Northgard Battlegrounds enters Early Access as a roguelike auto-battler
The Northgard spin-off swaps real-time strategy for card picks, god favour and a 10-win run, with roughly six months planned in Early Access.
Northgard Battlegrounds is available now in Early Access, according to gamingonlinux.com. The game is a spin-off of the real-time strategy title Northgard, and moves the series into auto-battler territory.
Battles are asynchronous, fought against data stored from other players rather than a live opponent. Each turn, players spend gold on buildings and then choose from three cards, which are divided into Gifts, Blessings and Runes. Picking certain cards builds favour with particular gods, who then offer stronger options.
Placement matters as well: buildings grant bonuses to structures adjacent to them. The season shifts every 4 rounds a player survives, bringing rarer structures and tougher enemies. A run ends successfully at 10 wins, or at 5 losses.
The developer expects Northgard Battlegrounds to remain in Early Access for around six months, a period that will be used for balancing and for adding more clans and content.
The site tested the game on Linux with Fedora KDE 45 running Proton 11.0-2. The original Northgard, released earlier, was a real-time strategy game in which players build up a settlement and take territory.
Quick answers
What is Northgard Battlegrounds?
It is an auto-battler spin-off of Northgard, with asynchronous battles against data stored from other players and turn-based card picks.
How long will Northgard Battlegrounds stay in Early Access?
The developer expects around six months, used for balancing and adding more clans and content.
How does a run in Northgard Battlegrounds end?
The goal is to reach 10 wins before 5 losses, with the season changing every 4 rounds survived.