Stronghold Kingdoms News

Today we are celebrating 10 years of castle building and besieging with a brand new update to Stronghold Kingdoms. Our new ‘Kingmaker’ world map introduces a new type of historical game world, based on the splintered nations and city states of Europe in 1300 AD.



This new ‘Kingmaker’ map has been released to celebrate a milestone 10 years of online castle building, political intrigue and siege warfare for Stronghold Kingdoms players. With new country borders, accurate to the medieval kingdoms of Europe circa 1300 AD, Kingmaker will provide a different political structure to the main game. Based on a map of splintered nations and city states, hundreds of players assuming the roles of kings and other leaders will vie for power in this new game world.

Let the war of kings commence!



Growing from a small prototype inspired by the earliest free to play titles to our most successful game ever, Stronghold Kingdoms saved Firefly Studios when it first launched in 2010. Prototyped in 2008 with a just a handful of developers, Stronghold Kingdoms was a hail mary shot for the company. Without the resources to create new artwork, we looked to our past and used beloved assets from our back catalogue to creating a new kind of MMO.



Inviting players subscribed to our newsletter to test out early builds and provide feedback, these core fans helped us iterate on and initially launch Stronghold Kingdoms. With the ability to self-publish the game on Steam we were then able to host hundreds of thousands monthly active players, many of whom still enjoy the game ten years after launch.

Thanks for Playing!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/47410/Stronghold_Kingdoms/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMvLtj3lhLc
In our final Stronghold: Warlords campaign preview to be released before launch we bring you over 45 minutes of unedited, uninterrupted and commentary-less gameplay! In response to community requests we've emphasised the new music, sound effects and raw gameplay in today's playthrough, which shows off the first mission from our Japanese campaign segment. Chronicling the exploits of key characters and events from 16th Century Japan, our single player campaign was always planned to take players across to the Land of the Rising Sun as of their building and besieging campaign.



Beginning at Inabayama Castle (now known as Gifu castle) in 1567, in Stronghold: Warlords we have Toyotomi Hideyoshi as our chosen Japanese AI Lord. Hideyoshi lived during the Sengoku period in Japan, in which the feudal states constantly fought each other for territorial control. Beginning his military career in the Oda clan as an army recruit to the Ashigaru, Hideyoshi's impressive service earned him a place as a retainer to the now somewhat famous clan leader Oda Nobunaga.



Featuring our latest beta build and a raft of player driven improvements and tweaks, made possible with the Stronghold Discord and some excellent player feedback from our recent demo, we really feel like Warlords is going from strength to strength as we make our way toward launch on January 26th 2021. If you have feedback on playable builds or what you've seen here today be sure to join the Discord and let us know!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/907650/Stronghold_Warlords/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8tZEYgdzp0
Firefly Studios’ Designer Stephen Richards and series creator Simon Bradbury have revealed four major improvements to AI behaviour found in their upcoming ‘castle sim’ sequel Stronghold: Warlords. This new entry in the historical real-time strategy series will usher in major improvements and refinements in how computer controlled opponents interact with the player, each other and any warlords present on the map.



AI behaviours related to castle management, skirmish combat and city building have been completely revamped for Stronghold: Warlords, in addition to being able to work with the new warlords system. Much like the archetypes of the warlords themselves - such as the Ox, Tiger and Crane - each enemy AI will adhere to a distinct style of play over a set of predetermined behaviours. The decisions made by computer opponents will now be made according to map layout, tactical positioning of warlords, available resources, current army composition and their priorities at different stages of gameplay.



In practical terms this means less hard coded, predictable behaviours and more flexibility in how AI opponents can outmanoeuvre the player, but also how it deals with the evolving situation within its own castle. Independent of the player, AI will build, sell resources and train their army according to changing priorities over the course of a skirmish match. Just as a human player would, the AI will adjust its focus between city building and RTS combat while also battling it out with the player for control over each map’s selection of warlords.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/907650/Stronghold_Warlords

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8uYTtEUgUEA
Available on Steam during the weeklong the Autumn Steam Game Fest, our new beta Stronghold: Warlords demo can be downloaded right now. That's right! Between October 7th and 13th players will be able to try out our latest build, a brand new mission from Warlords' Vietnam campaign starring the warlord Thuc Phan. After October 13th the demo will no longer be available, so move fast if you want this chance to play our upcoming 'castle sim' before launch and let us know what you think on Discord.

What better way is there to pass the time waiting for that demo to download, than by watching one of our handsome developers play through it for you? Follow our resident Videographer Aaron Hayden as he walks players through some of the new features, visuals and challenges offered by our latest Stronghold: Warlords demo. Expect new info, laughter and perhaps a few tears as Aaron attempts that precarious balance between achieving a perfect run and voicing a full mission walkthrough for the uninitiated.

Players can expect today's new footage and dev commentary to be followed by additional Feature Spotlight videos in the coming weeks and months. Addressing the most common questions about Warlords' gameplay on Discord and YouTube, such as planned A.I. improvements and the titular warlords system, these new videos will also feature more map sizes and community driven features.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/907650/Stronghold_Warlords

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQQ3lk3enKM
We have released new gameplay footage revealing four brand new units coming to our upcoming ‘castle sim’ RTS Stronghold: Warlords. Each with their own special abilities, counters and tactics, the Ninja, Warrior Monk and mounted cavalry all make their Stronghold series debut in this new video.

The Ninja, Warrior Monk, Imperial and Auxiliary Cavalry join the game’s roster of 16 units and 10 siege weapons accessible to all players in skirmish mode and multiplayer. With more special and mounted units than ever before, Stronghold: Warlords’ new units aim to mix up the core series gameplay for long-time fans and newcomers alike.



[h3]Ninja[/h3]
Heavily reliant on remaining undetected, the Ninja is all about espionage. Able to deal high damage at range using her shuriken attack, in addition to classic invisibility and wall scaling abilities, Ninjas are more ‘hit and run’ than Assassins from previous Strongholds. When micromanaged or used in small squads, Ninjas are a force to be reckoned with. More than capable of taking out several high priority enemy units in quick succession, players will need to remain vigilant to avoid death by ninjitsu.

[h3]Warrior Monk[/h3]
A well-rounded soldier with specific battlefield applications, the Warrior Monk is a finely honed living weapon. Lightly armoured and fast on his feet, this unit is capable of dealing high damage quickly and is purpose made for surprise attacks. When surrounded by three or more enemy units the Warrior Monk’s spin attack will be triggered, knocking nearby enemies out of range while also dealing damage. Built for rushing enemy forces and repelling rival special units like the Imperial Guardsman, the Warrior Monk is excellent for quickly changing the ebb and flow of a battle.



[h3]Imperial Cavalry[/h3]
The Imperial Cavalry’s high damage output and heavy armour makes them likely candidates for last horses standing. As such they are more suited to breaking enemy lines than their Auxiliary counterpart and serve a different function on the battlefield. Their charge ability can also be used to catch enemies off balance, quickly flank them or simply charge formations head on to weaken and displace their front line.

[h3]Auxiliary Cavalry[/h3]
Faster moving than their heavily armoured Imperial counterparts, Auxiliary Cavalry are the bread and butter of a mounted attack. These faster mounted units are equipped with light armour, a shield and lance. Able to quickly react and change course, Auxiliary Cavalry are designed to take the worst of the enemy’s defences and allow your more powerful units to plough through.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/907650/Stronghold_Warlords/