$ ls ./armies
Command-line warfare
Recruit, equip, and maneuver armies with typed orders. Your keyboard is your war room.
Our first game — in development
Total war, one terminal.
Terminal Empire is a total-war inspired strategy game that lives entirely in your terminal. Raise armies, march on provinces, and build an empire — one command at a time. No graphics card required. Just nerve.
A turn in the life of a commander
You are in command.
Every order is a command. Every command has consequences. Scouting, recruitment, marching, battle — all rendered in text and tactics, the way Total War intended but your terminal can actually handle.
Requirements: a terminal, a pulse. That's it.
$ ./terminal_empire --new-game
[ OK ] engine ........... ncurses 6.0
[ OK ] map .............. valdris continent, 42 provinces
[ OK ] faction .......... house of the golden stalk
[ OK ] difficulty ....... hard
[ OK ] save ............. ~/.terminal_empire/empire.save
WELCOME, COMMANDER.
turn 1 — spring, year 1003
> scout fernwood_pass
[ scout ] enemy garrison: 1,204 infantry, 300 cavalry
> recruit infantry 800
[ ok ] 800 infantry join your cause (gold: -2,400)
> march 2nd legion → fernwood_pass
[ ok ] 2nd legion will arrive in 3 turns
turn 4 — autumn, year 1003
> attack fernwood_pass
[ battle ] your losses: 312 / enemy: 1,204
[ victory ] fernwood_pass is yours. empire grows.
Features
What's under the hood.
Built from the ground up as a terminal-native game — not a GUI pretending to be retro.
$ cat map.asc
Total-war scale
A continent of provinces, shifting alliances, and seasons that change what you can do.
$ ./battle
ASCII battle maps
Terrain, formations, and casualties rendered in glorious monospace. Watch the lines move.
$ ./provinces
Empire management
Taxes, garrisons, loyalty, and diplomacy. Conquering is easy; holding is the game.
Development status
In the trenches.
Terminal Empire is actively in development by Sunflower Software. This page will grow as the game does — screenshots of the terminal, patch notes, and a launch date when we're ready.
Notify me at launchMilestones
- DONE Core engine — turn loop, saves, provinces
- DONE ASCII battle system — formations & terrain
- NOW Diplomacy & faction AI
- NEXT Campaign polish & playtesting
- SOON v1.0 launch
The throne is empty
Ready to command?
We're looking for bold players and sharp playtesters. Drop us a line and we'll put you on the list.