Leafcutter ant is a 2-star species card from the Bronze Age. Leafcutter ants grow a fungus garden and eat the fungus, not the leaves.
Bonus by grade
| Grade | Copies needed | Bonus |
|---|---|---|
| Common | 0 | +6% Food production |
| Uncommon | 2 | +10.8% Food production |
| Rare | 5 | +18% Food production |
| Epic | 10 | +27% Food production |
| Legendary | 20 | +42% Food production |
Duplicates raise the grade: Uncommon at 2, Rare at 5, Epic at 10, Legendary at 20.
Codex
- Common: Workers cut leaf pieces and carry them home like little sails.
- Uncommon: Smaller workers chew the leaves into mulch for the fungus.
- Rare: The fungus is found only in their nests: the ants and fungus depend on each other.
- Epic: A big colony can have millions of workers.
- Legendary: Bacteria on their bodies make antibiotics that protect the garden.
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Field guide
| Size | Workers about 2–14 mm; queens about 22 mm |
| Colony | Millions of workers in big colonies |
| Queens | One queen per colony |
| Nest | Huge nests with thousands of chambers linked by tunnels, for growing fungus |
| Diet | A fungus they grow on chewed leaves |
| Defence | Large majors have sharp jaws and will attack big intruders |
| Active | Trail-following foragers; winged ants fly out to mate once a year |
| Lifespan | Queens can live more than 10 years |
| Where it lives | Central and South America, from Mexico to Peru, Bolivia and Brazil |
Did you know?
- Tiny workers called minims ride on leaf pieces and guard carriers from parasitic flies.
- Trails are marked with scent from the poison gland.
- After mating, a new queen sheds her wings and digs a chamber to start a colony.
Sources: marwell.org.uk
Codex sets
- Ants of the metal ages: Leafcutter ant, Harvester ant, Weaver ant, Army ant, Trap-jaw ant, Carpenter ant, Fire ant, Banded sugar ant, Acrobat ant, Citronella ant, Silky ant, Tawny crazy ant, Blood-red ant, Inchman, Golden-tailed spiny ant, Black-headed sugar ant, Rock ant
Queen affinity
- Black garden ant: ×1 chance
- Meat ant: ×0.5 chance
- Bull ant: ×0.5 chance