9 Hours Till Chaos Comes

Note that the HTML version contains the bug fixes. The game is designed to be run in full-screen (button on the bottom right corner in the web version).

9 HOURS TILL CHAOS COMES!

A summoning ritual will bring the Embodiment of Chaos into our realm in nine hours! (Speaking its name would drive a mere mortal to madness, so you've decided to call it something fun, randomized each playthrough.) Preferring to keep the world intact, you set out to use your own arcane powers of conjuration to stop the creature – but you can only summon nasty little freaks. Room by room, hour by hour, build your forces and manage your resources to make it to the summoning chamber!

Each of the 9 rooms you traverse before the final ordeal contains a battle, but also provides an opportunity to improve your standing. Click on a freak to select them, and then on a free position to allocate them. You must assign 2-5 freaks from the bottom of the screen to your battle lineup in the middle section, and up to 3 to interact with the room at the top left. Those interacting with the room will bring benefits, while those who fight...

BATTLE!

Once you've allocated your fighting freaks and hit the battle button, they'll do their own thing – you can no longer adjust or affect them. Each turn, the two foremost fighters of each side activate their skills, trade blows, and move to the back of the line. This repeats until one side is defeated. Consider the enemy lineup's order and allocate your troops carefully before hitting that battle button! Surviving freaks will be healed after the fight, but defeated ones will need an item to get them back up.

YOUR NASTY MINIONS

A minion, regardless of what makes them uniquely gross, has stats for attack, defense, and HP. Attack and defense are expressed as X/Y, respectively – that is, a 4/2 freak has 4 attack and 2 defense.

Each of these awful guys represents one of four elements: air, earth, fire, or water. Water  and fire  are each other's opposites, as are air  and earth ; this makes them more vulnerable to each other's attacks in battle.

Each also has a propensity: soul, body, or spirit (which you can think of as attack, defense, and support classes respectively). All of your summoned weirdos can attack, but their other effects vary by propensity. All additional abilities take effect before attacks.

Those of the soul  propensity have no additional skills, but hit very hard.

 Body minions create a shield, giving both of your active fighters +1 in defense for the turn.

 Spirit is special – what this ability does depends on the freak's element! Water heals your entire battle lineup by 1; fire deals 1 damage to the enemy's entire battle lineup; air prevents all of the enemy's shields and special abilities for the turn; and earth gives a -1 penalty to the single foremost enemy's attack and defense for the turn.

You can learn about a given freak's types (and personal inclinations) by clicking on them. Try it a few times!

ROOM TYPES

The benefits you gain from having your terrible minions interact with a room depends on its type. The symbols above represent room types. From left to right, they let you...

GATHER - For each freak you allocate to this task, you gain two random items. Hope those little creeps bring you the stuff you need!

TRAIN - Each freak you assign to this task buffs up. Those with soul propensity gain +1 to attack; body propensity freaks gain +1 to defense; and those with spirit propensity gain +1 to both. 

STUDY - Each freak you allocate to this task throughout a run nets you a point of secret knowledge about the Embodiment of Chaos, whose attacks and weaknesses are different every playthrough! At two points, you'll learn its first elemental attack pattern; at four points, the second pattern; and at six points, you'll know its elemental weaknesses! These secrets are added to your grimoire, so check it often.

SUMMON - Each freak you assign to this task lets you summon an additional minion. To do this, they will need one elemental item and one propensity item at which point you will conjure a new minion corresponding to the combination of items! (Be sure to give them a warm welcome.) To set an item, click on a circle icon below a freak assigned to the task, and then on the item.

You gain the benefits of a room after winning the battle. Remember, freaks interacting with a room can't participate in that room's battle! Once you complete a battle, you'll have a choice between two rooms to proceed into.

ITEMS

There are 7 types of items in the game: one for each element and each propensity. You can combine items in summoning rooms to conjure new minions, but you can also use them to help out your existing ones. Each elemental item can be used to heal a freak of the corresponding element, and each propensity item will give a freak of the corresponding propensity a boost for the next battle. To use an item, click on the freak, and then the item you wish to use.

CONTROLS

T - Open/close your grimoire for quick reference about the game's mechanics as well as all of the information you've gathered about the Embodiment of Chaos!

S - Toggle screen shake

1/2/3 - Set combat speed

Q - Quit

CREDITS

Mirella Baas

Jonas Haverinen

Ville Jantunen

Johannes Metsälampi

Kami Mikkonen

Ilmo Salmenperä

Samuli Tuomainen

CHANGE LOG

Original windows and Linux versions available.

April 16, 2024:

- Fixed a bug where UI elements ate a large portion of mouse inputs

- Fixed overlapping collision boxes causing issues in selecting elements

- Fixed an incorrect reference in the code that caused crashes

- Fixed zero damage being displayed as healing

- Fixed boss behavior

- Fixed combat logic issues

- Fixed music playback issues

- Fixed a modulation bug in item slots

- Game now resets upon game over as intended

- You now start with randomized items instead of test items

- Unit selection indicator no longer lingers on screen

- Units now update their values properly

- Units now resurrect properly

- You can no longer select a dead unit for battle

- Fixed a bug enabling users to use room actions without expending units

- Fixed missing shadows

- Fixed bug with the boss entering too early

- Fixed items lingering after death

- Fixed boss secrets appearing with the wrong requirements