Serpent Clan

The Serpent, symbol of the Serpent Clan.

The Serpent Clan is one of the four major clans of Battle Realms.

Description

A derivative of the Dragon Clan, the Serpent Clan have forgotten their honorable ways and have resorted to thievery and deceit. Serpent clansmen are Yin followers. Unlike their Dragon ancestors, they do not scorn the use of firearms; instead they have learned to employ its use in many of their fighting arts. Even though the Dragon Clan knew how to use gunpowder, it was the Serpent Clan which uncovered its secrets.

History

The Serpent Clan was forged out of those of the Dragon Clan who fled south to escape the ravages of the Horde. Since then, for four generations the Serpent Clan has dominated through force and cunning, until the death of Lord Oja and the treachery of the Lotus Clan created a dangerous struggle for power among the three Clans on the island.

Like their totem, the Serpent Clan knows the value of a stealthy approach and a sudden, lethal strike. Their soldiers tend to be tricksters and thieves as well as deadly fighters, skilled in techniques to baffle mounted pursuit and lure opponents into ambush. The Serpent Clan also possesses the secrets of gunpowder, and has adapted it to many offensive purposes; indeed, while the Dragon Clan may have been the ones to first discover the power of gunpowder, it is the Serpent that mastered the use of it.

While the Dragon clan followed the ways of Yang, the Serpent has turned to the ways of Yin, as a result of abandoning their honorable ways in favour of easy paths to power. In addition, the Serpent clan lost faith in the Dragon Deity of their parent clan; they laugh at the notion that a great divine being watches over them, for they remember how the Horde swept through the lands and killed all it came across, regardless of faith. Now the Serpent rules through strength and fear, knowing that other clans are waiting to take over should they show weakness. Unfettered by high-flown morals, all ways are open to them.

Kenji's Journey:

Kenji may restore the Serpent Clan to dominance, if he chooses to rule through strength and pragmatic cunning rather than the conventions of honor. If Kenji proves to be his father's true son, he can re-forge the stability that is now in doubt, and the Serpent may rule again.

Serpent Units

TIER 1

• Swordsman
• Crossbowman
• Musketeer

TIER 2

• Bandit
• Raider
• Cannoneer

TIER 3

• Ronin

NON-TIER

• Peasant
• Fan Geisha
• Enforcer
• Witch

Serpent Structures

Clan-specific Structures

• Tavern
• Sharpshooter's Guild
• Serpent Alchemist Hut
• Serpent Bathhouse
• Serpent Stables
• Metal Shop
• Thieves' Guild
• Assassins' Den
• Necromancer's Throne

Common Structures

• Peasant Hut
• Well
• Watchtower
• Town Square
• Keep

Zen Masters

Zen Masters take on the role of heroes in the land of Battle Realms. The are summoned through the keep and by spending Yin/Yang points. Below are the Zen Masters who call the Serpent clan their home.

• Shinja - Ruthless and warmongering, this cunning warlord can intimidate all warriors around him, sapping them of attack strength. To further prove his dominance in the tide of battle, he uses twin poisonous blades, giving him the ability to do more damage along with slow poison effects to his attacks. He is a realist and magic attacks do him no harm.
• Budo - Fat and none too handsome, this lumbering slavedriver uses his whip to speed up peasant movements. However, this drains the peasant's health, and after a few whips, a wounded peasant can die. After so much eating, he has the highest endurance of all zen masters, paired up with a fast-moving whiplash attack.
• Utara - After killing a group of bandits similar to the ones that murdered her parents, she returned from self-exile as the strangest weapon in the Serpent Clan's arsenal. Her songs can sap her enemies strength and kill them, while creating poison attacks similar to the Serpent warlord Shinja. Her powers extend into the arcane as well, and she stuns all units when taking harm.
• Vetkin - A young handsome womanizer, this sai master can sap the will of his enemies, unleash a flurry of sai attacks and run faster than a horse can gallop. Tireless, he can go to the whole map without spending stamina. He also can drain his foes energy, and then run away, unharmed.
• The Necromancer - An undead sorcerer that has lived for ages and is older than all, aside from, perhaps, Lord Koril and the Dragon deity. He summons spirit warriors to do his bidding and summons the fallen corpses of his enemies to follow suit.
  • Taro (only available in the Battle Realms expansion "Winter Of The Wolf") - A cowardly prince and Kenji's older brother, he makes to occupy the Serpent Throne when Lord Oja fell victim to a murder and Kenji exiled himself. He uses an arcane curse to make others vulnerable to his enchanted blade.

Gallery

Serpent Unit Alchemy

Serpent Tech Tree

Serpent Battle Gear

Serpent Techniques

Error

The Serpent Tech-Tree erroneously mapped the Serpent Keep's requirements to be Thieves' Guild and Town Square, when in fact the Serpent Keep requires Town Sqaure & Metal Shop (as evident in-game & in BR.dat's tab Data_BuildingTechTree).