Dot Conquest is a real-time strategy game on a hex map. You command an army of small, googly-eyed dots, take cities, claim land, and beat AI generals. A battle against one rival takes about four minutes; with four sides, about nine. This page is the whole game, rule by rule, in the game's own words.
The goal
Two ways to win, then: take every city, or hold 90% of the map. The top bar shows your share against the share that wins, so you always know how close you are.
Cities make your army
You never buy a dot. Cities make them, all the time:
And your army has a size limit that grows with your cities:
So the economy of Dot Conquest is simple: more cities, more dots, a bigger limit. Every other rule is about getting and keeping cities.
Moving your dots
Two moves do almost everything. In a browser, a left-drag chooses dots and a right-click sends them; on a phone, a long press draws a lasso and a tap sends.
A command always goes to the whole group, never a share of it. If you want two groups, lasso twice.
Taking a city
Neutral cities are guarded, and the number under each one says by how many. More in capturing cities.
Land, supply and walling in
Your dots paint land, and land matters in three ways.
The last one is the big one: surround land with your own and it flips, dots and all. Flipping land by enclosure shows how to use it.
Five kinds of dot
| Dot | HP | Damage | Speed | Strong against | Weak against |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Light | 10 | 3 | 10 | Scout, Siege | Heavy |
| Heavy | 25 | 6 | 5 | Light | Scout, Siege |
| Scout | 6 | 1 | 14 | Siege | Light, Heavy, Medic |
| Siege | 15 | 2 | 4 | Heavy | Light, Scout, Siege, Medic |
| Medic | 8 | 0 | 8 | Does not fight | Does not fight |
Each kind beats some kinds and loses to others; the counter chart sets them side by side. Three of them also have an ability they use by themselves: the Siege's shell, the Medic's burst and the Heavy's charge. See the three abilities.
Councils
Councils are where a battle's plan comes from. The countdown is shown, never hidden, and a few things on the map speed it: see ruins, mines and the council countdown.
The siege phase
The siege phase is how long battles end: it makes cities easier to take, so a stalemate breaks. More in the siege phase.
What is not in the game
No fog of war: you see everything, and so does every rival. No hidden bonuses: a unit's damage comes from the matchup, the ground and its side's cards, and a card says what it does. No morale and no automatic retreat: your dots do what you tell them, with one exception you can see coming, the Heavy's charge.
Where to go next
- New to the game: your first ten battles.
- New to real-time strategy: the glossary.
- Ready to play: the game runs in a desktop browser, free.