Under The Yoke

Under The Yoke is a life and family simulation set in Norman England, covering 250 years of history from 1085 to 1335. You begin as a custom-created serf with an acre of land, a ramshackle cottage and enough provisions to survive winter. Build prosperity over generations as your family and the world around them change.

Guide your family

Each family member has distinct needs, skills and personality, shaped by three traits: Mind, Body and Spirit. These affect compatibility with others, preferred activities and the options available in events, while bringing both advantages and disadvantages to daily work and needs. You oversee family members’ livelihoods, social lives and daily sustenance.

Keep them content and productive by meeting four needs:

• Taste: provide food using more than 50 medieval ingredients.
• Rest: give them respite from their laborious routines.
• Faith: nurture it through church experiences.
• Social: build bonds through medieval gatherings and village relationships.

Work and trade

You take on the work of a medieval peasant through Farming, Herbalism, Cooking, Husbandry, Carpentry and Tailoring. Tasks range from plowing fields to shearing sheep, while seasons and changing goods values affect your work. You can furnish and improve your cottage and garden with handcrafted furniture, which can raise the value of goods for personal use or market sales. If you need more room, you can negotiate with your Lord for a larger cottage or garden.

Farm animals provide resources and have their own needs and benefits. You can purchase and breed cows, horses, goats, sheep, pigs and chickens, choosing, for example, an ox for strength or a horse for speed, or keeping sheep for wool and pigs for fertiliser.

Village life and politics

The village develops around your family. You can befriend neighbours, pursue romance and interact with other villagers, while rival families compete for elections and jury seats. Alliances can help families prosper together.

Each year, the Hallmote brings villagers together to resolve legal disputes and elect local officials. You can take part in village politics, earn rewards by winning elections and vote for allies. Male members of your family may also be called for jury duty during disputes.

Feudal rights and duties

You negotiate with your Lord over your obligations and holdings, including farmland, meadowland, your home and your garden. As a serf, you work on your Lord’s demesne or pay fees, but earning the Lord’s respect can help you gain freedom. Becoming a freeman expands your rights, including the ability to bake your own bread and hunt in the forests. The game recreates the medieval system of rights.

Events through the ages

Hundreds of events, from social intrigues to church visits, shape your family’s legacy, with choices influencing its story. Characters also respond to pivotal events in their time as the world changes across the 250-year span.