THE HIGH ROYAL COUNCIL

Royal Decrees Tier List & Strategy Matrix

Starting in Year 4 (and recurring every 4 years: Year 8, 12, 16), the High Royal Council gathers. A single S-Tier decree can double your kingdom's survivability or unlock exponential scaling loops.

The Imperial Council Mechanics & Timeline

👑4-Year Cycle

Convenes automatically at Years 4, 8, 12, and 16. Plan your gold reserves and card placements ahead of each meeting.

📜Permanent Rules

Decrees do not expire when a battle ends. Once ratified, their modifiers permanently alter the underlying mathematics of your run.

⚡The Overwork Law

Overwork (S-Tier) causes all support structures to trigger twice. It remains the uncontested #1 pick across all nine monarchs.

TIER S DECREES

Run-Defining Masteries • Pick On Sight

UniversalTier S

Overwork

All buildings trigger their passive production, buffs, and year-end effects an extra time.

Forces all kingdom infrastructure to labor twice as hard without resting.

Priority Monarchs:

King of SpellsKing of ProgressKing of TimeKing of Greed

Synergizes With:

Arcane LibraryAssembly Line WorkshopBeaconMarketplace

💡 Always pick this if offered in Year 4 or Year 8. Combine with Beacon for exponential attack frequency.

MilitaryTier S

Bunker

Increases all tower, bastion, and defensive structure attack speed by +50%.

Fortifies all battle stations with iron slats and reinforced firing slits.

Priority Monarchs:

King of NothingKing of StoneKing of Progress

Synergizes With:

WatchtowerRampart BallistaSteam Gatling CannonGranite Keep

💡 Synergizes heavily with the King of Nothing beginner build and King of Stone siege fortresses.

EconomyTier S

Development

Grants wildcards and flexible building slots for empty tiles on the 3x3 war board.

Directs crown engineers to cultivate unused lands into dynamic tactical zones.

Priority Monarchs:

King of NothingKing of NatureKing of GreedKing of Spells

Synergizes With:

Expansionist PerkAmplifierBeacon

💡 Enables placing high-tier buildings on plots that would otherwise be locked by terrain restrictions.

EconomyTier S

National Accord (Diplomatic Treaty)

Allows the player to make peace with selected rival kings, eliminating their hostile scaling and purifying the card draft pool.

Authorizes royal diplomats to negotiate non-aggression pacts with specific rival monarchs.

Priority Monarchs:

King of SpellsKing of NatureKing of StoneKing of Nothing

Synergizes With:

War vs Peace MetaKing IX Ascension Strategy

💡 Always make peace with King of Stone early so their siege catapults do not wipe your squishy backline in Year 12.

EconomyTier S

The Royal Loan

Gain +120 Gold immediately; player pays 5 Gold interest at the end of every following combat year.

Secures an immediate influx of treasury bullion from international merchant banking guilds.

Priority Monarchs:

King of GreedKing of Progress

Synergizes With:

Vault of MidasHired SellswordCompound Interest Perk

💡 Take this early (Year 4) if you can immediately hit the 50g interest threshold for Vault of Midas.

MilitaryTier S

Imperial Smithy

All military units gain +40% base physical damage and 15% armor penetration against shielded bosses.

Equips army divisions with masterwork steel weapons and armor-piercing broadheads.

Priority Monarchs:

King of NothingKing of NomadsKing of Stone

Synergizes With:

BlacksmithPaladin ChampionLongbowmanSteppe Raider

💡 Pair with Blacksmith in Tile 5 to grant frontline Paladins astronomical physical cleave damage.

TIER A DECREES

High-Impact Engines & Synergies

SurvivalTier A

Feast

All biological units and beasts gain permanent +35% Health and +10% Movement Speed.

Orders royal granaries opened to feed the populace and beast herds lavish celebratory banquets.

Priority Monarchs:

King of NatureKing of Nothing

Synergizes With:

Wild Boar ChargerSpore SpitterPaladin ChampionPrimal Stamina Perk

💡 Must-pick for King of Nature players running Boar stampede compositions.

UniversalTier A

Exploration

Permanently unlocks an extra auxiliary grid plot adjacent to your 3x3 territory.

Dispatches royal scouts to clear surrounding wilderness beyond the fortress moat.

Priority Monarchs:

King of NothingKing of NatureKing of Greed

Synergizes With:

Development DecreeExpansionist Perk

💡 Use the extra plot for passive Vaults, Arcane Libraries, or Farm spawners to keep the combat 3x3 clean.

UniversalTier A

Multiculturalism

All units on your board gain +10% Health and +10% Damage for each distinct faction represented in your deck.

Harmonizes customs and martial disciplines from diverse conquered and allied kingdoms.

Priority Monarchs:

King of NothingKing of SpellsKing of Nomads

Synergizes With:

Diversification DecreeJoker Mode

💡 If your war table incorporates cards from 4 different monarchs, every unit receives a massive flat +40% boost.

UniversalTier A

Diversification

Every card draft offering presents +1 extra card drawn from a random off-faction monarch.

Welcomes foreign merchants and hedge wizards into the capital draft pavilions.

Priority Monarchs:

King of NothingKing of NomadsKing of Greed

Synergizes With:

Multiculturalism DecreeBargain Decree

💡 Essential for draft cross-pollination. Allows King of Nothing to reliably draft Combustion from Spells.

MilitaryTier A

Futurism

Accelerates mechanical structure production speeds by 35% and increases tier upgrade frequency.

Mandates rapid industrial re-tooling across all workshops and clockwork divisions.

Priority Monarchs:

King of ProgressKing of Time

Synergizes With:

Assembly Line WorkshopClockwork SoldierUniverse 25 Quest

💡 Allows two adjacent workshops to construct an unstoppable automated army in seconds.

MagicTier A

Spell Echo

When any spell or enchantment is cast, a secondary phantom echo is recast for free after 3 seconds.

Attunes royal citadels to reverberate with the sonic frequency of ancient ley lines.

Priority Monarchs:

King of SpellsKing of Time

Synergizes With:

Chain LightningStatic ChargeCombustionTemporal Singularity

💡 Draft this alongside Chain Lightning to wipe double-column elite waves effortlessly.

EconomyTier A

Bargain

Reduces card draft purchasing costs by -1 Gold (minimum 1 Gold). Rerolls cost 50% less.

Authorizes royal envoys to negotiate wholesale bulk discounts on all trade commodities.

Priority Monarchs:

King of GreedKing of Nomads

Synergizes With:

Shopping Spree QuestTax Collector Decree

💡 Saves dozens of gold across an 18-year run, allowing you to draft high-rarity Capstones with ease.

SurvivalTier A

Embalming

When any friendly unit perishes, it leaves behind an embalmed corpse that revives as a Skeleton after 4s.

Applies sacred unguents and preservation salts to preserve fallen soldiers on the battlefield.

Priority Monarchs:

King of BloodKing of Nothing

Synergizes With:

Sacrificial AltarCemeteryNecropolis Quest

💡 Turns your frontline into an unyielding attrition nightmare. Excellent buffer against relentless boss assaults.

TIER B DECREES

Solid Tactical Support

SurvivalTier B

Blood Pact

Citadel loses 15% maximum HP; in exchange, all allied frontliners gain +30% Lifesteal and +25% Damage.

Binds royal guards to an unholy blood oath, sacrificing palace health for devastating martial fury.

Priority Monarchs:

King of BloodKing of Nothing

Synergizes With:

Paladin ChampionVampirismSacrificial Altar

💡 High-risk decree; combine with Paladin self-healing to turn high ascension runs into unstoppable leech tanks.

MagicTier B

Transmutation

Discarding cards from your hand permanently grants +4 Gold per card recycled.

Employs court alchemists to convert unwanted war surplus into pure liquid gold.

Priority Monarchs:

King of GreedKing of Spells

Synergizes With:

Fugitive QuestArchmage of the Veil

💡 Crucial for navigating debt trap quests like Fugitive where starting gold is negative.

MilitaryTier B

Stone Shield

All defensive fortifications and vanguard units gain +30 flat Armor.

Reinforces all frontline battlements with quarry granite blocks.

Priority Monarchs:

King of StoneKing of Nothing

Synergizes With:

Stone GolemSteel CoatEarthworks Bastion

💡 Renders physical arrows and basic infantry attacks completely harmless.

MilitaryTier B

Marching Orders

Increases all unit movement speed by +40% and grants 10% dodge against ranged ballistas.

Drills cavalry divisions in rapid flanking and cross-battlefield maneuvering.

Priority Monarchs:

King of NomadsKing of Nature

Synergizes With:

Steppe RaiderWild Boar Charger

💡 Allows melee units to close the distance against enemy catapults before taking heavy siege damage.

EconomyTier B

Tax Collector

Converts 25% of all enemy wave gold bounties into permanent treasury deposits.

Appoints ruthless baliffs to extract tribute from conquered fiefdoms.

Priority Monarchs:

King of GreedKing of Nothing

Synergizes With:

Vault of MidasHired Sellsword

💡 Provides steady compound income throughout long 20-year runs.

MagicTier B

Oddity (Chaos Decree)

All cards with odd-numbered gold costs (1g, 3g) gain +50% stats; even-numbered cards cost +1g.

Distorts cosmic numerology across the deck of cards.

Priority Monarchs:

King of SpellsKing of Blood

Synergizes With:

Stalwart Footman (1g)Paladin Champion (3g)Sacrificial Altar (3g)

💡 Incredible if your core win condition relies on 1-cost and 3-cost cards like Paladin and Footman.

MilitaryTier B

General Conscription

Defeating enemy waves refunds 10% of their base value as fresh recruit cards for the next year.

Drafts defeated enemy conscripts directly into auxiliary labor battalions.

Priority Monarchs:

King of NothingKing of Nomads

Synergizes With:

Marching Orders DecreeRoyal Farm

💡 Maintains army density during late-game horde waves without expending gold on shop purchases.

TIER C DECREES

Emergency Situational Picks

SurvivalTier C

Desperate Measures

When your Citadel falls below 30% HP, all surviving friendly units gain +100% damage.

When the crown itself is endangered, all subjects enter a berserk defensive frenzy.

Priority Monarchs:

King of BloodKing of Nothing

Synergizes With:

Paladin ChampionVampirism

💡 High-risk decree; ideal for clutch comeback victories, but good builds should never let the Citadel fall so low.