Screenshots
Rule of Iron: Dark Age
Eisengeist Studio · Published by Eisengeist Studio
Content notice: Portrays violence within a historical setting.
Last updated 28 Sept 2026
Build your realm in a turn-based campaign. Break theirs in battle. Real-time, 1:1-scale warfare where tactics, not spreadsheets, win clashes between tens of thousands of soldiers.
Action, Simulation, Strategy · 2026 · More free games
In Rule of Iron: Dark Age, shape your kingdom through strategic turns before clashing in intense 1:1 scale battles. Master tactics to triumph over rivals in this action-packed blend of strategy and simulation from Eisengeist Studio.
About this game
Campaign
A real population system with different classes. Recruiting subtracts from the population class and disbanding adds to it. Plagues wipe out.
No building slot limitations.
No locked minor provinces, a village can grow into a metropolis.
No magic 20-unit hard limit per army.
Armies don't need a general. Split them up and move them freely.
Armies need ship units to move across water. They don't magically spawn transport ships.
No skill trees. Traits are gained organically.
No gamey tech trees either. Technology happens historically at certain turn thresholds.
Road upgrades are visible on the map.
Visible trade carts and ships reflect your trade income.
Innovative UI to reduce late-game micromanagement.
Battle
The battle terrain is generated exactly from the campaign map features.
Historical scale featuring battles reaching tens of thousands of soldiers.
A sophisticated physics system to simulate a shifting battle line and to make formation depth and tightness emergently matter.
Morale, fatigue, high ground and flanking as first-class systems. A skilled general can defeat an on paper superior army with ingenious tactics.
Archers and other units range depends on their relative altitude to the target.
A per soldier line of sight system paired with a per missile collision system where trees, buildings and other objects block missiles.
No canned pair animations, combat outcomes depend on the position and rotation of the soldier at the time of the strike.
Modding support
Create entirely new campaigns including the map. The code will generate features like rivers or castles where you tell it to.
Create new units, even fantasy creatures with custom rigs.
Adjust the UI to your taste.
Tune the AI.
No gimmicks, no anti-player gangup, no bloated mechanics mess, no superheroes. Tactical depth paired with immersive empire-building.
System Requirements
Will my PC run this? →Minimum
- Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
- OS: Windows 10 or 11
- Processor: Intel Core i3-12100 / AMD Ryzen 5 5500
- Memory: 8 GB RAM
- Graphics: 3 GB graphics card
- DirectX: Version 11
- Storage: 20 GB available space
Recommended
- Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
- OS: Windows 10 or 11
- Memory: 16 GB RAM
- Graphics: 6-8 GB graphics card
- DirectX: Version 11
- Storage: 20 GB available space
Supported Languages
Latest news
AnnouncementsOfficial
Devlog #4: New Engine and Campaign Alpha
Hello,it's been a while but here is another Devlog where I show off the completely new engine this game is built on. Yes it's true I was crazy enough to build my own C++ Vulkan engine in the meanwhile and port the game over from Unity. Also the campaign alpha is here with a vassalage and a supply system, all functional. More in the video.See you for the next devlog!Read full article on Community Announcements (Candyman)AnnouncementsOfficial
Devlog #3
The third devlog is up! It's about the campaign again this time. I've been able to make a lot of progress. Highlights are a supply and demand system and no 20 unit cap for armies. After so much work the alpha is finally close.Read full article on Community Announcements (Candyman)AnnouncementsOfficial
Devlog #2: 20.000 Men Battle
Hello everyone,here with another devlog. After alot of work I can show you the battle prototype and even how it interacts with the campaign. Highlights are that the battle terrain is generated from the campaign map, individual line of sight for archers and height difference affecting range and of course the pushing physics including a formation mode where soldiers hold the line. I really went all in for this one and this is just the beginning!Alot of people have already given feedback and I'm glad that you like what you are seeing. That being said the most requested features are soldiers not only pushing but also retreating sometimes for a more realistic "lull phase" during combat and also tired soldiers being rotated out of the front rank. I was basically already pursuing this before and will prototype it soon and get back to you on my progress. Just know that this is new territory and it poses many unique challenges so we will have to see how well it really works.Also some people were calling me "sleepy" lol and that's fine. I think it's because i just finished a month-long coding marathon. Also besides doing this I have a dayjob so this is basically my side-project! Anyways, after seeing your positive response I will be very motivated for working on this over the coming months and will publish many devlogs. The next milestone will be to make the campaign fully playable from beginning to end so basically an alpha version. And I predict that at the current development speed we can in 3-4 months start playtesting the full game to make it the best it can be.If you would like to participate in the discussion of the direction the game is going, the best way to do so is in the official discord. You can find the link on the steampage or any youtube video.Until next time!Read full article on Community Announcements (Candyman)AnnouncementsOfficial
Devlog #1: Early Campaign
Hello everyone,here to share my first devlog. I show you some super basic campaign gameplay but mostly talk about my plans for it. Let me know your thoughts.Read full article on Community Announcements (Candyman)AnnouncementsOfficial
My plans for the Campaign
Hello,I wanted to report on my plans for the campaign so you have some information until I can show you gameplay footage. So here are the most important points:The campaign map is generated by my code from several image files which provide the height (derived from real-world satellite data), city locations, rivers, etc. Trade cart and ship traffic increases with trade volume.On this map you can see my current settlement distribution (very much work in progress).As you can see to the east, the map extends up to the Caspian Sea. I thought a lot about the map extents. At one time I even considered extending it to Japan so you could have the entire Mongol conquests in the game. But I felt that this bloated the game a lot. There would also be just so much empty space you could do nothing in. I prefer to have a more focused experience. The map is also asymmetric according to historical importance and population. The highest density is in Western Europe and northern Italy.I also want to include the Americas (Aztec and Maya, maybe Cuba) even though this is a lot of extra work. But I just have to do it because it is so cool. Taking this land will be super impactful because they have a ton of gold resources. You can also get there quite early.The battlefield is generated by the height data from the campaign on the fly. This means that not only will the battlefield be, for example, hilly when the campaign terrain is hilly, but you will see that exact hill from the campaign map on the battle map. This makes it possible to plan the battles exactly, meaning you will know if you on the campaign map attack, for example, from the left, you will have the hill advantage, while if you attack from the right, the enemy will have it. To support this, you cannot only inspect cities on the battle map but also every single game tile by clicking on it. Also, I added a topographic coloring option so you can see the heights better.SettlementsAll settlements are cities. However, you can build ca...Read full article on Community Announcements (Candyman)
