Territory Conquest Game: Map Control, No Dice | Playgridia
A good territory conquest game keeps asking one question: is the next tile worth taking? Warfront makes you answer it with arithmetic rather than dice — damage is fully deterministic, so you see the result before you attack. Every building you take pays you gold every turn and grants you one more soldier slot, which turns map control directly into army size. Free in the browser, 2–4 players.
The six things you can capture
| Building | Gold/turn | Capture points | What it gives |
|---|---|---|---|
| Village | 60 | 20 | Income; heals the friendly unit standing on it |
| Barracks | — | 20 | Trains the infantry line |
| Castle | 55 | 24 | Trains cavalry, siege, flyers and armour |
| Gold Mine | 110 | 24 | The richest prize on the board, always central |
| Watchtower | 35 | 40 | Whole army +1 attack; hold 4 turns to win |
| Headquarters | 60 (base) | 20 | If it falls, its owner is eliminated |
Walls are not on this list, because a wall is never captured — it is broken. Everything else changes hands, and its income moves with the flag.
How a capture actually works
Only foot units raise a flag: swordsman, spearman, archer, musketeer, standard bearer, field medic and two of the heroes. Each capture action banks points equal to that unit's current HP — so capturing with a wounded soldier is slow, and a full-health Swordsman (10 HP) takes a village in two turns and the central tower in four. A conquest plan is therefore a health plan: a unit starting its turn beside one of your buildings recovers 2 HP, and the Field Medic heals adjacent friendlies by 3.
Ground is army
There is a hard ceiling on how many units you may field: 8 with only your own fortress, +1 for every non-wall building you own, capped at 16. Gold is not enough — you need ground. Taking a village is not just 60 gold a turn, it is one more place in the ranks. Upkeep eats 13% of every unit's cost each turn too, so a wide army can only be fed by a wide map.
Razing: cutting the income instead
Cavalry, catapult, cannon, dragon and tankette cannot raise a flag, but they can raze an enemy building to neutral and cut off its income. A razed, ownerless building does not repair itself, while an owned one recovers 2 structural HP a turn. And here is the combo: once a building's structure falls below an infantry unit's HP, that infantryman takes it in a single action. The machine softens, the footman plants the flag. Levelling a headquarters does the same thing as capturing it — that seat is eliminated.
The tower: the one tile that wins by itself
The Watchtower sits dead centre. While you hold it your whole army hits +1 harder, and if it is still yours at the start of four of your own turns in a row, the match ends there. The count does not start before global turn 6 and freezes while an enemy unit stands beside the tower, so keeping its surroundings clear is part of the job. At 40 capture points it is the slowest capture in the game, deliberately: the rest of the table must always be able to get there.
Elimination, teams and last one standing
A player is eliminated in two ways: their hero dies (every unit they own leaves the board) or their headquarters falls. The last side standing wins; if the turn limit runs out, score decides. At three and four seats the default mode is free-for-all, and killing a unit belonging to the score leader pays ×1.6 loot, so the table polices whoever is ahead. Team mode gives four players 2v2 and three players a balanced 2v1.
The game holds on to you when you fall behind
A player holding well under 80% of the table's best building count earns +35% gross income; every fight you win refunds 22% of the dead unit's cost as gold (250 for a hero); and the 260-point Commander Power meter fills at 1 per point of damage dealt but 2 per point taken, so it lands in the hands of whoever is losing first. Conquest games tend to snowball — these three valves exist for exactly that reason.
The shape of a conquest match
- Turns 1–3: pump cheap infantry and clear the villages in your own quarter. Your income roughly doubles in these turns even if you win no fights at all.
- Turns 4–5: Age II for 450 gold. Your whole army gains +2 attack, everyone on the field heals instantly, and gryphon, dragon and field medic unlock.
- Turns 6–10: march on the midfield. The gold mine and the neutral castle live there, and the tower countdown becomes live on turn 6.
- The last quarter: either hold the tower for four turns or corner a rival's hero. If the turn limit runs out, score speaks — so keep counting buildings unless you are already behind.
The unit table is in the unit guide, openings and ages in the strategy guide, terrain and range rules in our grid tactics piece. Play Warfront free.
Any third-party brand or game names mentioned are trademarks of their respective owners. Playgridia is an independent platform and is not affiliated with or endorsed by them.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I capture a building?
Move a foot unit onto or next to it and take the capture action. Each action banks points equal to that unit's current HP: a village needs 20, a castle or mine 24 and the central tower 40. Cavalry, siege, flyers and armour cannot raise a flag.
Which building is the most valuable?
For income, the Gold Mine: 110 gold a turn, roughly two villages, and it always sits neutral in the middle of the map. But the building that wins matches is the Watchtower — hold it for four of your own turns in a row and you win regardless of score.
Why can my cavalry not take a village?
Because war machines cannot raise a flag. Cavalry, catapults, cannons, dragons and tankettes raze a building to neutral instead, cutting its income. Once a razed building is weak enough, an infantry unit takes it in a single action.
Why can I not recruit more soldiers?
Army capacity. You may field 8 units with only your fortress, +1 per non-wall building you own, capped at 16. A bigger army needs more ground — and each unit also eats 13% of its cost in upkeep every turn.
How long does a match last?
You choose the turn limit when you open the room: 15 to 40, default 30, or "Ruin" for no limit at all. If the limit runs out, score decides the winner, but most matches end sooner through a tower victory or an elimination.