Fully Grounded #11: Nightmare Tree (Patreon)

This is part of the terrain series, other entries can be found at the contents page here.  

Most terrain from Emporium Miniatures. (Not in this case)

Link: https://www.etsy.com/shop/EmporiumMiniatures 

• Number: 1 
• Size: 3x3
• Passive: No
• Activate: Yes
• Obstacle: Yes
• Classification: Benefit

Always present when fighting a Phoenix (because birds gotta perch), the Nightmare tree is the only terrain piece with an official sculpt in the Lonely Tree expansion. This mammoth piece, which can actually support the Phoenix miniature, is one of the most visually impressive pieces in the entire range. It's also an absolute pain in the butt to paint.

In game, the tree has a very simple set of roles, it provides cover against field of view for survivors who are using positioning to avoid as many monster attacks as possible and it is a source of resources.

Its large size (3x3) means that this is the single largest obstacle for ranged attackers to deal with, the Sinkhole (the other 3x3) does not block line of sight and the Giant Stone Faces (2x3) are only two thirds the size of this one. 

Also, maneuvering around the tree can also prove difficult, so care should be taken when placing it. You want to ensure that the tree is close enough to interact with, but not so close that the monster may end up fighting around it. This is of particular concern when you are dealing with 2x2 (50mm) monsters because they are capable of "hiding" inside the tree. Because of its obstacle rules a monster can end up protected from certain sides and ranged attackers may be unable to attack without changing position. Note that reach weapons, such as spears or the GGaxe are not affected by this, they can poke with impunity.

The resource gathering portion of this is relatively straightforward as there are no ways of influencing this. There are a total of three resources that can potentially be gained, 1x Lonely Ant (Vermin Resource) and 2x Broken Lantern (Basic Resource) and each survivor can try once. So if you have gained both lanterns from the first two attempts, you want to have a good think if it's worth the remaining two survivors bothering, because the only thing left is the ant.

The % chances are:

• 20% - Lonely Ant + 1 arm damage
• 30% - Knocked down
• 50% - Broken Lantern

That is a very good return rate, and you should always be trying to get both lanterns because that increases the odds of getting more directly useful stuff when you kill the monster.

Note that the Lonely Ant has no cooking uses, so it's basically a pet for the settlement. Also note that if both the Nightmare Tree and Bug Patch spawn in the same showdown you should not touch the bug patch until you have either gained the Lonely Ant from the tree, or  all survivors have exhausted their attempts at interacting with the tree. This is because there is only one Ant in the Vermin deck, so try and get it from the guaranteed draw (tree), which means that the Bug Patch will typically yield either hide (Crab Spider) or cooking resources.