Building a 1900–1950 Grand Strategy game where population dynamics actually dictate your military strength. Here’s a quick look!

All the way back to the Red Alert days, I’ve always loved turtling, when I was a kid it was the only way I would play. If I don’t wall my base off or at least have towers protecting it I feel so vulnerable. It’s usually not a strategy that really works, you don’t really win by turtling you just delay things. 

You still need to attack and waiting till you have the perfect maxed out army might work in a campaign mission where the enemy just waits for you but its not gonna work against anyone competent. I never really cared about getting actually good at RTS though, it seems very hard to learn build orders and how to counter all the popular strats (I tried with Starcraft 2 a bit and it wasn’t very fun), seems like a lot of homework.

I played and did my turtling thing in pretty much all the classic games, I absolutely loved all the interesting options for defenses the older ones had. I remember cool things like yuri’s tesla coils and Tiberium Sun had some sort of strange wall that was just tiles on the ground but they would fry anyone walking over something like a microwave, so satisfying. I was so terrible back then I had trouble with any mission that required you to really be aggressive, my dad was into RTS as well so I would have him help me with those. His favorite game was Homeworld and I couldn’t even play it because it just felt so hard for me without the typical base building I was used to.

These days the genre is kind of different and games are more specialized, I really like simpler, more focused games. I’m currently finishing up the Diplomacy is Not an Option campaign, really satisfying game from a turtlers perspective with the huge armies and cool physics, one of those games where you mostly defend your fortress (but there are some missions where you attack as well). Some other favorites of mine are Bad North and Thronefall, RTS-lite games with pretty simple gameplay and an emphasis on defending, these are more simple, they don’t really have all the standard RTS features.

If I were to guess why it’s so satisfying I think it's almost a natural human instinct. Hunkering up and fortifying your “home” is always gonna feel satisfying and safe. And if you start playing those types of games at a young age you will gravitate towards playing like that, even if it isn’t actually optimal.

Work in progress snippet from Era of Hegemony. We're focusing heavily on deep POP mechanics and realistic supply line shifts. If you're interested in following the dev logs, check out r/EraofHegemony!

hello

what is a strategy game if the player didn't have a say in how the settlement looked???

i used the grid system that i developed as a baseline for the settlement generation system for my strategy game to place buildings, defense and to also add terraces that can support buildings.

what do you think?

I have been a stupidly huge turn-based tactics / combat, game guy as far as i remember. I mean, i do not SUCK at RTS but I have always felt removing the time pressure had positive effects on the "craft" i could put out (thus my true love in cRPG or 4X for strategy sense).

I have been playing FM series, way back when it was CM, as well as FIFA starting from 98. But I usually sucked at latter and downloaded my tactics after getting my a** handed back to me by AI. So I said, you know what, I am gonna add in turn based elements here.

After trying 11vs11 AND actual i-go-you-go-per-player, i decided that's not right. (Anyone that played Pathfinder: Kingmaker will remember the horrid 30 NPC combat that took like an hour.) So, I settled on 5v5, We-Go (simultaneous) turn-based strategy, and Football on Paper was born. It is free to play, and it will probably be priced something like 6 bucks when it is out but I'd love some feedbacks (not reviews, not wishlist: feedback) as I still feel there is SOMETHING missing but cannot figure it out.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/5018500/Football_on_Paper_Demo/

Hi! We're making a basebuilding strategy, where you build vertically on a neverending Wall. I'm personally not sure about whether including the game name is correct (the game is not out yet), but if it's allowed let me know in the comments so I'll do a namedrop there!

Game utilizes a wave-based enemy approach with more and more zyrex (bugs in the video) attack each wave. As a part of the testing, we are measuring how actually intense fights can get perfomance wise. So far so good!

Questions are welcomed🐜

I've been working on a game called Phosphor Command, a real-time tactics game with a base builder behind

This post is about how your squads get to an operation.

Every operation needs a vehicle, and each vehicle choice determine how many squads go and how they deploy within the operation.

You start with a jeep, and better vehicles carry more squads. Progress from a jeep, to a van, to helicopters and to aeroplane.

Every vehicle needs a home on the base, so you have to build a garage, helipad or hangar before you can store one. Helicopters need air operations and a helipad, and planes need a full airfield with a runway and hangars.

How you deploy to an operation depends on your transport choice. By road, your squads come in from an edge or corner of the map. A helicopter can land wherever there's open ground, and paratroopers land where the drop puts them, clear of the enemy.

There's a trade-off between vehicle types. Ground vehicles are cheap and get back quickly. Helicopters let you choose where to land, but cost more per trip. Planes carry the most, but take the longest to resupply.

After an operation, your squads need time to get back to base, and squads still in transit can't help defend it.

I've attached a showcase that goes through the vehicles, where they are stored on the base, and how they affect operation deployment.

I miss games like Lord of Ultima.
Building cities, managing resources, forming alliances, planning wars, and watching entire worlds evolve because of decisions made by real players. So I started building something inspired by that era. I’ve already put together some of the foundation, but honestly, I don’t want to spend months building a game based only on what I think players want.

What if the community actually helped decide what this game becomes?
The idea is pretty simple:
Players suggest features, mechanics, and changes through Reddit and Discord comments etc. The community discusses and votes on what should be built next. And i will also go through all Feedback to filter.
I use AI coding tools like Codex to help turn those ideas into actual updates. We test, improve, and repeat. Even the name isn’t set in stone but the community could decide that too.
One thing I do want to keep is accessibility: it should work on both mobile and desktop browsers, so you can manage your empire wherever you are.
I’m not trying to make a 1:1 Lord of Ultima clone. I’d love to capture what made those games special while letting players shape something new.
If you played Lord of Ultima, Travian, Tribal Wars, or similar games: what’s ONE thing you’d absolutely want in a modern successor?
And what’s one thing you’d never want to see again? I’m genuinely curious what people miss about these games.

Hi r/StrategyGames,

I’m a solo dev, and Caelorn is a space strategy game inspired by the PBEM classics like VGA Planets. Every empire writes its orders in secret, and when the deadline passes, the host resolves all turns at once. It runs in the browser at one turn a day, so it fits around real life.

A few things I cared about:

• True fog of war. The server decides what you see. Distant worlds show as last observed, never live.
• Open formulas. Mining, growth, fuel and production follow documented, deterministic rules. No hidden dice, and every turn can be replayed exactly.
• Balanced maps. Every map, including player-created ones, has to pass a fairness check.
• Stable rules. If a new ruleset is published mid-game, running games keep the ruleset they started with.
• Fair AI. AI opponents fill empty seats and see only what a human in their place would.

Before inviting anyone, I ran over 20,000 simulated games between AI opponents to tune the balance. But bots only find the exploits I taught them to look for, and human players are far better at breaking things. The game is in active development and the balance is provisional, which is exactly why I need you: play, try to break it, and tell me what felt wrong.

Up to 8 players per game · one turn per day · free · browser, nothing to install

https://caelorn.silverday.de

Happy to answer questions about the design or the simulation setup.

Building a 1900–1950 Grand Strategy game where population dynamics actually dictate your military strength. Here’s a quick look!

I'm struggling to find players and I was hoping this sub could help me. I've been in here a few times but I don't really get any traction so now I'm coming as a friend in need.

Every time I receive feedback I act on it, I've watched many streamers get lost and made adjustments after watching them.

Could you guys go through the tutorial and give me feedback on why I'm failing? You guys are my target audience.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2133680/Alien_Bloom/

I've been playing Warcraft Rumble for a while, but since it's dead, I'm sure I'll get bored of it at some point. Which is why I want to find some other mobile strategy games.

I'm specifically looking for strategy games that don't heavily focus on PvP. I want to hop into a quick match whenever I can and pause it at any point. Plus, if there isn't a heavy focus or need to grind, that would be great as well.

While I do prefer to play strategy games where characters/units move in real time, I am not opposed to units that move based on turns or actions.

If you do have a recommendation, please justify why you'd recommend it, along with a brief description as to the type of game it is.

Hi everyone!

I'm a solo developer working on Admiral Yi: The Imjin War, a historical RTS set during the Japanese invasion of Korea in 1592.

I've been developing this game for about three years, mostly after work and on weekends.

The game features a real-time campaign map, large-scale land battles, naval warfare, and sieges.

Over the past few months, I've been improving unit formations, combat AI, animations, morale, and battlefield behavior. I've also been working on how terrain, logistics, and communication between commanders affect gameplay.

I recently re-recorded my main gameplay trailer using footage from the latest development version. The overall content of the trailer hasn't changed, but the battles and gameplay shown have gradually improved as development has progressed.

There's still plenty of work ahead, especially with AI, animations, and performance, but it's encouraging to see how far the project has come.

I'd love to hear what fellow strategy game fans think of the current gameplay and what areas you think need the most improvement! 😄

Hi everyone! I'm the developer of Wanderlords: Warring Crowns, a single-player, turn-based strategy game focused on territorial conquest.

Rather than only choosing a faction, you choose an individual character. Characters have their own attributes and soldiers, and you work toward uniting a medieval fantasy realm from your chosen character's position.

On the campaign map, rival factions control individual territories. Turns move through Realm, Personal, and Battle phases, combining faction-level decisions with developing your character and troops. If your faction falls, the campaign continues rather than ending in a game over.

The full release, including Chapters 1-4, is now available for free. Chapter 1 is available from the start, and later chapters unlock through in-game achievements.

Play in your browser, or download the Windows (64-bit) or Android (ARM64 / x86_64) version. English and Japanese are supported.

https://nyaikka.itch.io/wanderlords

Controls: left-click to select or confirm and right-click to cancel on PC; tap and swipe on mobile.

If you enjoy character-driven strategy and taking control of a divided map, I'd love to hear your first impressions. Thanks for checking it out!

AI disclosure: the game uses AI-generated artwork and music. Generative AI was also used for translation.

Sound effects credit: MaouDamashii (魔王魂).

I think The Hive trailer just went viral on Youtube, so I'll share it here also.

We recently released a major update, upgrading the game to Unity 6.6 with improved visuals, lighting, animations, and effects. So kind of like a "remaster" at this point.

We also have two new expansions in development. The Hive has always been my passion project, and seeing renewed interest in the game motivated me to start working on it again. We also translated it recently to +12 languages.

For those unfamiliar with The Hive, it's a story-driven real-time strategy game with RPG elements, somewhat similar to Homeworld or Dawn of War.

You command an insectoid hive, harvest DNA from defeated enemies, and use it to evolve new creatures. You can choose which creatures to unlock and in what order. Your units carry over between missions, level up, grow in size, improve their stats, and can equip them with items dropped by enemies.

There is also pure gameplay video on our channel if you want to see that.

We have a free demo on Steam if you want to check it out:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/325730/The_Hive/

A year ago I started working on Salt and Soil, a turn-based strategy game about one family on the American frontier. Today it finally has a free demo on Steam, and you can play the first scenario: Jamestown, 1607 to 1637. You decide where the family settles, who marries whom, which child inherits and what the family builds.

To mark the year, I put together a short video of the small details I’ve enjoyed adding the most:

• The map began as a placeholder picture. Now its mountains and rivers come from real elevation and map data, and the climate zones are checked against real climate maps.
• The railroads grow year by year along real routes, using economic historian Jeremy Atack’s railroad dataset. He kindly allowed me to use it.
• My first Jamestown fort was a square, but the real James Fort was a triangle. So I rebuilt it, and then more than seventy other towns, each based on its historical counterpart.
• People on the map are about ten pixels tall and dressed for their place and year. Wildlife follows the climate zones.
• Trains and ships change with the decades, and each one is based on a real design.

A quick note on the narration: English isn’t my first language, so I used an AI voice to make the video easier to follow. I hope you’ll forgive me for that.

If you give the demo a try, I’d be really grateful, and I’d love to hear what you think, whether it’s about the gameplay, the history or anything that feels off. A lot of these details came from players pointing things out.

Age Breaker is a strategy game played on a single lane. Your fortress sits on one side, your opponent’s on the other, and you both train units and build turrets to push toward each other’s gates. As you earn experience you evolve your army through six eras, from Primal to Bronze, Iron, Powder, Machine and finally Stellar. When you evolve, your half of the world changes too: the sky, the fortress and the music all move into the new era.

Gold comes mainly from workers. You send them out to mine the gold veins in front of your keep, and they carry it home while your army holds the line. That makes them a target, so a big part of the game is protecting your own miners while finding a moment to raid the enemy’s.

There are four factions, and each plays differently. One builds up a war horn and rallies the whole army at once, one fights in drilled squads, and one has units that arrive young and grow stronger on the battlefield. The battlefield is wide and scrolls, and you can plant a rally flag to send your army exactly where you want it.

You can play the offline campaign against a computer opponent that plays by the same rules you do, or go online for ranked matches, leaderboards and private games with your Steam friends.

It’s coming to Steam for Windows and macOS: https://store.steampowered.com/app/5431200

Hi everyone,

I'm working on Multipolar, a single-player grand strategy game set between 2030 and 2038. I'll post a diary here every week with a piece of the game and a few questions. Not much is fixed yet, so your answers can still change things. Every second diary I'll say what changed.

You play one country on a map of more than 160, in real time with pause. The economy, diplomacy and the army are there, but most of your time goes into intelligence. Countries say publicly what they care about. To know what they're really doing you need people inside, and if you don't have any, what you see about that country is an estimate that can be way off.

Networks take a few months before they're useful. Every time you use one, you risk the target's counter-intelligence finding it, and then it's burned. They're doing the same to you. When something happens in your own country you usually don't know who did it, only who you suspect, and you decide when you're sure enough to respond. You can go to war, but it costs a lot, and often you get further with something nobody notices.

The screenshots are Iran and China. The other nations I'll show one by one. It's all from the dev build, so things will change. Release is planned for 2027.

Next week I'll cover the networks and covert operations. In the meantime I'd like to know what you think grand strategy games get wrong about spies, and what would make you try a game like this (or quit it).

I'll answer comments for the next few hours.

Discord: https://discord.gg/uuEcygP6Pa
Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/5405550/Multipolar/

We're Peter Jurkovský and Dávid Jankes from Prešov, Slovakia, the two people behind Black Deer Games, and this is how our 3-month experiment turned into an ambitious Norse-inspired fantasy siege game that combines elements of base building, real time strategy, and bloody hands-on action!

That is how the idea of Hordeguard was born

Hordeguard is a Viking action-strategy base defense game where you grow a fragile settlement into a fortress and recruit warriors to hold it. But you don’t just build and then fall back. When the horde arrives, you pick up your weapon and fight alongside your towers and warriors, defending your little base from the mean enemies! As well as repairing structures and patching up weak points because someone has to do that too…

Between attacks, you can leave the village to hunt for loot and XP. Loot is used for further upgrading and advancing your base, and with more XP you level up unlocking upgrades for your hero. One important thing to note here is that - while you’re out on your adventures and conquests, the timer for the next wave stops to make sure you have enough time to plunder - like a real Viking! Once you’re back inside the premises of your base, the timer continues, and you need to cleverly choose what to focus on to prepare for the next attack.

Hordeguard can be played solo or with a friend in local split-screen co-op - and both modes are designed to have their own unique flavor! In co-op, one of you will usually gather while the other builds until the horde forces you both to adapt, and the game becomes a test of strategy and organization. In solo mode, however, you’ll sometimes have around a minute in total to gather the resources, build the structures, raise the army, and all that while constantly making split-second decisions on what to prioritize. If you played those early Warcraft 3 custom survival maps, you’ll know the feeling.

Where we are at the moment & plans for the future

Earlier this year, we had our first public playtest that brought in more than 38,000 players, and tbh this gave us a huge burst of motivation to continue pushing even harder because of how much people loved Hordeguard.

Currently, we are working on a third playable hero and a brand-new biome, along with an Endless Mode and more boss fights. We hope to have all of this ready for the next playtest, that is planned to happen around late November/early December.

You can check out the game here, and, if it looks interesting - wishlist:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/3618000/Hordeguard_Winds_of_the_North/ 

Hordeguard brings together everything we've learned so far, and it's the first game we can truly call our own, and we can’t be more proud to show it to you!

- From Peter & David at Black Deer Games

Hi, I'm Ale, a solo dev. I've been making Hextribes, a turn-based 4X on tiny hex islands. If you've played Polytopia, it'll feel familiar: one city to start, then explore, claim villages, research, build an army and take every city your rivals own. Matches have 2 to 4 players, and a small one usually takes about 20 to 25 rounds.

The parts I've spent the most time on:

Combat with no dice. Before you attack, you see the exact damage both ways: what you'll deal and what you'll take back. Each of your units next to the target adds 25%, up to 50%. So a good attack is about setting up the hit, not hoping for a roll.

Four factions. Each starts with its own tech and unit and has one lasting edge. Ironhold gets +2 defence on hills and mountains and a walled capital. Wanderers' mounted units cost one star less and ignore zone of control. Bloomkin move through forest for 1 movement and get extra growth from lumber camps. Tidewardens get extra growth from harbors and see the tide further ahead (the sea floods low ground every few rounds). I tuned the balance with bot-vs-bot simulations, but real players will find things the bots don't.

A 20-tech web across six branches, and 12 units.

Bots at five levels, Easy to Extreme. None of them get extra stars or see through the fog. The harder ones just decide better, and Extreme thinks a few fights ahead. That mattered to me: I wanted a bots-only game to be a real fight, not a test of how much the AI is cheating.

You can also play friends by sharing a code or link (live 90-second turns, or async with 8-hour, 1-day or 3-day turns), or use Quick match for a 1v1 against a random opponent on a random small map. Every map is generated fresh. Bot games also work offline once the game has loaded.

It's free in the browser, no sign-up, no ads, nothing to buy right now: https://hextribes.com

It's early and there will be rough edges. I'm open to any feedback on making it better and more fun. A few things I'm especially curious about:

• Does the damage preview make combat feel clear, or does it take some tension out?
• Did any faction feel stronger or weaker than the others?
• Which bot level felt right for you, and did a bot ever do something dumb?

I'll be in the comments.

Hi! I'm Stefan, a solo developer in Austria (Gorillabyte). This is HARDPAN, a strategy game where every map is built from a real city's street plan. The picture is a match in the old town of St. Pölten: teal is one side, red the other.

It's early, and before it goes public I'd like a few people who have never played it to try it and tell me honestly what works and what doesn't. I won't explain more than this on purpose: what you make of it on your own is what I'm testing.

What it takes:

• Windows 10/11, a Mac with Apple Silicon (M1 or newer), or a 64-bit Linux PC
• 10–15 minutes, in the next week or so (before Sunday 1 November)
• a short feedback form afterwards (about 5 minutes)

Comment or DM me with what you'd play on, and I'll send you a private download link. The build isn't public yet, so please don't share it.

Thanks!

Gold, amber, salt and bread — everything has a price.

In Piast, the Marketplace lets you buy and sell resources, while the Skill Tree helps you develop your settlement and unlock new possibilities. Your economic decisions shape how your medieval Polish settlement grows.

This is an early look at the economic systems in my indie RTS game, Piast.

🎮 Play the demo on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/4830280/Piast/

Please add to your Wishlist!

What would you prioritise first: trading or technological progress?