Wands News

Lightning Strike is one of the game’s oldest and most interesting spells. Unlike other attacks, it has no travel time, so it deals damage the moment the lightning bolt appears. This unique advantage is balanced by having a visible charge-up phase, giving the other player time to react.

When Wands launched, it was possible to constantly be initiating and canceling Lightning Strike’s charge, which would always keep your opponent playing defense. Additionally, the spell’s visual effects provided no clear way of telling how far along the charge was. So Lightning users could be in a nearly constant state of charging, always keeping their opponent on their heels. This made Lightning one of the game’s most powerful spells, and it was quite frustrating to play again.

The mana cost of Lightning was increased in an attempt to balance the spell, but that didn’t solve the core problem. Lightning was almost impossible to balance because of its free fake-out ability. The simplest fix for this would have been making the charge noncancellable, but that would have robbed Lightning of its most interesting and strategic component. So instead, an additional mana cost was added to initiating a charge. Now, you can still bluff a Lightning Strike, but it won’t be free! The key to using this spell effectively is learning when to fake and when to fire.

You can fight every week to earn up to 25,000 relic dust. The event is live for only 2 hours, so you must not hesitate to enter the arena!

Check the Events section of the Workshop's blackboard to see how you're doing. And feel free to join us at discord.gg/wands to chat about the event.

In July we will show you 5 spells (1 spell every Friday), their history, what you should know about them, and some tips on how to use them.

Wands was released in 2016 and has had over 50 updates since. All of the game’s 26 spells have evolved over the years, and this series of posts will explore how.

Today we’ll examine a fan favorite spell, Soil Spikes... but it wasn’t always so. In the early days of Wands, Soil Spikes was considered the weakest spell in the game. But one simple change to its functionality elevated it to a top-tier spell, and that change was so positive that Soil Spikes hasn’t required any major improvements or balance tweaks since.

Soil Spikes was one of Wands’ original 16 spells. After it's cast, a cluster of six sharp wooden spikes erupts from the ground to damage your opponent. The spell’s raison d'être was its ability to penetrate shields. However, since the spikes erupt from the ground directly below a player, the spell's design required ample warning time for the player to react, or it would feel unfair. This warning time made Soil Spikes nearly useless as an attack since they could just teleport away.

Instead of searching for the perfect amount of warning time, a more radical change was introduced: Soil Spikes was turned into a trap! Now, if Soil Spikes are cast in a location where nobody is standing, they will lie in wait, armed and ready to deploy the moment a player steps on them.
Combined with its ability to deal damage through shields, this made Soil Spikes an essential spell for controlling key parts of the arena, which added a tremendous amount of depth and strategy to the game. By rethinking the fundamental purpose of a weak spell, it went from one of the worst to one of the best, overnight.

Check back next week to find out why Lightning Strike has been nerfed 5 different ways!

This weekend you can double the experience in all your matches!

Check the Events section of the Workshop's blackboard to see how you're doing. And feel free to join us at discord.gg/wands to chat about the event.

Earn 2,500 relic dust just for playing! The event is live for only 1 hour.

Check the Events section of the Workshop's blackboard to see how you're doing. And feel free to join us at discord.gg/wands to chat about the event.