> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://realmatwar.gitbook.io/realmatwar-docs/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://realmatwar.gitbook.io/realmatwar-docs/realm-at-war-handbook/core-gameplay/gameplay.md). # Gameplay At its heart, Realm at War is a loop: build up your realm, turn resources into an army, use that army to raid and defend, grow your power, and convert that power into prizes — which fuel your next push. ## Your Realm Your realm is a grid you build on. You place and upgrade buildings, each occupying space and serving a purpose — your **Keep** is the heart of it and gates much of your progress; higher-tier buildings unlock as your Keep and prerequisites grow. You can pan around your realm by dragging and zoom with shift + scroll. ## Resources Five resources power everything you do: | Resource | Used for | | --------- | --------------------------------------------------------------- | | **Wood** | The backbone of most construction | | **Clay** | Construction and fortifications | | **Iron** | Military buildings, weapons, and armour | | **Grain** | Feeds your population and troops | | **Gold** | The premium in-game resource for top-tier buildings and wonders | You generate resources by **assigning workers** to the right jobs. Balance matters — pile everyone onto wood and your army will starve for iron. ### Water and food Two upkeep systems keep your realm honest: * **Water.** Your realm needs water to thrive. There's a small natural spring income so a tiny realm is never completely stuck, but growing realms must manage their water supply. * **Food (grain).** Your population and your troops eat. Grow grain to keep growing — let it run dry and your realm settles back down. ## Expansion You're not confined to your starting plot. As you grow you can expand your borders onto the shared map, claiming more space for more buildings and a larger economy. Space on the map is finite and shared with every other player, so where you expand — and who you expand next to — is a strategic choice. ## Army & Raiding Resources become power through your military. * **Recruit troops** from your military buildings (the recruitment screen shows you the total cost before you commit). * **Raid** rival realms to steal resources and dent their standing. * **Defend** with walls, defensive buildings, and a standing garrison. Walls count double toward your power, so fortification is never wasted. * Marches take time to travel, so raiding is about timing and reading the map, not just having the biggest stack. If you need breathing room, a **Raid Shield** (bought with Crowns) blocks every incoming raid for 8 hours. ## Heroes & Items Heroes are powerful units that lead your realm. * **The first three Heroes are free** — they're handed to you as you hit your early milestones. * Heroes **level up from raiding** (up to level 20), growing stronger the more you campaign with them. You'll see your Heroes walking around your town between campaigns, and away when they're out raiding. * **Deploy slots:** you can field **3 Heroes for free**. A 4th slot costs **50 Crowns** and a 5th costs **120 Crowns** (five is the maximum). * **Hero lootboxes** (60 Crowns) and **Item Crates** (30 Crowns) give you new Heroes and gear to equip. ## Clans Team up. A clan has a founder, a leader, optional co-leaders, and members who apply to join. Clans compete on their own leaderboard, and the **top clan each week shares a slice of the Prize Pot** among its members — split by each member's contribution. Strength in numbers pays, literally. ## Quests & Milestones These are two separate systems, and it's worth knowing the difference: * **Quests** are repeating daily and weekly challenges arranged as **leveled ladders** — each tier you clear scales up the next, and the rewards scale with it. Quests are your steady, reliable source of **$REALM**. (At the entry level, daily quests pay out on the order of a few thousand $REALM a day; the ladder grows from there.) * **Milestones** are one-time achievements that mark your progress. They pay out **in-game rewards** (including those first free Heroes) rather than $REALM — they're about accelerating your realm, not your wallet. ## Leaderboards & Ranks Everything you build adds up to a single **power** score — roughly your population, your building levels, your wonders, your walls (counted double), and your troops. Power is what the leaderboards rank, and power is what prizes are paid on: * The **daily top 3** realms by power share a prize. * The **weekly champion** is decided by *sustained* power across the whole week, not a single lucky snapshot (more on this in [The Prize Pot & Payouts](/realmatwar-docs/realm-at-war-handbook/economy-and-rewards/the-prize-pot-and-payouts.md)). * The **top clan** each week shares a prize. Ranks are shown with gold, silver, and bronze medals, the exact prize for each place, and a live countdown to the next payout. --- # Agent Instructions This documentation is published with GitBook. GitBook is the documentation platform designed so that both humans and AI agents can read, navigate, and reason over technical content effectively. Learn more at gitbook.com. ## Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. 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