Diplomacy is Not an Option

Diplomacy is Not an Option (or simply DNO, as it has already been dubbed on Steam) is a spiritual successor of sorts to Stronghold. You have a fortress to build and defend, as well as loyal subjects — from simple peasant workers to soldiers who are essentially recruited from these same peasants. Yes, in detail it is a completely different game, but at its core it is the same strategy about walls, trebuchets and insidious enemies who can’t wait to smash everything to hell. Only instead of the dark Middle Ages, there is a colorful fantasy, where kings are stupid, magic is unfair, and the dead are for some reason very angry.

DNO is one of the brightest releases in the now rare RTS genre. We tell you what the game is catchy about, where the developers missed the mark, and why its name so aptly describes some moments of the gameplay.

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You are the heir to a small plot of land in a classic fantasy kingdom. Your grandfather was a legendary commander, stubborn as a ram, and incredibly successful. But you are unlucky with military glory: the country has long been at peace, great battles are a thing of the past, and the largest “conflict” in recent years is peasant rebellions against extortionate taxes. True, no one cares about the opinion of the peasants themselves.

As a result, your leisure time is reduced to idle pastime: wine flows like a river, feasts drag on until the morning, and boredom slowly but surely drives you crazy. Everything changes when the king decides to send you on a vital mission – to explore distant lands in search of gold. But the order missed a small nuance: the gold will have to be mined not by miners, but by forcibly taking it from local residents.

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DNO is a classic fantasy, imbued with humor and absurdity. Here the nobility are all narrow-minded, smug idiots, the higher powers are sarcastic left and right, and the fourth wall is cracking at the seams. The main character is a noble (in title, not in spirit) lord, tired of the endless routine and dreaming of great achievements. Modern problems? Well, of course – we can easily sympathize with him.

The missions are interspersed with cute cut-scenes, where humor reigns supreme. And to add even more color, all the characters speak a made-up gibberish language. But not just a meaningless set of sounds – each word has its own stable meaning and sound. For example, in your kingdom, “milord” is “pupulta”. And since it is customary to call the nobility exclusively by their title, rest assured – you will remember this word for a long time.

Build your own impregnable citadel in DNO

DNO is a game that will immediately seem familiar to all Stronghold fans. In the center of the map is your castle, the heart of your future domain, and in it is a humble beginning: a few peasants, a couple of workers and the main character. The first squad of soldiers is on duty at the gate, ready to defend. The first task is to establish resource extraction. Sawmills will allow you to harvest boards, quarries will build strong walls, and new houses will provide an influx of labor. But the economy here is simplified: you do not have to monitor complex production chains. There is no need to forge swords or rivet armor separately – it is enough to hire soldiers, paying only with resources.

But the main thing in DNO is building your own impregnable citadel. There are three types of walls: wooden, stone and reinforced with steel. You can place archers on them, install ballistas, set traps and build towers for scouts. Enemies are not asleep: your fortress can be attacked by bandits, undead, savages and even battle crabs! The simplified economy is compensated by other mechanics. For example, the game has a disease system: if you do not remove the corpses after a battle, they will begin to spread the infection. Cemeteries and gravediggers’ houses will help to cope with this problem, otherwise the epidemic will quickly mow down the population. And if you leave the dead for too long, they will rise again, turning into zombies.

The fantasy setting adds magic to the game: you can summon ghost knights, heal your army, or bring meteorites down from the sky. But for this you will need a special monolith and rare mana stones, which are mined in battle or found in magical sources. Residents do not pay taxes (which is, to put it mildly, strange for a medieval strategy), and gold is presented in the form of rare coins. They can only be obtained through trade: send an airship with resources beyond the edge of the map and after a while receive payment. However, coins are valued higher than gold here – for one you can hire an elite knight, and for several – build powerful buildings.

Huge technology tree

The game has an extensive research tree: from improving unit characteristics to new mechanics like sources of infinite resources. Moreover, in each mission, all content is available at once – restrictions are set only by the conditions of the scenario.

Research opens access to:

• Improving the combat characteristics of units
• Increasing the speed of peasants
• Unlocking new siege weapons
• Magic technologies and spells
• Ability to create unlimited sources of resources

So nothing prevents you from unlocking siege weapons, elite troops and powerful magic in the first tasks. If you like medieval strategies with fortresses, defense and fantasy elements, DNO is definitely your choice. Get ready to build, defend and lead invincible armies into battle!

DNO is a rare RTS where routine becomes an adventure

Where to place sawmills and warehouses to clear the territory as quickly as possible? How to place taverns and houses near fountains to get maximum bonuses? How to build a fortress not only effectively, but also beautifully? These questions are addictive, and time flies in the game. Just now you were clearing a bandit camp, then you built a tower, set up new farms – and now several hours have flown by in a flash.

But you can’t relax. Every few days, an enemy army is heading for your city. You know in advance when it will arrive, and the direction of the attack is revealed a couple of minutes before the strike. This creates a special rhythm: first you build, expand your borders, accumulate resources, hire troops, develop technologies – and then withstand the onslaught of a huge army.

And “huge” is not an exaggeration. The hordes of enemies here really are numbered in the thousands. Thanks to the minimalist graphics, the engine copes with such a scale without problems, so that epic battles unfold on the screen that can give a head start to Total War and the battle scenes of The Lord of the Rings.

Defense is only half the battle

Sounds cool, right? You build a mighty fortress, watch thousands of warriors clash in battle, rain down stones from trebuchets and flaming meteors on your enemies. No extra bases, no “zergrash” or complex RTS tactics – just sit behind the walls and defend for your own pleasure. Do you like strategies about defending a fortress? Great, then this is the place for you. You build calmly, build up your economy, wait for the mission to complete itself… Here, slow gameplay is a sure path to defeat. With each passing week, the attacks become stronger, and one day such an army will approach the walls that the fortifications will collapse even if no one strikes them with a sword. Therefore, everything must be done before a truly gigantic legion arrives.

To cope, you will have to act quickly. One hand drives the strike force, clearing the area of ​​bandits (they are a hindrance and, besides, they hold useful resources), the other develops the city, expands the borders, builds farms.

At the same time, you need to constantly balance between different tasks:

• Construction – you need to quickly erect buildings, fortifications and develop the economy.
• Military raids – regular raids are necessary to extract resources and clear the territory.
• Defense – strengthening the walls and placing troops must be thought out in advance, otherwise the next assault may be the last.

But there is little land, farms take up too much space, resources run out faster than you can blink, so you have to constantly conquer new territories and protect them with walls. As a result, the game, which looks like the successor to Stronghold with its siege-turtle gameplay, turns out to be one of the toughest RTS. Here you can’t just build up and wait for victory – you need to:

1. Conduct aggressive expansion, mastering new territories.
2. Competently manage cavalry and combat units.
3. Calculate the timing of technology development and construction.
4. Think through fortifications, because a simple double wall with a moat will not stop a hundred seasoned fighters.

DNO is a strategy game where defense is impossible without attack. A game that does not forgive slowness. And perhaps that is why it is so damn exciting to play.

Diplomacy is Not an Option System Requirements

How to play Diplomacy is Not an Option for free on Steam via VpeSports

Have you ever dreamed of trying Diplomacy is Not an Option, but are not ready to spend money? We have a cool opportunity to dive into this strategy epic absolutely free! Thanks to our service, you can access the game without any extra costs – just log into your ready account and start building your empire, fighting merciless waves of enemies.

To embark on this exciting adventure, all you need to do is register on the VpeSports website. After logging into your account, take a look at the free steam account section. Diplomacy is Not an Option is already waiting for you there. Open the game review page, click the download button and follow the clear instructions – the process of gaining access is as simple as possible. And, of course, we would be happy to hear your impressions! Leave a comment on our website, tell us how the first battles went. As soon as your review passes moderation, the login details will be sent to the email specified during registration.

Want to be in the center of events and be the first to know about updates? Join our Telegram channel and chat! There you will find not only the latest news, but also instant access to accounts, fresh patches, and useful tips for the game. Thanks to this, you will always be aware of new features and will be able to enjoy Diplomacy is Not an Option to the fullest.

If suddenly something went wrong, don’t worry! The site has a detailed guide “How to play for free“, which will explain step by step all the nuances of installing and launching the game. We are always ready to help, so go ahead – to the battlefield for your fortress!