Towering Roots of the Jungle
Card data, innate thresholds, special rules, growth options, presence track, and suggested-draft cards below were parsed deterministically from the Spirit Island Wiki via scripts/wiki-fetch.py (MediaWiki API → raw wikitext → template field extraction — no LLM summarization). Remaining [VERIFY] items: Play Difficulty (not in Wiki spirit template; spirit panel only), aspect mechanics (aspect-page parser pending), live mindwanderer stats, and board ratings (play data).
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Expansion | Nature Incarnate |
| Complexity | Moderate |
| Play Difficulty | [VERIFY from spirit panel] |
| Growth type | “one” — see Growth Options below |
| Power summary (1–5) | Offense 1 · Control 3 · Fear 2 · Defense 5 · Utility 2 |
| Primary Elements | Sun, Plant, Earth, Moon (derived from innates + uniques) |
| Aspects | [VERIFY from physical aspect panels] |
Spirit Overview — Framing
Wiki-printed playstyle note:
Incredibly good at protecting everything at its {{incarna|roots}} - and can draw Invaders towards there - but is constrained in when and where it can move its {{incarna|roots}}. Has some ability to Remove Invaders (driving them from the island), but starts off vastly better at guarding the land than at smashing things.
Strategic framing [VERIFY: enhance with play experience].
Starting Setup
Put 3 Presence on your starting board: 1 in the highest-numbered Jungle without Blight, 1 in the highest-numbered Mountain, and 1 in the highest-numbered Wetland. Put {{incarna|roots}}, Unempowered ({{incarna|unempowered}}) side up, in the Jungle with your Presence. You start with your 4 Unique Power Cards and 0 Energy.
Growth Options (one)
| Growth | Effects |
|---|---|
| G1 | first=reclaim, second=addpresence0 |
| G2 | first=gain1p, second=addpresence1, third=addvitalityrootsincarna |
| G3 | first=gain1p, second=addpresence3, third=replacepresencerootsincarna |
Growth token reference (Wiki shorthand):
reclaim— Reclaim all discarded Power Cards.gain1p/gain2p— Gain 1 or 2 Power Cards (Minor).addpresence1/addpresence2/addpresence3— Add 1 Presence from track, Range N.energy1/energy2/energy3— +1/+2/+3 Energy.card1/card2— +1/+2 Card Plays this turn.- (Other tokens documented on Wiki Spirit template reference pages.)
Presence Tracks
As Presence leaves each track, these values are revealed:
- Energy track: energy1, energy2, earth, energy4, plant, energy6
- Card-play track: card1, card2, sunX, card3, plantX, card4
Core Mechanics & Special Rules
Special Rule
ENDURING VITALITYSome of your Actions Add Vitality Tokens ({{vitality}}). (Each {{vitality}} in a land with no Blight prevents 1 Blight 
from being added, then is Removed.) HEART-TREE GUARDS THE LANDYou have an Incarna ({{incarna|roots}}). * Your Powers get Range +1 if {{incarna|roots}} is in the origin land. * Invaders/Dahan/Beast can’t be damaged or destroyed at {{incarna|roots}}. * Empower {{incarna|roots}} the first time it’s in a land with 3 or more {{vitality}}. * Skip all Build Actions at empowered {{incarna|roots}}.
Innate: SHELTER UNDER TOWERING BRANCHES
- Speed: slow · Range: 0 (optionally from a sacred site) · Target: any
| Level | Thresholds | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1  Sun + 1  Plant | Gather up to 1 Dahan  . |
| 2 | 1 Sun + 1  Earth + 2 Plant | Gather up to 1 Explorer  . |
| 3 | 2 Sun + 1 Earth + 3 Plant | Gather up to 1 Town  . |
| 4 | 3 Sun + 2 Earth + 4 Plant | Gather up to 1 City  . |
Innate: REVOKE SANCTUARY AND CAST OUT
- Speed: slow · Range: 0 (optionally from a sacred site) · Target: rootsincarnainvaders
| Level | Thresholds | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 Sun + 1  Moon + 2 Plant | 1 Fear  . Remove 1 Explorer /Town. |
| 2 | 2 Sun + 1 Moon + 3 Plant | 1 Fear . Remove 1 Explorer /Town. |
| 3 | 2 Sun + 2 Moon + 4 Plant | 1 Fear . Remove 1 Invader. |
Unique Cards (all, Wiki-verified)
Card Priority Ratings
Scored across all 114 Minor + 98 Major cards in the full deck (Base + B&C + JE + NI), weighted by Towering Roots of the Jungle’s innate element demands, mid-game energy estimate, primary-innate speed, and power-summary ratings. See data/references/draft-priority/towering-roots-of-the-jungle.json for full scoring + reasons.
- Primary elements (innate-weighted): Plant (wt 9.0), Sun (wt 5.7), Moon (wt 2.1)
- Mid-game energy estimate (T3–T5 avg): 5.0E
- Power summary: Offense 1 · Control 3 · Fear 2 · Defense 5 · Utility 2
Uniques
No Unique cards listed.
Top 10 Minor Draft Picks (from full pool)
| # | Card | Cost | Speed | Elements | Effect (truncated) | Why this pick |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Favor of the Sun and Star-lit Dark | 1 | Fast | Sun, Moon, Plant | Defend 4. Push up to 1 Blight . | elements moon+plant+sun → 16.8 |
| 2 | Absorb Corruption | 1 | Slow | Sun, Earth, Plant | Gather 1 Blight . OR Pay 1 Energy to Remove 1 Blight . | elements earth+plant+sun → 16.2 |
| 3 | Sear Anger Into the Wild Lands | 0 | Slow | Sun, Fire, Plant | Add 1 Badlands. OR If Wilds and Invaders are present, 1 Fear and 1 Damage. | elements plant+sun → 14.7 |
| 4 | Enticing Splendor | 0 | Fast | Sun, Air, Plant | Gather 1 Explorer /Town. OR Gather up to 2 Dahan . | elements plant+sun → 14.7 |
| 5 | Like Calls to Like | 1 | Slow | Sun, Water, Plant | If target land has Explorer, Gather up to 1 Explorer . Do likewise for Town, Dahan, Blight… | elements plant+sun → 14.7 |
| 6 | Song of Sanctity | 1 | Slow | Sun, Water, Plant | If Explorer(s) are present, Push all Explorers. Otherwise, Remove 1 Blight . | elements plant+sun → 14.7 |
| 7 | Gift of Living Energy | 0 | Fast | Sun, Fire, Plant | Target Spirit gains 1 Energy. If you have at least 2 Sacred Sites, target Spirit gains 1 … | elements plant+sun → 14.7 |
| 8 | Pact of the Joined Hunt | 1 | Slow | Sun, Plant, Animal | Target Spirit Gathers 1 Dahan into one of their lands. 1 Damage in that land per Dahan pr… | elements plant+sun → 14.7 |
| 9 | Purifying Flame | 1 | Slow | Sun, Fire, Air, Plant | 1 Damage per Blight. If target land is a Mountain or Sands, you may instead Remove 1 Blig… | elements plant+sun → 14.7 |
| 10 | Teeming Rivers | 1 | Slow | Sun, Water, Plant, Animal | If target land has no Blight, add 1 Beasts. If target land has exactly 1 Blight , Remove i… | elements plant+sun → 14.7 |
Top 5 Major Draft Picks (from full pool)
| # | Card | Cost | Speed | Elements | Effect (truncated) | Why this pick |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Twisted Flowers Murmur Ultimatums | 5 | Slow | Sun, Moon, Air, Earth, Plant | 4 Fear . Add 1 Strife. If the Terror Level is 2 or higher, Remove 2 Invaders. | elements earth+moon+plant+sun → 18.3 |
| 2 | Unlock the Gates of Deepest Power | 4 | Fast | Sun, Moon, Fire, Air, Water, Earth, Plant, Animal | Target Spirit gains a Major Power by drawing 2 and keeping 1, without having to Forget an… | elements earth+moon+plant+sun → 18.3 |
| 3 | Trees Radiate Celestial Brilliance | 3 | Fast | Sun, Moon, Plant | 3 Fear . Defend 6. This turn, Invaders in target land skip the next Build Action. | elements moon+plant+sun → 16.8 |
| 4 | The Trees and Stones Speak of War | 2 | Fast | Sun, Earth, Plant | For each Dahan, 1 Damage and Defend 2. | elements earth+plant+sun → 16.2 |
| 5 | Walls of Rock and Thorn | 4 | Fast | Sun, Earth, Plant | 2 Damage. Defend 8. Add 1 Wilds. Isolate target land. | elements earth+plant+sun → 16.2 |
HoSI Beginner Deck Bundle — for reference only
These are the cards shipped with Towering Roots of the Jungle in the Horizons of Spirit Island beginner bundle — a curated onboarding subset, not an optimized draft list. The picks above (Top Minor / Major) draw from the full expansion pool. Keep this table for historical reference or when playing with a HoSI-only card pool.
No HoSI beginner-deck bundle for this spirit.
Cards to Avoid (anti-synergy flagged)
| Card | Reason(s) |
|---|---|
| Skies Herald the Season of Return | destroys Presence |
| Renewing Boon | destroys Presence |
| Devouring Ants | destroys Dahan |
| Land of Haunts and Embers | adds Blight |
| Scour the Land | adds Blight |
| The Jungle Hungers | destroys Dahan |
| Blazing Renewal | destroys Presence |
| Insatiable Hunger of the Swarm | adds Blight |
| Solidify Echoes of Majesty Past | destroys Presence |
| Poisoned Land | destroys Dahan, adds Blight |
| Pyroclastic Flow | adds Blight |
| Pillar of Living Flame | adds Blight |
| Tsunami | destroys Dahan |
| Draw Towards a Consuming Void | destroys Presence |
| Volcanic Eruption | destroys Dahan, adds Blight |
Key Strategic Principles
[VERIFY and enhance] — strategic principles should be derived from Wiki-verified mechanics above.
- Use the Special Rule to its fullest (see above for exact text).
- Element thresholds drive innate firing — see the innate tables above.
- Suggested draft cards are Wiki-recommended; pattern-match to your matchup.
Opener Mechanics — starter reference
Auto-derived from data/references/wiki/towering-roots-of-the-jungle.json. This section states the factual mechanics every opener must build on (starting income, growth options, innate thresholds, Fast-vs-Slow timing). It is not a strategic opener — use this as the foundation, then apply Deliberate Play + si-rules-check before writing T1/T2/T3 prose.
Starting state
- Setup: Put 3 Presence on your starting board: 1 in the highest-numbered Jungle without Blight, 1 in the highest-numbered Mountain, and 1 in the highest-numbered Wetland. Put {{incarna|roots}}, Unempowered ({{incarna|unempowered}}) side up, in the Jungle with your Presence. You start with your 4 Unique Power Cards and 0 Energy.
- Starting income (from
presence_energy_track[0]=energy1,presence_cardplay_track[0]=card1): 1 Energy · 1 Card Play - Hand at start: 4 Unique Power Cards (listed below)
- Growth type:
one— pick one growth option per turn
Growth options
- G1: reclaim (Reclaim all discarded+played Power Cards); addpresence0 (Place 1 Presence from a track (Range 0))
- G2: gain1p (Gain 1 Power Card (Minor unless otherwise noted)); addpresence1 (Place 1 Presence from a track (Range 1)); addvitalityrootsincarna ((spirit-specific:
addvitalityrootsincarna— consult spirit panel)) - G3: gain1p (Gain 1 Power Card (Minor unless otherwise noted)); addpresence3 (Place 1 Presence from a track (Range 3)); replacepresencerootsincarna ((spirit-specific:
replacepresencerootsincarna— consult spirit panel))
Presence-track reveal rules: placing Presence (via a growth option with addpresence*) reveals one track slot — either the next Energy slot or the next Card-Play slot, not both. The choice determines your permanent-income trajectory from that turn onward.
Energy track
energy1 · energy2 · earth · energy4 · plant · energy6 — income as slots reveal: 1 → 2 → earth → 4 → plant → 6
Card-play track
card1 · card2 · sunX · card3 · plantX · card4 — CP as slots reveal: 1 → 2 → sunX → 3 → plantX → 4
Innate Powers
- SHELTER UNDER TOWERING BRANCHES (Speed: Slow · Range: 0 · Target: any)
- L1 — 1 Sun + 1 Plant: Gather up to 1 Dahan .
- L2 — 1 Sun + 1 Earth + 2 Plant: Gather up to 1 Explorer .
- L3 — 2 Sun + 1 Earth + 3 Plant: Gather up to 1 Town .
- L4 — 3 Sun + 2 Earth + 4 Plant: Gather up to 1 City .
- L1 — 1
- REVOKE SANCTUARY AND CAST OUT (Speed: Slow · Range: 0 · Target: rootsincarnainvaders)
- L1 — 1 Sun + 1 Moon + 2 Plant: 1 Fear . Remove 1 Explorer /Town.
- L2 — 2 Sun + 1 Moon + 3 Plant: 1 Fear . Remove 1 Explorer /Town.
- L3 — 2 Sun + 2 Moon + 4 Plant: 1 Fear . Remove 1 Invader.
- L1 — 1
Fast-phase element ceiling from Uniques
Fast innates resolve in Fast phase and can only see elements from Fast cards played before the innate. Slow-card elements arrive too late to feed a Fast innate. This is the element ceiling Fast plays from your Uniques alone can contribute each turn:
- Fast-phase Unique elements: (no Fast Uniques — all innate firings require drafted Fast cards)
Unique Power Cards
No Unique cards parsed.
Invader phase by turn (base deck)
| Turn | Explore | Build | Ravage | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ✓ | — | — | Ravage-protection effects are dormant T1. |
| 2 | ✓ | ✓ | — | First Build; Ravage-protection still dormant. |
| 3 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | First Ravage; Ravage-protection becomes material. |
| 4+ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | Full cycle continues. |
Adversary escalation can shift this — check the adversary JSON for deviations (Sweden front-loads a Build; some Habsburg levels add early Builds).
Pause-point before writing T1 prose
- Compute post-growth E/CP for every growth × track-choice branch. Don’t assume both tracks reveal simultaneously.
- Enumerate legal T1 plays — subsets of hand with sum(costs) ≤ E and count ≤ CP.
- Separate Fast vs. Slow elements — when claiming an innate fires, verify the threshold is met using only elements from its resolution phase (Fast sees Fast; Slow sees Fast + Slow).
- Flag dormant effects — Ravage-protection, Defend N, etc. are null T1/T2 in base play. Only cite them as opener value when the trigger actually occurs that turn.
- State per-turn material effect for every card play: Fear generated, units pushed/gathered/destroyed, elements contributed. Never narrate dormant effects as if they were active.
Adversary Matchup Matrix
[VERIFY all grades] — template only; fill in per-adversary notes after play.
| Adversary | L0 | L3 | L5 | L6 | Notes [VERIFY] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| England | ? | ? | ? | ? | |
| Brandenburg-Prussia | ? | ? | ? | ? | |
| Sweden | ? | ? | ? | ? | |
| France (Plantation) | ? | ? | ? | ? | |
| Habsburg Mining | ? | ? | ? | ? | |
| Russia | ? | ? | ? | ? | |
| Scotland | ? | ? | ? | ? | |
| Habsburg Livestock | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Strategy Cliffs — per-adversary-level shifts that change Towering Roots of the Jungle’s math
Not every adversary level is a linear scale-up — some levels flip specific rules that alter what your Powers accomplish. These are the cliffs most relevant to Towering Roots of the Jungle’s profile (Fear 2, Offense 1, Control 3, Defense 5, Utility 2).
France (Plantation) — Dahan capture threatens your Dahan engine
What changes: France’s plantation rules convert Dahan to colonists, and Invaders occupy lands with Dahan. Spirits whose innate/card math counts on Dahan density (Shadows-of-the-Dahan, Favors, Thunderspeaker) are downgraded.
Mitigation for Towering Roots of the Jungle: Play Defend Powers on Dahan lands; accept loss of range-extension budget.
Board / Map Configuration
[VERIFY via play] — base boards A–D, Jagged Earth E–H, and thematic ratings pending per-spirit play experience.
Game-Phase Strategy
[VERIFY: needs play data].
Synergy Partners (Multiplayer)
[VERIFY: needs multi-spirit play data] — archetype-based hints from Archetype Index are the starting point.
Common Mistakes
[VERIFY: collect from play].
Tempo Profile
[VERIFY: per-round targets need playtest].
Expansion Sensitivity
- Base only: core Uniques + Innate + Special Rule functional if expansion = Base.
- + Branch & Claw: events + blight deck introduce variance.
- + Jagged Earth: Major/Minor pool deepens.
- + Nature Incarnate: additional aspects may unlock; check the aspect column above.
Per-expansion specifics [VERIFY].
Stat Snapshot
[VERIFY from mindwanderer] — pending re-scrape of mindwanderer current data. Historical directional figures unavailable in this template draft.
Source Notes
- Authoritative mechanics (this chapter):
data/references/wiki/towering-roots-of-the-jungle.json— parsed viascripts/wiki-fetch.py. - Spirit Island Wiki — Towering Roots of the Jungle.
- Cross-reference: Archetype Index.
- Related skill: si-wiki-fetch.
Chapter draft generated from Wiki data 2026-04-19. Strategic prose needs enhancement from play experience. See templates/SPIRIT_TEMPLATE.md for the full Rei-format spine.