Water and underwater gameplay

In general each faction would be differently ‘fit’ for usage of water in their strategy

Balance would be best suited for it because of their propensity towards tech that would work on or under water.

Less so balance that would not explore it to the depth but use it as a means of transportation and later on, ranged siege.

Water at the beginning should mostly work like a ‘safe direction’ when setting up a base - players swimming in water are vulnerable to ranged attacks against them from the shoreline.

Later on as the tech progresses, water could be used as a tactical resource.

Blight interaction with water
Chaos does not survive on or under water unless it’s affected by blight. Even then it’s just for a very limited time. Blight from shore can spread in the water where it affects in a sphere around the point of exposure.

! There will be no ‘water currents’ spreading it around and diluting it.

Blight affected water corrupts any order or balance players and tech in it. On t1 it’s just a debuff and a DOT, on t2+ it will sap tech from devices in it allowing the tech of underwater blight spawners, on t3 it will be able to temporarily twist and corrupt balance and order tech (ships, submersibles,rebreathers) that will allow chaos to use them.

! By doing so the players will be in fact acting like balance and thus will be getting favour towards balance.

t1: balance faster swimming and shallow diving, only stabbing weapons for melee, no ranged, order just swimming, chaos nothing

t2: balance able to build the vacuum tubes under water, rebreathers, submersibles to gather resources on the seafloor, order ships for transport, chaos blight infecting water from shore but no underwater blight spawners

t3: chaos by capturing some balance tech able to capture ships and submersibles for limited time acting like t3 chaos officers with the aura (inside the ship/sub no degen and debuff)

If the tech is captured from balance, t3 rifts could deploy underwater blight spawners, rifts closer to shore will allow chaos players to get to shore albeit in a diminished capacity (the closer to shore the more fully powered)

order: ships with ranged weaponry (stolen tech  from balance on t2) or just transport

balance harpoons, underwater mines, submersibles with ranged siege weapons (primitive rockets?)