Fallowborn

A free “grand” strategy game in your browser. You start as a serf.

Serf → Freeholder → Gentry → Baron → Count → Duke → King → Emperor

▶  Play free in your browser Stable build on itch.io

An English serf who’ll die in the mud he was born in. A blacksmith’s apprentice in Aquitaine. A hedge knight with a good horse and an empty purse. Pick one of seven lives and drag your bloodline up the ladder before it dies out — one funeral at a time, while ~65 AI realms fight their own wars and redraw the map around you.

Screenshots

Fallowborn gameplay: the map of Europe in 867 AD, starting life as a serf with a character sheet
You start here — a serf and a map, 867 AD.
Fallowborn event 'The Taxman Cometh' offering the player three choices
Events with teeth — the taxman cometh.
Fallowborn family tree showing generations of the Urgell dynasty, living and dead
The family tree — each brood hangs beneath its parents.
Fallowborn gameplay a century in: playing as Baron of Aragon in 963 AD
A lifetime later — a baron weighing his next move, 963 AD.
Fallowborn running in a mobile browser, portrait layout with tap-friendly controls
The whole thing fits on a phone.

FAQ

Is Fallowborn really free?

Yes — free, and it stays free. No download, no account, no ads. It runs in a browser tab, and tips on Ko-fi are welcome, never expected.

What kind of game is it?

A grand strategy game played one life at a time. You start as a serf in 867 AD and guide one bloodline up the ladder — serf, freeholder, gentry, baron, count, duke, king, emperor — while ~65 AI realms fight their own wars and redraw the map around you.

Do I need to download or install anything?

No. It runs entirely in the browser, on desktop or phone. There's also a stable build on itch.io if you prefer.

What happens when my character dies?

You carry on as the heir — and if the heir is a child, you raise them. Progress is measured in funerals. The end screen reads back every life you played.

Can I play on my phone?

Yes. It runs in a mobile browser, and old hardware is a target, not an afterthought — “it chugs on my 2012 phone” is a genuinely useful bug report.