The spell tree, the wizard, and talking to characters
A first draft from the talk on 2026-10-04. Nothing is built. Mark it up: what to swap, cut or add.
18 slots per school12 spells plus 3 forks. At each fork you pick one of two, like Arc Raiders. The last fork is the big finale.
27 points in allFinishing a school takes 15. With the other 12 you get halfway down a second school (8) and have 4 spare. You can't have everything.
Points from the Rain Dance9 songs with 3 stars each = 27 points. Replay a song to earn its stars.
Order inside a schoolEach slot needs the one above it. Mixing schools is allowed; the cost is that you never finish both.
CountersA purple edge marks a spell that answers a bug type: chewers, jumpers or flyers (the bug roster talk).
ResetThe wizard resets all your points for a small fee, about 10 minutes of farming.
The three schools
The wizard's spellbooks
A wizard stands at a mossy rune stone: a standing pillar with runes in a ring around one big rune, glowing sky blue. He sells 9 spellbooks for coins. They sit outside the tree and don't use points. They're strong but odd: weird, clever, situational. Late books unlock at wave 15, or cost a fortune before that.
Early
Book of ScarecrowsThree straw scarecrows pop up. For 20 s bugs attack them instead of your crops.
Book of Sweet BaitA honey lure pulls every bug on screen to one spot for 8 s. Then hit them all at once.
Book of Second HarvestEvery crop on the farm ripens at once. 10-minute cooldown.
Mid
Book of MirrorsThe farmer splits into three for 15 s, and every copy can squash bugs.
Book of PortalsPlace two portals. Bugs that walk into one come out the other: into the lake, or into your beehives' range. The tricky, Bard-style one.
Book of the Long NightTime stops for the bugs for 5 s. You keep moving.
Late
Book of the GolemA stone golem steps out of the rune stone and guards one side of the farm for a whole wave.
Book of WinterEvery bug freezes for 10 s and becomes brittle: double damage until it thaws.
Book of ReversalFor 15 s, a bug that bites a crop gives the growth back and runs away.
Talking to characters
Tap Rose, the frog or the wizard and the screen changes, like an old RPG: a large, high-res portrait of their face, their place behind them, a speech box, and two or three buttons. The scene is the menu.
The frog, at the rain circleTalk · Spell tree (he teaches each new spell before you take it)
Rose, in the Zen GardenTalk · Zen shop (seeds and finds) · she loves plants
The wizard, at the rune stoneTalk · Spellbooks · Reset points
Long lists (spell details, shop items) open full screen; the portrait shrinks to a corner so the list gets the space.
Still to settle
- Swap, cut or add any spell, fork or book.
- Points: 9 songs with 3 stars each (27 points), or a different count?
- Wizard prices: early books about 1 hour of farming, mid about 3 hours, late about 8 hours, or more?
- Can you own every spellbook, or only carry 2 at a time?