ETCHED COURTThe Etched Court field guide
A detailed guide to gameplay, faction matchups, our Hero Academy and Outwitters inspirations, and what is coming to the closed alpha.
Etched Court is an independent fantasy turn-based tactics game built around faction-versus-faction duels. Two players command armies on a compact square battlefield, spending action points to deploy, move, fight, and support their units. You win by destroying the opposing base or exhausting the opposing army. Different factions bring different abilities and ways to approach the same battlefield.
Etched Court is for players who enjoy thinking through a turn, learning the character of an army, and finding a clever sequence of moves. If you miss the compact tactical duels of Hero Academy or enjoy the positional decisions of Outwitters, the direction should feel familiar. Practice and puzzles also provide ways to learn before facing another player.
It is a battlefield tactics game with a hand of units, artifacts, and spells. Cards determine what you can bring into play, but positioning and the order of actions on the board decide how those options work. Protecting a support unit, opening an attack lane, or moving an enemy off a useful tile can matter as much as the card you deploy.
No. Players take turns, with time to consider their actions. Local pass-and-play is in the current build. Online asynchronous duels are in development so opponents can take their turns at different times. The game is designed around planning a turn rather than fast inputs or reflexes.
Yes. Vanguard and Wraithbound are the first factions implemented so far, not the limits of the game. Etched Court is planned to launch with a broader faction roster, including free factions and factions available through paid unlocks. Further faction names, the final roster size, and prices have not been announced.
Factions share a readable set of battlefield roles, but their abilities change how those roles work together. A defender might push an enemy out of position in one army and threaten nearby units in another. Learning a faction means understanding its combinations; learning a matchup means understanding how your opponent can disrupt them.
Vanguard is one of the first factions available in the current build and part of the planned free offering. It uses disciplined positioning, knockback, and coordinated movement. Its signature Captain can redeploy an ally, turning a defensive formation into a new angle of attack. It is an introduction to the roster, rather than one of two permanent sides in the setting.
Wraithbound is another of the first implemented factions and part of the planned free offering. Its half-wraith army uses life-leech, pulls, and attrition. Dealing damage restores health to the attacker, while its signature Harvester grows stronger through enemy defeats. It provides an early example of how a faction can change the decisions behind familiar unit roles.
The shared role vocabulary is defender, striker, ranged attacker, healer, scout, and signature unit. These roles make an unfamiliar army easier to read, while faction-specific abilities create new combinations. The aim is to give each roster its own tactical identity without making players relearn every basic rule.
No. The launch plan includes free factions and optional paid faction unlocks. Vanguard and Wraithbound form the confirmed free starting pair, with more factions planned for the launch roster. The final free-versus-paid allocation for the rest of that roster will be announced as those factions are revealed.
The design goal is different tactical options, not an advantage bought through higher stats or extra action points. Paid factions are intended to have their own abilities and playstyles while competing fairly with free factions. Balance will need testing across matchups; the alpha is part of that work. Prices and the purchase flow are not final.
The current rules give you five action points per turn. Deploying, moving, attacking, healing, and other actions spend that shared budget. You can divide actions across several units or activate the same unit repeatedly while points remain. The challenge is choosing which sequence does the most for your position before you hand the turn over.
Combat damage is deterministic in the current rules: attacks resolve from the units, equipment, abilities, and relevant tile bonuses. Hand draws and some starting battlefield details can vary, so not every match begins with the same options. The attack itself is something you can plan around instead of a random hit roll.
Yes. You can undo actions within your current turn before ending it. That lets you reconsider positioning and action order while working toward a plan. Once you commit the turn, that undo window closes. Undo is a planning tool inside your turn, not a way to take back a turn after seeing the opponent’s response.
Destroy your opponent’s base or exhaust their army. Under the current attrition rule, an opponent loses when they have no living units and no unit cards or deployment resources remaining to bring another unit into play. This gives you reasons to threaten both the base and the army protecting it.
A unit reduced to zero health is downed on its tile. A healer can revive a downed ally, while moving a living unit onto a downed enemy removes that enemy permanently. A knockout can therefore create another decision: secure the elimination, rescue an ally, or spend your remaining actions elsewhere.
Artifacts equip units with effects such as extra damage, protection, or movement. Spells provide immediate options such as damage, healing, or removing equipment. Special battlefield tiles reward occupying useful positions. These systems create combinations with faction abilities, so a familiar unit can have a different job depending on its equipment and where it stands.
The launch format is Square Court, a compact square grid with orthogonal movement and range. Positioning, blockers, and attack lanes are designed around that shared format. Hex boards are not part of the announced launch offering.
Yes. Hero Academy by Robot Entertainment is a central inspiration: small battlefields, meaningful action-point decisions, and armies with distinct tactical identities. Etched Court follows its own development path with an original setting, faction designs, rules, and engraved art. We credit that influence because it is part of why we wanted to build this kind of game.
Outwitters by One Man Left is another important reference for compact positional battles and armies whose signature abilities can reshape a plan. Etched Court explores that appeal through its own square battlefield, faction-specific unit abilities, and a hand of units, artifacts, and spells. The connection is a shared interest in readable battles with room for clever play.
No. Etched Court is an independent game by Benum Labs. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or a continuation of Hero Academy, Outwitters, or their developers. Those games are credited as inspirations, while Etched Court’s setting, artwork, factions, and ongoing development belong to its own project.
The aim is to bring back the pleasure of studying a small battlefield, finding a turn that does more than expected, and learning how one army answers another. Etched Court combines action-point planning with faction asymmetry and a distinct engraved fantasy world. It is still in alpha, so joining the list is a way to help test that direction rather than a promise of a finished replacement.
Etched Court brings an engraved visual identity, its own faction roster, and abilities such as the Captain’s ally redeployment and the Harvester’s growth through enemy defeats. Its current build combines square-grid battles, equipment and spell cards, knockout and revival decisions, practice matches, and tactical puzzles. The roster and online experience are still being developed.
Use the signup form on the home page to leave your email and preferred platform. Benum Labs will contact selected testers as places become available. Joining the list does not grant immediate access or guarantee an invitation. An invitation will explain the available build and how to take part.
The current build includes local pass-and-play, practice against a bot, and twelve single-turn Tactical Academy puzzles. Vanguard and Wraithbound are the implemented factions so far. Online asynchronous duels and the broader launch roster are in development. Features, balance, and presentation may change between tests.
Online asynchronous duels, friend invitations, and matchmaking are in active development. The goal is to let players answer a turn without needing to be online together. These features are not presented as a finished public service during the closed alpha. Local pass-and-play already offers a way to face another person on one device.
Yes. The current build has practice matches against a bot and the Tactical Academy’s twelve curated puzzles across three chapters. Puzzles ask you to solve a situation within a single turn and a limited action budget. They provide a focused way to explore movement, combinations, and faction mechanics before playing another person.
The game is being developed for web browser play. Dedicated mobile releases are under consideration, but store availability and dates have not been announced. The alpha signup form lets you indicate a browser, iPhone or iPad, or Android preference; that preference helps planning and is not a promise that a native app is already available.
A public release date has not been announced. The closed alpha is being used to test the tactical foundations while online play and more factions are developed. The launch plan includes a broader roster than the two factions implemented today, with both free and paid faction access.
This site, etchedcourt.com, is the home for game information, alpha signup, and future platform links. Invited testers use the prerelease environment at play.benumlabs.com. Public browser play is planned for play.etchedcourt.com. Joining the email list does not create a game account or bypass prerelease access controls.
Etched Court is developed by Benum Labs, an independent software studio based in Norway and founded by Håvard L. Benum. It is a studio-owned game with its own setting and art direction. You can read more about the project on the About page and more about the studio at benumlabs.com.
The visual direction is inspired by hand-inked illustrations, weathered copperplate engravings, Nordic woodcarvings, and worn physical tabletop pieces. Cross-hatched shadows, restrained colors, and a stone court give it a grounded fantasy identity. Distinct unit silhouettes and faction motifs are intended to keep a dense tactical situation readable.
The signup asks for permission to send alpha invitations and testing updates, not unrelated marketing. It collects your email address and preferred platform, alongside the time and version of your consent. You can leave the list by contacting contact@benumlabs.com. The privacy notice explains how the list is handled.