We’re back with another episode of History Behind Stronghold: Warlords! This week we delve into another of the incredible backstories serving as your lead up for the sieges and conflicts depicted in our upcoming castle sim. Having delved into the tribal history of Vietnam and the rise of the Qin Dynasty, we now explore the history of Genghis Khan and the Mongolian Steppes. Join Firefly’s very own Aaron Hayden and learn about the bloody foundations of the Mongol Empire, how a boy called Temüjin became one of the most influential leaders on the world stage. In Stronghold: Warlords you will join the Mongol Empire in its first conquests and skirmishes across Central Asia, so what better way to prepare yourself for the dozens of battles you’ll be orchestrating than a dose of early Empire History!

In September we launched our Official Stronghold Discord server and what a couple of months we’ve had. Stronghold players have entered and won multiple contests involving fan art, the Stronghold memes, poetry and even an acoustic love letter to The Pig! Now we’re all settled in with well over one thousand Discord members we’re finally ready to launch the official Stronghold: Warlords meta game.

The aim of our Warlords meta game is to generate coin for your team. The team with the most coin at the end of Phase One, which should end around Christmas time, wins access to our playable Alpha demo on Steam! Over the next few months our three teams will be presented with a map and a rough narrative we’ll be following. This will give you a number of decisions to make, voting on which path to take and dealing with the consequences of your actions.

If you haven’t yet joined the Discord now’s the time! Just follow our link in the description below, join the server and pick a side. Your team choices are: The Mongol Horde led by myself, the Japanese Shogun headed up by Natasha or Aaron’s Dynasty of China.

This week Firefly’s Aaron Hayden continues his journey into the history behind our latest ‘castle sim’. In this episode of ‘History Behind Stronghold‘ Aaron takes a deep dive into one of the most revolutionary, progressive and bloody episodes in history, the now famous period of ‘The Warring States of China’. This fascinating time of interstate conflict and civil unrest was the foundation for the Qin Dynasty, but how exactly did Qin Shi Huang actually become the ruler of this Dynasty and with it the first Emperor of China? Find out in this week’s video!

If you did happen to learn something from this somewhat unqualified history teacher, then be sure to check our our previous ‘History Behind Stronghold‘ on the legendary Thuc Phan and other Vietnamese legends. Make you’re also subscribed for future episodes on Mongolia and Japan, as we investigate the amazing events that laid the groundwork for the epic battles and sieges you will be orchestrating in Stronghold: Warlords next year.

We have just revealed the first set of units for Stronghold: Warlords, our upcoming ‘castle sim’ RTS. With a range of unique troops types from Mongolia, Japan, Vietnam and China, this new trailer focuses on units from the latter two regions. With their own strengths, counters, special abilities and tactics players will need to combine them all to succeed in the game’s 24 mission campaign and online multiplayer. Continue reading →

This week we premiere a brand new series featuring our upcoming strategy-simulation game, Stronghold: Warlords. History Behind Stronghold: Warlords will cover the incredibly vast histories of the different countries which you will be able to play as in the final game: Vietnam, China, Mongolia and Japan.

This episode Aaron takes you through the mythical origins of Vietnam, as well as the state of play for when you join Thuc Phan in our first historical campaign in-game. Learn about the heroes of Vietnamese legend, Lac Long Quan and Au Co. And their tragic romance, producing the ancestors of Vietnam.

If you did learn something from this unqualified history teacher, then make sure you’re subscribed for episodes on China, Mongolia and Japan as we investigate the amazing events that will lay the foundations for the epic battles and sieges you will be orchestrating in Stronghold: Warlords.

We’re back with another Feature Spotlight, our Stronghold: Warlords starring series dedicated to highlighting all the new and exciting mechanics and systems coming to our brand new strategy RTS game. This episode features the explosive new addition of Gunpowder!

A key technological event in East Asian history, the invention of Gunpowder completely changed the historic battlefield and how whole wars were waged. To honour this important moment in military history, we wanted to implement all manner of devious and devilish ways to employ gunpowder into your arsenal in Stronghold: Warlords. Through this new resource, you can construct unique castle defences, units and siege weaponry never before seen in a Stronghold title. Which will change up the Stronghold experience for even the most tested RTS veterans! Continue reading →

This week we bring you a very special episode of ‘Stronghold & Chill’ featuring Aaron, Nick, the Stronghold: Warlords Alpha Demo and a bunch of burning community questions! Since the Demo was released in its entirety via an Extended Let’s Play a couple of weeks ago, we’ve received all manner of queries and concerns about our new strategy simulation game: from building limits to peasant voice lines, we try and answer those questions here.

Join the defence of Aaron’s Lord as we show you two entirely different ways of playing (and beating!) the demo. Be warned, some of you more aesthetics concerned players may wince, and PETA may give us a ring regarding Oxen health and safety concerns, however none of that matters if our Lordship is fit and healthy!

Last week Firefly Studios marketers Nick and Aaron flew across the globe! Taking the first playable alpha demo of Stronghold: Warlords to fans at Tokyo Game Show, we were able to showcase our brand new East Asian ‘castle sim’ full of exploding fire oxen, gunpowder traps and the game-changing warlords system. After four days of Stronghold vets and strategy newcomers alike getting their first hands-on taste of our new strategy-simulation RTS, the pair then travelled across Japan to the city of Nagoya for location shooting and research. Soaking in the amazing feudal history, filming these medieval monoliths and documenting the features and layouts of incredible castles such as Gifu and Kiyosu, their mission was to provide first hand insight into our move east for Stronghold fans everywhere.

So sit back, relax and let Nick walk you through a brief account of the fascinating histories of Japan, China, Mongolia and Vietnam as we prepare to recreate some of the most incredible castles, battles and warlords of our time!