Factions
Factions are the heart of every reign. After your first Abdication you can pledge your realm to one faction per run; the pledge lasts until you abdicate again. Factions are deliberately unequal: each one shines at a different stage or play style, so rulers rotate between them.
Deeds
Which factions will listen depends on the deed you buy this reign (one per run):
- Proof of Light Deed (150K gold): Swear to the light. Opens the Elves, Dwarves and Angels.
- Proof of Dark Deed (150K gold): Swear to the dark. Opens the Undead, Goblins and Demons.
- Proof of Neutrality (50M gold): Swear to no banner. Opens the Giants, the Wardens and the Veiled.
The neutral deed appears once a neutral faction has been unlocked.
Base factions
| Faction | Alignment | Spell | Mechanic |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elves | Light | Verdant Bloom | Growth: production climbs the longer the run lasts (up to +300%). Offline earnings x1.5. |
| Dwarves | Light | Deep Delve | Masonry: buildings cost 10% less. +0.12% production per building owned; Ore Mines +0.4% each. |
| Angels | Light | Holy Light | Grace: +200% production, +80% more per active spell. Spells 50% stronger, +50 max mana, +0.5 mana/s. |
| Undead | Dark | Raise Dead | Legion: +10% production per abdication this reincarnation. +15% per digit of crowns. Each crown worth +0.2% more. |
| Goblins | Dark | Goblin Greed | Plunder: taps x3 and add 5% of gold/sec. Faction coins found 5x as often. +100% production per log10(run taps). |
| Demons | Dark | Hellfire | Greed: +6% production per log10(gold banked) and +4% per log10(gold spent this run). Buildings cost 10% more. |
Neutral factions
Three neutral factions must be unlocked first; see their pages for the riddle that points the way.
| Faction | Alignment | Spell | Mechanic |
|---|---|---|---|
| Giants | Neutral | Thunderclap | Thunderhoard: Royal Exchanges give x2.5 production each and their cost grows slower; +2% production per Grey Bastion. |
| Wardens | Neutral | Equinox | Equilibrium: your least-owned building (T1-T10) catches up on your three most-owned at a 25% share; +1 max mana per 15 buildings; production +40% x balance (fewest / most owned, T1-T10). |
| Veiled | Neutral | Whisper Tide | Hive Memory: production +25% per sqrt(lifetime hour as the Veiled), kept forever; offline x2; each crown +0.1% more. |
Sellsword
The Sellsword fights under any deed and borrows the tricks of factions you have championed.
Faction coins and gates
While a faction rules you find its faction coins as you play. Coins reset on every abdication and pay for the faction's upgrade gates:
- Trade Treaty (5 faction coins): opens upgrades up to 3
- Friendship Pact (20 faction coins): opens upgrades up to 6
- Alliance (50 faction coins): opens upgrades up to 10
Each faction has 10 upgrades, bought with gold once their gate is open.
- Royal Exchange: repeatable, 10 coins (x1.1 each time), +5% production each.
- Champion: buy all 10 of a faction's upgrades in one run to become its champion (permanent).
A champion may adopt that faction's heritage in later runs (15 coins, x2 for each further heritage that run).
- Bloodline (from R2): once per run, pick the bloodline perk of a faction you have played.
Second Banner
Later, a second faction can fly beside your own as a Second Banner: an ally of your alignment, or one of the prestige factions, the Gnomes (light) and the Vampires (dark).