Lord of Verminion

Lord of Verminion is a minion battle strategy game in Gold Saucer introduced in patch 3.1. It is a competitive mini-game in which a player engages an opponent using summoned minions. The objective for winning the game is to have your minions destroy “arcana stones” placed on the battlefield. Players can participate in matches against other players or the CPU.

Stats and ability types vary from minion to minion, making it possible to bring together different special actions for diverse battle strategies. The game is also conducted in real-time, which means the player will need to plan their minions’ positions during combat, making Lord of Verminion a RTS game.

How to Participate

Unlock

Lord of Verminion will be available upon unlocking the Gold Saucer.

Location

Players can access Lord of Verminion in a new area called Minion Square, located inside Chocobo Square. Players can enter Chocobo Square by speaking with the lift operator Saethrith at the Entrance Square (x4,y6).

Getting Started

Three minions or more are required to play Lord of Verminion. Before the match begins, players will select which minions to summon using the special minion hotbar. To edit the minion hotbar, select the Verminion tab in the Gold Saucer window under Character in the main menu.

• The minion hotbar can also be edited from the Minion Guide under Character in the main menu.

Minions

Stats

Main article: Minion Stats

Each minion has its own stats and special action. Players can view a selected minion's stats when editing the minion hotbar.

Types

Minions are separated into four types—monster, critter, poppet, and gadget. Three types will fight at either an advantage or a disadvantage depending on the nature of their opponent. The strength and weakness affinities for monster, critter, and poppet are as follows:

• Monsters are strong against critters.
• Critters are strong against poppets.
• Poppets are strong against monsters.
• Gadget-type minions are neither strong nor weak against any type.

Cost

Each minion has a summoning "cost.” Cost affects which minions the player can summon to the battlefield, and the player cannot summon minions which exceed the set total cost. Cost also affects how much time it will take to summon the next minion. For instance, when a player summons a minion with a high cost value, it will take a longer amount of time to summon the next minion to the battlefield.

Parameters

Parameter	Effect
HP	Hit Points. If HP is reduced to 0 during the battle, the minion will be unable to fight.
ATK	Attack Points. Affects amount of damage dealt by physical attacks.
DEF	Defense Points. Affects the amount of damage taken by opponent's physical attacks.
SPD	Movement Speed. The more stars (★), the quicker the minion can move.
Auto-attack	A minion's standard attack. Auto-attacks are separated into single target and area-of-effect.
Strengths	Each variety of minion is attributed with certain "strengths," which allow a minion to be particularly effective against certain structures

Registering for Battles

Lord of Verminion battles can be accessed from Chocobo Square (x7,y6) and there you will be able to register for various battles through the LoVM tables.

Verminion Challenge

Tutorial battles against the CPU. The rules and basic controls for LoVM can be learned by playing through the Verminion Challenges.

Battles

Player Battle (RP) - Players can play against one another by selecting the Player Battle (RP) mode. For these battles, you will be paired against someone with a similar number of RP to you.

Player Battle (Non-RP) - For Non-RP Player battles you will be able to battle anyone of your choosing. By forming a party with the player you would like to go up against, you will be given the option of selecting them as your opponent.

• RP will not be affected by the outcome of these battles.

Master Battle - This single-player battle mode is divided into three levels of difficulty.

Battles

Briefing

Battles are divided into two stages: briefing and engage. After registration for a battle is complete, the briefing phase begins and will last for 20 seconds.

During these 20 seconds, you will be able to select the first set of minions you want to summon to the playing field. Minions can be chosen via the Minion Hotbar or Battle List and will go into the minion summoning queue once selected.

Your summoning gauge is capped at 60 during this phase, so you will be unable to queue up minions if the total cost exceeds this number. Players can check minion summoning costs by referring to the cost gauge, located on top of the Minion Hotbar.

• If you would like to remove a minion from the summoning queue, simply select the minion you wish to dismiss. Any costs incurred will disappear with it.

Engage

After the 20-second briefing period is up, the minions that both you and your opponent put in the summoning queue will spawn simultaneously and the battle will begin. During this phase you are afforded up to a total cost of 240 for summoning. Even when that limit has been reached, you will still be allowed to put up to three additional minions in the queue.

The total cost for minions that have already been summoned is represented by the green gauge and those still in the summoning queue are represented by the orange gauge.

Battle Controls and Commands

The following are shortcuts that can only be used during LoVM battles.

Keyboard and Mouse / Gamepad

Command	Keyboard and Mouse	Gamepad
Selecting a minion	Left click	LB(L1)＋Directional Button
Selecting multiple minions (activating the target ring)	Drag left/space key	Y(△) Button
Selecting a minion to summon	Slots 1-12 of Hotbars 1 and 2	Directional Button
Specifying a destination	Select a minion and right click the destination	Select a minion + B(○) button
Cycling through HUD components/summoning gates	Z key (Draw/Sheathe Weapon)	Push in the right joystick
Cycling through HUD components/summoning queue	-	Push in the left joystick
Switching between action party displays (Ally/Enemy forces)	-	RT(R2) Button
Executing an Action	Slot 1 of Hotbar 3	LB(L1)＋X(□) Button
Triggering a Trap	Slot 2 of Hotbar 3	-
Withdrawing	Slot 3 of Hotbar 3	-
Battle List Display	Minion Guide (*)	-
In-game Help Menu	-	START(OPTIONS)

• While in battle, it is possible to pull up the Battle List by hitting the Minion Guide keybind.

Gamepad Only

Command	Gamepad
Select a nearby minion of the same type as the one selected.	LB(L1)+Y(△) Buttons （*）
Select all minions in the same area as the one selected.	LB(L1)+B(○) Buttons
Select all minions of the same type as the one selected.	LB(L1)+A(X) Buttons
Move the ground target pointer	RB(R1)+ Left stick

Map Jump Points

Keyboard and Mouse:

By left clicking with the mouse on any location on the minimap, you can move the camera instantly to that location.

Gamepad:

This function is only available on gamepads（*）By holding down the jump point button, moving the jump point, and then releasing the button, the camera will instantly move to the desired area.

Command	Gamepad
Display map jump point (releasing button will move camera to selected point)	Hold LT(L2)/Release
Move the map jump point	LT(L2)+Right stick
Reset the map jump point	LT(L2)+Right stick (R3) Press down

Structures

Four structures exist on the playing field: Arcana Stones, Gates, Shields, and Search Eyes. Each of these structures possesses special properties, and both combatants have access to them.

Arcana Stones

Both combatants have three of these on the playing field. Each stone has a set amount of HP, and they will shatter if the total reaches zero. Shattering all three of your opponent's Arcana stones is the key to victory.

Gates

Gates are used to summon minions, and both combatants have three gates. Minions inside the gates will restore HP. Minions cannot be moved outside of destroyed gates, nor can they enter them.

Shields

Shields add defensive strength to Arcana Stones. The stones will shatter more easily if the shields are destroyed.

Search Eyes

Search eyes reveal your opponent's minions on the playing field and minimap. If the Search Eye is destroyed, then you will only be able to see enemy units that are near your own minions.

Destruction and Structural Regeneration

Each structure will only be temporarily destroyed when they reach zero HP. Their functions will restore once a certain amount of time has passed. A gauge will display the time required until reactivation starts. Positioning your minions near a destroyed structure will hasten the reactivation process.

• Arcana Stones will not reactivate.

Minion's Strengths

Each variety of minion is capable of inflicting greater damage against certain structures. Information about your minions' strengths can be found by going to the edit minion hotbar or battle list. The information can also be viewed from the window that appears when you hover the cursor over the minion hotbar.

Rank Points

A player's relative experience in Lord of Verminion is represented by rank points, which are accumulated by challenging other players. Players who are close in rank are more likely to be matched together when queueing to play.

Tournaments

Players can sign up to participate in tournaments for a chance to win large amounts of MGP.