Knights of the Ether

Knights of the Ether is an online, browser-based deck-building roguelike game that immerses players in an unpredictable adventure, skillfully blending strategy and chance.

In this game, you assume the role of a villager, a blessed villager, or a knight, each with distinct health pools. The action unfolds on a procedurally generated map, with the occasional special event where all players face the same map on a daily rotation.

Throughout the map, various icons mark battles and points of interest essential for advancing on your journey. These points encompass standard battles, elite battles, shrines, mysteries, and shops.

Gameplay

The core of the game lies in battles, where you confront a variety of monstrous foes using your cards to attack, defend, buff, or heal, aiming to outlast your opponents. Battles are turn-based, and your card usage is limited by action points. Along the way, you may pick up potions that provide crucial assistance. It's essential to note that the difficulty level can vary significantly between normal and elite battles.

While strategic planning is vital, especially during deck-building, luck also plays a significant role, particularly in the card rewards drawn during your adventure.

Each monster has telegraphed moves, indicated by visual cues such as a shield icon for defense, facilitating your tactical planning and reducing uncertainty. However, you must closely monitor your health pool, as reaching zero HP means game over and a restart with a fresh map.

Unlike other games, health does not automatically regenerate between battles in Knights of the Ether, adding intensity and strategic depth. If you suffer heavy damage in one encounter, you carry that damage into the next, unless you consume a health potion or find a shrine. Shrines allow card upgrades, enhancing attack power, reducing action point costs, or increasing buff effects. Alternatively, resting at a shrine recovers a portion of your health.

During your journey, you may encounter shops where you can spend the gold earned from battles to purchase new cards, items, or potions. Mystery encounters offer diverse scenarios, such as trading health for buffs or making purchases with available coins.

The game keeps players on their toes with branching map paths, providing a different gaming experience based on the chosen route. Additionally, the limitation of three action points per turn adds another layer of strategic complexity. Enemies are formidable, requiring shrewd judgment when to defend or attack.

Despite a few bullet-sponge enemies and occasional overpowered foes that disrupt the game balance, Knights of the Ether delivers an engaging gameplay experience. The ever-changing maps and adversaries keep things fresh, even after repeated playthroughs. I spent several weeks playing 2 to 8 maps daily and remained consistently entertained.

Review

The potential for different outcomes, even on identical maps, due to randomized cards, adds to the game's replay value. However, some bugs, such as malfunctioning potions and inconsistent attacks/buffs, likely due to the early build of the game, somewhat taint the experience. Despite these glitches, I found none that severely hindered gameplay or prevented map completion.

Knights of the Ether may not revolutionize the genre, but it offers enough novelty in lore and graphics to provide a refreshing experience for fans of deck-building roguelike games. The game shows great promise, and it will be intriguing to witness its evolution as it carves out its unique niche.