Trickery&Strategy

Trickery&Strategy is a strategy game set in the Spring and Autumn period. You play as a king who has just taken the throne, governing your country and seeking to dominate the world through battles played on a map.

Lead your armies

Battles use a world-turn system on a hexagonal grid, giving you time to arrange your troops. You can use tactics such as night attacks, ambushes, rockfalls, charges, drowning enemies by driving them into water, and setting fires. A general’s force and intelligence affect the results of some tactics: force affects casualties in night attacks, while intelligence influences ambushes, rockfalls and fires. Ambushes can cause prolonged confusion and heavy casualties; generals with high intelligence can use any terrain as cover. Charges gain 20% impact force for each run-up, and at 100% can break and repel an enemy formation. Fires range from level 1 to 10; a general’s intelligence affects their size, and fires above level 5 can spread to nearby combustibles according to the wind. You can also build combustibles yourself.

Armies can take formations and states that change their movement, combat, visibility and recovery. These include a fast marching formation that is vulnerable to ambushes, a slow formation suited to combat, a high-damage death battle stance available at full morale, and a defensive stance with very high defense. Other states let an army hide in an ambush, charge in a straight line, march at moderate speed with balanced attack and defense, or act as decoys that conceal troop numbers but require shelter and cannot move. Rest restores energy, especially at night, but leaves an army vulnerable; a disordered army is also vulnerable and needs its general to regroup it. Morale and energy directly affect battle results.

Armor reduces damage but also reduces execution: no armor gives no damage immunity and full initial execution; light armor gives 40% damage immunity and half initial execution; heavy armor gives 80% damage immunity and one-quarter initial execution. Terrain has curves and elevation differences that you can use to avoid injury; higher terrain makes injuries worse.

Troops and tactics

Troop types have distinct abilities. Long spearmen resist charges, with resistance determined by their commander’s command or force and reaching up to 100%. Halberd soldiers excel in positional warfare, stay in place after attacking and gain 10% damage per attack, up to 60%. Archers deal extra damage with volleys, with the amount increasing against larger groups of target troops. Chariots gain 20% impact force when charging and can deal a damage bonus of up to 60% when charging disordered troops. Leather vehicles automatically replenish rations for friendly forces within two squares, while scouts can find food in rivers and forests and have survival skills. Allies can also take 80% to 30% of the damage when parrying enemy arrows, depending on command.

Govern your country

You gather talented people and establish a cabinet. The official system follows historical records and includes the six high offices of taizai, Zongbo, Sikou, Sikong, situ and Sima, along with lower-ranking officials who help govern. Good administration provides population and armies, as well as equipment, materials and military provisions.

Officials report on matters such as population totals and types, their use, income from food and materials, and per-capita figures. You can adjust tax rates and the proportions of population types, take a census of men, women, young and old, and manage unemployment and social productivity by changing the social climate. Taking troops away during the autumn harvest can seriously reduce food production and tax income. Officials can also give conflicting information, prompting you to consult others to investigate problems.

Stories and intrigue

Historical figures have stories that reward you with notable items or characters. Completing Bian He’s story, for example, gives you the famous Heshi Bi. When an enemy is too strong to defeat directly, you can locate its city, send detailed work and consult your counselors about the enemy’s weaknesses. Their plans can exploit a target’s traits; Nangong changwan, for instance, can be incapacitated as a commander for a time by getting him drunk with wine. Events recorded in the world can also affect other countries’ national strength. When Guan Zhong becomes too slaughtered, for example, the state of Qi enters a period of strength.

In the harem, you can study and practise martial arts to improve your command, force, intelligence, politics and charm, affecting your combat ability, strategies and administration. You can also interact with characters you favor and have children. You can host door guests, a popular practice in the Spring and Autumn period, and send them on assassination missions. When you become enemies with another country, it may send an assassin after you; you can appoint personal guards and guards for protection, or fight the assassin yourself.