How to Craft and Use Realm Cards
Realm Cards are a central aspect that sets Nightingale apart in the survival genre. Simply put, you combine Biome and Major Cards to generate new Realms, and you then modify those Realms with Minor Cards. It’s a clever system that creates a huge variety of Realms to explore and adds to the game’s replayability. This guide will outline how to craft and use Realm Cards so you can learn how to get the most out of them.
How to Craft Realm Cards
You craft Realm Cards at the Enchanter’s Focus, a crafting table you’ll learn to make while adventuring through your first Abeyance Realm.
You can purchase the blueprint for the Enchanter's Focus from an Essence Trader or wait to earn it from Puck -- Essence Traders are marked on your map when available, and trader stock can be found via the Guidebook menu under Traders.
To build the Enhanter's Forcus, you will require the following materials:
- 1x Lumber from the Saw Table
- 2x Ingots from the Smelter
- 5x Glass from the Smelter
You’ll acquire blueprints for Realm Cards as you adventure, but Puck starts you out with blueprints for basic Biome Cards like Desert, Swamp, and Forest. Throughout your adventure, you’ll also pick up blueprints for Major and Minor Cards.
Every Realm Card requires Paper and Ink to craft. You can create Paper at the Saw Table for two Wood Bundles. You can craft Ink from the Mortar Station using Pigment and Glass. Some Realm Cards also require other materials, such as Essence.
How to Use Major Realm Cards
You combine Biome and Major Cards at a Realm Card Machine that you’ll find near the Portal in every Realm. To activate the Portal, you must select a Biome Card that determines the type of Realm it is and a Major Card that determines the types of friends and foes you’ll encounter. This is also where you can select the difficulty and make the Realm Public.
How to Use Minor Realm Cards
Minor Cards can be applied to a Realm after you’ve entered it. To do so, you need to find a Realmic Transmuter, which is typically revealed on the map as soon as you enter a new Realm.
The Realmic Transmuter is a large, gyroscope-looking device where you can play Minor Cards that affect the whole Realm. You can only have one Minor Card active at a time. These effects are usually double-edged, such as the Dragon Horde card that increases the loot you’ll find in chests but lowers your damage resistance. However, a few offer benefits without downsides, such as the Amphibious card, which increases swim speed and disease resistance.
Playing a new Minor Card overwrites the effects of the previous one. If you’d like to remove the current effect without adding a new one, you can play a Cleansing Card to clear the current Transmuter of effects.