Challenges are how both combat and non-combat contests are resolved in Thea.
In Thea you can fight with any wandering monster with muscles and steel, but sometimes you will have additional options how to deal with adversary or be enforced to use them by events and those are called challenges. The difference between typical fight is that in challenges characters uses abilities to achieve specific goal and won’t be physically wounded by opponents as a result of damage from that challenge. They may become wounded or die, because of the whole test if it was only way to protect villagers from disaster.
Each challenge is a test of abilities in certain situation created by a way of solving problem. For example you might want make a ritual and banish ghosts instead of fighting with them face to face.
Card Minigame[]
See the Card Game page for more information about how to play the card minigame.
Tactical Abilities[]
- Main article: Tactical Abilities
In each challenge type, different skills and equipment attributes are used to give these tactical abilities:
- Confuse: makes target lose first combat phase that round
- Counter Tactic: removes card from opponent tactical card deck
- Counter Offense: removes card from opponent offensive card deck
- Shield Ally: target ally card gets bonus hit points
- Support Ally: target ally card gets bonus damage
- First Action: moves target card to left on initiative line
- Get Closer: move card into play (will be Confused during first fight phase)
Challenge Types[]
There are 9 challenge types in the game:
Each challenge shares the same set of tactical abilities. However, different attributes are used to determine the power of these tactical abilities.
Challenge Trigger[]
Beasts[]
- Hunting: Traps skill 4 and Gathering skill 4
- Sickness: Two party members with Intelligence 4, and a Medic 2 or Herbalism 3
Bandits[]
- Social: Two party members with Speech 6
- ?
- ?
Demons and Ghosts[]
- Social: Two party members with Speech 6
- Sneak: Two party members with Stealth 6
- Hex (Magic): Two party members with Magic 5
- Tactics: Two party members with Intelligence 5
Undead[]
- Sneak: Two party members with Stealth 6
- Tactics: Two party members with Intelligence 5
- Hex (Magic): Two party members with Magic 5
Trolls[]
- Tactics: Two party members with Intelligence 6
- Sneak: ???
Dragons[]
- Social: Two party members with Speech 6
- Intellect: One party member with Perception 4 and at least one item made of gold or one gold resource in the expedition’s inventory.
Giants[]
- Sneak: Two party members with Stealth 6