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All units in Master of Magic are comprised of individual entities called Figures, represented by the Icon Figure icon throughout this wiki. How many of these are still capable of fighting is known as the unit's Figure Count. The maximum amount of Figures that a unit can have is hardcoded for each type of unit, and is one its base attributes.

Some units, most notably Heroes, ships, war machines, and high-end Fantastic Units, contain only a single Figure. They are often called Single-Figure Units for this reason, and signified across the wiki by the Icon SingleFigureUnit symbol. Combat with these units is somewhat risky, as losing their only Figure means the destruction of the unit itself. However, they are typically quite powerful in comparison, and suffer no ill effects from taking Icon Damage damage that does not destroy them.

Conversely, units that can have more than one Figure are called Multi-Figure Units, a fact often denoted using the Icon MultiFigureUnit icon on the wiki. The entities making up these units are generally weaker individually, sometimes by a large margin. They become competitive on the battlefield thanks to their numbers. However, as these units suffer Icon Damage damage, they gradually start losing their Icon Figure figures, becoming weaker and weaker offensively. The unit is not destroyed though, as long as it has at least one Figure remaining.

The amount of Icon Figure figures in a unit plays a major role in combat resolution. Most Conventional Damage attacks, and even many Special Attacks, are executed individually by each standing Figure in a unit. Thus, the more Icon Figure figures, the more potential Icon Damage damage the unit can deliver. The maximum Figure count also determines the unit's maximum health, or Icon Hits Hit Points, which in turn sets out the amount that they can naturally heal between overland turns.

Concept[]

Many strategy games represent battle units as groups of individuals. Master of Magic is no different. Each Figure in a unit is a separate soldier or creature. Unlike most similar games though, attacks made by the unit are typically not an aggregate generated from the sum of the Figures. Instead, although the act of attacking is still unit-wide, every Figure's attack is actually resolved on its own. Similarly, if a unit suffers an attack capable of hurting multiple creatures or soldiers, they can also each defend on their own. While there are some exceptions in both cases, this makes combat more realistic overall, and amplifies the importance of unit attributes, such as Attack Strength and Defense.

Current and Maximum Figures[]

In most scenarios where a unit's Figure count is examined, what matters will be the amount of its current Icon Figure figures. This is what determines how many attacks the unit can make in a single action, or how many Icon Resist Resistance Rolls it has to make against Icon Figure figure-based Special Damage spells and Gaze Attacks. The maximum Figure count instead comes into play whenever the unit is healed, whether naturally, or by magical means. While remaining Icon Figure figures are dynamic, the maximum count is pre-set, and is one of the defining attributes for each type of unit.

Single-Figure Units[]

Units with a maximum Figure count of 1 are collectively termed Icon SingleFigureUnit Single-Figure units. They are typically separated from other units either by size, or by capabilities. The former group includes all ships; Settlers; Catapults and Steam Cannons; Stag Beetles; Dragon Turtles; and large Fantastic Units, with the sole exception of the Icon ChaosHydra, whose heads are actually considered individual Icon Figure figures. The latter group contains all Heroes; Icon ArcaneMagic- and Icon LifeGuardian Spirits; Icon LifeAngels and Icon LifeArch Angels; Icon DeathNight Stalkers, Icon DeathDemons, and Icon DeathDemon Lords; Icon SorceryDjinni and Icon ChaosEfreeti, and the Icon ChaosChaos Spawn. Units with the Ability Caster Caster ability are always Icon SingleFigureUnit Single Figures, although some Icon MultiFigureUnit Multi-Figure units also have spell-like Unit Abilities that can be used once per battle per unit.

Single-Figure Units generally have much higher Icon Hits Hits per Figure values than those that contain multiple Icon Figure figures, although this does not necessarily mean a higher Icon Hits Hit Point total, especially when compared to mounted units, that have two to four riders. This is important because Icon SingleFigureUnit Single-Figure units retain their full combat effectiveness until slain or destroyed, meaning that they suffer no ill effect from taking Icon Damage damage.

Similarly, the Icon Defense Armor and Attack Strength of these units also tends to be higher, although the margin here is often not that large. Because opponents have to attack individually, the higher Icon Defense Defense means that it requires more potential Icon Damage damage to consistently hurt Icon SingleFigureUnit Single-Figure units. In other words, units with more Icon Figure figures but lower strength typically have a harder time injuring them. On the other hand, the higher Attack Strength of these units therefore makes them better suited to combat other Icon SingleFigureUnit Singe-Figure units.

Because of the singular Figure, many combat mechanics are easier to understand in relation to Single-Figure Units. The total health of the unit always equals the Icon Hits Hit Points of that one Figure, while its recorded Damage Points will always match the "top figure damage" (see below). Since the Icon Figure figure falling in battle automatically destroys the entire unit, there is no system of losing- and regaining Icon Figure figures to explain either. However, it may be worth remembering that internally, the game does not distinguish between Icon SingleFigureUnit Single- and Icon MultiFigureUnit Multi-Figure units. The mechanics described below apply equally to Single-Figure Units too, even if they don't normally have any practical consequence.

Multi-Figure Units[]

Units with a maximum Figure count of 2 or more are called Icon MultiFigureUnit Multi-Figure Units. These can range anywhere between Icon MultiFigureUnit 2 and Icon MultiFigureUnit 9 figures, although this last amount is only avaliable on the Icon ChaosHydra. The maximum count is typically related to the size or space requirements of the individual entities that comprise the unit. For example, most Normal Units containing foot soldiers have Icon MultiFigureUnit 6 figures. Spearmen and Pikemen, that attack in formation, have Icon MultiFigureUnit 8; while ground units mounted on horses or similar beasts consist of Icon MultiFigureUnit 4 riders.

Hydra Head Count

The Icon ChaosHydra is the only unit whose "Figure" count is numerically indicated when inspecting it.

The current Figure count of Multi-Figure Units is not numerically indicated anywhere in the game, with the Icon ChaosHydra again being a sole exception. Instead, the player must visually inspect the unit in combat, or in the unit statistics window overland, and count the Figures manually. Although the unit's total health is shown as a bar both overland and during battles, this is often not a sufficient indicator. Because a Figure with even a single Icon Hits Hit Point left can perform attacks, whether there is one less or more can make all the difference in certain situations.

The Top Figure[]

Icon Damage Damage tracking in Master of Magic is designed such that there can only ever be one injured Figure in a unit. For Icon MultiFigureUnit Multi-Figure units, this naturally means that all other remaining Icon Figure Figures in the unit are always at full health: the unit's Icon Hits Hits per Figure value. If there is a hurt, but not destroyed Figure, the unit statistics window indicates the Damage Points done to this Figure both numerically, and by darkening out some of the bright Icon Hits Hit Point icons in its display. This Figure is often termed the "foremost-", or "lead-"; but most commonly, the "top figure".

Top Figure Damage[]

If there is a damaged Figure, the Icon Damage Damage it has taken is usually called the "top figure damage". If the unit is unhurt however, or its total recorded Damage Points are divisible by its Icon Hits Hits per Figure value (without remainder), then the "top figure" actually has no significance whatsoever. In fact, during the resolution of most Damage Types, it doesn't matter whether there is an injured Figure or not. Regardless, this information may still be important to the player, for example, when trying to decide which unit to target with a Icon LifeHealing spell.

Conventional Attacks[]

When performing Conventional Damage attacks (Icon Melee Normal Melee, Icon Thrown Thrown, Icon Breath Fire Breath, or Icon Ranged Bow Icon Ranged Boulder Icon Ranged Magic Ranged), a Multi-Figure Unit will execute that attack as many times in a row as it has remaining Icon Figure figures. The Attack Strength of each of these will match the related attribute of the unit. The game documentation mistakenly claims that only one attack is performed, with the product of the Attack Strength and the Figure count, but this is not actually the case. Instead, each Figure conducts an individual, separate attack with the listed strength. This can make a huge difference against oponents with a high Icon Defense Defense, which the manual's version of the attack mechanic would have no problem punching through, but in practice, is often very effective against Multi-Figure Units.

It's worth noting however, that while the attacks are resolved individually, any Icon Damage damage they deal is applied collectively, and only once they are all processed. This also remains true if there are added effects, such as Touch Attacks, affixed to the conventional ones. Their Icon Damage damage is calculated separately, and then added to the total.

Cause Fear[]

The Ability CauseFear Cause Fear ability, along with its Unit Enchantment (Icon DeathCloak of Fear) and Item Power (Icon DeathCloak of Fear) versions, are designed to prevent some, or all of an enemy unit's Icon Figure figures from participating in a Icon Melee Normal Melee engagement. This effect is inserted into the Melee Sequence after short-range attacks, but before mutual Icon Melee Normal Melee. The opponent must make as many Icon Resist Resistance checks as it has remaining Icon Figure figures, and for each failed roll, the amount of Icon Figure figures that can perform their Melee Attacks is reduced by one. If they have Touch Attacks, those won't be executed either. The effect is temporary though, and lasts only until this specific sequence is finished.
Unfortunately, Ability CauseFear Cause Fear is severely bugged in the official game, no matter what source it is gained from. It does not work at all when the unit possessing it is being attacked, while it will also affect itself if it is the attacker. However, both mistakes are corrected in the unofficial Insecticide patch, starting with which this ability can be particularly useful against Icon MultiFigureUnit Multi-Figure units. Its main weakness is the fact that it does not apply any Icon Resist Resistance penalties, which makes it ineffective against higher tier units.

Conventional Defense[]

Multi-Figure Units struck by Conventional Damage behave in a peculiar way if the "raw" Icon Damage damage exceeds their Icon Hits Hits per Figure value. Their first Defense Roll is made as usual, using the unit's effective Icon Defense Defense score. If this can't block enough Icon Damage damage to bring the "raw" value below the Icon Hits Hit Points of the Figure, the attack is deemed to have destroyed a Icon Figure figure. When this happens, the remaining "raw" Icon Damage damage is directed against another Figure. However, it can't go directly to hurting it, as that individual likely has its own Icon Defense Armor or other protective measures. Thus, a new Defense Roll can be made by the unit, potentially reducing the "raw" Icon Damage damage again. This cycle then keeps repeating until all of the Icon Damage damage is fully processed.

There are two quirks in this system that are not necessarily intuitive. First, "top figure damage" is ignored entirely if the attack came from an enemy unit, as opposed to a spell. That is, the Icon Figure figures that "take" the Icon Damage damage in this case are always assumed to be uninjured ones, even when there are none of these left in the unit. Second, as a consequence of this and the simultaneous application of Icon Damage damage mentioned above, the Defense Roll mechanic remains in place even if the unit is theoretically destroyed by the point that the attack is being resolved. This is often called "Overkill Damage", and is explained in more detail in the article on Damage Points.

Area Damage[]

Area Damage is a subtype of Conventional Damage. It is essentially a modifier that changes the Icon Damage damage resolution process in two ways. First, instead of performing a single attack, Area Damage executes as many as the target unit has standing Icon Figure figures. This can be devastating to Icon MultiFigureUnit Multi-Figure units, as the strength of the attack will be the same against each Figure, and is not divided among them. However, the other change is that none of these attacks can actually inflict more Damage Points than that particular Figure has Icon Hits Hit Points, meaning that this type of Icon Damage damage always has to consider "top figure damage".
Naturally, for all but the foremost Figure, the Icon Damage damage they can take equals the unit's Icon Hits Hits per Figure value. Should the "raw" Icon Damage damage exceed this after the Defense Roll, the remainder is simply discarded, rather than being directed at another Figure, as would be the case with non-Area Damage. The same is true for the "top figure" - the only difference is that it's Icon Hits Hit Points are only Icon Hits Hits minus the "top figure damage", so this is what the Icon Damage damage is limited to.
On the other hand, once the Icon Damage damage is calculated, it will still be applied to the unit as a whole. This is to stay consistent with the system of one injured Figure per unit. Thus, quite often, the Icon Figure figure that takes the Area Damage is not the same as the one that defended against it. This also means that the distribution of the Damage Points among the Icon Figure figures is irrelevant, with regards to the final outcome.

Figure-based Special Damage[]

Many sources of Special Damage are Figure-based. This usually means that whenever they deal Icon Damage damage, it will be equal to a healthy Icon Figure figure's Icon Hits Hit Points - that is, the units Icon Hits Hits per Figure value. This invariably results in the destruction of exactly one Icon Figure figure. The one exception is the Icon DeathWrack spell, which is meant to do only single points of Icon Damage damage. However, this spell is bugged in the official game, and actually deals much more Icon Damage damage than intended, as noted below.

Figure-based Special Damage is always resistable. Whether it deals Icon Damage damage or not depends entirely on the outcome of a Icon Resist Resistance check. This is a randomly generated number between 1 and 10 - essentially a 10-sided die -, and is successful if the result is less than, or equal to, the unit's Icon Resist Resistance score. However, the amount of attacks, and therefore the amount of rolls required, varies by Attack Type.

Touch Attacks, which are "added effects" to Conventional Damage attacks, are executed once per attacking Figure. They are technically part of the conventional attack that triggers them. Gaze Attacks and spells, on the other hand, are akin to Area Damage: they perform one attack per defending Figure. That is, it is the target unit's Figure count that determines how many Icon Resist Resistance checks they have to make against the effect. This is true even when attacking, or being attacked by, Icon NatureGorgons, the game's only Icon MultiFigureUnit Multi-Figure Gaze Attack unit. The amount of Icon NatureGorgon Figures does not matter. The Gaze effect only activates once, but when it does, it targets each opposing Icon Figure figure at the same time.

Icon DeathWrack deals more Icon Damage damage than it was designed to (according to its documentation) because of a coding mistake. After the Icon Resist Resistance rolls are made, while summing up the Damage Points, the game erroneously substitutes the amount of failed checks for the intended Icon Damage 1 before multiplying the two. This yields Icon Damage damage equal to the square of the failures, rather than their actual amount. The bug is fixed in the Unofficial Patch 1.50.

Losing and Regaining Figures[]

Whenever a Multi-Figure Unit reaches a recorded Icon Damage damage total that is a multiple of its Icon Hits Hits per Figure, it loses a Icon Figure figure. Conversely, reducing the Icon Damage damage to one point below such a value causes the unit to regain one. This can also be easily expressed using the "top figure damage": whenever it reaches the Icon Hits Hits per Figure value, a Icon Figure figure is lost, and the counter resets. On the other hand, if it would go negative, and the unit can still regain Icon Figure figures, it will do so, and the new "top figure damage" becomes the negative value plus the unit's Icon Hits Hits per Figure. Naturally, this can repeat more than once in both directions during the resolution of a single attack or effect, resulting in the loss or revival of multiple Icon Figure figures.

Figure Counts[]

The table below lists the maximum Figure count of each unit in Master of Magic:

Single-Figure Units
Icon SingleFigureUnit all Heroes and Settlers
Unit Icon Trireme Transparent Trireme, Unit Icon Galley Transparent Galley, Unit Icon Warship Transparent Warship, Unit Icon AirShip Transparent Air Ship, Unit Icon Catapult Transparent Catapult, Unit Icon SteamCannon Transparent Steam Cannon
Unit Icon StagBeetle Transparent Stag Beetle, Unit Icon DragonTurtle Transparent Dragon Turtle, Unit Icon Golem Transparent Golem
Icon Arcane Unit Icon MagicSpirit Transparent Magic Spirit
Icon Life Unit Icon GuardianSpirit Transparent Guardian Spirit, Unit Icon Angel Transparent Angel, Unit Icon Archangel Transparent Arch Angel
Icon Death Unit Icon NightStalker Transparent Night Stalker, Unit Icon Demon Transparent Demon, Unit Icon DemonLord Transparent Demon Lord
Icon Nature Unit Icon StoneGiant Transparent Stone Giant, Unit Icon Basilisk Transparent Basilisk, Unit Icon EarthElemental Transparent Earth Elemental, Unit Icon Colossus Transparent Colossus, Unit Icon Behemoth Transparent Behemoth, Unit Icon GreatWyrm Transparent Great Wyrm
Icon Chaos Unit Icon FireElemental Transparent Fire Elemental, Unit Icon Efreet Transparent Efreet, Unit Icon FireGiant Transparent Fire Giant, Unit Icon ChaosSpawn Transparent Chaos Spawn, Unit Icon DoomBat Transparent Doom Bat, Unit Icon GreatDrake Transparent Great Drake
Icon Sorcery Unit Icon AirElemental Transparent Air Elemental, Unit Icon PhantomBeast Transparent Phantom Beast, Unit Icon StormGiant Transparent Storm Giant, Unit Icon Djinn Transparent Djinn, Unit Icon SkyDrake Transparent Sky Drake
Unit Icon FloatingIsland Transparent Floating Island (this unit does not battle)
Multi-Figure Units
Icon MultiFigureUnit 2 Unit Icon Pegasai Transparent Pegasai, Unit Icon Manticores Transparent Manticores, Unit Icon DoomDrakes Transparent Doom Drakes, Unit Icon Griffins Transparent Griffins, Unit Icon Nightmares Transparent Nightmares, Unit Icon WyvernRiders Transparent Wyvern Riders
Unit Icon Minotaurs Transparent Minotaurs, Unit Icon WarMammoths Transparent War Mammoths
Icon Sorcery Unit Icon Nagas Transparent Nagas
Icon Nature Unit Icon WarBears Transparent War Bears, Unit Icon GiantSpiders Transparent Giant Spiders
Icon MultiFigureUnit 4 all Shamans, Priests, and Cavalry; most Magicians (except High Men)
Unit Icon ElvenLords Transparent Elven Lords, Unit Icon Paladins Transparent Paladins, Unit Icon WolfRiders Transparent Wolf Riders
Unit Icon Horsebowmen Transparent Horsebowmen, Unit Icon Rangers Transparent Rangers, Unit Icon Centaurs Transparent Centaurs, Unit Icon Warlocks Transparent Warlocks
Unit Icon TrollSpearmen Transparent Troll Spearmen, Unit Icon TrollSwordsmen Transparent Troll Swordsmen, Unit Icon TrollHalberdiers Transparent Troll Halberdiers, Unit Icon WarTrolls Transparent War Trolls
Icon Life Unit Icon Unicorns Transparent Unicorns
Icon Death Unit Icon Ghouls Transparent Ghouls, Unit Icon ShadowDemons Transparent Shadow Demons, Unit Icon Wraiths Transparent Wraiths, Unit Icon DeathKnights Transparent Death Knights
Icon Nature Unit Icon Sprites Transparent Sprites, Unit Icon Cockatrices Transparent Cockatrices, Unit Icon Gorgons Transparent Gorgons
Icon Chaos Unit Icon HellHounds Transparent Hell Hounds, Unit Icon Gargoyles Transparent Gargoyles, Unit Icon Chimeras Transparent Chimeras
Icon MultiFigureUnit 6 all Bowmen and Engineers
most Swordsmen (except Halfling and Troll); most Halberdiers (except Troll)
Unit Icon Longbowmen Transparent Longbowmen, Unit Icon HighMenMagicians Transparent High Men Magicians, Unit Icon Javelineers Transparent Javelineers
Unit Icon Berserkers Transparent Berserkers, Unit Icon Nightblades Transparent Nightblades, Unit Icon Hammerhands Transparent Hammerhands
Icon Death Unit Icon Skeletons Transparent Skeletons, Unit Icon Zombies Transparent Zombies, Unit Icon Werewolves Transparent Werewolves
Icon Sorcery Unit Icon PhantomWarriors Transparent Phantom Warriors
Icon MultiFigureUnit 8 most Spearmen (except Troll)
Unit Icon HighMenPikemen Transparent High Men Pikemen, Unit Icon NomadPikemen Transparent Nomad Pikemen, Unit Icon HalflingSwordsmen Transparent Halfling Swordsmen, Unit Icon Slingers Transparent Slingers
Icon MultiFigureUnit 9 Icon Chaos Unit Icon Hydra Transparent Hydra
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