Guest mrchak Posted June 22, 2007 (Please read this and post comments and suggestions, ideas of what element combinations can mean - any feedback is appreciated!!! Bear in mind this post is irrespective of the actual tower ability, only the concept behind it. This way, if tower abilities are rearranged for balance, the actual towers will still make sense.) Edit 1,2 jun23- tower ideas expanded Edit 3, jun23 - expanded the ideas of the cycles of elements Edit 4 jun26 - added ideas of opposite element combinations Edit 5 jul 2 - added some more combo ideas Element Tower Defense I just want to take a step back, and lay out some of the concept that originated the map, so we don't lose sight of it. This represents the theory behind the map, in my opinion, and I think that it is because of this that the map has become popular. It represents, the beauty and symmetry of the elements and their combinations. The Elements First off, I'd like to explain the concept and themes behind each of the elements. Earth Color: Brown or Orange Themes: Bludgeoning, smashing, impacting, hard, rough, soil, rock, mineral, underground & from the ground, solid, steady Direction: Downward Nature Color: Green Themes: Plants, Animals, natural, organic, growth, healing, life & living, cycles and seasons. Direction: Upward * Nature was chosen instead of air or wind, though in some ways, wind and air can be incorporated into the concept of "nature." As of right now, however, this is not the case. Fire Color: Red Themes: Burning, spreading, fast moving, heat, ephemeral, destruction, anger, primary agent of change Direction: Lateral, Upward Water Color: Blue Themes: Wet, Cool, liquid, quenching, cleansing, pure, powerful, hydraulic pressure, ocean, underwater Direction: Lateral, Downward Darkness Color: Black or Purple Themes: Gravity, Evil, nothingness, emptiness, fear, night, outer space, mystical, mystery, entropy Direction: Inward Light Color: White or Yellow Themes: Good, Holy, speed, distance, shining, sparkly, blinding, stunning, knowledge and wisdom, creation Direction: Outward The Cycle of the Elements And now a look at why different elements dominate others. Light defeats Darkness because darkness can only exist in the absence of light. Indeed, darkness is simply the absence of light. Darkness defeats Water because it pollutes it. The water becomes tainted and loses its powers of cleansing and purity, becomes unclean and useless. Water defeats Fire because it extinguishes the fire. Fire can only burn in a dry environment. Fire defeats Nature because organic things are carbon-based, and are flammable. Nature defeats Earth because nature is patient and powerful, it can grow through the earth, break it up, or burrow through it. Earth defeats Light because sandstorms, dust, soot and dirt tarnish the clarity of light or can block it out completely. (Right now I'd like to give a thank you to Kalypso for the idea for this cyclical relationship between the elements. Before his suggestion, there were no elemental attack or defense types in the game) There are other traditions and concepts of the elements overcoming each other. In Chinese Taoist philosophy (to my very basic understanding) there are 5 elements: Fire, Earth, Metal, Water, Wood. Their relationship can be described as thus: Fire creates earth (ash), Earth bears metal, metal collects water, water nourishes wood, wood feeds fire. Alternatively, the elements overcome one another: Water quenches fire, Fire melts metal, Metal cuts wood, wood parts earth, earth absorbs water. Here's a diagram from Wikipedia. Another inspiration for the elements is the game Chrono Cross, where there are six elements that are diametrically opposed, and there is no cyclical relationship. The elements are really just colors, but are related closely to the elements of Element TD Red (Fire, Lava, Strength) <----> Blue (Water,Ice, Evasion) Yellow (Electricity, Earth, Defense) <-----> Green (Wood, Wind, Accuracy) Black (evil, gravity, Intelligence) <-------> White (Good, loftiness, Wisdom) Element Combinations - Duals A central idea of this game is combining elements to create something new that shares some of the attributes of the two source elements. Now lets look at the element combinations. I'm going to propose a few different possibilities of what the element combinations could mean. If I hear other possibilities or if people suggest them, I'll edit this post to have one consolidated list. Nature + Earth This suggests the balance between the organic and inorganic that is the basis for all land-based life. Tower Ideas: Roots, Worm, Mushroom/Fungus Nature + Fire *Fire is the stronger element This suggests some natural fire - a constantly burning fire (the Sun) is the obvious choice, since it is a huge ball of fire that is the source of essentially all life (on this planet) Tower Ideas: Sun Other ideas: Warmth, growth, bloom, charcoal, embers, bonfire, wildfire Nature + Water This suggests a refreshing and healing source of life. Alternatively it could be aquatic life. Tower Ideas: Well, Rainfall, stream, Fish, Whale, Frog, growth, plant life, slime Nature + Light The combination of goodness/holiness and Nature suggests the very essence of giving life Tower Ideas: Life, Healing, soul, rebirth, growing Nature + Darkness Just as in nature there is growth there is decay - nature is full of cycles. Darkness has an element of finality to it, the end of the natural cycle. Tower Ideas: Plague, Death, Disease, Sleep, Decay, decay, rotting Earth + Fire Fire and earth bring to mind the idea of volcanoes, lava, magma, an untamed primitive planet that is still in its chaotic stages of development. Tower Ideas: Lava, flame gueyser, Smoke, glass Earth + Water Tower Ideas: Mud, Clay, Quicksand, slippery, flexible Earth + Light *Earth is the stronger element Tower Ideas: Silver, Gold, Metal, Minerals, pure material, crafted elements, glass / quartz / mica Earth + Darkness Tower Ideas: Technology, Machine, Coal, Iron, Erosion, underground, cave, obsidian Fire + Water *Water is the stronger element Contrasting elements conjure the image of extinguished fire or heated water, the obvious choice would be... Tower Ideas: Steam Other Ideas: boiling, tropical, misty Fire + Light Tower Ideas: electricity, energy, Energy, sun, force Fire + Darkness Mystical, evil, powerful, angry, mysterious, Chaos, energy, force, power Tower Ideas: Magic, voodoo, witchcraft, Candles Water + Light Tower Ideas: Healing, Ice, Freezing, Clean, pure, holy Water + Darkness *Darkness is the stronger element Tower Ideas: Poison, Sewage/Pollution, Unclean, slime Light + Darkness *Light is the stronger element Light and darkness are naturally contrasting elements. The struggle between good and evil can be seen as an epic and eternal battle, or it can be seen as a balance like the image of Yin and Yang Tower Ideas: Harmony, moon, balance, strobe light, night, Eclipse, Shade, twilight, dawn, ghost, ethereal, immaterial Element Combinations - Triples In some situations a combination of three elements can be very hard to imagine, other times it is obvious. For some of these triples there are many different ways to approach it, different perspectives. Often times it is not clear when element is more powerful, and sometimes the three elements form a balance. Darkness + Earth + Fire *These 3 elements are equally powerful; none overpowers another Ideas: Flamethrower (technology that shoots fire) Gunpowder, Dynamite, rocket Darkness + Earth + Light *Earth > Light > Darkness Ideas: Laser (technology that shoots light) Darkness + Earth + Nature *Nature>Earth Ideas: Crypt (death from the earth), Decomposition, Oil Darkness + Earth + Water *Darkness>Water Ideas: Sludge Darkness + Fire + Light *Light>Darkness Ideas: Enchantment ('good' magic) Darkness + Fire + Nature *Fire>Nature Ideas: Summoning ('nature' magic, something alive) Darkness + Fire + Water *Darkness>Water>Fire Ideas: Acid (burning poison) Darkness + Light + Nature *Light>Darkness Ideas: Undead (death / Life) Darkness + Light + Water *Light>Darkness>Water Ideas: The tides (Moons + Water) Darkness + Nature + Water *Darkness>Water Ideas: Drowning (death + water, a watery grave) Earth + Fire + Light *Earth>Light Ideas: Metal or Gold (shiny rock, refined by fire) Earth + Fire + Nature *Fire>Nature>Earth Ideas: Dinosaur (I'll admit this one is more of a stretch, I'm thinking lave + nature brings to mind the idea of prehistoric life) Earth + Fire + Water *Water>Fire Ideas: Infernal (a flaming clay tower) Mudslide tower (earth with steam / warm water) Earth + Light + Nature *Nature>Earth>Light Ideas: Gemstone (This one is also a bit of a strech... the idea is that the crystalization is a natural process, you have a shiny rock that is natural...) Earth + Light + Water *Earth>Light Ideas: Glacier (rocky ice) Earth + Nature + Water *Nature>Earth Ideas: Flesh Golem (an organic/living clay tower) Oasis tower (trees and water inside of a desert) land travelling waterlife (walrus, seals etc.) Erosion Fire + Light + Nature *Fire>Nature Ideas: Nova (A bright Solar explosion) Star (sun + Light is an even bigger sun - this was in 2.0) Fire + Light + Water *Water>Fire Ideas: Storm (Lightning, Ice, Steam...) Fire + Nature + Water *Water>Fire>Nature Green, Blue and Red suggest a very colorful combination. Ideas: Rainbow (a natural phenomenon that need the sun and water, or steam) Tropical rainforest (hot, steamy, plants and animals) Parrot, bird of paradise Light + Nature + Water *These elements are equally powerful Ideas: Hail (a natural ball of ice) Mammoth (An animal that lives in the ice. this was in 2.0) Well (Pure, Refreshing, Life giving, Good, holy...) There are many other ideas for these combinations. Please shout them out and I will add them to this list. Triple-Element Opposite Towers This is a concept that I'm just considering now. Basically, each triple tower theoretically has an opposite tower that shares no elements. The opposite towers may have similar abilities, but the nature of the two towers should be more or less diametrically opposed. Some of these are not really true opposites, some are. Maybe thinking about the element combinations in terms of opposite triple towers can help encourage some additional brainstorming. Here are the 10 opposite pairs: DEF - Flamethrower, Gunpowder, Rocket, dynamite (Man-made, hot) / LNW - Hail, mammoth, well (Natural, Cold) DEL - Laser (Man-made, white-light) / FWN - Rainbow, Tropical Rainforest, Birds of Paradise (natural, colorful) DEN - Crypt, decomposition, oil (underground, passive, dark) / LFW - Storm (in the sky, active, bright) DEW - Sludge / LFN - Nova, Star DFL - Enchantment / ENW - Flesh Golem, Oasis Tower, Land-traveling waterlife, Erosion DFN - Summoning / LWE - Glacier DFW - Acid / ELN - Gemstone DLN - Undead / EFW - Infernal, Mudslide DLW - Tidal / FEN - Dinosaur DNW - Drowning / FEL - Metal, Gold Go to top Share this post Link to post
Guest MasterTenor Posted June 23, 2007 Light+Darkness: Eclipse Tower (can switch between light and dark damage -- the difference between a solar and lunar eclipse) Earth+Water+Fire: Mudslide tower (earth with steam / warm water) Earth+Nature+Water: Oasis tower (trees and water inside of a desert), or a form of land travelling waterlife (walrus, seals etc.) Go to top Share this post Link to post
Cisz Posted June 23, 2007 We don't have decided upon an exact tower distribution yet, so we need flexible sollutions. I'll try to provide my version of the themes that can be used for about any type of tower for the given elements. (Unfinished) (Edit 01, duals continued.) Lists of all 2- and 3-element towers as of 3.0 ldwfne 1 ++ ld Moon 2 + + lw Ice 3 + + lf Electricity 4 + + ln Life 5 + + le Gold 6 ++ dw Poison 7 + + df Magic 8 + + dn Death 9 + + de Tech10 ++ wf Steam11 + + wn Well12 + + we Clay13 ++ fn Sun14 + + fe Lava15 ++ ne Root ldwfne 1 +++ ldw Tidal 2 ++ + ldf Enchantment 3 ++ + ldn Undead 4 ++ + lde Laser 5 + ++ lwf Storm 6 + + + lwn Hail 7 + + + lwe Glacier 8 + ++ lfn Nova 9 + + + lfe Metal10 + ++ lne Gem11 +++ dwf Acid12 ++ + dwn Drowning13 ++ + dwe Sludge14 + ++ dfn Summoning15 + + + dfe Flamethrower16 + ++ dne Crypt17 +++ wfn Rainbow18 ++ + wfe Inferno19 + ++ wne Flesh Golem20 +++ fne Dino Duals For balancing reasons, no dual is allowed a mayor game winning effect. dl - Shade, twillight, dawn, ghost, etheral, immaterial. Damage: Weakening, ageing, fear, cripple. Single target slow: Fear, distraction, illusion, weakening. Special effect: Transform, ethereal form, weaken. lw - Clean, pure, holy. Damage: Holy strike, cleaning. Single target slow: Command. Special effect: Blessing, cleaning, strengthen. lf - Energy, sun, force. Damage: Lightning, magic, beam of light. Single target slow: Shock, taser, blind. Special effect: Power up, energize. ln - Life, nature, rebirth, growing. Damage: Overpower, choke, pain. Single target slow: Spores, root, choke. Special effect: Growth, strenghten. le - Minerals, metal, pure material, crafted elements. Damage: Cutting, sting, bash. Single target slow: Blind, hook, chain. Special effect: Improve, complicate, refine. dw - Unclean, poison, slime. Damage: Venom, mist, choke. Single target slow: Poison, sticky. Special effect: Cover, stick, befoul. df - Chaos, energy, force, power. Damage: Energy strike, ripple, blast. Single target slow: Bend, force field. Special effect: Magic, energize, enchant, dispell. dn - Death, decay, rotting. Damage: Rot, corrode. Single target slow: Slime, ageing, fear. Special effect: Age, terror. de - Erosion, underground, cave, Damage: Bite/strike like an underground creature, clobber. Single target slow: Fear, pressure, blind. Special effect: Hide, shade, protect, cover. wf - Steam, boiling, tropical, misty. Damage: Heat, steam, boil. Single target slow: Weaken, feaver. Special effect: Growth, blind. wn - Rain, growth, plant life, slime. Damage: Rain, vine strike. Single target slow: Sticky, entangle. Special effect: Growth, strengthen, refresh. we - Muddy, slippery, flexible. Damage: Splash, pressure, club. Single target slow: Slide, quicksand, sticky. Special effect: Cover, forming, adhere. fn - Warmth, growth, bloom. Damage: Heat, flame. Single target slow: Feaver. Special effect: Strenghten, growth. - Damage: Single target slow: Special effect: More to come. Go to top Share this post Link to post
Guest Ubernuber Posted June 26, 2007 Is the idea to redesign all towers, replace a couple specific towers, or just see if someone comes up with cooler ideas than what is currently there? The justifications for the current towers are largely convincing. I was under the impression the next version only did some rebalancing of over/underpowered towers? Go to top Share this post Link to post
Guest mrchak Posted June 26, 2007 Just wanted to come up with a bunch of ideas just in case any of the towers have to be replaced. I'd be surprised if more than 25% of the towers are changed significantly... but regardless, I think its a healthy exercise to take a step back once in a while. Go to top Share this post Link to post
Twilice Posted June 27, 2007 This could add some balancing and stuff, and it is youst an idea, so please any comments are god. In order to stay some changes in all the towers, the fire could have a fast spreading attack (becuase the fire spreads.) using moon glaive. One of the single target attack towers could hit several towers in one shoot, using barrage. ( single tower means light, nature, darkness) Ideas for N+D is like cisz said have it change attack type, an extended idea for this is having the tower attack with darkness if it is night, and have i attack with light in the day. In the midnight the tower could get double damage for a period and in the "mid"day it could get double speed. W+D could be frost nova tower, But very short speed reduce and change nova to a more watery nova, my suggerstion is using Naga building death animation. and have the tower using darkness damage. E+D could be another summoning tower (rock golems,) More ideas coming soon. . . Go to top Share this post Link to post
