Thornreach

Rise from landless knight to ruler of an original medieval realm. Recruit an army, fight real-time battles and sieges, and claim the empty throne.

The old king of Thornreach is dead and three great houses circle his empty throne at Highcrown. You start as a knight with six farmhands, a little silver and a sword. Ride a hand-drawn realm of towns, castles, villages, camps, mines and ruins with a day and night cycle and fog of war. Buy arms and armor, recruit militia, spearmen, swordsmen, archers and riders, and upgrade them into pikemen, knights, crossbowmen and lancers. Battles are fought in real time on a separate field: you control your knight directly while ordering your troops to follow, hold, charge or focus a target, and sieges add walls, a gate and ladders. Pay wages, keep the army fed, take fiefs for weekly income, win the oaths of the great houses and finish a nine-chapter story in about an hour. On Goblin Arcade the campaign saves after battles, when you leave a location and every in-game week, so it plays well in short sessions.

By Goblin Originals

How to play

Click or tap to travel / WASD + mouse, 1–4 skills, Space charge, R follow, H hold / touch joystick and buttons

Choose New campaign. Tap the gold arrow on the objective card, or the flag on the map, to march to your next objective. You can also tap or click any place to travel there, or march with WASD. The Journal shows the current chapter.

Enter towns to buy gear at the smithy, recruit and upgrade troops at the barracks, take quests and hire companions at the tavern, heal at the temple and buy food at the market. Castles hold the lord's hall, where you can swear fealty and ask for oaths.

In battle, move your knight with WASD or the joystick and attack with a click or the Attack button. Skills 1–4 are Charge, Shield Wall, Rally and Volley once you learn them. Space orders a charge, R calls troops to follow you, H holds them in place and G or the group chip picks which troops you command. Press F over a foe, or tap it on a touch screen, to focus it.

Sieges add walls, a gate and ladders: your foot soldiers carry the ladders to the wall and a ram batters the gate. Keep the crews alive, or hack at the gate yourself. Win fights to earn renown, experience, gold and loot, and spend stat and skill points from the Character menu when you level up.

Tips

Spears and pikes stop cavalry, riders run down archers, and archers wear down slow infantry. A mixed army handles every fight.

Wages are paid at the start of each week, when your fiefs also pay out. Watch the gold and food counters before a long march, or soldiers desert.

Auto-resolve is quick but needs soldiers and usually costs more troops than a battle you fight yourself. Leadership raises your army size.

Your final score is your renown at the coronation. Claiming Highcrown sooner adds a bigger coronation bonus: 200 renown for every week under 16.

How long is a Thornreach campaign?

About 45 to 90 minutes from New campaign to the coronation ending, across nine story chapters. Every battle, location visit and in-game week is a natural stopping point.

Does Thornreach save my progress?

Yes, on Goblin Arcade. The campaign saves after battles, when you leave a location and every in-game week, and Continue picks up where you left off. Played outside the arcade, progress lasts only until the page closes.

Can I play on a phone?

Yes. Tap the map to travel and use the on-screen buttons in towns. In battle a joystick moves your knight next to Attack, skill and order buttons. Battles work in portrait, and landscape gives a wider view of the field.

Can I keep playing after I win?

Yes. After the coronation you can start a new campaign or keep ruling the realm. Your score is the renown you held when you won.

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