So I just found out about this section on steam a last week, and I have over 15 beginner's guides on my youtube channel that you may find helpful, which I have been posting at a rate of 1 video per week.

I just posted my Beginner's Guide to Promethean Hero Skills in Age of Wonders: Planetfall on youtube:


In this week’s video, I breakdown each of the 4 Promethean Hero Skills, and analyse how well each of the races synergize with the secret tech.

BIG SHOUT OUT TO THOSE WHO ARE ACTIVE ON THE FORUMS AND REDDIT. I LOOKED AT NUMEROUS THREADS TO RESEARCH THE CONTENT FOR THIS POST AND THIS VIDEO.

I expect that the 2 expansions planned in 2020 will introduce new combinations with the Promethean class, but I did want to cover the synergies that exist between the Promethean class and the races that are currently in the game.

The Hero Skills:

Fallout Protocol - costs 3 skill points - increases thermal resistance by 2 for the units in the same army/stack. (ok)

Plasma Surge - costs 4 skill points - requires level 4 - “teleports” this unit to a tile within 7 hexes, dealing 11 thermal damage to adjacent units with High Impact Stagger (hits both friendly and enemies) can be used to trigger backlash on plasmoids. (great for melee heroes)

Purging Field - costs 4 skill points - requires level 6 - removes all buffs and debuff in a 2 hex radius from the target. (can be nice on a Dvar hero)

Extermination Squad - costs 4 skill points - requires level 8 - all units under the commander of this hero deal +20% damage to Xenoplague, animal, and plant units (great against the growth and the amazon)

Star Union Scholar + Large Army Backgrounds = Allows you clear out research sites and to summon in plasmoids earlier in a match, which gives the promethean the opportunity to either rush an opponent or to snowball ahead of their competition.

Syndicate Purifier - this purifier is indentured, and has +2 psionic resistance.

Vanguard Purifier - this purifier gets a repeating primary attack (10 x 3 = 30 > 20) with 2 more range than the primary attacks that the other purifiers use.

Kir'ko Purifier - this purifier can swarm shield with other kir'ko units

Amazon Purifier - this purifier gets a repeating attack that ignores line of sight and cover bonuses! Also gets 1 extra range when in cover.

Assembly Purifier - this purifier heals itself 6 hp after each battle, has +2 arc resistance, and can be reassembled as it is a cyborg unit.

Dvar Purifier - this purifier can entrench itself, like the trencher unit.



Dvar Phoenix Walker - This walker gets plasma mastery, which gives +20% thermal damage.

Phoenix Walker - Everything else about the two Phoenix Walkers are the same.

From what I can tell, all 6 races have valid strategies for this secret tech, but some are better than others.

(1) Dvar - The Promethean are the only secret tech with mods that covers the Dvar's early game weaknesses, which are lack of healing on mechanical units and low accuracy. The Phoenix Walker can apply Concussion when the DVAR melee mod Super-powered Pistons is applied. Concussed units can be forced to sit in a thermal hazard. A lot of DVAR and Promethean units can spend all their movement and still have full firepower. The DVAR don’t have an operation to remove status effects, so the Purification Field can be quite useful for them. The Incendiary explosives mod applies burning, allowing both of their attack channel to apply a modifier that benefits the secret tech. The Dvar gets a T5 mod that allows the Foreman/Baron to resurrect a mechanical unit which is amazing with a Phoenix Walker.

Dvar trait combo: Nitro Battery (increases a mechanical units damage) can be applied to most of the Promethean units, Stubborn (stagger immunity), Siege Master (+2 damage resistance when in cover)



(2) Amazon - While not the most obvious choice, this combo is incredibly powerful. The Phoenix Bomb Launchers mod can be placed on Harriers and Tyrannodons, because they are mounted units. (unlike other t2 or t3 units in other races, who are not infantry or mounted). The Aegis Tank provides cover, which you can use to get an accuracy bonus that huntress get by default and is available to every Amazon hero. Also note that all its attacks from the tank cause massive impact. Amazons have mods that give from Arc and Psionic resistance, and the Promethean have mods that give Fire and Biochemical resistance. Arborian Sentinels usually have an accuracy issue, which can be compensated for by setting their targets on fire. Amazons don’t have an operation to remove status effects, so the Purification Field can be useful for them. The Thermal resist buffs also cover the weakness Arborians have to thermal damage. The Promethean gets an early (t2?) tech that drops an AOE firebomb that does burning/stagger and leaves burning patches on the ground in its radius. Not expensive either. Amazon Arborians, also a t2 tech, get a decent-ranged AOE entangle ability that immobilizes and bleeds. Arborians are also frontline tank units, who can be used to trap enemies in thermal hazards.

Amazon trait combo: Visual Acuity (I always get), Renewal (30 hp heal that applies to biological) Call of the Wild brings in a random animal unit on your side of the battle!!



(3) Assembly - They can apply PryX Absorption Panels to heal melee units that are standing in fire hazards and are adjacent to enemy units in the same hazard. This allows them to keep the enemy lock in melee overwatch while also keeping the unit relatively safe. The explosive ammo on sniper is amazing as every single shot now hit all enemies that are within 1 hex of your target for 50% of the damage (only sniper whose race can research this mod; dvar and vanguard can research it). On top of that the explosive shot causes burning, which the Promethean can take advantage of.

Assembly trait combo: Reassemble (heals or resurrects cyborg!) Cybernetic overdrive (refill action points on any cyborg) Stabilizers are nice, but not worth grabbing if you can get stagger resistance another way i.e. piloting.



(4) Vanguard - they can use jetpacks for increased mobility. The increased hit chance on burning and targeting enemies makes it incredibly easy to hit your targets at a long range. The Vanguards interlocking armor can be applied to plasmoids to get a great early melee unit. Like the assembly, they can apply Ammunition: Fire Burst to firearms attacks (walkers, gunship).

Vanguard trait combo: Coordinated strike (+40 easier to hit), dig in (+2 dam res)



(5) Syndicate - The Indentured Contracts doctrine brings the Syndicate Purifiers' price down to the level of a tier 1 unit (no need for Phoenix Armament Protocols) and you can apply all the Overseer buffs on them including those from higher tier mods like Control Amplifier. And since single shot Purifiers are good at flanking for full damage the Exploitative Targeting System really applies its value to them. As one of the two races who have access to the psionic research, you can put the flame focus on psionic attack to increase synergy. Burning units are easier to shoot from far away.

Syndicate trait combo: deploy cerebral control collars (mind control), shield battery (everyone gets +1 shield). Escape module heals 15 hp once per battle when the commander reaches 0 hp.



(6) Kir’ko - As one of the two races who have access to the psionic research, you can put the flame focus on psionic attack to increase synergy. Pryx abs panels provides healing for melee units. The Kir’ko’s focus on non-mounted biological units, makes this combination is less than optimal.

Kir’ko trait combo: Fury of the Swarm (units with swarm shield who are also adjacent to this unit get +20% damage), Echo of a hivemind (give an addition +1 shields to adjacent units with swarm shield), Guiding Presence (increases effective and optimal range by 2 hex and accuracy by 25% for 2 turns for all friendly units).