Rising Tide

Information
Name	Rising Tide
Categories	Story Documentary
Environment	Beach
Player species	Wood ant
Player units	Wood ant worker Wood ant soldier Wood ant shooter (either)
Surface	Yes
Features	Challenge mode Circadian rhythm Timed attacks Rising water

The beach provides a feast for those brave enough to venture there, but sunset brings new dangers.
The sands are also home to burrowed creatures waiting for a meal to wander near their hole. (challenge)

Objectives

• Survive 3 nights.

Rewards

• Base value: 4 territory, 400 food, 14 Royal Jelly

• Difficulty bonus: 300%/ 325%/ 350%/ 380%/ 420%

• First-time bonus: + 350%

• Challenge bonus: + 100%

• Completion bonus: + 200%

• New game plus bonus: + 40% x plus number

Settings

Your wood ant colony must defend itself from local predators. Your nest is located on the first layer the beach. Nest entrance will be excavated automatically when attacking waves are about to arrive.

The level starts during the day.

Water rises every 75 seconds in the evening until it reaches the first layer. It washes away both dead and alive creatures. It recedes entirely in the morning and leaves behind sand fleas. A single fish is washed up on the second day.

You must choose either mortar or rapid-fire shooters before playing the level. You start with 4 black ant workers, which will be replaced with wood ant workers when they are dead.

Notable enemies

Enemies are on the same side.

Devil's coach horse beetles and black ants live in your nest.

Adult northern dune tiger beetles and wood ants only appear on the surface during the day. They don't invade your nest. Enemy wood ants have the shooter variant that you don't choose.

Wood ants move toward the fish on the second day and gather food on the way. Respawn is constant until the fish is gone.

Hermit crabs and sand bear wolf spiders only appear on the surface at night. They only invade your nest when they are attacked, except for medium hermit crabs. Nearby enemies are attracted to the combat area every 5 seconds. Sand bear wolf spiders only appear from the second night onwards.

Attacking waves come from the nearby spawner every night. The inbetween time is 100 seconds.

• Night 1 - Wave 1: Tiny hermit crabs

• Night 1 - Wave 2: Tiny hermit crabs

• Night 1 - Wave 3: Tiny and small hermit crabs

• Night 2 - Wave 1: Small sand bear wolf spiders

• Night 2 - Wave 2: Medium sand bear wolf spiders

• Night 2 - Wave 3: Small and medium sand bear wolf spiders

• Night 3 - Wave 1: Small and medium sand bear wolf spiders

• Night 3 - Wave 2: Tiny and small hermit crabs

• Night 3 - Wave 3: Tiny and large sand bear wolf spiders

The huge sand bear wolf spider hides under a shell on the fourth layer only on impossible. It only appears during the day. It has full health again on the following days.

Challenge

Larval dune tiger beetles appear everywhere on the beach during the day and increase in number over time.

Achievements

Achievements
Icons	Name	Requirements
	Rising Tide	Beat the level on designated difficulty.
	Free Willis	Keep the fish unharvested then beat the level. (medium)
	The Way Is Shut	Beat the level without letting enemies enter your nest. (hard)
	It's My Beach Now	Eliminate 2 dune tiger beetles before the 1st night then beat the level. (extreme)
	Giant Bear	Eliminate the huge sand bear wolf spider to the southeast of the nest then beat the level. (impossible)
	Work with What You've Got	Beat the level without building any worker tiles. (challenge)
	Ambush the Ambushers	Eliminate 50 larval dune tiger beetles then beat the level. (impossible - challenge)

Trivia

• In real life, a young wood ant queen may choose to assassinate a black ant queen and take over its colony using black ant pheromones. Black ant workers are under its control until its own brood is ready to venture outside. This was requested to be in the game by Serafine, a kickstarter backer.

• Stray ants are available only in this level and only as enemies.

• Free Willis a reference to Free Willy.

• The Way Is Shut is a reference to Lords of the Rings: The Two Towers.

Minimaps

• 

  Surface

• 

  Underground