After discovering more on the Yzmir’s hidden secrets and the Lyra’s purifying rituals, our Faction Focus series continues. In this second installment, we shine a spotlight on the two pillars of the city’s defense: the Bravos and the Ordis. As corruption relentlessly advances, pure heroism meets iron discipline.

Through the combined perspectives of our Lore, Art, and Game Design experts, you will discover how these two factions unite their strengths to protect the citizens from the corruption surging through the city.

To defeat the Nightmare, one must strike at its very heart. While the Yzmir bear this heavy burden, they cannot succeed without an escort, and that is where the Bravos come in. An elite vanguard has formed around Sunniva & Rust: scouts, protectors, and warriors prepared to sacrifice everything for the mission, even if it’s a one-way trip into hell.

Fortunately, Sunniva has awakened to her true nature. She now knows she is an Oneiros, the physical manifestation of a legendary being within our world. While she remains Sunniva, she is also Gretel... and Gretel is anything but timid.

Many volunteers follow her lead, including the fearless Nelya. Her piercing gaze is vital for spotting threats, while her acrobatic prowess allows her to dance through danger. By drawing the Nightmare’s attention and creating vital openings, she ensures the troop can press forward. In this desperate push, every small feat counts; for the Bravos, the mission is the only thing that matters.

From pathfinder to Hero, Sunniva has stepped into her destiny. Familiar to players as a Bravos staple, she returns as Gretel, with a clear purpose and a formidable ally: Rust. Together, they embody a faction defined by heroic feats and pushing beyond one's limits.

Their strength lies in the mastery of Prowess. Every feat achieved by your Characters unlocks lasting effects and empowers Rust, who scales in strength as the match progresses. Your successes are never fleeting; they build a cumulative advantage and exert constant pressure on your opponent.

Specific Feat cards can even redefine your entire strategy. Reap the Mana, for instance, encourages you to hoard a massive mana pool to trigger decisive late-game advances. Other cards reward your established feats: Spry Scout reaches its full potential only when you control a Feat, granting a bonus that directly rewards your momentum. In this deck, a Feat is more than just a one-time achievement: it is a cornerstone of your victory.

To withstand the nightmarish corruption, the Bravos have deployed an elite task force with a critical mission: escorting the Yzmir sorcerers to the heart of Naos, where the mages will seal the breach. This highly trained "suicide squad" is organized, powerful, and reactive. You can see this energy in characters like Carmela, Fast Striker, and across all our "Feat" cards, especially The Last Stand, which we illustrated to feel like a climactic scene from an action movie.

Behind the front lines, essential but invisible talents complete this elite troop. The Guiding Ocelot carves a path through the ruins of the Lower City, the Reka Fixer keeps the team supplied with food and tools, and the Devoted Protector carries the wounded to safety. By placing them in such an extreme context, we’ve ensured that even non-combatants are portrayed heroically through dynamic compositions and perilous environments.

The Reka city may be doomed, but its people can still be saved. The Ordis have accepted this harsh reality. While Matz works tirelessly to delay the inevitable collapse, the rest of the Faction has mobilized for a massive evacuation. Every ship in the Armada is deployed for extraction, while airborne contingents, led by Zhen & Zephyr, patrol the skies to pull out survivors from the wreckage. On the ground, soldiers form unbreakable lines to hold back the Nightmare. Between reconnaissance, securing sectors, and managing the exodus, holding the front is a desperate race against the clock.

Pegasus embodies the philosophy the Ordis cling to amidst the catastrophe: when all seems lost, every small success is a triumph. In the face of total defeat, saving even a single person is a victory. This is the Faction’s singular focus, salvaging what remains. Pegasus soars above the crumbling spires and roiling clouds, searching for survivors. The moment he spots one, he dives, carries them to safety, and delivers them to the last remaining ports held by the Asgarthans and Reka, where the evacuation ships await.

Zhen returns, ready to take your expeditions to new heights. With her at the helm, the Ordis present a true strategic puzzle: progress through Elevation to unlock powerful rewards. Every step forward counts; each threshold crossed paves the way for game-changing effects, whether you're rising with the Thunderbird or soaring alongside Pegasus.

In this faction, nothing is left to chance. The Ordis playstyle is precise, demanding, and almost surgical, where a single stat point can be the difference between failure and a successful expedition. Success lies in optimizing your values, anticipating your Elevation triggers, and knowing exactly when to accelerate. With Zhen, the Ordis challenge players to master a subtle and rewarding deck where discipline and long-term vision turn every advance into a true ascent.

The clock is ticking! Follow Nils Holgersson, he has just spotted survivors trapped in the Lower City! With the tram stations damaged and partially flooded, there is no way out without outside help. Together, the Ordis are organizing a massive effort to protect the many and evacuate them to the safety of the vessels fiercely guarded by Sunisa’s battalion.

To ensure the success of this Cover the Retreat operation, the Ordis summon powerful, winged legendary creatures. Among them, the towering Thunderbird and Hippogriff lend their strength, while smaller flying vehicles enable Strategic Deployment into the most inaccessible zones.

In Skybound Odyssey, characters with the "Ascend" keyword were depicted with wings or in flight. To maintain visual consistency across the game, our art team has given these same characteristics to the Ascend characters in this expansion. Their wings also serve as a grim reminder that the Reka city is an archipelago of floating spires: when the bridges are destroyed, flight becomes the only path to survival.