If warring dynasties, unending conflict, and English longbowmen weren’t bad enough, Artefacts Studio’s upcoming tactical RPG Crown Wars: The Black Prince paints an even darker interpretation of the Hundred Years’ War.
As revealed during a new trailer shown during the PC Gaming Show: Most Wanted, Crown Wars looks to have injected a heavy dose of magical realism into England and France’s intergenerational Middle Ages conflict. Alongside the usual roaming bandits and men-at-arms, the trailer reveals a shadowy organisation known as The Order is using dark magic to turn the war to their favour.
In practice, that seems to mean performing sacrificial rituals and summoning up ancient powers that are perhaps best left undisturbed. Now that they are disturbed, though, it’s your job to stop them.
Crown Wars comes from a familiar strategy mold, mixing turn-based tactical fights with a secondary strategic layer. You’ll recruit, train, and kit out your soldiers from your castle, before sending them off to meet the ne’er-do-wells threatening you and stop their nefarious schemes in the only way a medieval lord knows how: bludgeoning them until they stop moving.
Back at your keep, you’ll also be able to upgrade your base of operations and spend the resources you gather from your sorties on weapons and armor for your troops, while trying to keep your lands prosperous and your coffers full. Eventually, you’ll take on the big bad Order itself with the help of your buddies from the equally enigmatically named Brotherhood.
Developer Artefacts Studio is no stranger to turn-based tactics. It released The Dungeon Of Naheulbeuk: The Amulet Of Chaos in 2020, and contributed to the video game adaptation of classic Warhammer board game Space Hulk Tactics.
Crown Wars: The Black Prince is set to release on March 7.