object to bounce two tiles in the same direction. Squid reflection bounces are two tiles in the opposite direction, and suplexes are three tiles behind you.

If a monster bounces onto a vortex + Squid tile, the vortex is used instead of the squid.

If a monster bounces onto a vortex + springboard tile, the vortex is used and the springboard remains.

If a monster bounces onto a vortex + object tile, it bounces off of the object rather than using the vortex.

The object flies over any intermediate tiles, therefore their contents are irrelevant.

Heavy objects ending a bounce on an object crush and kill it instead of bouncing again (even if said object is Prince!).

A bounce ending on a flier over water drowns it instead of bouncing again. This is called a 'dunk'.

If a Squid has already bounced one thing this turn and another object enters its tile, the Squid drowns instead.

Sleeping
See Monster AI.

Dimmed
Can't use 'attack' until undimmed.

Duration differs for each monster.

Lich and Trickster are dimmed the turn they wake up.

Smokey flavour
Given by monsters affected by Rotisserie and monsters on the tile a Firebomb is landed.

Mutually exclusive with Freezing.

Until your next turn, the object leaves behind a fire every time it leaves a tile. (Bumping, bouncing, swapping, etc makes them leave fires.)

If an object with smokey flavour bounces on an object, the bounced on object dies in the flame AND the bounce repeats! This also happens with springboards.

If a monster with smokey flavour moves off of floe over water, the monster doesn't drown from the floe melting, it moved off first.

Stun
Can't move on its next turn.

Doesn't delay unfreezing, unflattening or undimming.

Caused by default bump, fire blast bump (if moved), fire explosion bump (if moved).

Does not stack.

Interesting interaction: If you stun then freeze a monster, it will be frozen 1 turn longer than usual. Freeze THEN stunning bump doesn't work. (For stun tested fire explosion and Fire Blast bump, for freeze tested Snowball and Floe (spell).)

Freezing
Can't move on its turn until unfrozen.

Mutually exclusive with 'smokey flavour'.

Frozen fliers act like non-fliers.

Frozen jellies can't flatten.

They will appear cracked one turn before unfreezing.

Re-freezing a frozen enemy uses the larger timer. (Animation bug; If it's cracked it remains cracked.)

A frozen Prince must end his turn (can't even cast spells) and is immune to bumping and damage until his next turn starts. Different enemies have different reactions to you being frozen:


 * Jellies and Brutes will do nothing and not dim.
 * Bats and Foxys (and probably all other damage dealers) will try to attack you and dim.
 * Tricksters will successfully swap with you.
 * Yeti seems unclear - I've seen both suplexed successfully and ignored (made a normal move instead).

Interestingly, you can use a Curse Kid's candy while frozen, removing it from your inventory and ignoring the damage!

Land
Everything that isn't open water is land.

Water
Vortices apply before falling water.

Non-flies over water fall in (seemingly when all movement ends - see floe (terrain))

A bounce ending on a flier over water drowns it instead of bouncing again. This is called a 'dunk'.

Heavy monsters on floe over water break it and fall in if they end movement on it (except yeti/abomination).

An object falling into water creates a Splash (see Splash).

fliers prefer the non water tile when picking between two tiles that are adjacent to you. (see Monster AI).

Splash
Appears over water when any object (including Prince) drowns in it.

If an object drowns in a splash, a Squid spawns. (See Squid)

Not overridden by floe.

There is an animation bug where if multiple objects drown on the same turn (or sometimes adjacent turns), multiple splashes animate at the same time. However, only the most recently created splash can actually spawn a Squid. If you drowned several monsters simultaneously, it can be difficult or impossible to tell which splash is real.

Floe (terrain)
Overwrites fire.

Can be placed over water. Monsters will step on it even if it is about to break and kill them.

Floe'd power can't be picked up. (But teleporters work!)

Doesn't interact with landing from a jump.

Becomes cracked after 9 turns, disappears after 1 more (AFTER monster movement!). You collect power on the turn it breaks.

Heavy monsters on floe over water break it and fall in if they end movement on it (except yeti/abomination). (Slipping past that tile doesn't count as ending on it). This happens even if there was a springboard on that tile (the springboard falls in too, so a squid is generated). However, using a vortex lets them leave without breaking the ice.

Floe on a tile that already has floe resets the timer to 9. Animation bug: if it's cracked it remains cracked.

Summary of floe bumping/slipping rules:

0) Heavy monsters can be bumped by Prince's normal bump if standing on floe.

1) If a non-flier is bumped onto floe they slip. Slipping onto floe slips again and so on.

2) Fliers don't slip - they go their normal two tiles.

3) If object 1 (on floe) bumps (NOT slips) into object 2 (on floe), object 1 moves into object 2's tile, object 2 is bumped (if its non-flier it begins slipping). Object 1 continues to try and move (if non-flier, slips - if flier, continue with two tile bump).

4) Slipping objects can't bump objects any more (which can 'stop them early'). 5) You can't push an object on non-floe into an object on floe.

6) Objects bumped onto water don't fall right away (which can invoke rule 4), but monsters bumped onto fire do die right away (allowing slipping to continue).

7) Objects can use vortices mid-slip.

8) Floe bumping and slipping is non-stunning.

Vortices
Any object that involuntarily moves (bump, slip, bounce, dash, swap, fire blast bump, etc) into or out of a vortex uses the vortex up and bounces an additional two tiles in the same direction. (Some things apply before or after the vortex, see 'Bounce' section)

Jumping onto a vortex allows you to make a second Jump. (The vortex remains behind since you make a new one.)

One notable exception is the 1 tile hop from Jump does NOT trigger vortices.

Vortices apply BEFORE falling into water.

Created by Jump, Dash and Gale.

Kills fliers if they're bumped into/out of one. (Bouncing into or out of a vortex does NOT kill a flier!) The death happens even if there's no room for the flier to leave the vortex.

Fire
Overwrites floe.

A monster entering a fire instantly dies and extinguishes the fire.

The Prince entering a fire via any means causes 1 barrier damage + an explosion (bump enemies radius 1, stuns if moved, flattens jellies if moved).

Fires can't exist over water, they simply don't get made.

Power
Collected if the tile is not covered by floe, even if you don't end your movement on it. (Abomination leaves floe before picking up power, and you can pick up power on the turn floe breaks if you're standing there.

All of the following scenarios collect the power: Jump onto power + vortex, Jump onto power + object, Jump onto power + springboard, bump onto power + vortex, dashing through power, bounce onto power + object, bump onto springboard + power, bumped past power by Charles.

Teleporters
Gives 1 barrier and 5 segments (2 barrier on Easy).

Work under floe.

Teleport you before any further monster movement.

If you slide past a teleporter (such as due to floe or Charles) you will not teleport.

If you move OR jump onto teleporter + springboard, you will teleport (as opposed to taking the springboard off).

If you jump onto teleporter + (one or both of object/vortex) you will teleport (as opposed to being able to jump again or hop off).

Bug: If you bounce onto teleporter + (one or both of object/vortex) you both continue to the next level and fall in the water, taking one damage. If this kills you (you don't actually gain barrier until you change levels) the summary and game over screens merge. When you restart, the summary screen will still be open, and you can tap it twice to skip straight to level 2, then 3!

Gale
Pick a direction. All objects in radius 2 will be bumped in that direction.

Non-stunning, flattens jellies if they move.

Creates vortices on new final tiles only for monsters that moved.

Interestingly, can't move springboards but will make a vortex on their tile. (Most spells and effects ignore springboards.)

Interesting interaction: A jelly was 1E and a bat 2E of a squid+vortex tile. The bat and squid died, the vortex disappeared and the jelly bounced back in springboard form (it did two bounces to the east, not 100% sure why, maybe a vortex but how could it have gotten there?). I guess the squid died because it thought the bat was one of the two things it should bounce?

Jump
Choose a tile diagonal from your current location. You jump to it, creating vortices on the start and end tile.

If you jump onto any object (including pillars) OR water, you can hop off to any tile next to it. The intermediate tile does not get a vortex, the end tile does.

The 1 tile hop does NOT trigger vortices.

If you jump onto a vortex, you must do anther regular jump. Regenerates the vortex.

If you jump onto an object + vortex tile, you hop 1 tile off rather than use the vortex.

If you jump onto a flier above water, it drowns and you get the 1 tile hop. (If a squid is made this way, it doesn't bounce you back, you get the usual 1 tile hop.)

Springboards (even springboard + vortex - even though normal bounces onto springboard + vortex use the vortex!) repeat your jump. Squids reflect your jump.

Interestingly, if the springboard repeated jump lands on another object, it turns into a bounce! (For example, jump s onto springboard becomes jump s onto pillar becomes bounce se.)

You cannot jump to a tile totally surrounded by non-[empty land], even if it would be valid otherwise.

Dash
Choose a direction that has an object in radius 3 of you. If it's adjacent to you, swap places with it and create a vortex on your new direction. Otherwise, dash next to it and create vortexes on all tiles left/entered. Dash and swap seem to ignore floe (no slipping and so on).

Swap is non-stun and doesn't flatten jellies (even if the jelly ends up bouncing).

Dash exiting a vortex uses the vortex up and doesn't make a new one to replace it.

If you swap places with something trailing fire, you blow up the fire and don't bump them (strange!).

If you dash into a fire you activate it.

You can dash into water and fall in, but also dash over it. (Interestingly, troggles can't charge over water.)

If you swap places out of a vortex, you make a vortex on the new final tile.

Swap code seems to be like: prince leaves tile (activate vortices), object leaves tile (activate vortices and smokey flavour), prince phases in and enters tile and creates vortex (activate fires), object phases in and enters tile. Floe ignored.

You can't swap with a pillar, but you can dash up to one.

Rotisserie
Choose clockwise or counterclockwise. All objects adjacent to you are bumped in that direction around you, and gain smokey flavour (see Smokey flavour section).

Can't be used in a direction if nothing would move.

Non-stun, doesn't flatten jellies.

Can't rotate pillars.

Unfreezes frozen enemy JUST before they fall into water, but moves them as though frozen (even safely using vortices).

Fire Blast
Choose a direction. Kill objects and create fires on 3 tiles in that direction, then fire blast bump yourself the opposite direction.

The properties of a fire blast bump are as follows: If it moves onto an object, that object is bumped (stuns if moved). (Since it's just a normal bump now, you can push at most one object with a fire blast bump normally. But all normal floe rules of floe bumping and slipping apply, so fire blast and floe can combo to push many enemies as it normally works. Be aware that if the monsters on floe are non-consecutive, the bump downgrades into a slip and you cannot push past the first gap in monsters.)

Firebomb
Choose a tile diagonal from your current location. A fire is created there (or if an object is there, the object gains smokey flavour (which unfreezes them), or if the tile is water, no fire is created) and all adjacent monsters are bumped one tile (non-stun, flattens jellies if moved).

Abomination
When activated, you turn into Abomination, gain 4 Abomination ticks, place floe under you and freeze 1 turn all adjacent monsters. Your basic bump turns into 'suplex monster, bouncing them two tiles behind you and freezing them for 1 turn'.

Abomination trails floe on every tile you move to (before picking up power).

Abomination is heavy. It can't be bumped, bounced or swapped with by Trickster. If you use jump to land on a monster, you crush and kill it.

Abomination ticks count down 1 during the Environment Phase and 1 every time you would take damage. Abomination immediately ends (leaving you vulnerable to further monster activity) when it reaches 0. As abomination you can Dash swap with a flier over water and not fall in, as you make floe under yourself.

Ends when you change levels.

Visual bug? If you suplex a bat over water it makes two splashes - one where it falls in immediately, one where it gets suplexed to. The first splash is fake and won't make squids.

Snowball
Choose a direction that has an object in radius 3 of you. Freeze it for 7 turns (e.g. unfreezes after your 7th move following Snowball being cast), place Floe for 10 turns under it and freeze everything adjacent (including Prince) for 1 turn.

You can snowball a pillar. It won't freeze or place floe, but the adjacent freeze for 1 turn works

Floes the tile it hits.

The adjacent freeze doesn't put out fires (only placing floe does).

The rules for frozen Prince are described in 'Freezing' section.

Floe (spell)
Choose a direction. Place floe for 10 turns and freeze monsters for 1 turn in the following shape in that direction: Radius 1 hexagon with the furthest tile excluded.

Pillars
Immobile objects - can be targeted by all spells except Dash swap.

Jumping onto a pillar gives you the 1 tile hop.

You can crush a pillar if heavy, no points or segments.

You can't change the terrain under Pillar (fire, floe, etc).

Rat
Flee if dimmed (this happens before undimming).

Undim 4 (after hitting you and dimming, will undim 4 turns later. That is, (Prince move, rat move)*4, undim.)

Bat
Flies (While NOT frozen: Bumps send fliers 2 tiles instead of 1, killed if bumped into or out of a vortex (even if there's no room to leave) (bouncing into or out of a vortex does NOT kill the flier), flies over water unless jumped/bounced onto, bumps not extended by floe)

Undim 4

Two tile movement (unless entering or exiting water (ice over water is land)), but second tile can't attack. They can take second move after bouncing on a springboard. When moving adjacent to you, prefers the non-water tile to the water tile.

Jellies
Undim 4

Instead of attacking, it bumps you one tile.

Has a high priority (see Monster movement order section).

If it can't bump you due to an object behind you or you being frozen, it will keep still and not dim.

If a Jelly is bumped by Prince or any non-standard bump except Dash swap or Rotisserie moves it, it is flattened and turns into a springboard. (It doesn't flatten until it stops moving, so it can chain through vortices, bounce on objects, etc. first.) Any object (even fliers/Prince) moving onto the springboard (including two tile bumps, slips, etc) will bounce two tiles in the same direction, turning the springboard into a stunned Jelly. Otherwise it reforms 4 monster phases later (if you bumped it, after your third following move, for example). Stunning doesn't slow down unflattening.

You can bump a Jelly to transform it even if something is in the way.

Springboards are generally ignored by spells/effects, with one exception - Gale will not move it but will make a vortex on its tile.

Bug: A bat can move onto a tile with a springboard without using it, then the springboard turns into a Jelly. (Normally two monsters can't occupy the same tile together.) When I bumped this, I bumped the Jelly. Snowball also affects Jelly. Interestingly if I snowball Jelly then push Jelly I can step onto the bat and even on and off again! Bug fixed if the bat moves. Reproduced in tutorial 7 and practice. Example setup: push Jelly NW, Bat moves to your E tile. Move W, NW, NW and Bat steps onto Jelly the same turn it unflattens. A different setup where the final move was single nw, single se or single ne also worked. May be to do with the Jelly acting before the bat when the bat single moves.

Related setup: if the Bat double moves NE on the turn the Jelly unspringboards, no bug.

Charles
Instead of attacking, it bumps you two tiles.

Don't become springboards.

Undim 1

Foxy
Evasive (if it can attack attack, else if it's 1-2 tiles away retreat, else advance)

Undim 4

Can't attack without a clear path.

Gwenny
Foxy variant that can attack at range 1 or 2, deal damage and knock back, aggressive rather than evasive.

Undim 1

Gwenny Time Stop bug: if a Gwenny can hit you and not knock you back, she will, and nothing else will move. (Sometimes, it's the next move that's free? Not 100% sure)

Trickster
Wakes up with radius 3 first turn always, but is initially dimmed.

Undim 4

Instead of attacking, swaps places with Prince with range 2.

Seems to have a late priority (see Monster movement order)

Watch out - can swap you onto the level exit!

Licorice rat/bat
As the normal monster, but gives no points or segments on death.

Brute
Heavy (can't be bumped by Prince's basic attack except when on floe or vortex, kills object it jumps onto including other heavies and Prince, breaks floe over water if it ends movement on it)

Instead of attacking, bounces you 2 tiles away.

Undim 3

If you're standing on a vortex and a Brute bounces you, the vortex is not used up.

Troggles
Heavy

Undim 1

Warms up if it sees you in a range 2 straight line, even if monsters in the way, even if across water, but can't charge across the water (will fall in).

Stays warmed up + remembers direction if bumped before charging.

If they charge onto floe, can slip.

If a charge ends next to you, hits you (even if dimmed).

If they charge into a vortex they use it up and go two tiles from it, then stop the charge.

Can hit Prince and warm up on the same move.

The charge kills everything in its path, and gives you credit.

Always dims after the charge finishes.

Lich
Flies

Is dimmed for one turn when he wakes up.

Undim 3

Only moves to enter range 2.

Can attack in radius 2, not just straight lines.

Curse kid
Two tile movement, second tile CAN attack.

Undim 1

Not bumped two tiles. (Not a flier after all!)

Yeti
For its attack, suplexes you two tiles behind it, also dealing 1 damage.

Toggles dim after every move and also after attacking - moves every other turn, but can immediately move/attack again after attacking you.

Can't be killed.

Can't be frozen.

Can't be bumped or bounced by any means.

CAN be given Smokey flavor by Firebomb, but not by Rotisserie.

CAN be targeted by Dash but NOT by Dash swap.

Gale doesn't give it a vortex (since it doesn't move).

Doesn't walk through flame.

Lord Vargas
Undim 4

Heavy

His attack is to move then spawn a licorice rat/bat behind him. Moves towards you if not adjacent, moves away otherwise. Can use it in radius 3 from you. If he has smoky flavour it instantly dies by triggering the fire it is on

Squid
Spawned when an object drowns on a splash (see Splash).

Undim 1

Starts asleep, but always wakes up the first Monster Phase that it can (e.g. that you're in its 3 tile radius).

Nonsolid (can throw snowballs past it, can dash past it, objects in general seem to be able to enter its tile)

Prevents floe from forming on its tile.

Does melee attacks and tries to move to block you from bumping monsters into the water.

A heavy landing on a squid kills it.

If something enters its tile (bat flying onto it, bump, rotisserie bump all tested) (possibly squids can also enter fliers?) it gets bounced two tiles in the opposite direction.

If a squid tries to bounce two things in a turn, it dies. No points/segments on death (to prevent Squid farming from being a high scoring tactic).

Unreproduced oddies
If these can be reproduced or confirmed to never happen, it will tie up some loose ends.
 * Jellies landing on an object sometimes turn into a springboard on that tile! (Couldn't reproduce with rat, prince, frozen bat, bat or pillar, but definitely saw it once.)
 * I moved next to a Brute who thew me onto a fire surrounded by floe (and water to the east). After that, the game wouldn't let me move or target Fire Blast or Dash. Selecting the spells still worked, the menu still worked but I could not make a turn in any way. Even closing and re-opening the app didn't help. Resigning finally fixed it.
 * Galed a jelly on floe + vortex onto a tile with floe and frozen lich, instead of bouncing it flattened. Maybe normal jelly behaviour though?
 * Why did this not work? I rotated CCW with a jelly in a vortex and a lich behind it. The jelly moved two tiles and used the vortex and the lich did not move. Both gained smokey flavour.

Unanswered questions
Things no one has confirmed the answer to yet that would round out the rulebook:
 * You seem to visually unfreeze before tricksters swap with you. What's up with that? Is unfreezing actually part of the Monster Phase? (Similarly Yetis can also suplex you after you unfreeze, is that related?)
 * When does the 'how many things this Squid has bounced this turn' counter reset? Before it takes its turn, after it takes its turn or the Environment Phase?
 * When does a Jelly unflatten? Its move in the Monster Phase or in the Environment Phase? (the fact that a bat can step onto a Jelly the moment it unflattens implies that the answer is 'Its move in the Monster Phase', but we can try to test more rigorously with a Brute or Charles bounce/push.)
 * Can anything be predicted about when a monster will wake up? Is it a random distribution, if so, what is the distribution? Do some monsters wake up faster than others?
 * Under what circumstances will a Jelly not go first / a Trickster not go last in monster movement order? Can anything about the remaining randomness be predicted?
 * For monster movement order, is 'proximity to player' re-determined each time the player moves, or is it all pre-calculated at the start of the Monster Phase?
 * If the Prince enters a fire due to a monster (Jelly, Brute, etc) and it stuns monsters that haven't moved yet, do they skip their move, next move or neither?
 * Does anything special happen if there's a springboard or object on the start of the map when you get dunked?