Empires of the Undergrowth

Forge Your Empire in the World of Ants with Empires of the Undergrowth

Empires of the Undergrowth invites players to dive into the fascinating and intricate world of ants, offering a real-time strategy experience that pushes the genre to new heights. As the commander of a thriving ant colony, you will build extensive nests, manage a complex hierarchy, and engage in intense battles, all while safeguarding your queen. This game uniquely blends resource management, tactical combat, and strategic planning within the dynamic ecosystem of the insect world.

Epic Battles and Strategic Warfare

Hundreds of warrior ants clash in epic melees, with formic acid artillery adding to the chaos. As night falls, workers scurry back to the nest, dodging beetles and delivering precious food. The stockpile is empty, and without it, reinforcements won’t hatch, leaving the colony vulnerable in the ongoing war between the duelling Empires of the Undergrowth.

Building and Optimizing Your Nest

Starting from a central room that hosts your queen, your workers will develop and optimize the nest—a vast network of storerooms, nurseries, and hallways. Dig through a hex-based maze of soil and bedrock, searching for food and fending off other underground dwellers. Expand beyond the confines of your nest to exploit the world above, where various food sources like seeds, nectar, fungus, and insects await. However, each food source comes with strategic tradeoffs and challenges, from ladybugs depleting honeydew drops to nocturnal creatures posing risks to your colony.

Managing Multiple Species and Nighttime Sorties

Control a multitude of ant species, each with unique attack patterns, natural weapons, and evolutionary paths tailored to tackle the dangers of your current biome. Nighttime sorties are essential to securing food supplies, but unsuspecting ants might fall prey to nocturnal dangers. By day, compete with other ant colonies, attacking their queens while defending your own. Coordinate simultaneous war efforts across multiple maps, adapting to threats and opportunities that evolve with each passing moment.

Advanced Pheromone Control

Workers return from the surface with valuable food, reinforcing the front as new warriors pour from nurseries, guided by pheromone trails. Design and organize multiple nurseries, assigning them individual pheromone groups that take orders through pheromone markers and adjustable rules of engagement. Navigating the behaviors of your ants and leveraging their strengths and weaknesses is crucial for success.

Specialized Ant Species and Tactical Decisions

Each ant species has distinct strengths and weaknesses. In special game modes, you can raise multiple species within the same colony, making strategic decisions that change the way you battle. Trap-jaw ants leap back to replenish hitpoints, while leafcutter majors draw enemy aggression. Wood ants can evolve to fire formic acid either as long-range artillery or in rapid, straight lines. Discover synergies between species and prepare to defend against rival colonies with superior tactics.

Diverse Enemies and Unique Challenges

Your enemies are varied, including other ant colonies, arachnids, amphibians, crustaceans, and numerous insect species. These formidable foes, often gigantic in comparison, require superior tactics to defeat. Employ envelopment maneuvers to counteract the stunning spray of a devil’s coach horse beetle, or isolate and overwhelm hermit crabs to prevent them from healing.

Narrative-Driven Campaign Mode

Empires of the Undergrowth features a narrative-driven campaign mode alongside classic RTS skirmishes and unique seasonal challenges. Follow the progress of a lab experiment centered around the Formica ereptor gene-thief ants and a documentary series exploring various ant species in their natural biomes. Earn resources through successful missions to upgrade your persistent lab colony and evolve according to your preferred playstyle, navigating brutal tests conducted in the name of science.

Empires of the Undergrowth offers a richly detailed and immersive strategy experience, challenging players to master the art of ant warfare and colony management. Will you lead your colony to dominance, or will the myriad threats of the insect world prove too formidable?