Plagues of Nurgle

Plagues of Nurgle

Plagues of Nurgle is a unique gameplay mechanic for Nurgle and the The Fecundites faction for Warriors of Chaos.

How it works

Nurgle

Central to Nurgle’s campaign mechanics, and indeed his lore, purpose, and very existence, is the creation and spread of new plagues. His forces, their settlements and lords, are locuses of rot, spinning webs of flesh and disease that destroy and rebuild everything around them. Grandfather Nurgle and his many followers believe, without a shadow of a doubt, that they are bestowing glorious gifts upon the world, that their enemies will be happier and more beautiful with new life bubbling across their skin.  You, as the player, get to create all that, and let it pass through your own armies, enemies, and settlements on both sides.

The work begins in the Plague Cauldron, a new special screen only accessible to Nurgle players. Here, various plagues can be concocted from a web of symptoms. Each symptom has a positive effect that is applied to Nurgle armies and settlements and a negative effect that applies to all other factions. So the same plague that benefits Nurgle harms his enemies.

A finished plague consists of three symptoms which must be adjacent to each other in the web. The placement of symptoms in the web is randomized with every three plagues that are created. Initially, you must start with a specific symptom and choose two more that are connected to it, but each time you use a symptom you unlock it as a starting symptom. Whenever the symptoms are randomized, one will become blessed, enhancing its effects the next time that it is used. After a symptom is used, that symptom cannot be used again for 3 turns. Creating a plague costs 200 Infections, a unique Nurgle currency which are gained through post-battle options, dilemmas, Nurgle buildings, and so on. The plague can then be enhanced with increased spread chance, increased duration, and reduced immunity duration (discussed below) at a cost of 50 Infections per enhancement.

Once a plague is created, distributing it to the world can be done in two ways – attaching it to one of your armies or settlements, or via Plague Cultists. Plague Cultists are hero units that exist solely to spread the plague to neutral or enemy armies or settlements, similar to the Pestilent Scheme Priests of the Skaven. They can move the turn they are created, but their movement range is shorter than most heroes. Spreading the plague destroys the cultist, and only one plague may be infecting one particular thing at a time – be it cultist, army, or settlement.

Once a plague is in the world, it has a chance to spread between settlements and armies that are in close proximity. The chance for plagues to spread and how many turns they last can be improved during creation, through technology and commandments, or by Nurgle corruption. Each time a plague spreads, its chance of spreading further is halved, but it cannot go below 5%.

When a plague expires on a non-Nurgle army or settlement, that army/settlement becomes immune to Nurgle plagues for a set number of turns. The default immunity duration is 5 turns.

Symptoms do not have names, but each plague has a name based on the three symptoms used to create it.

Symptoms

Image	Effect on Nurgle armies and settlements	Effects on non-Nurgle settlements or armies
	Construction cost: -15% for all buildings Blessed: -30% for all buildings	Construction cost: +15% for all buildings Blessed: +30%
	Income from all buildings: +10% Blessed: +20%	Income from all buildings: -10% Blessed: -20%
	Growth: +25 Blessed: +50	Growth: -25 Blessed: -50
	Nurgle corruption: +4 Blessed: +8	Nurgle corruption: +4 Blessed: +8
	Cycle time: -1 for Basic Military buildings Blessed: -1 for Advanced Military Buildings	Construction time: +50% for all buildings Blessed: +100%
	Campaign movement range: +15% Blessed: +30%	Campaign movement range: -15% Blessed: -30%, disables March & Teleportation
	Recruitment health: +10% for all units Blessed: +20%	Local recruitment capacity: -1 (local province) Blessed: -2
	Upkeep: -15% Blessed: -30%	Upkeep: +15% Blessed: +30%
	Winds of Magic power reserve: +5 per turn Blessed: +10	Winds of Magic power reserve: -5 per turn Blessed: -10
	Casualty replenishment rate: +10% Blessed: +20%	All units suffer attrition Blessed: +50%
	Winds of Magic cost: -10% for all spells Blessed: -20%	Winds of Magic cost: +10% for all spells Blessed: +20%
	Bound spell: Fleshy Abundance (Lord) Blessed: Number of uses +1	Battle healing cap: -50% Blessed: -100%
	Weapon strength: +10% Blessed: +20%	Weapon strength: -10% Blessed: -20%
	Armour: +15 Blessed: +30	Armour: -15 Blessed: -30
	Melee attack: +4 Blessed: +8	Melee attack: -4 Blessed: -8
	Melee defense: +4 Blessed: +8	Melee defense: -4 Blessed: -8
	Attribute: Vanguard Deployment for all units Blessed: +15% speed	Speed: -15% Blessed: -30%
	Missile resistance: 10% Blessed: +20%	Ammunition: -20% Blessed: -40%

Gallery

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  The Plague Cauldron's UI.