Knights and Merchants is a medieval real-time strategy game grounded in Anglo-Saxon history circa 1200 A.D. You're a Palace Guard captain thrust into defending the kingdom's last loyal province after a coup fragments the realm. The core loop combines military campaigns with detailed economic management—you'll need functioning supply chains before fielding armies. Build and staff individual production buildings (farms, mills, weapon smithies), manage resource flows from raw materials to finished goods, then recruit and equip troops for province-by-province reconquest. No fantasy creatures or magic here. Success hinges on logistics: soldiers need food, blacksmiths need iron and coal, bakeries need grain from specific farm types. It's methodical rather than flashy. Suits players who enjoy watching interconnected systems hum along and don't mind micromanaging peasant job assignments.
